The Preaching Donkey Podcast

Grab your FREE 10-Step Sermon Prep Checklist: https://preachingdonkey.com/checklist When you have prepared your sermon well, it's important to make sure you are just as intentional about the delivery. How you preach your sermon can either make your hard work come to life or leave you and everyone else wondering what just happened! In this episode, we'll explore some important must-do's of sermon d...

Just as important as what people see on the screens when you preach, is what people have in their hands as you preach. Your handout, bulletin, listening-guide - whatever you call it - should be intentional. There are three main ways to structure what's on the handout. In this episode, we'll explore all three and I'll let you know which one I think is most effective!

When it comes to sermon prep, slides and other supporting media can often become an after thought. But what your listeners see on the screens in the room while you're preaching can make a big impact on your sermon. It's important to be intentional about your slides, how they're designed, and what they display. In this episode, we'll explore some best-practices and some things to avoid in your serm...

One of the most neglected aspects of the sermon prep process is also one of the most important: rehearsing. By "rehearsing" I don't mean memorizing like the lines of a script. Rather, you want to rehearse so that you fully internalize and understand the message BEFORE you preach it. Whether you're a seasoned veteran or a rookie, in this episode I'm going to make the case for why every preacher sho...

One of the things I've discovered over the years is the power of a good preaching team. What is a preaching team? If you're not familiar with this idea, it can seem more complicated than it is. A preaching team is simply a group of trusted people that you select to help you formulate your sermon at different points of your message preparation process. Utilizing your preaching team is a vital part...

Just as important as outlining is in the sermon prep process, so too is building out that outline with the right content. A skeleton with no muscles and skin is not very useful. An outline by itself is left lacking as well. This is why in this episode we will spend some time looking at how to build out the content in your sermon specifically around your bottom line and points. Download your 10-Ste...

Outlining is a crucial part of the sermon prep process.  Just like a body needs a skeleton, a sermon needs an outline to provide a framework for the message. In this episode, we will dive into the most effective way to outline your message every single time. Download your 10-Step Sermon Prep Checklist FREE: https://www.preachingdonkey.com/checklist

Every sermon should be rooted and grounded in Scripture.  This means that the way you study the Bible for a sermon is important to get right. In this episode, we will dive into a simple, systematic approach to studying the Bible for a sermon that will serve you well as you prepare your sermons. There's a lot packed in this one! I can't wait to see what you do with it! Download your 10-Step Se...

Sermon prep can be daunting, but it doesn't have to be! The key is to have a good process where you know exactly what steps to take along the way. In today's podcast, we're starting a new series on sermon prep where we'll be walking through the ten essential steps of a good sermon prep checklist. We begin with determining our topic, title and hook.  Download your 10-Step Sermon Prep Checklist...

I was a youth pastor for several years and I still believe this to be true: If you can communicate clearly with teenagers and children, you can communicate with anyone.  Kids and students only pay attention if you have something worth listening to.  And by the way, this is actually the case with adults too - it's just that adults are more subtle about ignoring you. So whether or not you...

You may have noticed, but over the last few years, there has been a number of influential Christian leaders renounce their faith, or "deconstruct" as some call it. Deconstruction has a spectrum. For some it means a complete abandonment of Christian thought and practice, while for others it's merely a departure from some tenants they used to hold and believe. The latest in this trend is Kevin Max o...

What's the most important attribute a pastor can have? Some might say competence - they have to know what they're doing. Others might say charisma - they're charming and dynamic enough to speak persuasively and powerfully. While I agree that competence is important and charisma definitely helps, there is an attribute that is more important than either of those: character. This is sobering: If we a...

When we preach we make points.  Sometimes we make one point, other times we make multiple points.  But the point is, we make points. A point is like any other part of our sermon... if structured and delivered well, a point can synthesize and drive home a powerful truth. But often the power of a point is missed because of two simple mistakes preachers make when giving points in a message....

Celebrity pastor culture is everywhere and it affects a lot of  church life and culture. What caused it? How dangerous is it? These are questions I wrestle with a lot.  And I'm not the only one. The Instagram account, PreachersNSneakers, took social media by storm a few years ago by pointing out the amount of money celebrity pastors were spending on their shoes.  Ben Kirby, the crea...

My friend, Jameson Reynolds, joins me for episode 27 of the Preaching Donkey Podcast. In this episode we discuss the vital relationship between the lead pastor and worship pastor. As the lead worship pastor at a large, multi-site church, Jameson shares his experience working with his senior pastor and other senior leadership to create the best possible weekend experiences for their attendees. We a...

Ministry can be draining. We love the work, the people and the calling, but... It can still be draining. This is why we NEED time away. True, actual time away. But, many pastors can't or won't protect their vacations and they end up being interrupted or cut short. Friend, it does not have to be this way! In this episode, I will give you a step-by-step plan for making the most of the precious time...

The pandemic changed a lot of the ways we structure our services. Prioritizing the online experience became essential for any church to thrive during that time. But now most churches are back to some type of in-person services (depending where you are, of course).  This does NOT mean we should go back to "normal." Instead, we should still seek to engage the people attending online and make th...

Should your church's focus be on reaching the lost (evangelism) or helping believers grow (discipleship)? Believe it or not, this is a debate churches can get caught up in. Some churches pride themselves on being discipleship oriented. Still other churches place a high value on aggressively reaching the lost. I think this whole debate has been framed wrong, and in this episode I'll explain why the...

Greg Atkinson joins me for episode 23 of the Preaching Donkey Podcast.  In this episode, we discuss the importance of capturing imagination when you preach, the role first impressions play in the effectiveness of your sermon and virtual church best practices. There is so much packed into this conversation, I know you're going to get a ton of value from it! Follow Greg: https://gregatkinson.co...

As I've worked with and coached preachers over the years, and in my own ministry, I've found that church leadership and preaching is tough work - it's not for the faint of heart. New challenges are always surfacing; the joys are elating and the lows can be devastating. At the same time, to remain sharp in my preaching and leadership, I need ongoing training. I know I'm not the only one! We all nee...

If Jesus didn't rise from the dead, preaching is a waste of time, but if he did rise from the dead, it's among the most important things we could ever do.

Every preacher is susceptible to pitfalls. We have to intentionally navigate around them to ensure that we stay healthy. In this bonus episode, I want to jump into the first of three pitfalls and then invite you to join in on The Preacher's Journey Workshop which is a FREE workshop this week at Preaching Donkey. Register at https://www.preachingdonkey.com/journey

The ministry landscape is always changing and we must be prepared for those changes. What we relied on to work yesterday might not work tomorrow. This is why I love Carey Nieuwhof's blog post on five preaching trends that will shape the future. In this episode, we'll examine each of the five trends and see what we can discover and apply to our preaching and leadership. 5 Trends article: https://ca...

Equipping our people with the tools they need to understand and defend their faith is an ongoing task we have as pastors. Many people in our churches do not know how to their faith stands up to skeptics. Sadly, this can result in Christians who do not know how to respond when their children reject the faith because they can't reconcile it with post-modern thought. On this week's episode of the Pre...

"Church People" is a new movie releasing this week which centers on a pastor who is relying on outlandish means to reach people and his youth pastor who is doing everything he can to get the church back to the simplicity of the gospel. I had the opportunity to sit down with the director of the film, Christopher Shawn Shaw, and lead actor, Thor Ramsey, to discuss the making of the film, the impact...