“Each of the five components plays a specific and important role in facilitating the communication journey. ME orients the audience to the topic. It answers the question, 'What is he/she talking about?' WE assures the audience that this is a relevant topic for them. It allows the communicator to identify with the audience. The GOD section serves as illumination. Here is where we bring a new perspective to or shine fresh light on a specific tension. YOU is simply application. WE is the placeholder for inspiration."
The authors explore various elements of developing a one-point message using this five-step model, including ways to engage the audience and work through times when the sermon just isn’t coming together. The book is filled with practical advice to enhance communication.
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An interesting feature if this book is that it begins with a story of a preacher frustrated by his own inability to connect with his congregation. He finds an unlikely mentor who helps him begin to understand the principles that are then explored in more detail in the second half of the book.
Readers of Communicating for a Change will feel the passion with which Stanley and Lane make their case. As they state, “Every single person who sits politely and listens to you on Sunday is one decision away from moral, financial, and marital ruin. Every one of ‘em. Many are considering options with consequences that will follow them the remainder of their lives. . . . There is much at stake. There are many at risk. The great news is the pages of Scripture are filled with principles, narratives, and truth that address each of those needs. The question you must answer is, to what extreme are you willing to go to create a delivery system that will connect with the heart of your audience? Are you willing to abandon a style, an approach, a system that was designed in another era for a culture that no longer exists?”
Any preacher who reads this volume will find himself challenged to examine his own ministry and to seek a greater level of connection with his own congregation. If you are concerned about biblical preaching in a contemporary context, it’s a must read.