Ken

When I grew up, our church (and many other churches) still had Sunday night services.  I can remember -- on more than one occasion -- hearing messages on Sunday nights emphasizing the importance of church attendance.  Even back then, that struck me as odd.  I remember thinking, "These aren't the people who need to hear this message." As preachers, we can be guilty of preaching to the choir -- too often.  Whether it's only addressing "in-house" topics or using language only an insider would understand, we may fail to preach to those who aren't there. But, you might ask, why should we preach to people who aren't there?  After all, they aren't there to hear what you have to say. Here are a few good reasons: It reminds your congregation that there are missing people. It gives them confidence that you know how to address their unbelieving friends. It helps…

"Preaching is to the ministry of the church what spark plugs are to a car engine. Spark plugs are not the whole engine -- and preaching is not all there is to ministry -- but without the spark plugs the car will not work" (J. Kent Edwards, Deep Preaching, pp. 21-22) In some circles today, preaching gets a bad rap.  It's seen as a small part of what a pastor does.  Or, worse, it's seen as an insignificant part of what a pastor does.  "Real" ministry happens outside of Sundays.  Preaching is seen as something that must be done but not much happens because of it. Don't get me wrong, a Sunday-only faith will die of starvation.  It will remain shallow, conveniently packed into the "other" category of life.  Real faith is lived out everyday, twenty-four hours a day. That being said, I believe Edwards has a good point.  Throughout recorded…