In Preaching Articles: "Pastoral Calling"

Preach A Notable Sermon Without Using Notes

By Rev. Tejado Hanchell on Mar 13, 2024

Every preacher should have at least one sermon they could preach without notes if called upon at a moment’s notice.

Scripture: Mark 10:17-31

Tags: Preaching, preaching

Waiting To Preach: 5 Ways To Make Sure You're Ready

By Sherman Haywood Cox on Oct 5, 2020

You've heard the call and you're ready to respond, but what do you do while waiting for the opportunity to preach?

Scripture: Esther 1:1-4

Tags: Preaching, preaching

Do We Preach A Grace That's Too Small?

By Ray Hollenbach on Nov 30, 2024

We've lined up the chairs in neat little rows and called it grace. We never noticed: it has broken free.

Scripture: Numbers 4:1-4

Tags: preaching, Grace, Preaching, King, Tyrant, too small, grace  (view more)  (view less)

Leading From Fear: So Many Churches Do It

By Joe Mckeever on Dec 23, 2021

It’s so easy for a preacher to exhibit fear and not faith when standing before the church and calling the congregation to faithfulness and righteousness.

Scripture: Mark 4:40, Luke 14:7-14

Tags: Faith, leadership, Faith and Fear, church leadership, Leadership  (view more)  (view less)

Would You Rather Hear *good Sermon, Pastor* Or *you Just Destroyed My World*?

By David Fitch on Feb 4, 2023

There's a difference between safe, enjoyable preaching and challenging the listener. How do you divide the two?

Tags: listener, enjoyable, preaching, Devil, Preaching, Safe, challenge  (view more)  (view less)

10 Reasons Small Churches Tend To Stay Small

By Joe Mckeever on Sep 21, 2024

After working for years among hundreds of small congregations, Joe McKeever speaks to the subtle growth barriers that tend to go unnoticed or unaddressed in stagnant churches.

Scripture: John 13:35, Psalm 85:6, Luke 11:1-2

Tags: Church, Outreach, pastor, Church Growth, Health, Fail, Small Church, Church Practices, Pastor, church  (view more)  (view less)

The 25 Most Influential Preachers Of The Past 25 Years

By Michael Duduit on Jan 2, 2025

Preaching magazine editor Michael Duduit takes on the challenging task of naming the most important preachers from the recent past.

Tags: Church, leadership, Preaching, pastor, Influence, Circumstance, Pivotal, Leadership General, Pastor, Leadership, preaching, church  (view more)  (view less)

The 5 Most Dangerous Assumptions In Preaching

By Dr. Larry Moyer on Feb 16, 2024

Evangelism specialist Larry Moyer says there are five dangerous assumptions in preaching, and the extent of the damage they do may vary, but the fact that they are costly does not.

Scripture: John 15:5

Tags: Church, Communication, Humility, Preaching, pastor, care, assumptions, Communication General, Pastor, communication, preaching, church  (view more)  (view less)

Top 10 Healthy Ways To Handle The Church Critic

By Charles Stone on Aug 17, 2022

“Two things you can’t avoid in ministry are…people late to the service and … church critics.” In this short post, I suggest 10 ways to handle the church critic.

Tags: church ministry, loving enemies, Disarming, criticism, Criticism, patience, offense, pastoral leadership, Pastoral Ministry  (view more)  (view less)

Success Is Never About Defeating The Giants

By Brandon Cox on Nov 27, 2023

Success isn’t about beating giants. It’s about building a life that grows through trials and challenges.

Scripture: 1 Samuel 17:34-37

Tags: Facing Giants, church ministry, success, goals, achievement, pastoral leadership, Pastoral Ministry, success in ministry  (view more)  (view less)

The Top 8 Reasons Most Churches Never Break The 200 Attendance Mark

By Carey Nieuwhof on Dec 26, 2023

Why is it that most churches never break the 200 attendance mark?

Tags: Growth Strategy, Church Growth, Barriers, pastoral leadership, Pastoral Ministry, church ministry, Barriers to Growth  (view more)  (view less)

7 Indicators Your Team Is Dysfunctional

By Ron Edmondson on Oct 11, 2022

In my experience, there are commonalities of dysfunction. If you have been on a dysfunctional team you’ve probably seen one or more of the common traits. See if any of these seem familiar.

Tags: pastoral leadership, Pastoral Ministry, Team Dynamics, Healthy Teams, Leadership, leadership, conflict, Teamwork, Dysfunction  (view more)  (view less)

Doing Ministry Without Losing Your Soul Part 2

By Lance Witt on May 17, 2024

"In ministry, there are certain tensions that we must live with. Sometimes they seem contradictory, but they are tensions that are actually healthy for us."

Scripture: Philippians 3:7-8, Psalm 27:4, 2 Corinthians 3:18

Tags: Pastoral Ministry, church ministry, Healthy Ministry, Tensions in Ministry, Leadership, leadership, Balance, pastoral leadership  (view more)  (view less)

Screenwriting As Sermon Preparation

By Jeff Chaves on Apr 25, 2024

Expand your sermon prep and presentation skills through the art of screenwriting.

Tags: Pastor, Sermon Prep, teaching, presentation, Sermon prep, screenwriting, Teaching, pastor, Presentation, sermon prep  (view more)  (view less)

4 Points Of Principle Preaching

By Chris Surber on Nov 12, 2025

"Can I call her up to the front on Sunday morning, have her sit in front of the congregation and use her sin as an example?”

Scripture: Psalm 128:1-2

Tags: