Archives For Writing

You Are Invited to Write For Us

April 24, 2013 — Leave a comment

When I started this blog a few months ago, I had no idea how quickly it would grow and begin to gain momentum!

I am still shocked when I look at the stats and see that people continue to show up every day to read what I have written about preaching.

Keyboard

Photo Credit: Tristan Schmurr cc

But this blog has never been about me. I don’t even pretend to be the ultimate authority on preaching. I just wanted to share what I have learned in my continued journey to become a better preacher.

The dream has always been to create a community where preachers can gather to share stories, tips, and learn from others in ministry about preaching.

Up until this point the only real way to contribute has been to leave comments. But now that we are seeing some good traction, I am officially opening ProPreacher.com up to you to submit guest posts. Continue Reading…

In Miscellaneous, Writing
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The Pastor’s Guide to Blogging

April 2, 2013 — Leave a comment

Pastors, do you have a blog? If not, have you ever thought about blogging? Maybe you should.

A blog is an excellent way to build a platform that will allow you to share articles, and audio or video content from your sermons with your congregation and people around the world.

Keyboard

Photo Credit: Mike Poresky cc

When I started ProPreacher.com less than 5 months ago I wanted to write about preaching for me. I am passionate about preaching. I have been on a personal 9 year journey to be the best preacher I can be. So ProPreacher.com was a way to help me process my own thoughts and ideas about the theology, methodology and technology of preaching better.

I thought, “Hey, if a couple of people find it and read along then that’s cool too.” I had no idea that within a few months I would already have thousands of readers from around the world and articles on popular websites!

In February, for example, I had over 19,250 page views. I wasn’t even doing much to promote it. I wrote stuff, and people found it searching on Google and Twitter.

The best part is that blogging isn’t rocket science. It’s actually much easier than you may think.

Continue Reading…

In Technology, Writing ,
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Writing, Transcribing and Archiving Your Sermons

March 25, 2013 — Leave a comment

This is part 3 of the Increase Your Sermon’s Lifespan series. In the last post for this series I discussed how to record your sermon.

Recording your sermon is the most important thing you can do to extend its life. However, if recording your sermon (video and audio) is the most important thing, having digital text is a very close second.

German old type model for painters

Photo Credit: Sylvain Mazas cc

Although audio and video are on the rise, text is still the most popular form of learning, transmitting, and storing information.

Having you message written digitally will resource every idea coming up in this series that does not deal with video or audio.

3 ways to write down your sermon:

1) Manuscript

When you are preparing your sermon, write it out in a word for word manuscript. Having a full manuscript of your message saved will allow you to do so much more with it. You will be able to either use the entire message or copy and paste portions of it for whatever you wish. Continue Reading…

In Writing , ,
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What Infomercials Can Teach Us About Preaching

February 11, 2013 — 3 Comments

holy snuggieBelieve it or not, preachers can learn a ton from infomercials.

Why? Because as cheesy as some of these infomercials can be, they are highly effective at what they are created to do – sell.

Marketing experts are paid millions of dollars a year to research and test marketing strategies that improve product sales.

The next time you see an infomercial for a Snuggie or P90X, take notes. They all follow the same 5-step process:

Problem > Solution > Testimony > Action > Urgency

So what does this have to do with preaching you ask? Everything!

Every public speaker is trying to sell something – either a product, service, or idea. Every speaker is trying to get the audience to buy what they are saying.

Preachers are the same. We sell Biblical ideas. We are trying to persuade people to buy into the truth that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation.

Allow me to break the 5-step process down and show you how it applies to preaching. Continue Reading…

In Delivery, Preaching, Sermon Prep, Writing , , , , , , ,
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The Secret to Getting Ahead on Sermon Preparation

January 8, 2013 — Leave a comment

Stressed???Pastors, do any of the following describe you?

  • You are constantly worried about what you are going to preach next.
  • You often find yourself pulling out a Saturday night special (finishing your sermon just before you preach it).
  • Nobody in your church knows what you are preaching about next (staff included).
  • You often feel overwhelmed, and have occasional anxiety attacks.
  • You feel like your messages are stale – like you keep preaching about the same things or you have run out of creative ideas.
  • You feel like you never have enough time to work on your messages.

If any of the above descriptions describe you, you need to get ahead on your sermon preparation. This article will show you how. Continue Reading…

In Free Stuff, Sermon Prep, Writing , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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