Wayne Oates decries the practice of "homiletical narcissism" in today's pulpits. In self-disclosive fashion, Oates uses himself as an example of this flaw. One Sunday he preached a sermon on encouragement. In that sermon he employed a personal story that was clearly focused on the audience. On a later Sunday, made a point in his sermon by telling a story of how he had won a theological argument with a layperson. In this personal account, Oates highlighted for his audience his deft skills in debate. Reflecting on his egocentric motive for using the latter story, Oates confesses that "adulation is a constant temptation for the preacher."7 Often preachers succumb to that temptation when they paint themselves as heroes in their personal stories.

Antagonism

Oates' candid reflection on setting straight a less informed churchgoer points to another way that you can discard good-will for the sake of self-centered motives. Preachers should never use personal stories as a means of answering opponents among the flock. This warning may be obvious, but the sad truth is that we can be tempted to use personal accounts for this purpose. Some of these accounts are subtle narratives that stick it to the adversaries in back-door fashion. Others are more direct projectiles ("I know some of you feel that I…but I say to you…"). It is difficult ever to justify these disclosures as "defensive," as they are being hurled at a captive audience that cannot answer back. (Who knows--As we employ more interactive techniques in our preaching, maybe they will answer back!) These personal disclosures are offensive, a means of striking back or "evening the score" in a dramatic manner. Such a tactic abuses the function of pulpit autobiography, not to mention the targeted opponents. Good preaching exudes good will, even toward a preacher's enemies. Instead of disclosing toward opponents from the pulpit, we must follow the ethical model articulated by Jesus in Matthew 18. Confronting the contentious begins with two or three present, not the entire congregation.

Pessimism

Sometimes we might fail to turn a story with negative connotation toward a positive enough word for the listeners. The danger of negativism must be heeded, especially when we are ourselves journeying through a valley of struggle, pain, or doubt. The sensitive preacher knows that listeners can detect not only overt pessimism, but also pessimism that is discerned by the nuances conveyed through word selection and delivery.

Critical to assuring gift-love toward the listeners is to be sure that any story--however negative in content or tone--move toward a positive message. Even in the wrenchingly honest messages about his struggles over his daughter's illness and death, John Claypool is careful to move toward a hopeful word. In these sermons, compiled in his book, Tracks of a Fellow Struggler, Claypool refuses to coat the tragedy with pious talk. However, he moves the listeners toward places where he found faint glimmers of Gospel in the dark valley. Even in the most painful of experiences, says Claypool, there are positive lessons that we can share from the pulpit: