I'm not an ordained minister, but I do get asked occasionally to do pulpit supply in churches.
One time, about 15 years ago, I was asked to do two back-to-back weeks at one church. The first one was easy. The second one? I gained a greater respect for you guys who do this weekly.
Anyway, The Message Bible was still relatively new at the time, and I decided to read the Sermon on the Mount, all three chapters. (Actually, I did a ten minute set-up; I didn't want them to think I was that lazy!)
The thing that surprised me was the laughter. They weren't laughing at me, or the translation, but they were caught by surprise by the 'edge' of what Jesus was saying there, perhaps for the first time.
I read Scripture in place of my sermon recently. I concluded a series from Mark with reading Chapters 1 through 8. I invited the hearers to spark their own audible reading habit by finishing the book that week. It takes a lot of practice to read 50 minutes clearly and expositionally with pace and endurance.
I'm not an ordained minister, but I do get asked occasionally to do pulpit supply in churches.
ReplyDeleteOne time, about 15 years ago, I was asked to do two back-to-back weeks at one church. The first one was easy. The second one? I gained a greater respect for you guys who do this weekly.
Anyway, The Message Bible was still relatively new at the time, and I decided to read the Sermon on the Mount, all three chapters. (Actually, I did a ten minute set-up; I didn't want them to think I was that lazy!)
The thing that surprised me was the laughter. They weren't laughing at me, or the translation, but they were caught by surprise by the 'edge' of what Jesus was saying there, perhaps for the first time.
I read Scripture in place of my sermon recently. I concluded a series from Mark with reading Chapters 1 through 8. I invited the hearers to spark their own audible reading habit by finishing the book that week. It takes a lot of practice to read 50 minutes clearly and expositionally with pace and endurance.
ReplyDelete