Dryness, or as some say, writer’s block comes to all. Most, but not all, however, know that that is the time to lay the pen down until the juices start flowing again. Preaching is the same. Same old pastor, same old rehashed sermons, same old monotony, déjà vu all over again. And, the results? Boredom and a dwindling congregation.
Show me a pastor who doesn’t spend time in prayer, and reflecting on Scripture, and I’ll show you one that has a poorly nourished flock with just enough wherewithal to—if they are lucky, to fall off the nearest cliff.
Very few men or women have the capacity for sermonizing as Charles Spurgeon or the depth and writing skills of an A. W. Tozer. The sooner recognized, the better the lesson learned. God’s word is, first and foremost, a voice from on high (Roms. 10:17). That voice often seems evasive—so, some say, Why bother? I’ll just coast on my intellect; after all, I’m a seminary graduate, I’ve got the goods. May not come across the plate as a strike, but I’m going to take a swat at it, anyway.
Trouble is, unlike baseball, preaching or writing for the Christian is not a mundane matter. Neither should we treat it as such, either.
Thematic preaching may have its place, but it is most certainly not giving the congregants the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). Same goes for writing.
The cure? Moses went to the mountain, the disciples to the Upper Room, Christ to the garden for rejuvenation, and so must we. Never truer words were spoken than those in the old hymn: “Take Time to Be Holy” by C. Michael Hawn which reads:
Take time to be holy,
speak oft with thy Lord;
abide in him always,
and feed on his word.
Make friends of God’s children,
help those who are weak,
forgetting in nothing
his blessing to seek.
(The United Methodist Hymnal, No. 395)
speak oft with thy Lord;
abide in him always,
and feed on his word.
Make friends of God’s children,
help those who are weak,
forgetting in nothing
his blessing to seek.
(The United Methodist Hymnal, No. 395)
Yes, it takes time to be holy, to speak often with the Lord and feed on His Word and to be charitable in all things; but it is well worth the effort. Heaven pays the highest dividends that I know. So, spend time with the Lord, feed on His Word, and seek to do His will in all things in love.
Now, have a blessed day!
JimR/—
P.S. Thanks for making our most recent mission trip a success. We now have a new batch of graduate students to work in God's Kingdom in Sri Lanka and beyond.
