Friday, January 4, 2013

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

In case you missed it...

In case you missed it, I recently had a guest blog post featured on Josh Griffin's (HS pastor at Saddleback) blog, More Than Dodgeball. Check it out here.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Three-Legged stool of speaking

Great content on the three-legged stool of speaking from Alex Rister.

1. Content

2.  Visual Presentation

3.  Delivery

Click HERE.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

3 Hours of FREE Practical Preaching Training

If you're anything like me, you LOVE FREE stuff. On December 5, Preaching Rocket is offering their FREE 3 Hour training on delivering better sermons. No purchase or subscription is required to view the content; however, there is a sales pitch for their monthly training subscription if you desire that type of coaching.

Click Here... for more information.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Thoughts from November's Youth Communicator's Cohort

We had an incredible time together today on our YCC Conference Call. Our topic was Hermeneutics & Exegesis and our discussion was led by none other than Michael Winakur.

A few thoughts from today's call:

1. We are constantly trying to add things to the text of the Bible... In doing so, we get in the way of what the text was intended to say.

2.  We are also constantly trying to push our own agenda into the text of scripture. When this happens, we begin to proof text and are simply trying to find scripture to match our own thoughts instead of getting our thoughts from scripture.

3.  I don't want to be original, I want to be Biblical. Too often we spin our wheels and waste our time trying to be overly creative or original when we speak or teach. Instead we might consider spending extra time ensuring that our message is actually Biblical.

Next month we will be focusing on the topic of storytelling.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Does your talk have STAR moments?

In reading Nancy Duarte's HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations, Duarte refers to messages having STAR moments. The acronym STAR referring to "Something They Always Remember."

When preparing and delivering talks to young adult and teenage audiences, this piece of advice is even more crucial. Whether the STAR quality is an unforgettable visual, a story, or even a token they take home, it is vitally important for the "stickiness" of your message.

Recently, we did a message called "What's in Your Box?" where we focused on all of the various "stuff" that each of us carries around inside our little "box" and try to keep hidden from others. The message closed with James 5:16 (confess your sins and pray for each other) and the students were encouraged to come to the front, grab a small box, and find someone to open their box to and share what is hidden inside (sin, failure, mistakes, suffering, etc). Afterward, the students took their boxes home and were encouraged to put them in a prominent place in their room where they would be reminded to continue to live their lives "open" with one another.

Whereas many students (and most adults for that matter) walk away from a message and forget what they have heard fifteen minutes later, you want to leave them with something they will never forget. Not only will it reinforce the principle or scripture that you are trying to teach, but will be a STAR that they (or the Holy Spirit) can draw upon months, years, or even decades later.