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| THE FORGING OF A SERMON: Not as
Easy as It Might Seem After a sermon preached early in 1975 in Scarsdale, NY, one of our members commented that he "had a feeling" I had preached it first and foremost to myself. Well, I'm not sure about foremost, but EVERY sermon I preach first to myself. If what I say doesn't ring a bell within me, I have no sound basis for hoping it might reach anyone else. Sermon preparation In one dimension is a descent into the darkness, a battling with chaos, an interpretation of shadows, a wrestling with demons in the hope of extracting a blessing, a striving with questions and mystery In the search for hints and clues of answers. In another dimension, it's a patient basking in the illumination of scripture, events, experiences, convictions and feelings in the fervent anticipation that fresh light might dawn on the horizons of consciousness. Sermon writing is a wrestling with words. Recognizing that we come to Sunday worship having been hammered, heated, exhorted, examined, informed and titillated all week long by a steady bombardment of voices, images, and words, one can only pray for amazing grace to communicate a spirit and a perspective which might provide a helpful, creative break through the maze of Impressions stamped in our heads by media devices. What finally emerges in sermonic speech is a kind of conversational confession of what we have seen and heard and felt as we've looked, listened, wrestled and mused in our prayerful attempt to forge a creative grasp on matters of ultimate concern. Now re-reading what I wrote 31 years ago, I would add that my preparation of sermons was not always so difficult. Thankfully, there were also times when thoughts and feelings flowed more easily from mind and heart to pen or typewriter. Roger William Johnson, retired parish minister, April, 2006 |
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