In Preaching Articles: "Personal Life"

The Power Of Biblical Thanksgiving In A Thankless Age

By J. John on Nov 18, 2025

True thanksgiving reshapes the Christian life. It redirects our hearts toward God’s grace, transforms our attitudes, and strengthens hope through daily gratitude.

Scripture: Psalm 136:1, 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Philippians 4:6, Colossians 3:15, Matthew 26:26-27  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Prayer, Thanks, Thanksgiving Holiday, Spiritual Disciplines

Eight Ideas For Reaping The Fruit Of Your Vacation Bible School

By Hal Seed on Jul 7, 2024

Learn how to move beyond counting VBS attendance to measuring true fruit by building relationships, following up well, and enfolding unchurched families into the life of your church.

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

7 Marks Of Great Preaching

By David J. Lose on Feb 3, 2025

Great preaching is more than speaking well—it engages Scripture, proclaims Christ, connects to real life, inspires imagination, and sends God’s people into the world.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:2

Tags: Preaching, Prayer, BIBLE STUDY, father's will, Bible Study, Pastoral Ministry, gospel proclamation, biblical preaching, Sermon Preparation, bible study, preaching, sermon preparation, Biblical Preaching, Gospel Proclamation, Effective Communication  (view more)  (view less)

New Poll: What's The Average Length Of Sermon Prep?

By SermonCentral .com on Jun 15, 2021

LifeWay's Thom Rainer took a Twitter poll to see how much time most preachers give to sermon preparation. Where do you fall on the scale?

Tags: preparation, average, Prep, Time

Preaching To The Unchurched: 5 Essentials

By Rick Warren on May 3, 2024

In terms of seeing radical life changes in individuals, nothing can take the place of Spirit-anointed preaching. The message is still the most important element of a worship service for the unchurched.

Tags: Evangelism, Outreach, Preaching, pastoral leadership, evangelism, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Two Questions To Break Despair

By Marion Clark on Dec 1, 2022

There is a great need for Christian counselors with the expertise to unravel the problems of life. The more a pastor is equipped in this area, the better they will be able to serve the members of their church who are facing difficulties and trials.

Tags: Hope, encouragement, Counselor, Despair, pastoral care, WISE COUNSEL, fixing eyes on Jesus, counseling  (view more)  (view less)

The Leadership Quality Nobody Talks About

By Lance Witt on Jan 3, 2022

Jesus did not come to cajole or manipulate people. He did not come to debate or lead by forceful personality. He never tried to gather a crowd or build an organization. He never marketed himself or developed his “brand”. Instead, he exemplified this quality that we all need.

Scripture: Matthew 12:19-20, Hebrews 5:2

Tags: Church leaders, Jesus' leadership

The Power Of Saying: I Don't Know

By SermonCentral .com on Aug 5, 2020

As a pastor people often look to you for answers to life's questions, but you don't have to pretend you know it all--in fact, you really shouldn't.

Tags: Communication, Preaching, counsel

Don’t Try And Improve On God’s Methods

By Ray Ortlund on Apr 22, 2024

True awakening or revival is a glorious season in the life of the church when for His glory alone, God causes the ordinary means of His grace to make an extraordinary impact on many people.

Scripture: Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 11:27-30, Isaiah 1:15, Luke 19:9-10, John 3:8, Matthew 11:28-30, Acts 2:47  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Grace, Prayer, revival, Church revival, spiritual awakening, grace  (view more)  (view less)

Keep Learning To Lead: Five Practical Lessons

By Gavin Ortlund on Apr 28, 2022

Leadership is hard. I rank it up there with pain, parenting, and preaching as one of those things in life that we never fully master, but only hope to keep learning over a lifetime.

Scripture: John 13:15-16, John 16:12

Tags: Teamwork, Leadership General, servant leadership, Jesus' leadership

25 Easter Follow-Up Sermon And Worship Ideas

By SermonCentral .com on Apr 9, 2023

One of the best ways to follow up with your Easter guests, as well as to encourage your church members, is by preaching about living out the new life we have in Christ.

Tags: Worship, Preaching, sermon series, after easter, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

How To Teach Old Testament Characters

By J.d. Greear on Feb 24, 2025

David’s life shows both the longing for a true King and the failure of every human ruler. His story presses us toward Jesus, the only King who never disappoints.

Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6

Tags: David, Christ As King, biblical theology, Biblical Theology, Old Testament Christology, Christ as King  (view more)  (view less)

A Weekly Rhythm For Sermon Prep When You’re Bi-Vocational

By Todd Hiestand on May 17, 2020

A bi-vocational pastor can’t spend thirty hours a week on a sermon. Here’s a realistic weekly rhythm that keeps you rooted in Scripture while living normal life.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:15, Colossians 3:16, Luke 24:32, James 1:22, Acts 6:4  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Bi Vocational Ministry

Do Churches Talk About Money Too Much?

By Kent Woodyard on Mar 12, 2021

“This is just a hugely distasteful example of the American money obsession gospel which us non-Americans find nauseating.” I stared at my inbox and read the response twice. Then three times. Somewhere, in some other country, some nameless person with an @hotmail.com email address was very upset with me.

Scripture: 1 Timothy 6:10, Matthew 10:17-27, Luke 21:1-4, Matthew 25:14-30, Matthew 18:21-35  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Money, Giving, giving generous, Jesus and money

My 7 Part Strategy For A New Leadership Position

By Ron Edmondson on Mar 9, 2021

I realized I’m only one person and although everyone wanted some of my time and there were more ideas than we could ever accomplish, I knew I would burnout if I didn’t pace myself. This meant I said no to some things – really many things.

Tags: leadership, Preaching, Leadership, preaching