For the first time in my 65 years I was called into court for jury duty! And I was selected as one of 12 jurors to decide a criminal case. And the lawyer who lost gave a terrible closing argument. He read the entire thing!
But it did strengthen my resolve to urge young preachers to learn a sermon preparation method that allows them to preach with less looking down at their notes as they preach.
Now, I know some can read or refer to their notes often while communicating effectively. Our youth pastor just preached his first sermon in our church this past Sunday. He is an excellent communicator despite relying heavily on his notes. When we met yesterday morning to review his sermon I said to him,
“You should watch the livestream at a faster speed and count the number of times you looked down at your notes during the sermon.” He smiled because he knew it would be a lot.
I have the privilege of working with six young preachers on a fairly regular basis. One common evaluation comment is,
“You will get better at preaching with less notes and I will help you get there.”
Over the past few weeks I’ve been thinking more about why this is important. Here’s where I’ve landed:
“Your ability to pastor your people during the sermon increases as your reliance on notes decreases.”
The reason: the less you look at your notes the more you look at your people and the more you look at your people, the better your ability to convey love for them and a sense of urgency.
Now, go back to the lawyer who read his entire closing argument. He’s trying to seal the deal; it’s his last shot at persuading jurors to choose his side. He could have been much more persuasive if he had looked us in the eyes while making his final plea for justice. He still would have lost because the case was weak. You and I are communicating God’s Word, so it’s never a case of a weak case for us!
May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as you watch over the souls of those entrusted to your care.
Randal
