1 00:00:00,140 --> 00:00:02,660 I've been pastoring now about 30 years, and 2 00:00:02,660 --> 00:00:04,700 I wish I had known this when I 3 00:00:04,700 --> 00:00:06,640 was just coming out, starting at the very 4 00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:09,900 first church I was at, but it's been 5 00:00:09,900 --> 00:00:13,400 having people help me with my sermon preparation. 6 00:00:14,220 --> 00:00:15,720 And you know, you tend to think, well, 7 00:00:15,740 --> 00:00:17,440 gee, that's not very spiritual, that's what I 8 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:19,720 get paid for, and blah, blah, blah. 9 00:00:19,860 --> 00:00:23,680 But in the last 15 years, every week, 10 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:26,540 almost without exception, I've had a group of 11 00:00:26,540 --> 00:00:28,480 about a dozen people in our church, and 12 00:00:28,480 --> 00:00:30,620 the church I pastor is the Pembroke Baptist 13 00:00:30,620 --> 00:00:34,300 Church in Pembroke, New Brunswick, near Woodstock. 14 00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:37,760 So anyway, every week, there's about a dozen 15 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:40,760 people that we meet on Monday night, and 16 00:00:40,760 --> 00:00:42,000 I say to them, this is what I 17 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,020 think I may be preaching on this Sunday. 18 00:00:44,700 --> 00:00:45,640 Let's discuss it. 19 00:00:45,740 --> 00:00:47,580 Let's read the verses that apply about it. 20 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:51,660 And do you guys have any personal connection 21 00:00:51,660 --> 00:00:52,060 to this? 22 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:53,020 How does it apply to you? 23 00:00:53,060 --> 00:00:54,120 What does it make you think about? 24 00:00:54,440 --> 00:00:55,780 What does it make you ponder? 25 00:00:55,900 --> 00:00:57,380 How do you see yourself applying it? 26 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:00,440 So anyway, I don't know how I just 27 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:01,320 stumbled on this. 28 00:01:01,420 --> 00:01:03,040 I'm sure there's other pastors do it, but 29 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:05,000 I've never heard of any other pastors doing 30 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:06,180 it, but it works for me. 31 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:10,920 Because so many weeks when I was pastoring, 32 00:01:11,580 --> 00:01:14,220 previous to that, come Saturday night, I mean, 33 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:15,800 I knew what I wanted to say, but 34 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:18,080 to get it all together, to feel like 35 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:21,120 you had the confidence to say it, and 36 00:01:21,120 --> 00:01:24,060 you know, Saturday night, Sunday morning, wrestling, what 37 00:01:24,060 --> 00:01:24,920 am I going to preach on? 38 00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:26,240 How am I going to preach on it? 39 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:30,680 So anyway, the last 15 years, this is 40 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:31,400 what I've been doing. 41 00:01:32,300 --> 00:01:35,000 So we'll get together on Monday night over 42 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:36,840 a cup of coffee in somebody's home or 43 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:37,380 at the church. 44 00:01:37,540 --> 00:01:38,700 It's open to anyone in the church. 45 00:01:38,820 --> 00:01:41,380 Usually there's about 10 to 12 people show 46 00:01:41,380 --> 00:01:41,620 up. 47 00:01:41,820 --> 00:01:42,680 Anybody can do it. 48 00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:46,500 And it's become like our small group Bible 49 00:01:46,500 --> 00:01:46,820 study. 50 00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:53,200 So we'll go around the room reading a 51 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:53,500 verse. 52 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:55,060 If somebody doesn't want to read, they can 53 00:01:55,060 --> 00:01:56,560 just elbow the guy next to him and 54 00:01:56,560 --> 00:01:57,100 say, you read. 55 00:01:57,480 --> 00:01:59,080 We'll go around and we'll read maybe a 56 00:01:59,080 --> 00:02:01,120 half a dozen, 10 verses, whatever I'm going 57 00:02:01,120 --> 00:02:01,940 to be preaching on. 58 00:02:02,740 --> 00:02:05,180 And then we'll really pray sincerely, Lord, would 59 00:02:05,180 --> 00:02:08,600 you please point your finger to me on 60 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:09,419 one of these verses? 61 00:02:09,639 --> 00:02:10,840 And then we'll have just maybe a few 62 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:13,120 minutes of silence, a few moments of silence. 63 00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:15,800 And I'll say now, what is God saying 64 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:16,060 to you? 65 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:17,700 Is there a verse here that God is 66 00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:18,600 speaking to you about? 67 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:21,380 And someone will say, well, you know, verse 68 00:02:21,380 --> 00:02:24,780 three makes me think about something going on 69 00:02:24,780 --> 00:02:25,180 at work. 70 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:27,280 And they'll start to say, this is what's 71 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:28,000 happening at work. 72 00:02:28,100 --> 00:02:29,500 And I think God could help me with 73 00:02:29,500 --> 00:02:30,040 this verse. 74 00:02:30,740 --> 00:02:32,620 Or verse five, you know, makes me think 75 00:02:32,620 --> 00:02:34,880 of a rough time that I went through. 76 00:02:35,620 --> 00:02:37,440 And I've got my blank piece of paper 77 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:39,300 and I'm just writing notes like crazy. 78 00:02:40,500 --> 00:02:43,820 So this is about a one hour small 79 00:02:43,820 --> 00:02:45,040 group discussion on this. 80 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:48,320 And this is how I've been preparing my 81 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:49,900 sermons for the last 15 years. 82 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:52,960 Now, I feel inspired on Monday mornings when 83 00:02:52,960 --> 00:02:55,360 I get up, I feel inspired by God. 84 00:02:55,460 --> 00:02:56,880 This is the direction to go in. 85 00:02:57,560 --> 00:02:59,920 And in fact, I think it through for 86 00:02:59,920 --> 00:03:01,560 a couple hours, Monday morning early. 87 00:03:01,920 --> 00:03:04,080 I even share it with a group of 88 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:05,920 people in the nursing home Monday afternoon at 89 00:03:05,920 --> 00:03:08,940 1.30. But then Monday night, I say, 90 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:10,420 this is what I, this is what I 91 00:03:10,420 --> 00:03:13,380 feel God's leading me to do, possibly this 92 00:03:13,380 --> 00:03:13,700 Sunday. 93 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:15,420 This is what I shared at the nursing 94 00:03:15,420 --> 00:03:15,700 home. 95 00:03:16,420 --> 00:03:18,420 Let's discuss it and see what, how, how 96 00:03:18,420 --> 00:03:19,340 would that apply to you? 97 00:03:19,800 --> 00:03:21,460 And I'm telling you, we have some of 98 00:03:21,460 --> 00:03:24,980 the greatest discussions and talk about a grassroots 99 00:03:24,980 --> 00:03:27,480 relevant sermon that comes together. 100 00:03:28,500 --> 00:03:30,480 And in our group, like we've got two 101 00:03:30,480 --> 00:03:32,500 young ladies, Nolly and Anita, they're 20 years 102 00:03:32,500 --> 00:03:32,760 old. 103 00:03:32,800 --> 00:03:34,680 So I get a whole different perspective from 104 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:35,180 them, right? 105 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:37,980 Then we've got their grandparents who are in 106 00:03:37,980 --> 00:03:39,280 their seventies, Norton and Annie. 107 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:40,940 So I get a perspective from them. 108 00:03:41,700 --> 00:03:45,240 Then people from other denominations are there. 109 00:03:45,340 --> 00:03:47,940 There's people from different denominations that come to 110 00:03:47,940 --> 00:03:49,800 this, you know, and they have a whole 111 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:52,480 different background growing up in a different, different 112 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:54,540 type of a church then that I'm in. 113 00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:58,120 So it's just such a blessing because not 114 00:03:58,120 --> 00:04:02,340 only that, but we're all doing personal devotions, 115 00:04:02,480 --> 00:04:03,560 but we're doing them as a group. 116 00:04:04,060 --> 00:04:05,380 So I'm reading the Bible. 117 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:07,960 I'm saying, Lord, would you speak to my 118 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:09,200 heart from these verses? 119 00:04:09,920 --> 00:04:11,320 But I'm doing it in a room full 120 00:04:11,320 --> 00:04:11,740 of people. 121 00:04:11,980 --> 00:04:13,320 And they're all doing the same thing. 122 00:04:13,400 --> 00:04:14,620 Lord, would you speak to my heart? 123 00:04:15,380 --> 00:04:16,920 And yes, sir, here it is. 124 00:04:16,959 --> 00:04:18,100 Verse five or verse six. 125 00:04:18,140 --> 00:04:19,600 This is a verse that God is speaking 126 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:20,440 to me about today. 127 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:22,580 We pray, we talk about it. 128 00:04:22,580 --> 00:04:23,760 And then we say, now, what would God 129 00:04:23,760 --> 00:04:24,980 want us to do about this? 130 00:04:25,500 --> 00:04:27,520 So I'm reading a verse that says something 131 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:30,560 about treating people as I should. 132 00:04:31,380 --> 00:04:33,660 So I share, you know, gee, this makes 133 00:04:33,660 --> 00:04:34,500 me think about this. 134 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:36,560 But here's what I should be doing about 135 00:04:36,560 --> 00:04:36,720 it. 136 00:04:38,620 --> 00:04:40,760 So I just hope that that would be 137 00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:42,100 some little help to pastors. 138 00:04:43,060 --> 00:04:45,400 There's a pastor that I really respect, Harry 139 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:45,780 Wilson. 140 00:04:46,380 --> 00:04:48,280 And we were talking about this one time 141 00:04:48,280 --> 00:04:49,280 at a conference. 142 00:04:50,520 --> 00:04:53,080 And Harry said, gee, how do you keep 143 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:54,660 it from turning into a stew, you know, 144 00:04:54,740 --> 00:04:56,540 a sermon stew, like just a whole bunch 145 00:04:56,540 --> 00:04:57,900 of stuff all thrown in together. 146 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:01,180 But that's not the way it goes, actually. 147 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:04,200 It's really amazing how the Lord helps us 148 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:08,200 in studying these verses, talking about them, applying 149 00:05:08,200 --> 00:05:08,520 them. 150 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:11,340 And so I leave Monday night at eight 151 00:05:11,340 --> 00:05:13,740 o'clock from somebody's home or whatever, and 152 00:05:13,740 --> 00:05:16,040 I'm ready to preach Monday night for Sunday. 153 00:05:16,080 --> 00:05:16,640 I really am. 154 00:05:17,120 --> 00:05:19,300 I've been up early Monday morning in my 155 00:05:19,300 --> 00:05:20,140 own devotions. 156 00:05:20,700 --> 00:05:24,300 I've done the thinking about it. 157 00:05:24,380 --> 00:05:25,960 I've spoken at the nursing home. 158 00:05:26,260 --> 00:05:27,380 We've discussed it as a group. 159 00:05:27,540 --> 00:05:29,080 And Monday night, I'm ready to go to 160 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:29,380 preach. 161 00:05:30,300 --> 00:05:31,860 So I haven't had to try harder to 162 00:05:31,860 --> 00:05:33,680 be prepared for a sermon for the last 163 00:05:33,680 --> 00:05:34,380 15 years. 164 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:35,740 That's how it all comes together. 165 00:05:35,860 --> 00:05:37,480 And I hope that's of some help to 166 00:05:37,480 --> 00:05:37,760 somebody.