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First Tuesday of April, 2000
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IN THIS ISSUE:
[1] Greetings from the editor
[2] Featured Article: TAKING THE DRUDGERY OUT OF SERMON PREPARATION (Part
2)
[3] Preacher's Study Website Updates
[4] Contact Info
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[1] ***Greetings!***
Greetings friends! A special welcome to new subscribers. Please feel free
to forward this ezine to friends and associates.
In this issue I am running a second part of the article featured in our
last edition. It's called, "Taking the Drudgery Out of Sermon
Preparation." I had mentioned last time that I would publish the second
*half* in this issue, however, as I worked on the revision, it became too
long. The final Part 3 will be in our next issue. I Hope you enjoy it.
As always, your input is welcomed.
God bless.
Dave Redick
[2] ***Featured Article***
Note: If you wish to read part 1 of this article, go to:
http://preacherstudy.com/ezine12_h.htm
TAKING THE DRUDGERY OUT OF SERMON PREPARATION (Part 2 of 3 parts)
By Dave Redick
...Continued from last issue...
Illustration Database.
Besides the Scripture, good illustrations are the bread and butter of
sermon preparation. An apt illustration can do more than fifteen minutes
of explanation and raise the attention level to boot. Having a store of
collected material from which you can pull is a great plus. Your sermons
will always be interesting if you tell stories while you preach.
There was a time when I had many illustrations kept in what I defeatedly
called my "pile system" which consisted of stacks of magazine and
newspaper clippings put in this corner or that. Though I collected good
material, it was useless to me because I couldn't find it when I needed
it. I recall one occasion when, having so much printed material, I filled
five 32 gallon trash cans and hauled it all to the dump! I nearly cried as
I drove away, but really, the items were worthless to me because they
weren't organized.
Today all my sermon support material is kept in one file cabinet and one
computer database designed especially for sermon illustrations. The
database is Parsons' Bible Illustrator. It originally came with 2500
stories, quotes, and anecdotes. Today mine contains over 60,000 items. I
collect illustrations like some people collect stamps. It is a hobby that
pays great dividends when it is time to do serious sermon preparation. The
search capabilities of the program make finding material easy. Cutting and
pasting to and from the Windows clipboard saves much typing.
Rounding out my illustration collection is a modest assortment of the
typical illustration books most preachers manage to gather. I seldom use
them because the computer is much more effective and convenient. With
60,000 illustrations in digitized form, who wants to turn the pages of a
book?
Though I began my early ministry struggling, it is probably true now that
I could sit down with most any passage of scripture and prepare a sermon
in a reasonable amount of time. That kind of confidence comes from
experience and a vast collection of helpful material. I encourage you to
work on your collection. Your confidence will grow as your resources grow.
Today it is easier than ever to collect and file good material.
Bible Illustrator is available from Parson's Technology (Now owned by
Mattel) at:
http://www.shopmattel.com/product.asp?OID=4037600
Computerized Dictionary.
To some this item might seem optional, but to me it is critical. I
constantly check words I'm not sure of before I use them. This ensures
accuracy and freedom from embarrassment. It also builds my vocabulary. The
thesaurus function is invaluable when I'm seeking to alliterate an outline
or vary my words. I use The American Heritage Talking Dictionary on CD
published by Softkey. Other good ones are available. The "talking"
function helps when checking pronunciation.
Other Programs.
Microsoft Powerpoint is used to prepare overhead transparencies. These are
printed on a color ink jet printer and projected with a standard overhead
projector. Some preachers I know use Powerpoint's video projection
capabilities in conjunction with laptop computers with spectacular effect.
Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia is a great help for checking the
accuracy of facts as is Microsoft Encarta and Encyclodpedia Britannica.
These and other encyclopedias are available on CD and are much more
reasonably priced than their paper counterparts. These also help me
produce interesting illustrations. For instance, in the intro to a certain
sermon, I told the fascinating story of the Pony Express, gleaned from an
Encyclopedia article. Here are some links:
Encarta CD:
http://www.microsoft.com/encarta/
Britannica Online:
http://www.eb.com/
Compton's Encyclopedia:
http://www.msbsoft.com/soft/22039.asp
I keep my sermon collection cataloged with Parson's Ministry Notebook, a
small multi-function program that also keeps track of expenses, prayers,
calls and other things pertaining to ministry. I keep random sermon
thoughts, outlines, and ideas in a program that stays loaded on my
computer at all times called Info Select. At its base is a freeform
database that works magic on random bits of information that would
typically be lost because they don't fit easily into categories. You could
effectively file sixteen odd socks in this program and never lose one of
them. Typing in the search term "John" might bring up three outlines from
the gospel of John, the address of John Doe, the recorded result of an
interview with John Smith, a quote from John Brown, and yes, even the
number of the drawer where you put John's odd sock. (I did say random,
didn't I?)
More on Info Select is available at:
http://www.miclog.com/
Lately, two of my greatest research tools are my Netscape Navigator and
Microsoft Internet Explorer browsers. Both do essentially the same thing -
browse the World Wide Web. I use both because I publish a web site and
must test the pages on each. Every day new web sites are showing up that
support the efforts of the preacher. Increasingly, all sorts of research
is possible. I also share ideas and material with several preaching
friends via e-mail and computerized mailing lists. My email program of
choice is Microsoft Outlook. I use Microsoft FrontPage for publishing on
the web.
We live in marvelous and exciting times. The potential for streamlining
sermon preparation has never been greater. Get busy learning how.
...Continued in Next Issue...
(c) Dave Redick, The Preacher's Study, 2000. All Rights Reserved. Reprint
by permission only. Please do not cut article out of this ezine and paste
them anywhere else. You may, however, forward this entire Ezine to friends
freely.
[3] ***Preacher's Study Website Updates***
Two new messages were added to the Premium Section of our website since
the last issue. This material and hundreds of other messages are available
to subscribers. Subscription information is available at:
http://preacherstudy.com/subscribe.htm
The first of the two new messages, "Remember Your Creator", is based on
Ecclesiastes 12 and Solomon's instruction to remember God before the aging
process and death comes. If you have a password you may go there directly
at:
http://preacherstudy.com/premium/creator.html
The second messages is "Look to the Rock from Which Your Were Cut." It is
the first message in a current series based on the life of Abraham. The
text for this message is Isaiah 51:1-2. View it with a password at:
http://preacherstudy.com/premium/abraham1.html
That's all for now.
God bless.
Dave Redick
[4] ***Contact Info***
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"Energize Your Preaching"
Owner: Dave Redick
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