“When you confront a problem, you begin to solve it.” (Rudy Giuliani) A pastor friend of mine told me of a problem…When the head usher thought that the sermon had gone on too long he’d flick the lights on and off. The problem? The usher was the church’s biggest giver. What would you do? For me, I’d begin heading for the Amen. The Bible (Lk 21:25,26) says that “There will be signs that the end is coming.” Do you see any flickering lights? ;-) Jack
FROM GOOD DEBT JON: I think you know how I feel about long sermons. For me as long as the message is connecting it’s not too long. Did I ever send you my 2010 song: “Why Can’t Sermons Be Like Country Songs?” It’s about a guest evangelist that “bored” a hole in many of the flock. Once the sale is made stop selling. As in the story of Samson, thousand of sales are killed daily with the jaw-bone of an ass. As to lights flickering: “I have an odd blend of 37 years in a SBC church and 50 years of self-study a little Zen and Eastern Philosophy and can hold two thoughts side by side and compare and decide. I don’t fear for my salvation or concern myself with being immediately dispatched to hell from considering alternative views. I love the Dali Lama’s statement, “Kindness is my religion.” So if the end is near I know where I going and am not afraid to go. My mission now is to be Kind by Design, that is the working title of my next book or multimedia project. In another song I wrote, “Knowing where you are going takes the sting out of growing old.” I wish for everyone what I have found: peace and joy. ===JACK: I once called on some prospective members for the church...and as I began to "give my pitch," the lady said, "You can save your breath, we've already decided that we want to join the church. After that, it was a relaxed evening. As with you, Eastern philosophies and religions have been an interest of mine. I once heard the Dalai Lama speak at the Univ of Michigan. If the Dalai said that kindness was his religion, what do you think that Jesus would say?
FROM RS IN TEXAS: Someone once said a sermon had a good beginning, a good end, and not too much in between. 😊===JACK: My home pastor used to be known as "20 Minute Tillberg," because his sermons were always 20 minutes long. That was short in those days. Today's homilies are now a lot shorter.
FROM GO BLUE IN OHIO: This one made me smile 😃 ===JACK: Rudy makes me frown :-(
FROM FACEBOOK LIZ: sooo... you can be bought? are you sure you are not catholic? 😂 btw, i cannot imagine your sermons being too lengthy. you always seem to choose the exact right amount of words. have you seen fr mike schmitts’ videos? he repents for a verbose speech he gave recently on the eucharist. i saw it, and thought it was dull and very unlike him. check him out on youtube if you are not familiar w/him, under “ascension presents.” his perspectives are pleasantly unique, as are yours...===JACK: ...as for being "bought...In my years of ministry I've only suggested to two people that they might be better off leaving my congregation and going elsewhere...they took my advice and were much happier...and both (at the time) were our biggest givers...and it left a significant hole in our budget...and the church survived!
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