October 28, 2024

The Louisa Woosley Preaching Initiative is part of the Lily Foundation's "Compelling Preaching" Grant program. As Program Director, I am exploring what both of those words ("compelling" and "preaching") mean every single day.

The word for today? COMPELLING.

COMPELLING: Convincing. Forceful. Demands attention. Impossible to ignore.

COMPELLING, as in "inspiring," "engaging," "inviting," or "moving."

COMPELLING, as in sermons that deepen our connection to God and each other, and strengthen the sort of convictions that make us more like Jesus every day.

Someone (I've forgotten who, but it was someone smart!) said that your sermon should be the most interesting thing happening in the room. In a world where nearly everyone has a smart phone in their pocket, that's getting harder to do.

Compelling sermons capture our attention on Sunday morning, but they also have an impact on our lives beyond Sunday. They "stick to our ribs" (or our consciences) and draw us deeper into scripture, prayer, and faithful living.

Although he doesn't use the word "compelling," I appreciate the way Haddon Robinson breaks down the elements of a "good sermon" in this Working Preacher video. 

He says more in under 3 minutes than some of the books I've read have been able to say in 30 pages! 

It's worth watching more than once.

Our initiative's aim is "to foster and support preaching that better inspires, encourages, and guides people to come to know and love God and to live out their Christian faith more fully."

As Haddon Robinson notes, that sort of preaching demands a lot of us preachers.

We've broken our initiative's mission down into three smaller (!!) goals. Today, let's explore Goal #1:

GOAL #1: Enhance Preaching Skills. Preaching requires a broad and complicated skillset--and I have yet to meet a preacher (me included!) who is strong in all of them. Each week, the task of preaching requires you to be:

What did I leave off this list?

Of all the skills listed above, which grabs your attention as something you know you need to work on? What's holding you back from improving in that area? How might the Louisa Woosley Preaching Initiative be able to help?

Respond to this email and let me know what's on your mind. I'd love to talk to you!

Carey Nieuwhof's article "7 Ways to Beat Writer’s Block and Eliminate Boring Sermons" is full of helpful tips for busy preachers who want to preach compelling sermons.

Through events (regional, presbytery, synod, and more), online learning opportunities, and this weekly email, the Louisa Woosley Preaching Initiative wants to connect YOU with solid, useful resources and support that will help you grow and develop your preaching skills. 

Preaching skills (nuts-and-bolts stuff) is the theme of our first big event--and it starts in 141 days! That may seem like a long time, but it will be here before you know it.

"Six Days Til Sunday" registration opens Tuesday, November 5, at noon Eastern. I'll send the link in an email to all of you. The link will be posted on our web page on Wednesday, November 6 at 8:00 am Eastern.

Because of the way the grant is written (each annual event is bigger than the one before it) and the size of the venue, the event is limited to 50 participants. It's a "first-come, first-served" situation, and we'll close registration as soon as we see that we've reached that limit.

There is no cost to attend. Lodging and meals are provided, and we'll even give you a travel stipend. It is open to all CP candidates, licentiates, and ministers in the United States. The conference will be especially meaningful to those of us who preach regularly (or feel called to do that one day soon).

I hope to see you in Bowling Green!

--Rev. Jen Newell

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!*

Congratulations to Rev. Karen Gnewuch-Schmidt (Grace Presbytery, Rocky Ridge CPC), winner of last week's $100.00 Visa Gift Card. 

* FYI: That $100 will buy a bunch of chicken dinners, dozens upon dozens of eggs, or your very own chicken! (Of course, you can use it for non-chicken-related purchases, too).

For the final week of Pastor Appreciation, we're giving away a $100 gift card for Christianbook.com. This is a great opportunity for you to stock up on a few preaching-related resources, buy a brand-new Bible, or explore the latest titles from your favorite authors.

Click here between now and noon on Friday (November 1) to enter the drawing!

The Louisa Woosley Preaching Initiative is a grant-funded program of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Our goal is to equip ministers and candidates for ministry to preach compelling sermons to today's diverse and often divided world. 

For more information about the initiative and our programs, visit our website.