Preaching

I absolutely love studying the topic of communication. It is such an art. Preaching for example, on average you have 30-40 minutes; what do you say? I love to hear guys that can capture the attention of a room full of people that range from 8-80 in age. It is so interesting how you can say the right words in the right way and captivate an audience. Of course the other side is that you choose the wrong words and your audience is nodding off or counting down the time until you stop talking about whatever it is that you are talking about.

Andy Stanley and Lane Jones have written the book "Communicating for a Change". Andy is an incredible communicator and basically tells you everything he does. I believe that while you are your own preacher and need to be original with your preaching, you can still take this format and apply it. This book is a must buy for any kind of communicator. Here are a few random thoughts that I like to use from the book:

One Point: Talk about one point and build illustrations, stories around it. Just one point. Not five. Not even three. One.
Sticky statement: When you find your one point, fashion a sticky statement and say it throughout your message over and over. A sticky statement is a short statement that gets your point across.
Story: Jesus always used illustrations and parables. People love stories! Use them near the beginning of your message to draw people in.
Tension: build tension right before you bring the Word. Create a problem or a question that people are dying for you to answer, then bring Gods Word to answer it.
Apply it: Its great to find the context of the culture back in the day, but make sure the audience knows how to apply it to their marriage, finances, kids, work...
Vision: Cast vision as you close your message to say "Could you imagine if we applied this to our lives, what our community would look like."

Great book. I hope this helps you in your communication journey. Everyone has their one book that they refer to everyone, this is mine. Buy the book.