Tuesday for me usually ends up being a day running errands in town, but originally it was meant to be my study day.
Honestly, I do see the importance of sermon preparation. But if I don’t create a day and time specifically for doing it, I usually won’t.
There will always be other tasks to accomplish.
Other people to reach
New projects to accomplish.
The end result of this is often a sermon that’s good, but not great. Oh it shares the truth clearly but isn’t contextualized to the Vincentians, or applied directly to their lives.
These experiences have taught me time and time again that study is as important as activity…in fact, it’s MORE IMPORTANT!
Often within ministry, there are opportunities to teach or share God’s truth. Sometimes this is answering a question, other times it’s sharing an encouraging word, or explaining the Gospel. The important thing is having something to SAY when you pull that Bible out of your bag.
And where does that message come from?
Your personal study!
Study not only prepares our minds to share God’s truth with others, but it also prepares our hearts. Devotions are a wonderful way to stay close to the Lord on a daily basis, but they don’t normally dig deep into the truths of Scripture. In order to find the “steak” in a passage we must take the time for intense and careful study. And its that study that will truly transform our hearts.
Johnhwilburn.org 