The Impatient Pastor
One of the most important spiritual truths I’ve discovered over the course of a life of ministry is that a prayer for “patience” is the one prayer God almost always answers, usually in the form of offering me an immediate opportunity to exercise it. Patience, it turns out, isn’t something that God simply grants to…
Read MoreReclaiming a Day of Rest
True confession: I am a chronic commandment-breaker. I do it every week. In fact, my job as a pastor demands it. Every Sunday, I go to work and violate the Fourth Commandment: “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). I’m sure that most of you do the very same. Now it’s true…
Read MoreHeaven Can Wait
If you’re like me and grew up in the church, you probably had some really great Sunday school teachers who helped you on the path toward ministry — people who, week after week, gave up their time and sanity to lock themselves in a room with some socially inept yet theologically inquisitive young minds. My…
Read MoreHomebound people often struggle with how to pass the time.
Here’s how churches can help! I was chatting with a surgeon in my community about her work: the patients, difficult surgeries, successes and disappointments. One subject of our conversation was post-operative care for those who were temporarily homebound. She said that many patients — sidelined for six to eight weeks because of a serious…
Read MoreThe Waiting Preacher
I was waiting. At the Intercontinental airport in Houston, Texas. I was flying standby and had missed three flights so far. My waiting began at 7 a.m., and at 4 p.m. it showed no sign of abating. So as I waited, I thought about waiting. You can wait for things, like a package to arrive,…
Read More8 Tips for Sermon Writing
“SlamBall Jesus” seemed like such an awesome sermon. A new extreme sport had been introduced in the U.S., one in which basketball was played with trampolines on the court and wild leaping, hitting and slam-dunking. I connected the SlamBall game to Jesus clearing the moneychangers out of the temple and said that he was angry,…
Read MoreThe Simple Joy of Mail
Have you ever noticed the face of someone when they receive an unexpected piece of mail? For many of our elderly or shut-in members, checking the mail is part of the simple routine of the day. Most of the time, this results in sorting through all the advertisements and requests for money, which is then…
Read More10 Ways Churches Can Get Through the Economic Downturn
It’s not always easy or pleasant to talk about money. As a church, we often want to put our trust in God that He will provide in such a time of need … but the reality is, the church needs money to continue to operate. We surveyed subscribers about how Covid-19 is affecting their budgets and…
Read MoreOf Practices, Presence and Peace
This month’s guest writer is the Rev. Dr. Rob Apgar-Taylor. When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jewish authorities, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”…
Read MoreFree Resources from Our Sister Publications
May 7, 2020 The past few months have been challenging for church communities and those who minister to them. As a Homiletics subscriber, you’ve received e-mails offering free resources from several of Homiletics’ sister publications. Below is a summary of these free resources. You may download them for unrestricted, re-distributable use to help you through…
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