Son of a Preacher Man
Yesterday I gave my first sermon in 9 years. It was quite daunting for me, but somehow I survived. I think I spent about 30 hours prepping for it, and it took 37 minutes to deliver. Amazingly, I only saw three people nodding off, which as my friend Jason says, “If anyone was awake that’s probably a good thing.” Such love.
There is a recording of the message, and there’s even a handout that goes with it to make it seem more “official.”
I was brave enough to listen to it yesterday. I was shocked to hear that my voice is way higher than I thought… And I sounded much more calm than I felt. I felt like I was quivering almost the entire time - I was fidgetting with my tie, putting my hands in my pockets, and frozen at the pulpit — I couldn’t move at all. But somehow I guess I kept my nervousness to myself.
I had to learn a lot about the topic I spoke on (Discovering and Using Your Spiritual Gifts), so the deadline of giving a sermon really forced me to study and understand the subject well. All it all I think it was a great experience, but I realize how hard it must be to do week in and week out.