{"id":31152,"date":"2022-09-10T15:18:58","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/what-the-pandemic-taught-me-about-my-preaching-preferences\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:18:58","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:18:58","slug":"what-the-pandemic-taught-me-about-my-preaching-preferences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/what-the-pandemic-taught-me-about-my-preaching-preferences\/","title":{"rendered":"What the Pandemic Taught Me About My Preaching Preferences"},"content":{"rendered":"
adamkaz photo – Getty <\/p>\n

By Darron L. Edwards<\/em><\/p>\n

In his brilliant and inspiring Lectures on Preaching<\/em> (1877), Phillips Brooks held that there were two elements necessary for effective Christian preaching: truth and personality.<\/p>\n

Truth is \u201cfixed and stable,\u201d Brooks said. It\u2019s eternal and universal. He wanted preachers to focus on the life of Christ, such that people would know Him and want to follow Him. On the other hand, personality is \u201cvariable and growing.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, what happens when \u201cfixed and stable\u201d meets \u201cvariable and growing?\u201d This is where the rubber meets the road. We\u2019re now preaching in new forums and venues that for some feels uncomfortable.<\/p>\n

If the saying that we\u2019re not growing until we are uncomfortable is true, we may be entering into a strengthened spiritual maturity.<\/p>\n

One of my preaching professors once said, \u201cPreaching is God\u2019s truth strained through human personality.\u201d COVID-19 has exposed so many problems in our world.<\/p>\n

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Within the church, this pandemic has exposed the preacher\u2019s personality. Our new COVID-19 normal has taught me a few things about my personality preferences\u2014particularly when it comes to preaching venues\/environments.<\/p>\n

In order to reach diverse audiences in this pandemic, we have employed three diverse worship environments which, in my humble opinion, require three different styles of sermon delivery.<\/p>\n

As you know, the message remains the same, but the methodology and delivery must change. I\u2019ve discovered I can\u2019t preach the same message the same way because the environments are not the same.<\/p>\n

Here are three different environments to which our church has adapted\u2014and what I\u2019ve learned through preaching in each one.<\/p>\n

Environment #1: The Empty Sanctuary<\/strong><\/h3>\n

When the pandemic hit, I pivoted to what made me the most comfortable and easily adaptable.<\/p>\n

I began by preaching live in a mostly empty sanctuary to a virtual congregation. There were fewer than 10 essential staff members in the building.<\/p>\n

Even when I\u2019m preaching in an empty sanctuary, I\u2019m still in my natural habitat.<\/p>\n

It still feels like church; I have the praise band and praise team with me. And the Spirit of the Lord is still present while my congregation is physically absent.<\/p>\n

Environment #2: The Outdoor Service<\/strong><\/h3>\n

As the pandemic lingered, we moved to producing \u201cPark & Praise Services.\u201d I\u2019ll confess: This is my least favorite environment. I feel uncomfortable in this scenario.<\/p>\n

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I learned fast that people only need the big idea in this environment. After all, they\u2019re sitting in their cars, and they\u2019re becoming increasingly restless in an hour.<\/p>\n

This environment, however, has a deep reaching impact in terms of creating opportunities for your congregation to gather in unique ways.<\/p>\n

I enjoy seeing them more than I think they enjoy hearing me. If your building is still closed, please remember your people haven\u2019t seen each other, and this provides a safer way for fellowship to occur.<\/p>\n

Environment #3:  Pre-Recorded Services<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Now to my overall favorite: I personally enjoy virtual pre-recorded services.<\/p>\n

This may be because of my personality type; I prefer this environment because it allows more control over the end product. I can edit and omit as I see fit.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all sat in a church service and wished a certain song was omitted, or that an announcement or testimony was edited.<\/p>\n

I enjoy having real-time conversations as I sit with others during the pre-recorded sermon as I learn what resonates with people who hunger and thirst for God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\n

I love virtual engagement and reading comments on what resonated with them through \u201chearts\u201d\/”likes.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a preacher, I\u2019m supposed<\/em> to love the shouts of amen, the space of the sanctuary, padded pews, committees, and warm bodies, right? I do, but I\u2019m realizing virtual service is quickly becoming a new normal.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t miss this moment! What we discover now will linger with us in whatever comes next.<\/p>\n

And whatever changes in this season of human and church history, we can take solace in knowing that whether we\u2019re on Zoom or standing behind a beautifully carved pulpit, our task is ever constant: We must preach the Word.<\/p>\n

What have you learned about preaching in this pandemic? What different venues have you preached at in this COVID-19 world?<\/p>\n

DARRON L. EDWARDS (@darronledwards)<\/strong> is the lead pastor of United Believers Church in Kansas City, Missouri. <\/em><\/p>\n

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Dig Deeper at Lifeway.com<\/div>\n
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The Church Recovery Guide: How Your Congregation Can Adapt and Thrive After a Crisis<\/h2>\n

Karl Vaters<\/p>\n

FIND OUT MORE <\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Related posts:<\/h3>\n
Churches Still Recovering From Pandemic Losses What Do Pastors Believe About the End Times? What Do Pastors Believe About the Book of Revelation? 3 Ways to Reach Non-Religious People in Your Community <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

adamkaz photo – Getty By Darron L. Edwards In his brilliant and inspiring Lectures on Preaching (1877), Phillips Brooks held that there were two elements necessary for effective Christian preaching: truth and personality. Truth is \u201cfixed and stable,\u201d Brooks said. It\u2019s eternal and universal. He wanted preachers to focus on the life of Christ, such … Continue reading “What the Pandemic Taught Me About My Preaching Preferences”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31152"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31152\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}