Practical Church Newsletter ⛪️

TOGETHER WITH

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In many places in life, the quicker you can get it done, the better.

Let me explain.

It’s not about how hard or long you work, but what problems you solve. Therefore, it is helpful to ask yourself, "How can I make this easier?” For example, here are questions you could ask yourself about sermon writing, which is something I (and many of you) do almost every week. You can adapt these questions for any of your weekly responsibilities that take larger amounts of time.

• What distractions am I allowing that break my focus when studying and writing?

• What other preachers could I ask and learn from regarding their sermon writing process?

• Is the environment I write sermons conducive to sermon writing (am I somewhere where I can be interrupted easily? Is there a more efficient way to capture notes or sermon illustrations? Do I sermon prep when my energy and focus are at their high point in the day? etc.)

• Since sermon writing is one of the most mentally demanding parts of my job, am I prioritizing it in my schedule?

It isn’t about how much time it takes to write sermons that matters, what matters is how helpful they actually are. 7 hours of sermon prep can consistently produce a better sermon than 14 hours of sermon prep if given the right conditions, study habits, and environment.

What is the quickest way you can solve the problem or your recurring task(s)? The value you provide is more important than the time you spent on the problem. Make it as easy as possible to solve it quickly. Then you can move on to the next thing.

Last week on the Practical Church podcast I shared 6 ways to communicate upcoming changes to your church. Not yet subscribed? Do so below so you can get the episodes sent right to you.

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If you repeated what you did today 365 more times, will you be where you want to be next year?

More Resources to help you in ministry 🙌

Here are more ways you can get the help you need:

1. Join the Practical Church Facebook group. Connect with 2,300+ pastors and ministry leaders to get help and feedback from others.

2. Check out Mission Support so you can enjoy being a pastor again.

3. Click here to submit a ministry question to be answered on a future Practical Church Podcast episode.

P.S. Who was the greatest comedian in the Bible?

Samson. He brought the house down.

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