Koinania Lay Speakers
Sept 99
Pick a pray-er
Sermon Diary
Intro each other.. name last, one of most memorable speaking experiences.
Thank God for the professional clergy who day in and day out keep the work of Christ’s church going.. BUT…. I first heard about Jesus from my Grandma, a lay person I first accepted Christ as my Savior with a camp counselor in Wheaton. I grew in Christ thanks to dedicated Lay Speakers on a Walk to Emmaus And I gave my life to Christ as a result of a Lay Witness Mission in our church.. I owe my life to lay speakers for Jesus. What you are doing is very important to me.
Public speaking is an art, not a science. Various speakers today… all are correct and all different.
A few basic public speaking tips: Try to speak extemporaneously.. from notes… Most audiences don’t want to hear you read your theme. Be the same person in the pulpit that your are in the pew.
Don’t be limited by the preaching styles you’ve heard. More than a witty speaker, more than a profound speaker, more than a brilliant speaker, an audience wants a SINCERE speaker.
People tend to be human. Try as want to do a brilliant sermon, most will still judge you on its length. Mark Twain: “No matter what life you live, the attendance at your funeral will still be largely determined by the weather.”
Be flexible.. be ready to adapt the length of your speech, the style of your speech, and even the content. Sometimes God speaks on the spur of the moment. Pilot Club.. eating… Niantic… 60% youth London Mills.. bad fog.. 4 in attendance.. could get up close and personal
One final plea: Don’t forget the youth. Most sermons are aimed at the adults… Why? Aren’t the kids there? S’field 3rd Presbyterian… “Why can’t we get our youth more interested?”
As a spokesman for Christ, your first field of work is always yourself. Your main job is you, and God will supply the rest. Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.
Your main job as a speaker for Christ is earnest prayer to get closer to Him, scripture reading, and fellowship.
The best speakers for Christ I’ve ever heard, did not seek to be. Frank Morgan.. tractor, scripture, poetry. Helen Dickens… a saint…phone calls to me. A mother who stands up in church to give witness to her child’s healing, but can only cry. BEST SERMON IN THE BIBLE: The formerly blind man in the scriptures who was asked about Jesus’ theology.. “I don’t know. All I know is that I was blind and now I can see.”
If for a moment today, I try to be polished or effective when speaking to you, I move a step away from it. If for a moment today I try to earnestly seek God’s will, I move a step closer. The best possible workshop for today would be to adjourn right now and urge you to walk in these hills and seek God…not God’s will for you, but seek God. But… We’ll do the second-best… you can do the other on your own.
Every audience is asking you two questions: are you real do you care about me (and every student)
Take a survey… the person in your life who effected you most by their words.. (have them come up and tell.. then ask them what qualities made them so powerful in your life).. and here…Here is our list of what it takes to be a powerful speaker for Christ.
Three traits of an awful speaker.. Self indulgence Self indulgence Self indulgence
i.e., being more concerned with how you come across, than what the audience is understanding.. Being more concerned with giving the audience your best stuff than truly fulfilling their needs. being more engrossed with how you look and sound than with genuinely wanting to give something to your audience
I disagree terribly with most college speech courses.. My students so often disappointed… an attempt to make it a science.. It is easier to teach public speaking as a science… It’s wrong and it’s boring, but it’s easier.
AGAIN: FOCUS ON CHRIST AND WHAT HE’S DONE IN YOUR LIFE AND THE LIVES OF OTHERS…
FOR EXAMPLE: Nervous? Stop thinking about yourself Can’t find a topic? Stop thinking about yourself.
EVERYONE WHO KNOWS JESUS is a speaker! .. The trick is breaking down that barrier of self-consciousness. You must think of yourself as speaking to your own child with a message that will bring them eternal salvation and happiness.. then your concern becomes your audience, and not how you look or sound.
Moses.. stutterer.. I can relate.. Mom.. 1st grade, hypnotist.
Your own testimony is the best message… Paul: All I know is Christ and Him crucified. (for me)
Everyone audience is more interested in the messenger than the message.
I don’t know what training or outline the official Methodist handbook gives you. I do know that I’ve trained public speakers for nearly 30 years and this is what works. More than that, I’ve had the awful experience of dying in front of an audience and I know what does not work.
Christ knew that parables are what works.. so why do we preach? He did very little of it.
You can preach and preach and preach then watch the audience when you give an example.. when you mention a proper name… every ear perks up. Christ didn’t use parables because people were stupid.. He used them because people were people.
An audience will remember very few platitudes or sermon points you give them.. they will remember practically every example you give.
Most common sermon pattern: Give a scripture Explain it
Okay, but that’s TEACHING. ..and often rather tedious… If God leads you to do this, fine, but… consider this other option. Pray for a message then let God lead you to the scripture.
Examining your own lives for parables.. examples… things you’ve experienced or heard of… WORKSHOP SESSION.. small groups (or individually) digging out examples of Forgiveness, love, Christ’s love in your own crisis, loving one another. The best are from your own experience.. it’s there.. you’ve got to think and dig..
When I go into a church, I have such a great advantage over the clergy.. No one expects much from me.. I can sneak up on them.
Best outline: Opener State your theme Point… example Point… example Point.. example Bring it together Close with example.
(me do an example of this)
Puppy story… (example) Our job is not so much to have the desire to love. We all have that. What we lack is the sensitivity.
We must stay sensitive in order to love others and we do that by 1 Praying for one another, 2 Be willing to share Jesus with them, 3 Exercise our faith
Point 1: We must pray for one another. Paul told the Colossians in Chapter 4, verse 2: “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” This Present Darkness.. Demons.. little lady. Billy Graham.. two ladies Prayer is the most powerful force available to us
Point 2: Must be willing to share Jesus with all to whom God leads us. 1 Cor 2:1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. Craig: Switzerland
Point 3: Exercise our faith. Matthew 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Marty-Kenny
In order to love one another as Christ taught us, we must 1) Pray for one another, 2) Be willing to share Jesus, 3) Exercise our faith. Final example: Doug.. clown… severely disturbed boy Oh for the sensitivity of a child.
Each point is memorable because of the story that accompanies it.
Koosh Ball pass: What scared you the most when you were young? Your hero? What do you wish more people knew about you?.. perhaps a misconception that most have about you?
Your salvation. What have you prayed for the longest in your life? The best sermon you ever heard.
Assignment.. take a walk.. come up with a one-point message, draw the example from your own life, and if you can find a scripture, fine, but don’t let that take all your time. I’m Presbyterian and don’t have my Bible memorized either.