It’s Day 1 at the Church Systems Check-up and Boot Camp in Orlando and one of the the things we’re doing live in front of a group of 200+ attendees is a message run-through. We’re literally running through this Sunday’s message – rehearsing it ahead of time to get feedback and make changes well before Sunday.

Why do we do this? For the same reason that actors to speak the words of a script out loud before they go into an audition room. Because no matter how many times they run through their part in their head, no matter how well they’ve committed it to memory, no matter how clearly they can see their delivery in their own mind’s eye, they understand this truth: Things sound differently when spoken aloud.

Though you and I are not performers, the same rule applies. Your message should not leave your lips for the first time on a Sunday morning – ever. If it does, you will have missed an incredible opportunity to strengthen your delivery and your overall craft.

Now, one of my mantras has become, “Never preach a message once.”

And preaching it in multiple services during the same weekend doesn’t count. Your first service is not your trial run. If you want to increase the effectiveness of your preaching, you absolutely must develop the habit of doing a weekly message run-through – that is, the habit of preaching your message ahead of time, gathering feedback and integrating the changes into your notes for Sunday. At minimum, put yourself in the room with an audio recorder or a video camera. Better yet, pull together some interested, trusted staff to listen and give you feedback.

(For the full process of conducting a message run-through, click here to download my e-book “How to Double the Effectiveness of Your Preaching.”)

I have a friend who says that preparing a good sermon is like preparing a good soup. After you add all of the ingredients, you have to let it simmer. Effective preaching grows out of early preparation – the kind of early preparation that scheduling a message run-through helps move you toward. When you place the message run-through on your calendar for Thursday afternoon, knowing you will be getting up in front of staff members and/or key people in the church – not to mention with a recorder in front of you – you are forced tobe prepared earlier than you may have otherwise been. Forced preparation yields great rewards.

Your partner in ministry,

Nelson

P.S. I’d like to also help you plan your preaching now for the fall – and save! This week only you can save HALF OFF on my newest and best fall sermons. Click here to save half off – today thru Friday, July 24th only!

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.