Thanks for reading my blog. Here are my Saturday Shout Outs. NOTE: You can subscribe to my weekly sermon email list in the column to the right to regularly receive a free sermon manuscript and other resources. A big shout-out to Preacher Mike for the opportunity to preach Monday Night Live at the First Baptist Church of Indian Trail in North Carolina. Shout out to President Arthur Lane and the pastors of Corpus Christi for the opportunity to preach the citywide revival this week. I first preached this meeting about fifteen years ago, with my brother Kevin. And it was...

God Knows What He's Doing

  On July 30, 2008, the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church of Jacksonville met to call a new pastor. I was one of two names to be considered that Wednesday night. I had mixed emotions. First all of, the momentum was moving toward me being called to Shiloh. Yet I had been in this situation before. And after momentum toward a vote, another congregation overwhelming voted NOT to call me. It was embarrassing. And I did not want to go through that again. At the same time, I was sure that if Shiloh called me, I was not going. The Lord was blessing...

We are beginning a new feature here called, WORD & WORSHIP. It will consist of articles, reviews, and videos by me and my ministerial colleague, Joe Pace, who serves as the Pastor of Worship & Arts at the Shiloh Church. Our goal is to offer biblical guidance and practical help in the dealing with the relationship between music and preaching in corporate worship. We believe music in worship should extend and support the teaching ministry of the church (Colossians 3:16). And we hope to help teaching pastors and music ministers to strike the proper balance for the edification of the saints and...

Celebrating the Majesty of God (Psalm 8)

Thanks for reading my blog. Saturday Shout-Outs is my weekly bulletin board of things I found worth sharing. Enjoy! A big shout-out to Brian Dye and his entire team for the opportunity to teach and preach at the Legacy Movement Conference this week in Chicago. It was way cool to see so many young people on fire for the Lord! So... I told my children that I am now hip, because I was invited to speak at Legacy. They shook their heads in disagreement. I am very excited about concluding our first Summer Psalm Series at the Shiloh Church this weekend....

This is Episode #007 of The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In this episode, we will talk about the benefits of using study Bibles in sermon preparation. A study is more than a Bible you study from. It is a Bible with commentary notes at the bottom of the page. Early in my study, I read through the notes in the study Bibles. And I recommend you this simple but effective practice to you in this episode. Why should I use study Bibles in sermon preparation? Study Bibles focus on the content...

Stay In The Race

Thanks for reading my blog. Here are my Saturday Shout-Outs for this week. A big shout-out to the Shiloh Church staff and volunteers for serving our children this week during the 2014 Vacation Bible School. You make it happen! Shout-out to Pastor Terrance Floyd and the Mt. Gilead Baptist Church of Wichita, KA. It was a blast to have the opportunity to preach to you again. This congregation is twelve years old. And I have had the joy of preaching to them ten of those years. Two nights of the meeting, a local pastor named Kent brought young men from his church...

I believe expository preaching is the most faithful way to preach and teach the word of God. Expository preaching is that preaching that explains what the text of scripture means by what it says. It makes the God-intended meaning of the text the primary message of the sermon or lesson. Bible exposition lets the word of God speak for itself. On September 24-26, 2014, the Cutting It Straight Expository Preaching Conference will meet to teach, model, and promote expository preaching and teaching. This conference is for pastors, associate ministers, and Sunday School teachers, whether you are a season preacher or new...

This is Episode #006 of The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In this episode, we will talk about developing Sermons Skeletons. What is a Sermon Skeleton?  A Sermon Skeleton is a written statement of your sermon's details, purpose, and structure. Why should you develop a Sermon Skeleton?   It will force you to think about what you want to say. It will bring focus to your message. It will give clarity to your message. It will provide a frame to form your message around. It will help you to memorize your message....

Getting Even God's Way (Genesis 50: 15-21)