The difference between Advent being just another Christmas ‘thing’ and it being a spiritually engaging Christmas tradition can be influenced greatly by pastors preaching sermons that capitalize on the momentum of a countdown. Not just approaching sermons as ‘Christmas’ sermons but truly being intentional with the sermon outlines and manuscripts to capture the heart of…
Christmas is approaching and by the first week of Advent you will have spent precious hours preparing to make the most of each Christmas service. For the first time since Easter, your teaching calendar will be in sync with popular culture – you don’t want to let the moment pass you by. So, let’s talk…
When you make the decision to preach an Advent sermon series for Christmas, it is important to communicate in your preaching the history of Advent, what actually is – and what it is not. If you’ve ever taken your church through Advent, familiarity with the tradition, lighting of candles, and scripture reading makes this season…
You may not realize it, but as soon as mid-November, your congregation members will start wondering, “When will they start playing Christmas songs and Advent hymns?” So many in your church are ready to use the fireplace, decorate sugar cookies, and plan for annual family traditions. Your weekend services are often the soundtrack for their…
Christmas always feels like it is right around the corner. Churches all over the country will soon be making plans to create one of their most meaningful times of the year. With the Christmas season will come the Christian celebration of Advent. Advent in One Sentence: Advent is a season celebrated by Christians as a…
Editors Note: This is the first blog in a series written by local church leaders for local church leaders. Today’s post comes from Chad Graham. Chad serves as Lead Pastor at University Assembly in Colorado Springs, CO. Chad is also Senior Fellow at The Gordon Lewis Center for Christian Thought and Culture. As American church attendance declines,…
This time of year, we see a ton of products and how-to guides talking about how to put together an annual preaching calendar. You might have even see our resources, too. *If you’re looking for preaching calendar resources and ideas, click here to read our ultimate guide to creating a preaching calendar. You may even…
Sermon illustrations. They’re powerful but can be really difficult to use effectively. Sure, you can throw a sermon illustration in here or there that has somewhat of a point and get by, but powerful sermon illustrations are tougher. A powerful sermon illustration helps a sermon get to a different place for the listener. People love…
The sermon calendar. It’s a world of possibilities and opportunities, but it can also be a world of stress and writer’s block. Every year, a few other staff members and I sit down to fill in the calendar. We usually do 6 months at a time. We’ll sit down in October to plan January through…
The “selfie” has become a regularity and an expectation on nearly all social media platforms. Our smartphones have front-facing cameras to make selfies easier to take and that has increased our infatuation with them. But sometimes the selfie can become destructive. Not the picture itself, but the attitude that can sometimes be accompanied by it. Selfies…
Who doesn’t need some more wisdom in their life? This Proverbs sermon series bundle is perfect for helping your congregation see what godly wisdom is and how to implement it in their lives. As you know, the book of Proverbs was originally written to a young man by his elder in an attempt to pass…
Looking for ideas as you plan your next sermon series? Is your schedule being pulled in all directions and planning ahead has become a bit more difficult among everything else you’re being asked to do? The Ultimate List of Sermon Topics is a quick snapshot of 115 different topics you can scan through and choose…
Later in his life, the Apostle Peter wrote two letters to various churches facing persecution and trials in the region of Asia Minor. He focuses on encouraging these churches to stand firm in the faith that they have clung to in Jesus. Even though these letters were written nearly two thousand years ago, they are…
Looking for a fresh sermon series to preach through? Look no further. This is our top sermon series list for 2018. Every month, we release fresh sermon series bundles that are used as starting points for preachers to begin preparing their sermons. We put in the preliminary research, outline what the series can look like, put…
If there’s one subject more people in the churches we lead need to understand, it’s the gospel. Because here’s the thing: many Christians talk about “the gospel,” but do they know what it means? Just as important, do they know how it applies to today? This three-week series entitled The Gospel theologically and practically defines the…
If there is one theological topic that the vast majority of church attendees seem to not understand, it would be ecclesiology – the Church. This is why a church sermon series is important. The lack of understanding has led to church hopping and church shopping. It has caused people to leave at the first sign of…
Much of the theme in the book of Daniel has to do with the pride of King Nebuchadnezzar. I mean, when you dream about statues of yourself that the entire world can see and bow down to, you’ve got a pride problem. Daniel enters the story as a captive in Babylon. He is good-looking, top…
One of the biggest points of opportunity churches have to make disciples is to leverage the weeks just after someone surrenders to Christ. Oftentimes, the bulk of our gospel preaching focuses on calling someone to respond to Christ and His gospel. But sometimes we miss the opportunity after salvation. So what might it look like to…
I have neighbors from India. Their faith of choice is Hindu. They are great neighbors. They have been extremely helpful on different projects and are always willing to share their stuff. He has invited me over to look at his refinished basement. When he redid his garage, he was quick to invite me in to…
Are you looking for a Jeremiah sermon series? Our new sermon series bundle on the prophet Jeremiah is now available. In it, we are asking, how can we remain faithful to God even when many of the people around us are not? What are ways we can share the gospel even when we face opposition?…
I just wrapped up a series on the book of Daniel. You can see the sermons and resources here. Because I get asked a lot by pastors about sermon prep, putting a series together, making the Bible relevant, I thought I’d share 3 tips for preaching the book of Daniel. Why? The book of Daniel…
Every day, every week, we come up against problems that we don’t know how to deal with. If we want our congregants to be able to work through life’s impossible problems with faith in the God who works all things together for good for those who love Him, this sermon series is a great option to…
The financial difficulties many churches are currently facing can be traced directly back to the pastors who are leading them. If you’re a pastor of a church that’s struggling financially, you probably don’t want to hear that, but in most cases it’s true. The pastor sets the financial tone for the church. Some pastors have…
Paul Tripp’s Sex in a Broken World is a timely and extremely important book for Christians living in today’s world. Not only is the book written on a topic the Church and Christianity have largely avoided, it’s written practically and honestly. To mark the release of the book and our free sermon series based on…
A.A. Milne, the creator of the Winnie the Pooh series, wrote a short conversation between Piglet and Pooh. “I’m scared,” said Piglet. “A story will help,” said Pooh. “How?” “Don’t you know? Stories make your heart grow.” Church Leader, Look for the Stories In his simple, childlike way, Winnie the Pooh reminds us of the power…
We have a promise of a new identity as Christians. Yes, in Christ, we have been made new. But a lot of us struggle to shake off the old habits that continue to plague us. So what could it look like to get rid of those old habits and embrace the new habits that align…
A few weeks ago, my wife and son and I were waiting in a doctor’s office. Being a pediatric office, the staff obviously knew the struggle to keep a little toddler occupied while they waited to see the doctor and had placed a foosball table in the waiting room. Having only seen a foosball table…
You know your people best. You know whether or not many of them are integrating their faith and work on a consistent basis. And given that, you probably know that many of the people in your church are struggling to see how their jobs have anything to do with their faith. But, as you know,…
Have you ever been in a situation and you knew the right thing to do, but that was the last thing you wanted to do? If you’re a leader of any kind, you face enormous decisions every day. Decisions that determine the path your church will take, decisions that will alter people’s livelihoods financially. The…
Are you looking for a great summer sermon series to preach? We’ve got you covered with God on Film. This 4-week series is ideal for the summer blockbuster season. With so many big-budget movies hitting theaters this time of year, the people in your congregation and community can’t help but discuss each week’s latest theatrical release….
Do you remember where you were the first time you saw an “I love my church” t-shirt? I can’t remember the first place I saw it, but I know I loved the idea. What a great way to market the church, and express our love. We called up our t-shirt company right away and got…
Have you ever experienced seasons when God just seems to be silent and aloof? We all have. And the people in your congregation are no different. Many of them are experiencing that feeling right now. And that’s why we believe our sermon series, Silence, can be so powerful. This four-week series addresses seasons when God seems…
Leadership is messy. You don’t have to have a degree in leadership or work a long time with people to figure that out. This isn’t just within the Church, but pretty much everywhere. Ask anyone who is leading other people if they think it’s easy and neat, and they’ll tell you that it’s not. People…
One of the best things we can do for the people in our church family is to equip them to pray. If we want more people to be connected to God in their daily lives, prayer is pivotal. To help you out with planning for a prayer sermon series, we’ve compiled five of our favorite…
Over the last few days, it seems the whole world has been talking about a 14-minute sermon. This should encourage those of us who are called to preach. The next time you think sermons can’t make an impact in this world remember this week and how a passionate message about God’s love touched the hearts of…
Photo by Adam Mason Photography Video review from New York Times bestselling author and pastor, Mark Batterson. Not too long ago, we had a chance to sit down with Mark Batterson. Here is what he had to say about Ministry Pass: “Hi, I’m Mark Batterson, Lead Pastor of National Community Church in Washington, D.C. I…
