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Archive for category In Ministry

Excuses For Not Preaching Expository Sermons

Apr 7

Posted by Joshua Moran in Christianity, In Ministry | No Comments

It Takes Too Much Time To Study!

To properly write out an expository sermon it takes careful study, but almost every pastor who preaches expository sermons can tell you most of their time is spent in reading the passages immediate context and larger context, and filtering out all the research to actually become relevant. The preparation is especially taxing at the start of a teaching due to you having to map out the entire book properly and trying to create a path of messages that do not consist of heresies but rather the real meaning of the passage with relevance for your ministry.

My Answer: Yes, it takes time at first, but once you are in the teaching you will benefit off of last weeks study. Secondly, the benefit of the pastor who does the study is immeasureable towards personal growth.

Youth Don’t Care About Your Message

While I agree with the experts’ opinions on the attention span of a young person, I do not agree that it is simply impossible to package a book of the Bible as a relevant series to young people. Statistics have proven that over 90% of so-called Christian youth so not see the Bible as the God-Inspired, inerrant Word of God. What are we doing with the 20 minutes we have to reach these youth with the TRUTH. An XBOX 360 may get them in, but what are we doing with the youth we are stewards over.

My Answer: We have sold ourselves short on the ability for young people to go deeper with God, and allowed MTV to dictate what is attractive. Are we trying to sell our youth ministries or see the young people of this generation submit their loves to Christ? Parents are the primary relationship in regards to beliefs and convictions, but the world is tugging at them so hard that to get a youth to listen for fifteen minutes or more is a blessing and we should reach them with the little time we have.

I personally am starting a series on the Parables of Christ that is somewhat expository but not verse to verse of a book. I will chart some of the teachings and challenges I face here.

 

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The Challenge to Preach Expository Sermons in Youth Ministry

Feb 18

Posted by Joshua Moran in Christianity, In Ministry | 2 Comments

I have been a youth pastor for about 9 years and counting, and one of the greatest causes of youth pastor burnout I have experienced has come from a lack of original preaching material. Youth pastors from all over could not only sympathize, but also empathize with me on this issue. I have been to tons of seminars, conferences, training days, and taught at some of these as well, and the one thing I have not heard addressed at these events is expository preaching.

What is expository preaching? It is taking a scripture, a block of scripture, or even an entire book of the Bible and preaching from the text answering at least two things… what did it mean then, and what does it mean now? Why are youth ministries so afraid of this preaching style? I want to open the door to this topic somehow and get the ideas flowing in this direction. I was reading the Berean Wife Blog today and read this expository preaching post which had quotes from R. Albert Mohler’s book He Is Not Silent. I personally want to get this book just to be encouraged to continue preaching expository sermons to young people.

It seems almost taboo in modern youth ministry circles to say, "I preach expository sermons to youth", yet I have had more fruit in ministry from this than any other style. By fruit I do not simply mean large numbers of youth attending services, rather the spiritual maturity of young people within the ministry. I am by no means a perfect practitioner of the expository sermon, and have mostly preached topically, but I am challenging myself to preach expository sermons for the next year starting in March 2009. I currently am teaching a series for the last six months called SRY (Solid Rock Youth) Basics which entails the 16 Fundamental Truths of the Assemblies of  God and I am completing #11 tonight.

Next post I will write on:

SOME EXCUSES FOR NOT PREACHING EXPOSITORY SERMONS TO YOUTH

 

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Assemblies of God District Superintendant Becomes Martyr

Dec 8

Posted by Joshua Moran in Christianity, In Ministry | No Comments

Wood calls for intercession on behalf of Africa

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 – 4:20 PM CST

Assemblies of God General Superintendent George O. Wood released a video message today, urging the U.S. Assemblies of God to pray for fellow believers in Africa, specifically in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria. Recent violence in these nations has resulted in extensive loss of life.

For the past 10 years, the northeast sector of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been ravaged by horrific violence. More than 4 million people have been killed in the violence of competing rebel groups.

"The magnitude of the conflict in the Congo is horrific," Randy Hurst, director of communications for Assemblies of God World Missions, says. "Tragically, the American media has virtually ignored this catastrophic loss of life, which is one of the longest-lasting conflicts of the past century."

A tentative calm brought some respite to the Democratic Republic of Congo for three years, but during the past two months, violence has escalated significantly. Many people have fled to refugee camps in neighboring Rwanda and Uganda. Others have fled into the forests and are living without shelter and foraging for food.

Extensive long-term violence and difficult communication make it impossible to know exactly how many AG churches remain in the affected area, but there may still be as many as 1,000. These churches are home to tens of thousands of AG believers whose lives have been shattered by the ongoing conflict.

This past weekend in Jos, Nigeria, hundreds of people were killed when an extremist mob stormed an area not far from the AG Bible school in Jos. Assemblies of God district superintendent, Paul Setu, went out with other men to try to stop the violent mob. In his attempt to pacify the killers, Setu was viciously attacked with machetes, beaten and then burned to death.

Wood urges the U.S. Assemblies of God to intercede on behalf of those affected by these tragedies, including Setu’s family. He says, "We can’t adequately grasp what great suffering our brothers and sisters in Christ in Africa are enduring, but we have the assurance of Scripture that the Spirit will pray through us beyond our own capacities.”

Wood concludes his video message by leading a prayer for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria, as well as Setu’s family.

Click here to watch Wood’s video message.

 

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Making A Move – Walking In Faith

Mar 31

Posted by Joshua Moran in Christianity, In Ministry | 2 Comments

 As a staff pastor my episodes of manic Mondays is limited considering I carry only a small load of what my senior pastor may carry. I still suffer from the post-sunday blues often enough to commentate on this issue this morning, go figure it’s Monday. For those who do not know what a Manic-Monday is, it’s the day that many pastors think about how bad their sermon was, how the music could have been much better, how the church must hate me, and how God must be telling me to resign right now.

This summer I packed up our belongings and my family and I moved to Red Oak, TX  because we (church leadership) clearly knew God wanted us to do so. Now it’s March 2008 and over 14 families have made the move with us. Imagine this, three full-time pastors and their families moving across the country because God said so, and now we have just short of 60 in the church today.

This is probably the most difficult season of ministry in my short nine year tenure, and yet the most fruitful as well. Living life wondering if God will provide not just for our church and staff, but for the families that made the move as well, can be overwhelming and discouraging. I am truly experiencing the fact that the enemy wants to kill us, not just annoy us. I have preached sermons that talk about spiritual warfare, and discipled quite a few in how to combat the enemy of our souls, but to actually have to live it! 

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; – 2 Corinthians 4:7-9

I personally have shed no blood for the cause of Christ, I have not had death threats in the physical realm, and I have not suffered the extremes of this world. I am so thankful for His mercy and blessing. The problem is when you are in that moment of despair on any given Monday, all reality seems to close in fast, and we can lose our bearings on how good God has been. 

Walking in faith is never easy, and never should be in my experience.