I do this to entertain the audience for a few minutes but also to, as Tony Evans says, take the listener and put him in the sandals of the biblical characters.
In another message, I talked about the time when Samson torched the foxes' tails and they burned up the grain fields of a Philistine homemaker. I told people to put themselves in the sandals of the Philistine homemaker. Let's say she is doing her dishes when she looks out her window and sees 300 foxes with their tails on fire, burning up her field. Suddenly, they can relate to that.
Use the creativity God has given you to bring those legendary stories of the Bible to your contemporary audience. And then stand back and watch God work in the hearts and lives of your people as they identify in personal ways with great men and women of faith.
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So sweat the small stuff. Obviously, your main points are important and you've got to have the meat of your message down pat. But don't neglect these crucial ingredients that bring the whole meal together in the best presentation possible: the titles, terms, introduction and conclusion, transitions, and personal and biblical illustrations.
Know Your Audience. Other pastors often ask me if Fellowship is "one of those seeker-sensitive churches." The short answer is yes and no. Here's the long answer. I do not buy into a seeker-targeted approach in the popular meaning of that term. Our weekend services are not designed for the unchurched seeker or the veteran saint. They are designed with everyone in mind.
I am seeker-sensitive or seeker-targeted in that I believe everyone is a seeker. We all want answers to the complexities of life. And when you proclaim the Word of God in comprehensible language with contemporary illustrations and applications, the truth will feed everyone. You can plan services each and every week that simultaneously serve the seeker and build the believer. Any given service may be weighted in one direction or another, but they should all have meaning for everyone in your church.
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From Creative Leadership by Ed Young, Jr., published by Broadman & Holman. Copyright © 2006 by Ed Young, Jr. Used by permission.
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Ed Young, Jr., is Senior Pastor of Fellowship Church in Grapevine, TX.