Have you ever listened to a speaker and thought to yourself, When are they going to be done!?!?
Worse yet, have you ever been the speaker when everyone in the room is thinking that?
Respecting time is a crucial factor when communicating to a room full of students. I don't think if I have ever heard a student say, "That speaker doesn't speak for a long enough duration of time..." Brevity and conciseness can be two very overlooked virtues when communicating.
How do you ensure that you don't get long-winded in your preaching?
1. Determine how long you have to speak.
If you only have 20 minutes, don't be "that guy" who consistently speaks for 40 minutes and goes way over on your time. It's rude, inconsiderate and disrespectful.
2. Use the 7-7-7 Rule.
Students have been conditioned by television for 7 minutes of content then a 2 minute "commercial break." Structure your message with this in mind and it will help you say what you need to say in a timely manner and get off the stage.
3. Figure out what your personal time limit is.
Most decent communicators can hold an audiences attention for 20 minutes. Fewer can hold it for 30 minutes. Very few can hold it for 45 minutes or more. If you are constantly monologuing to your students for an hour, my bet is that they stopped listening to you after 12 minutes.
4. Practice, practice, practice.
The more you rehearse your talk, the better you will be able to stay within your time frame. As Saddleback Church's Josh Griffin says, "If you find yourself going over in time, you didn't prepare well." Take the time to practice and you will be able to get a much better handle on your content, flow and illustrations. Remember, rehearsal reduces rambling.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Sunday, April 21, 2013
A Huge Preaching Disaster
I was speaking at a summer camp and it was "Thursday Night" (you know... the last, most emotionally intense, yet memorable night of the week). Things were progressing along swimmingly. The worship band did a great job leading the students in sincere worship. The students were engaged. It had been a great week on all accounts up to this point. Now I was up to bat. The bases were loaded. Time for the message.
The topic that night was sharing Christ with your friends. A college intern at the camp was going to star with me in an adapted skit we were using at the end of the message.
A very intense skit.
Without going into too much detail, let's just say there was lots of fake blood, Hellish background music and incredibly intense dialogue.
At the end of the skit, I (covered in blood) was giving the challenge for students to take sharing their faith seriously. It was only about a two minute closing... But there was a huge problem. At the most inopportune moment possible, one of the band members' phones began ringing onstage (he had accidentally left in there).
It wasn't just any ringtone.
It was a hideously high-pitched, loud, hyperactive squirrel-type laugh ringtone. And it wouldn't stop.
Talk about ruining the moment.
He eventually came on stage grabbed the phone and apologized. By this point, everyone in the room was laughing (it was a funny sounding ringtone).
Thankfully, God is the one who changes lives... Not us or our feeble efforts. His ministry always flows from His mercy.
Do you have a preaching disaster story?
The topic that night was sharing Christ with your friends. A college intern at the camp was going to star with me in an adapted skit we were using at the end of the message.
A very intense skit.
Without going into too much detail, let's just say there was lots of fake blood, Hellish background music and incredibly intense dialogue.
At the end of the skit, I (covered in blood) was giving the challenge for students to take sharing their faith seriously. It was only about a two minute closing... But there was a huge problem. At the most inopportune moment possible, one of the band members' phones began ringing onstage (he had accidentally left in there).
It wasn't just any ringtone.
It was a hideously high-pitched, loud, hyperactive squirrel-type laugh ringtone. And it wouldn't stop.
Talk about ruining the moment.
He eventually came on stage grabbed the phone and apologized. By this point, everyone in the room was laughing (it was a funny sounding ringtone).
Thankfully, God is the one who changes lives... Not us or our feeble efforts. His ministry always flows from His mercy.
Do you have a preaching disaster story?
Friday, April 19, 2013
Speaking at CIY: Move This Summer!
I recently found out that I have the honor of speaking for Christ in Youth (CIY) this summer at their annual MOVE conference for high school students. Get ready to "Rise Up" Nebraska!
For more information about the CIY Move conference click here.
To see other speakers and bands on stage at Move this summer click here.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Exegesis for Youth Pastors
As youth pastors, we are regularly faced with the eternally significant task of communicating the truth of God's word in a relevant way that students can understand; yet, at the same time, we want to ensure that we are exegeting the text (taking the Holy Spirit's intended message out of the text) instead of eisegeting it (putting our own outside thoughts and views into the text).
How do we ensure that we are staying theologically faithful to the Scriptures?
I was recently taught a simple way to accurately exegete the Bible by a retired pastor-theologian. While it is, for most student pastors, an extra step in the message preparation process, it is an important one. What use is it to ensure that the communication of our content is connecting well with students if that content is grievously flawed? According to the Apostle Paul, we are called to "...teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine." (Titus 2:1)
BIBLICAL EXEGESIS IN 3 SIMPLE STEPS
You will need the following materials:
-Greek parsing chart (http://bit.ly/17HusCN)
-Han's Parsing Guide (You can buy this used from Amazon)
-Greek/NAS interlinear Bible (You can get this from Amazon too)
1. Lookup your selected verse(s) in the Greek interlinear Bible.
Utilize the interlinear Greek/New American Standard to figure out the root Greek verbs that are used in the passage that you are studying.
2. Determine the tense, voice, and mood of the verb with the Parsing Guide.
Using Han's Parsing Guide, figure out the tense, voice, and mood of the Greek verb you are exegeting.
3. Refer to the parsing chart to see how the verb is literally translated from Greek to English.
Once one understands the tense, voice and mood, it becomes possible to determine the meaning of the verb as the Spirit intended. Often English translations are somewhat short here.
That's it. With a little practice, you will begin to memorize the different voices and tenses of the Greek language.
When you take the time to accurately exegete the Scripture during your message preparation, you allow the Holy Spirit to reveal the nuances of the text through the original koine Greek. This revelation, in turn, can then influence the rest of your preparation including main theme, illustrations, and sub-points.
One of the best gifts you can give the students in your ministry is solid preaching of the Word. "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12 NASB)
-----------------------------
www.mattmaiberger.com
How do we ensure that we are staying theologically faithful to the Scriptures?
I was recently taught a simple way to accurately exegete the Bible by a retired pastor-theologian. While it is, for most student pastors, an extra step in the message preparation process, it is an important one. What use is it to ensure that the communication of our content is connecting well with students if that content is grievously flawed? According to the Apostle Paul, we are called to "...teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine." (Titus 2:1)
BIBLICAL EXEGESIS IN 3 SIMPLE STEPS
You will need the following materials:
-Greek parsing chart (http://bit.ly/17HusCN)
-Han's Parsing Guide (You can buy this used from Amazon)
-Greek/NAS interlinear Bible (You can get this from Amazon too)
1. Lookup your selected verse(s) in the Greek interlinear Bible.
Utilize the interlinear Greek/New American Standard to figure out the root Greek verbs that are used in the passage that you are studying.
2. Determine the tense, voice, and mood of the verb with the Parsing Guide.
Using Han's Parsing Guide, figure out the tense, voice, and mood of the Greek verb you are exegeting.
3. Refer to the parsing chart to see how the verb is literally translated from Greek to English.
Once one understands the tense, voice and mood, it becomes possible to determine the meaning of the verb as the Spirit intended. Often English translations are somewhat short here.
That's it. With a little practice, you will begin to memorize the different voices and tenses of the Greek language.
When you take the time to accurately exegete the Scripture during your message preparation, you allow the Holy Spirit to reveal the nuances of the text through the original koine Greek. This revelation, in turn, can then influence the rest of your preparation including main theme, illustrations, and sub-points.
One of the best gifts you can give the students in your ministry is solid preaching of the Word. "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12 NASB)
-----------------------------
www.mattmaiberger.com
Monday, April 15, 2013
7 Tips to Connecting with Students Every Time You Speak
Save the date!!!
On Wednesday, May 22 I will be facilitating a training through the Youth Ministry Coaching Network called, "7 Tips to Connecting with Students Every Time You Speak."
If you are into FREE youth ministry coaching and resources from seasoned veterans you have to check them out! Previous facilitators have included Duffy Robbins and JC Worley... With upcoming trainings by Greg Stier and Jeanne Mayo.
For more information and details of how to get on the coaching call CLICK HERE.
On Wednesday, May 22 I will be facilitating a training through the Youth Ministry Coaching Network called, "7 Tips to Connecting with Students Every Time You Speak."
If you are into FREE youth ministry coaching and resources from seasoned veterans you have to check them out! Previous facilitators have included Duffy Robbins and JC Worley... With upcoming trainings by Greg Stier and Jeanne Mayo.
For more information and details of how to get on the coaching call CLICK HERE.
Resonate: A Youth Pastor's Perspective
BOOK REVIEW: RESONATE (by Nancy Duarte)
A YOUTH PASTOR'S PERSPECTIVE
If you study communication very much, you have certainly run across Nancy Duarte's book, Resonate. It is in numerous top five lists all over the internet as a "must read" on the topic of presentation skills. Many reviews have been written over the last two and a half years. A simple google search of the book title and author will give you plenty of review-reading for weeks-on-end.
Instead of rehashing this plethora of critique, I thought that I would bring a unique perspective of response; therefore, I give you, Resonate: A Youth Pastor's View.
WHY DID I READ IT?
As a student of communication skills and homiletics, I am always on the lookout for great books and resources on these topics. I actually did not set out to read Resonate initially (I ignorantly assumed it was a book about PowerPoint), but was reading Duarte's new book at the time, HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations. While doing so, she had tweeted about a contest involving reviewing her new work on Amazon. Everyone who did so, received an autographed copy of Resonate.
Two weeks later, I received a brand-spanking new, personally-autographed copy of Resonate.
Upon receipt, I immediately dug in. Not at the beginning, mind you, but in the section entitled, The Hero's Journey (I was familiar with Nancy's take on this after having previously watched a short version of it on Youtube in a TED talk she had given).
As a student of youth ministry communication skills, especially storytelling, I was smitten.
THE HERO'S JOURNEY
Duarte's treatise on Joseph Campbell's monomyth is worth the price of the book alone. In fifteen pages she outlines the typical literary journey of a hero as found in every great story, ties it in to Star Wars, and then relates it back to communicating in a way that makes the audience the hero and the speaker the Jedi master.
As a youth pastor and youth communicator, I found myself thinking, "Why didn't they teach me this in my homiletics classes?" Students love great stories and connect with great storytellers; however, many youth speakers and youth pastor's miss this vital point: You are not the hero. Your audience is.
Worth the price of admission.
STEVE JOBS AND MARTIN LUTHER KING
If you follow any of Duarte's other communication training, you are probably familiar with her comparison of Apple's founder, Steve Jobs, and the Reverend Martin Luther King. Nancy takes Jobs' unveiling of the iPhone speech and compares it to King's I Have a Dream. The two speeches could not have been more different in topic, but more similar in form. In Resonate, Duarte takes the time to parse both speeches in format and visually show the results.
In a word, mind-blowing.
WHAT ELSE?
In Resonate you will also find practical insights for creating powerful stories, improving message structure and utilizing visuals in an effective way. Duarte also takes the time to break down numerous speeches to demonstrate the familiar format of: What is, what could be, and call to action.
As a side note, I think one of the other characteristics I find interesting is the layout of the book itself. I would call it a "coffee table" format: Large in size, stunning visuals, pictures and charts.
SHOULD YOU READ IT?
Absolutely.
As I mentioned earlier, I wish they would have made Resonate required reading in my homiletics classes. If you are a seasoned youth communicator or a noob student minister, you must get your hands on a copy of this book. Read it twice. Keep it for future reference. It will shape the way you communicate to students, build your messages and potentially forever alter your approach to preaching.
A YOUTH PASTOR'S PERSPECTIVE
If you study communication very much, you have certainly run across Nancy Duarte's book, Resonate. It is in numerous top five lists all over the internet as a "must read" on the topic of presentation skills. Many reviews have been written over the last two and a half years. A simple google search of the book title and author will give you plenty of review-reading for weeks-on-end.
Instead of rehashing this plethora of critique, I thought that I would bring a unique perspective of response; therefore, I give you, Resonate: A Youth Pastor's View.
WHY DID I READ IT?
As a student of communication skills and homiletics, I am always on the lookout for great books and resources on these topics. I actually did not set out to read Resonate initially (I ignorantly assumed it was a book about PowerPoint), but was reading Duarte's new book at the time, HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations. While doing so, she had tweeted about a contest involving reviewing her new work on Amazon. Everyone who did so, received an autographed copy of Resonate.
Two weeks later, I received a brand-spanking new, personally-autographed copy of Resonate.
Upon receipt, I immediately dug in. Not at the beginning, mind you, but in the section entitled, The Hero's Journey (I was familiar with Nancy's take on this after having previously watched a short version of it on Youtube in a TED talk she had given).
As a student of youth ministry communication skills, especially storytelling, I was smitten.
THE HERO'S JOURNEY
Duarte's treatise on Joseph Campbell's monomyth is worth the price of the book alone. In fifteen pages she outlines the typical literary journey of a hero as found in every great story, ties it in to Star Wars, and then relates it back to communicating in a way that makes the audience the hero and the speaker the Jedi master.
As a youth pastor and youth communicator, I found myself thinking, "Why didn't they teach me this in my homiletics classes?" Students love great stories and connect with great storytellers; however, many youth speakers and youth pastor's miss this vital point: You are not the hero. Your audience is.
Worth the price of admission.
STEVE JOBS AND MARTIN LUTHER KING
If you follow any of Duarte's other communication training, you are probably familiar with her comparison of Apple's founder, Steve Jobs, and the Reverend Martin Luther King. Nancy takes Jobs' unveiling of the iPhone speech and compares it to King's I Have a Dream. The two speeches could not have been more different in topic, but more similar in form. In Resonate, Duarte takes the time to parse both speeches in format and visually show the results.
In a word, mind-blowing.
WHAT ELSE?
In Resonate you will also find practical insights for creating powerful stories, improving message structure and utilizing visuals in an effective way. Duarte also takes the time to break down numerous speeches to demonstrate the familiar format of: What is, what could be, and call to action.
As a side note, I think one of the other characteristics I find interesting is the layout of the book itself. I would call it a "coffee table" format: Large in size, stunning visuals, pictures and charts.
SHOULD YOU READ IT?
Absolutely.
As I mentioned earlier, I wish they would have made Resonate required reading in my homiletics classes. If you are a seasoned youth communicator or a noob student minister, you must get your hands on a copy of this book. Read it twice. Keep it for future reference. It will shape the way you communicate to students, build your messages and potentially forever alter your approach to preaching.
Friday, April 12, 2013
Look at How Many Illustrations I Just Found?
I was recently browsing on Jonathan McKee's The Source for Youth Ministry website, and I ran across a link to a reliable source for tons of FREE illustrations. If you are like me, and always on the lookout for some decent illustrations, this site is a gold mine.
The site is http://bible.org/illustrations.
The illustrations are tagged, filed, and searchable.
If you are not using Evernote to save, tag, and file your own, personal illustration file... What are you waiting for?
If you haven't done so yet, check out the series, 5 Places to find Great Illustrations.
The site is http://bible.org/illustrations.
The illustrations are tagged, filed, and searchable.
If you are not using Evernote to save, tag, and file your own, personal illustration file... What are you waiting for?
If you haven't done so yet, check out the series, 5 Places to find Great Illustrations.
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