In Preaching Articles: "Encouragement For Pastors"

Why Your Congregation Is Your Second Text

By Mike Glenn on Oct 27, 2020

Pastor Mike Glenn suggests every sermon requires us to exegete our audience as well as the Biblical text. Here's why.

Tags: Preaching, Congregation, role, second text

John Piper: Preach The Word

By John Piper on May 16, 2025

"No other pastoral duty should be treated as solemnly and forcefully as this one simple exhortation from the Apostle Paul: Preach the Word."

Tags: bible, Bible, Preaching, the word, teach, e, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Last-Minute Messages: How To Craft A Short Devotional With No Notice

By Rob O'lynn on Sep 7, 2021

"Hey, Pastor, could you say a few words..." Use this strategy to deliver short, meaningful talks with little or no prep time.

Scripture: Luke 19:1-19

Tags: picture, passage, point, Preaching

How Long Should I Preach

By Brian Croft on Aug 22, 2023

The answer to this question largely depends on the kind of pastor you are, the quality of preacher you are, and the kind of congregation you serve.

Tags: Preaching, sermon prep, good sermon, poor preaching, Sermon Prep, preaching, Sermon prep  (view more)  (view less)

11 Ways To Make Christmas Your Best Outreach Of The Year

By Carey Nieuwhof on Dec 1, 2019

You may think it’s far too early to start thinking about Christmas, but think again. Whenever I’ve shared these ideas about Christmas, people say “Hey, I wish you’d talked about this earlier.” So we are.

Tags: Christmas, Outreach, Holidays, leadership, invite, pastoral leadership, Christmas Evangelism, church ministry, church leadership, Leadership  (view more)  (view less)

Pulpit Humour: Five Pointers

By Peter Mead on Jul 23, 2022

5 Tips on how to avoid landmines when using humor in the pulpit.

Tags: Humility in Teaching, e, preaching, teaching, Teaching, Preaching, humor, Pastoral Ministry, Communication skills, Pulpit Helps  (view more)  (view less)

What Are You Improving At Your Church Right Now?

By Karl Vaters on Oct 26, 2022

"Every church should constantly be improving. And not just in general terms. We should always be working on specific action plans to make our church better tomorrow than it is today."

Tags: pastoral leadership, church leadership, good leadership, Leadership, leadership, Church Growth, Healthy Church, effective, productivity  (view more)  (view less)

8 Signs You May Be An Anxious Leader

By Charles Stone on Jun 27, 2024

These seven signs might indicate that your leadership is being negatively affected by how you handle your anxiety.

Scripture: Philippians 4:6

Tags: Leadership, anxiety, Stress, Anxiety, pastoral leadership, worry and anxiety, Scripture Memory, Ministry Leadership, stress, leadership  (view more)  (view less)

The Double-Edged Sword Of Ambition

By Lance Witt on Jul 10, 2024

Ambition is a blessing and a curse. When it is God-directed and Spirit-managed, it can bear tremendous fruit. But when it is hijacked by self and ego, it can leave a wake of destruction in its path.

Tags: entering God's rest, ministry vision, Faithfulness, motivation, Ambition, Rest in Christ, pastoral leadership, personal holiness  (view more)  (view less)

5 Things God Never Said

By Dr. Larry Moyer on Jan 1, 2025

Larry Moyer advises pastors to beware of five misconceptions of God’s Word that can adversely affect our outreach to non-Christians.

Scripture: Revelation 3:20, John 20:31, Ezekiel 3:18-19, John 6:44, Matthew 10:32-33  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Evangelism, Witness, Outreach, Salvation, Gospel, Preaching, myth, Bible Influence, Evangelism The Lost, evangelism, gospel, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Eight Ideas For Reaping The Fruit Of Your Vacation Bible School

By Hal Seed on Jul 8, 2024

Hal Seed helps pastors and church leaders measure the success of their children’s ministry outreach events and retain unchurched families as a result.

Tags: Church, Children, Outreach, family, VBS, Evangelism How To, church  (view more)  (view less)

4 Audiences You Need To Know When Preaching

By Mark Gomez on Sep 23, 2020

Pastor Mark Gomez shares the way he sees his audience: "Suddenly, there is a much broader audience than we first believed."

Scripture: Hebrews 2:1-18

Tags:

Preacher’s Tip: If You Can Keep From Preaching, Do It

By H.b. Charles, Jr. on Nov 6, 2020

Pastor H.B. Charles, Jr. shares a personal story about a powerful preaching insight he received from his father.

Tags: Preaching, advice, insight, Improve

Go Ahead: Preach The Same Sermon Twice

By Joe Mckeever on Jun 10, 2021

"As a young pastor, I couldn't repeat a sermon any more than I could eat yesterday's breakfast again."

Scripture: 2 Peter 1:12-13

Tags: Preaching, repeat, twice, preaching

Is Your Preaching Missing This Key Component?

By Lance Witt on Jan 7, 2021

As a pastor I am embarrassed to admit this, but prayer has often been a struggle for me. And yet, it is crucial to our success in preaching.

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1-4

Tags: