HAVE TO PREACH OR GET TO PREACH?
Bill Ireland, Associate
Whenever and however we first embraced the call to preach, we were excited to lean into our call and grow our gift. We jumped on every opportunity to preach, whether it was in a congregation of 150 or 15. Our enthusiasm knew no bounds, and every occasion to stand in the pulpit was exhilarating. We would frequently exclaim, “I get to preach!”
Somewhere along the line, however, our excitement for preaching diminished. At some point, we began to say, “I have to preach” instead of “I get to preach!” The explanation for this shift in attitude is not hard to find. Preaching every Sunday in addition to all the other obligations a pastor has to fulfill can be exhausting. We extend pastoral care. We work with committees and teams, sometimes long into the night. We try to keep the congregation on task. That’s a full week already! Add in the preparation for a sermon or two, and we groan under the burden. Getting ready never ends, and the grind is relentless. We get weary in body and soul.
I have traveled this road for much of my career and know it well. Below are some practices I’ve employed to keep myself in the “get to preach” column.
First, keeping something cooking on the stove is absolutely necessary. One reason preaching becomes burdensome is we’re called upon to speak when we really have nothing to say. Having nothing in the tank is any preacher’s worst fear! To tame this fear, I think it’s necessary to set aside a regular time to study something I’m interested in or to read the latest best-seller. This habit is not easy to acquire and definitely requires a strong dose of intentionality. I have to schedule this time as I would every other appointment and keep it! This practice keeps something simmering in the soul. Taking such a step will move us closer to truly having something to say instead of merely filling the time allotted.
Secondly, I have found it invaluable to find ways to read or listen to preachers who do the work well. Reading and hearing good preachers at work has never failed to give me a shot in the arm and get my creative juices flowing. Observing a gifted preacher at work challenges me to improve. It’s a kick in the rear end; I get motivated to figure out how I can do better. Moreover, this practice recharges my soul. Any of us can get so wrapped up in feeding others, we forget to eat. Listening to other preachers fills my soul and recharges my spirit. Most important, by observing a good preacher at work, we remind ourselves that ours is indeed a noble calling. We remind ourselves that our words matter; they have enormous potential. So, find a preacher or two who speak to you. Read their books, listen to podcasts or better yet, find a way to hear them first-hand.
Finally, I have learned over time the importance of understanding my biorhythms. Preaching is an embodied experience. Through our presence in the pulpit, we clothe the word in flesh. Thus, how we feel physically and emotionally affects our preaching. In this respect, listening to what my body is telling me is vital. For example, I have high energy and more creativity at the beginning of each month. This is the time when I’m at my best. I feel looser and freer, and I think my sermons reflect that. As the month wears on, however, my energy and creativity wane. Consequently, I have to set aside more time for preparation. To that I would also add that the ebb and flow of bodily energy forces me to make peace with the fact that I’ll be “on” some Sundays and “off” the others. I’m human and can’t always preach to the standard I’ve set for myself. Most important, listening to my body reminds me that Sunday’s sermon is not all up to me, and I don’t have to bring all the energy to the moment. Instead, I have to give room for the Spirit to work. This acknowledgement accounts for those times when we have left the pulpit thinking the sermon went nowhere and then are surprised when someone tells us that was the word they needed.
As the old saying goes, “Sunday is always coming!” I hope that what I’ve offered here will lessen those times when you say, “I have to preach” and will renew your enthusiasm for the task so that you say, “I get to preach!”