Tag: speaking

Preaching as a Three-Way Conversation

Matt Erickson1 Comment

A good sermon is one side of a passionate conversation. It has to be heard  in that way. There are three parties to it of course but so are there even to the most private thought: the self that yields the thought, the self that acknowledges and in some way responds to the thought, and the Lord. That is a remarkable thing to consider.
– Reverend John Ames in Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead

This quotation from Marilynne Robinson’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Gilead, is illuminating. When pastors preach, we are not simply talking to those in the congregation who receive from us. Preaching is a wondrous experience of preacher and congregation standing together in the presence of God as all three parties simultaneously interact with one another.

The pastor speaks and listens to God, while also speaking and listening to the congregation. The members of the congregation speak and listen to God, while also speaking (many times non-verbally) and listening to the pastor. And, most definitely of all, God is speaking and listening to all parties.

This picture of preaching quickly clears away the illusion that preaching is a simple one-way street of communication from preacher to congregation. It returns us to the wondrous mystery that the human participants are entering a conversation amongst the Triune God that started long before the preaching moment ever began. In that reality, both preacher and congregation are welcome guests attending to the God who has spoken, will speak, and is speaking even now.

Talking in Whispers

Matt Erickson1 Comment

This week has been an interesting one for me. After coming down with a cold last week, I strained my voice and have been unable to talk in much more than a hoarse whisper the last few days. I’ve been thinking about my use of words and my voice a lot these past few days.

Am I quick to listen or to speak most of the time? Without much of a voice I’ve been challenged to listen more and take my time to not interrupt others.

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak. (James 1:19)

How often do I use my words frivolously? So much conversation consists of thoughtless words that fill the air. With my voice hampered, I’m finding it harder to waste words.

If you honor The Lord by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the LORD. (Isaiah 58:13-14)

What do I say without words? I notice how much I can communicate simply by looking at someone, or smiling. Our physical presence communicates a lot, and I am wondering more about that than I usually do.

The eye is the lamp of the body. (Matthew 6:22)

What is God saying in whispers? Since I cannot fill the air with my own words, I am trying to listen more to God as well as others.

The LORD said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. (1 Kings 19:11-13)