Preaching Question of the Week: Where do you find reminders of God's love?

Dallas Willard writes that we preachers can tell if we are running dry spiritually by the kinds of questions we ask ourselves right after the worship service is over. When our first questions are, "How did it go?" or "What could I have done differently?" there is a good chance that we are running on empty. It's not because spiritually full preachers never preach bad sermons. They can and do. Rather, it's because those who have found their deepest satisfaction in Christ know that how the service or sermon goes depends upon God far more than it depends upon us. We should do our best, yes, but without God our best is never good enough.

Empty preachers are constantly attempting to fill themselves up with the assurance that the service went well - the preacher's equivalent of the schoolboy's good grade. Preachers filled to the brim with God's presence know that "successful" services are a poor substitute for the presence of God, who can be present in the poorest of services.

I admit, this word strikes at one of my most glaring weakness as a preacher. So often I look for satisfaction not in the love of God about which I preach, but rather, in preaching well about the love of God. How silly. How excruciatingly frustrating. My performance never satisfies, nor was it meant to satisfy that part of my soul that was meant for God alone. I remember a line from an old Switchfoot song, a prayer really, "God, let me know that you love me, and let that be enough." I don't pray that prayer nearly enough.

So the question of the week is this - Is this a struggle for you? If so, how do resist the urge to find your worth in preaching instead of in the God of whom you preach? Where in life and ministry do you find the best reminders of God's love?

Preaching Quote of the Week

"A large part of what the pastor does in preaching and life is to listen and help people feel their real needs, not just superficial needs. The satisfied preacher speaks from a listening heart. Since people often do not know what they really need, such preaching can help them find out. This requires a spaciousness that only comes if your cup is running over because you are well-cared for by God." - Dallas Willard

Illustration-a-day: How much money does it take to be rich?

According to a Reuters article by Helen Kearney, Fidelity Investments recently surveyed over one thousand millionaires and asked them, "How much money do you need to have to be truly rich?" The millionaires, whose average investments hover at around $3.5 million, answered that they would need at least $7.5 million to actually be rich. The main issues concerning one's perception of how rich you are involve your peer group (how rich am I compared to my friends) and whether or not your money can support your lifestyle until you die. If you read the article, be sure to pay attention to the percentage of the millionaires who do not consider themselves wealthy.

You can read the Reuter's article here.

Illustration a day: What makes rich people sad?

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/concerns-super-rich-wealth-bring-happiness/story?id=13167578

A great article on the limits of wealth to make a person happy. The article is well balanced. It recognizes the misery of poverty. On most days, it is better than to have some money over having none. But there are limits to how much happiness can come from having lots and lots of money. Having lots of money can cause as many problems as it solves. The quotes from the super wealthy are great. One section in the article rich (no pun intended!) for application is the section that talks about how spending one's money can shape one's happiness. Spending one's money on others does seem to improve one's happiness.

This article lends itself to several different possibilities for sermon use.