10 Easy Ways to Keep Me Awake and Engaged during an Entire Message

I ran across something in my reading, I found interesting. The book is Killing Cockroaches by Tony Morgan


10 Easy Ways to Keep Me Awake and Engaged during an Entire Message


1. Be real. Let people see the actual human inside you. Most of the time, this will occur through your personal stories.

2. Talk like normal people talk. I didn’t grow up in the church so I don’t understand when you talk with a Christian accent.

3. Use Humor. If you don’t make me laugh, I’m probably going to tune you out. By the way, the best humor is revealed through your everyday life.

4. Don’t tell me what to think. Lead me on the journey toward truth but let me reach my own conclusions. In other words, don’t try to sell it.

5. Be honest. If I think you’re credible then there’s a better chance I’ll think your message is credible.

6. Avoid being too polished. In fact, I love it when you leave your prepared statements and share something off the cuff.

7. Reveal your weakness. Silly as it seems, it makes me smile when I hear you tell about your mistakes. It helps me respect the areas where you are gifted.

8. Be brief. Shorter is better. I’m probably only going to remember one or at the most, two things that you say.

9. Make me smart. I don’t care how smart you are but I like it when you make me feel smart. Simplify your statements and make it easy for me to apply what you’re teaching.

10. Tell me why I should care. Help me understand why I should listen. If I’m not sure why what you’re saying is relevant to my life, I’ll be thinking about everything but your message.

Psalm 99:9 “Praise the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain because the Lord our God is holy.

For me the ten statements combined with this passage from Psalm 99 remind me what the message and ultimately worship is supposed to be about. We praise God and worship at his holy mountain because the Lord our God is holy.

What I say as a pastor during the message should be designed to encourage people to look within themselves and then point them toward God. In addition, the message itself is only a part of the whole we call worship and should all fit together for the glory of God.

Wow! That’s a challenge. Maybe that’s why I spend a part of each Sunday morning praying for each of you. As I hope you are praying for me. You have such an awesome responsibility and privilege as you step into the pulpit and speak with the authority God has given you. I pray you will be filled with the confidence of the Holy Spirit throughout your time of worship.