how to use onenote for sermon preparation

#How to use onenote for sermon preparation how to

Why would a sermon be much different on most occasions? There’s no theological justification for sermon length.

#How to use onenote for sermon preparation how to

Think of the time needed to teach any new skill. How long does it take to teach someone how to use a new app, appliance, or remote control for the TV? All things being equal, it takes no more than 15-25 minutes to learn the who, what, when, where, and why of doing something new. The times that I haven’t used that clock I’ve gone over by at least 10 minutes, thinking I’m actually right on time. The clock starts counting down the moment I open my mouth. To help me do this consistently I had a large screen installed in the back of our auditorium which projects, among other things in the service, a clock counting down from 28 to 0 to keep me on track. This is why I try to preach between 25-28 minutes every single time. In almost all cases I’d say 30 minutes max, and probably closer to 25. Learning, equipping, rebuking, encouraging, comforting, etc. We prepare sermons to help people obey Jesus (Matthew 28:20). It’s so easy for Senior Pastors to forget that the reason we prepare sermons is not to prepare sermons. In other words, how long does it take, on average, to accomplish what we’re trying to accomplish? What is the Minimum Effective Dose with regards to the length of an effective sermon? Spending more time than the Minimum Effective Dose needed to produce excellent sermons wastes precious time that could be spent on other vital ministry tasks. You shouldn’t feel guilty about not spending 20 hours a week in sermon preparation if it only takes 8 hours to get the job done. This principle applies to everything from weight training, to learning a language, and, of course, to preaching. In fact, it might do her more harm than good. Would doubling the amount of Amoxicillin make her get better, faster? Of course not. The idea of Minimum Effective Dose comes from the world of medicine.Ī Minimum Effective Dose is the principle that the smallest dose needed will produce the desired outcome, and that anything over that exact dosage is wasted.įor example, if your daughter has an earache and is prescribed a 400mg dose of Amoxicillin, 2 times a day for 5 days, that’s because clinical trials have proven that she only needs 400mg, 2 times a day, for her symptoms to go away in 5 days or less. Adopt The Concept Of “Minimum Effective Dose” With Your Preaching. If you follow the 5 steps I outline in this article I believe you will consistently preach better sermons with 8 hours or less of preparation than some Senior Pastors will having only spent 15 or 20. The problem I have isn’t the amount of time spent, it’s that I believe most Senior Pastors could be much more effective in how those 8 hours are spent. I actually think that’s plenty of time to write a good message. That’s usually 4 hours on a Wednesday, and another 4 hours on a Thursday. If I had to guess, I think the average Senior Pastor spends no more than two mornings a week on their sermons. Knowing how my week usually flows, I’m quite skeptical. The leaders I run in circles with throw around numbers like 15 to 20 hours a week.

I’ve always been a bit suspicious of how long Senior Pastors spend in sermon preparation anyway. This includes wasting time on unfocused sermon preparation.

If you’re going to lead your church through the next growth barrier, you can’t squander the most precious personal resource you have: time.