I haven’t watched one of my messages in years. I know I should, but I can’t make myself do it.

To me, once the message is preached, it is done and time to move on.

How often do you watch your sermons after you’ve given them? Do you go back and see what you said, what you could have said differently, how things came across from the audience’s perspective (that can often be much different that from the speaker’s perspective)?

The decision takes about 7 seconds. I walk back after teaching to the video suite and Mark, my video guy says, “The 10:00?” (Or the 11:30?) And I say, “Yes.” Then I go home and play with my kids. :)

Do you choose the video yourself or does someone else just choose the “best” sermon and put that up for all the world to see?

Wow! Very interesting. Can you tell us what was the “big idea?”

This proved to be a huge win for our ministry.

Now when it comes not to viewing but preparing the messages it’s more difficult. My pastor asked me some weeks ago to preach. When I was preparing I was thinking, ‘If my pastor gave me an opportunity to preach more would I like the idea of a series?’ Yes, I wanted to but I found it very difficult to put in practice.

Anyway, having read what you’ve written I think advantages to having a series outweigh disadvantages. I’m hoping it’ll be given to me to try it out.

I tend to like them, especially when organized around a central metaphor, because they seem to help people engage the concept and process it more. There are topics worth covering from multiple angles. They also help keep the messages simple - not needing to cover too many ‘great’ angles in one time. And, I agree, repetition helps things sink in. As a guy working with small groups, it definitely helps to have something to work with.

But I do like what you say on the other end. I hadn’t considered the bandwagon idea or that they can become more advicey than scripture based. It’s true. Just hadn’t thought of it that way. Thanks.

You’ve covered how you develop messages, but how do you go about developing series that are more scripture based? Since people typically start with a topic, does it lead to more advice sermons?

What we have recently started doing is “theme-ing” the books. You can see an example at our website: http://www.chcchurch.org. Right now we are going through 1 Timothy and talking about “The Life That Matters.” We just finished Revelation: “Living at Peace in a World Falling to Pieces.”

What we’ve found is that rather than just unrelated sermons from each chapter, this cohesive approach helps people better understand and remember major themes and content of books. It is harder to do on the longer books, but I like putting the series on the back of the Scripture rather than finding Scripture to put with our series.

Nathan

Brandon

I appreciate your last point the most. Scripture over good advice — please! That is what I long to hear and share with others who are encountering God for the first time.

My recent blog post on my own blog has very much been brough on by some thoughts I have had as I have begun to experience and become a part of lifechurch. I am inspired to change things about my life on sunday morning at the lifechurch teaching experience, and then come the middle of the week we are watching the LDP ‘04 study which is also very “motivational” in nature.

To be honest, I’m starting to feel “over inspired” it’s too much. It’s not that it’s too much bible study, or too much scripture, or time with other believers. Not at all. It’s too much driving life change, without enough time to put into practive what we’re learning.It’s as though it’s too much and I become callous to it all.

Perhaps that is why, as you mention, the ability to say the same thing 4 times is valuable. I think that’s one of the reasons I really valued and grew from the “It’s All In Your Mind” series.

I am excited about the current Jonah series (or any other series that travels through the text of the Bible) because while their is clear inspiration/application there are also difficult challenges and passages that end up being taught, often times we are left learning something that a typical buzz series might never pick up. (I am excited to hear your sermon over Jonah chapter 4).

I love the heart and purpose of lifechurch, and I am learning that while sometimes everyone around me might be delving into trusting God with their fears, or making new commitments…my stage and walk with Christ is slightly more developed, and at times when everyone else is swooped off their feet, I might not, and that’s okay. I think I need to retrain my mind into seeing the Sunday morning experience as a tool to bring others into a starting relationship with Christ, rather than to look for substational food to fuel my own relationship with Christ.

Craig, thanks for teaching scripture and not copying culture. I appreciate you, your staff, your vision, and the opportunities to grow and serve through lifechurch.tv.

I’d love a forum from LifeChurch sometime, so we could bounce ideas back and forth about different things.

I’m not a pastor, but this still helps :P

Thank You & God Bless

Sorry for being a bit unclear but you answered my question completely.

I especially like your thoughts about extending and expanding the life of the weekend message.

Is there any way to amplify the teaching at church so that it is no longer limited or is this just an uphill battle? I think you’ve touched upon something very profound here.

Thanks!

I’m not sure what you’re asking. I think you’re asking about supplemental discipleship material…

The teaching we do at church is extremely limited. Anything we can do to extend the life of the weekend message or expand the message is HUGE.

We have a few people who write curriculum based on the message to use in homes and other Bible studies.

Hope this helps answer your question.

What about the benefits of a series in regards to other resources and material that a church can develop or use to help its members, versus a single message approach?

Do you feel one is more conducive for spiritual development in application and execution when the person is away from a worship experience and the church building and back into the nitty-gritty of their everyday life?

Thanks!

In speaking to youth I have realized the value of saying the same thing over and over again until they get it. The trick is to say it over and over differently. Doing series really helps me do that.

We just did a series in May and I really felt the whole series was about getting them to remember five words. “Your Decisions Determine Your Destiny”

Glad to hear “Chazown” blessed your people. Sounds like you have a good lineup.

Bill,

You raised a good point. Nothing but love felt… :)