“If I am to speak ten minutes, I need a week for preparation; if fifteen minutes, three days; if half an hour, two days; if an hour, I am ready now.” (Woodrow Wilson)
“He did not say anything to them without using a parable.” (Mark 4:34)
“God, please use my voice box to communicate the words You want me to say today. Use me to creatively connect the life-changing message of Jesus Christ to every heart and every life here. And it's in His name that I pray, amen.”
I pray a prayer like that every weekend. Whether I whisper it privately in the green room before I speak or publicly in corporate prayer, I never, ever forget that I am speaking for God.
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What an awesome privilege it is to speak on behalf of God! Take a moment to reflect upon that amazing responsibility. Teachers and preachers in the local church are called to pass on the timeless truths of Scripture to the people God has entrusted to our care. It doesn't matter if you are a children's pastor, a youth pastor, or a senior pastor, we all share in this high honor. I told a group of senior pastors recently that 75 percent of their weekly schedule should revolve around the preparation and delivery of their weekend message. The other stuff is important, but nothing is as important as preaching and teaching God's truth to the hundreds and thousands who sit at our feet week in and week out.
Because preaching is such a high honor and responsibility, I have committed most of my ministry to improving in this art and science and would like to share some methods from my own teaching ministry that hopefully can help you in yours. Some of the best insights I've gleaned have come from other creative speakers, whether through interacting with them at our annual creative church conference or through learning from some close friends in the ministry. You can learn what to do and what not to do by studying others.
Notice I said to study others, not copy them. The most important principle for effective communication is to let you be you. Don't imitate another speaker. You can learn some tips and techniques from others but be the unique person God has made you to be. Just be yourself and improve on the personality and skills that God has given you.
Ineffective speakers are counterfeit communicators who seem to transform from their usual demeanor into a foreign, phony version of themselves when they hit the stage. Remember that we are called to preach with our words and also with the lifestyle we lead. There has to be a connection between who we are every day and who we are on stage — a theme that runs throughout this discussion on principles to add creativity and vitality to your teaching ministry.
Think Big
Whenever you speak, especially as a Christian communicator, you must address two fundamental questions: (1) What does the listener need to know and (2) what does the listener need to do? In other words, before you speak, ask: What am I going to say and how should the listener apply it? It's the old "so what?" principle. That's thinking big.