As pastors and communicators, we’ve all heard the “Good job” and the “I needed that,” after a message. In fact, when we don’t hear it, it kind of makes us wonder if we just got on the stage and repeated the words, “Blah, blah, blah” over and over again. We’ve all received those rather generic compliments after we’ve preached, but they aren’t the ones that we remember.
One of the greatest compliments I’ve ever received after a message came just a few weeks ago after preaching a message about the lady in 2 Kings who didn’t have any money and only a jar of oil to pay her debts. I talked about how, no matter the situation, God can use what little we have through the ups and downs of our lives. After that message, I had a lady come up to me as I was greeting in the lobby and began to explain how much the sermon meant to her because she couldn’t help but think about a life situation I had talked with her about the month before. She went on and on about how, because she knew me and knew part of my story, my sermon had been one of the most impactful she’d ever heard. After that conversation, I walked away and it hit me,
How a message relates is determined by relationship.
In other words, our messages and sermons go much further when we’re not a pastor on a stage or a pastor in a pulpit, but when we’re relationship builders off of the stage. Now, I know we can’t really “know” everyone and we can’t let everyone in, but we can be personable. We can tell personal stories in our sermons and greet people afterward. We can calendar time to meet with the people we speak to and shepherd. We can see the people we preach to as relationship opportunities rather than just an audience during our message.
How do we make ourselves more relatable so that our message can go further?
Use personal illustrations rather than canned ones.
We can use the things we go through, funny, trivial, or serious, as a way to drive home a point. It’s always better when it’s personal.
Share your struggles, but be sure to share what you get right as well.
It can seem self-serving to share what you get right when it comes to your life and own faith, but be willing to share it. Be careful and wise when you share it, but both our flaws and our victories make us relatable.
Be available after the service.
Don’t let the message end after the “amen.” Be available in the lobby or vestibule after the service to greet and interact. You can have someone with you to be sure the conversations don’t go too long if need be but be available.
Use social media.
This is a big one. Just because some of social media isn’t utilized correctly doesn’t mean we ignore it all together. Share an occasional family photo or funny event on your social media channels. This not only makes you appear relational, but it also increases conversation because others will have a conversation starter when they talk with you.
Think people over programming.
On Sundays, it can be tempting to be in the zone and try to be sure you’re perfectly timing everything. We can walk right by people without acknowledging them. While this is understandable, remember that people are the goal in what you do, not the perfect sermon or the perfect timing of an element or meeting.
I understand that many of these suggestions will be carried out based on your personality type. Don’t feel like that, just because you aren’t an extrovert, you can’t do these. Work at them. They don’t have to all come at once or even be enjoyable. They are, however, important to your message and ministry.
Jonathan Pearson is the Connections Pastor at SpringWell Church in Taylors, S.C. Jonathan is the co-host of the Next Up Podcast and author of Next Up: 8 Shifts Great Young Leaders Make (June 2014) and the upcoming book Be the Switch. He is married to Melissa and has a son named Riley. They live in Greenville, S.C. Find Jonathan online at JonathanPearson.net.
