Awfulness to goodness

Yesterday i preached my worst sermon in living memory.

In the morning service i preached on David vs Goliath and it was a stinker. I rambled, I went WAY too long, my jokes died and my illustrations weren't well received.

I would like to say that i had excuses. I could provide them... My Dad is in hospital again and i visited him on Saturday. I lost a few days of prep through Ange and i going away on holidays. The night before i didn't get to sleep until 3:30, even through i went to bed at 12. And to top it all off, I experimented with shorter notes despite my lack of prep and rehearsal.

I was under prepared, under practiced and it showed.

Heck, as i was giving the sermon i even started to bore myself!

But yesterday i also preached a pretty good sermon.

In the evening service i preached on David vs Goliath. I was on point, I was entertaining, and my jokes and illustrations enhanced the sermon.

The difference? I rehearsed once more, left the pulpit and edited majorly.

Having notes that aren't word-for-word is fine, as long as you know where you are and are familiar with the transitions between points.

Rehearsing standing up was also a massive help. I used my props much more effectively.

Finally, i reworked the structure of the sermon. I cut much of the delivery time without losing content. And... it was much better. It flowed better. It was given in a much more conversational style. And... it had far superior follow up. Claire nailed her post-sermon spiel.

So... all up... an interesting day. What began crappy, turned out alright.