Right-Brain Preaching
I'm a homebody. I love preaching @ NCC more than anyplace else. But I've got to admit that speaking to pastors is pure joy for me. I'm so passionate about preaching and pastoring that I really enjoy every opportunity I have to interface with pastors.
I spent three hours with some church planters down in Nashville, TN on Friday.
Then I tag-teamed with Dr. Mark Rutland, President of Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida on Saturday. For what it's worth, Southeastern is the fastest growing Christian University in the country. When you hear Dr. Rutland speak you know why. What an amazing leader and communicator!
For what it's worth, my session was on right-brain preaching. It was a great tune-up for one of my Buzz sessions.
I think too many preachers preach with half their brain tied behind their back!
Try writing your name with your weak hand? The writing is illegible isn't it? Why? Because you're using the wrong side.
Our sermons are illegible to many listeners because we're using the wrong side of our brains crafting sermons. Too many sermons are left-brain logical but not right-brain creative. I think our messages need to be both/and. We've got to do our left-brain exegesis. But creatively packaging a sermon is the function of the right-brain.
C.S. Lewis once referred to himself as "the most reluctant convert in all of Christendom." The night before his conversion, Lewis had a long conversation with J.R.R. Tolkein, author of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkein was a Christ follower and he tried to convince Lewis of the credibility of Christ. But Lewis was full of objections. At one point, Tolkein said, "Your inability to understand stems from a failure of imagination on your part!"
One of the greatest threats to the future of the church is a failure of our right-brain imaginations.
I think C.S. Lewis modeled whole-brained Christianity. His theological writings are as logical as logic can be. And the Narnia series is as creative as creative can be.
I've said it a thousand times, but there are two ways of doing ministry: ministry out of memory and ministry out of imagination. Ministry out of memory is doing it the way its always been done. Ministry out of imagination is incarnating the gospel in new ways.
We need some more preachers with sanctified imaginations.
I spent three hours with some church planters down in Nashville, TN on Friday.
Then I tag-teamed with Dr. Mark Rutland, President of Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida on Saturday. For what it's worth, Southeastern is the fastest growing Christian University in the country. When you hear Dr. Rutland speak you know why. What an amazing leader and communicator!
For what it's worth, my session was on right-brain preaching. It was a great tune-up for one of my Buzz sessions.
I think too many preachers preach with half their brain tied behind their back!
Try writing your name with your weak hand? The writing is illegible isn't it? Why? Because you're using the wrong side.
Our sermons are illegible to many listeners because we're using the wrong side of our brains crafting sermons. Too many sermons are left-brain logical but not right-brain creative. I think our messages need to be both/and. We've got to do our left-brain exegesis. But creatively packaging a sermon is the function of the right-brain.
C.S. Lewis once referred to himself as "the most reluctant convert in all of Christendom." The night before his conversion, Lewis had a long conversation with J.R.R. Tolkein, author of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkein was a Christ follower and he tried to convince Lewis of the credibility of Christ. But Lewis was full of objections. At one point, Tolkein said, "Your inability to understand stems from a failure of imagination on your part!"
One of the greatest threats to the future of the church is a failure of our right-brain imaginations.
I think C.S. Lewis modeled whole-brained Christianity. His theological writings are as logical as logic can be. And the Narnia series is as creative as creative can be.
I've said it a thousand times, but there are two ways of doing ministry: ministry out of memory and ministry out of imagination. Ministry out of memory is doing it the way its always been done. Ministry out of imagination is incarnating the gospel in new ways.
We need some more preachers with sanctified imaginations.
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