Do I Still Believe in Preaching?

Here is my contention: preaching, though critical, is not in itself sufficient. It isn't sufficient for people getting to know the scriptures and it isn't sufficient for people growing in maturity. It is an important part of the diet, but not the whole thing. Just like with a baby, it isn't the quality of the food you channel their way that makes a person grow. It is whether they digest it.
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I Didn't Do It...

Yesterday I received a timely and powerful reminder of just who is in charge. After a very long and, frankly, difficult week I preached from Daniel 2 at our two morning services. Although I had prayed quite a bit over the preparation I think the sermon was, well, not my best. And my delivery was weak. I felt it. I was tongue-tied and stumbling, not especially persuasive and definitely not eloquent. Afterwards the first one I wanted to slink into the associate pastor's office and hide.
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Holy Spirit-Empowered Preaching; 2 Cor 3&4

Any preaching friends reading this. Let's have a holy dissatisfaction if we have fallen into the trap of thinking that because we don't see a great deal of supernatural accompanyment to our preaching at the moment that therefore we shouldn't or that God doesn't do that today. Let's not justify our powerlessness on the grounds that we shouldn't expect God's power to be at work. Let's get on our knees - fall on our faces even - and beseech him. So that, like Paul, our preaching of the glorious new covenant in the Spirit might come: not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction (1 Thes. 1:5)
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