The Preaching Guild
If you’ve been in church with us in the last few weeks, you’ve witnessed the implementation of a new advance in our philosophy of ministry, the preaching guild. While there are several capable preachers and teachers in our church, this is the first time we have formed a team to coordinate the Sunday morning sermons. So far, it seems to be a very good step forward.
Our philosophy of ministry is an equipping philosophy. It centers on helping people discover how the Holy Spirit has shaped and gifted them and then helping them develop that gifting into effective and rewarding ministry. The primary mechanism for equipping is the ministry team. A team is not a leader with a crew of gofers. On a true team, each team member has a responsibility suited to them and the team meets regularly to coordinate those responsibilities and to collaborate on ministry decisions and plans. The team leader’s role is to facilitate those meetings and to help each team member identify and develop their strengths and gifts.
Our preaching guild is like a team on steroids. We each have the responsibility to develop and deliver sermons but we are very intentional about helping each other develop the craft of preaching. We debrief previous sermons and preview the coming ones. We are getting better at critiquing in a way that provides both affirmation and encouragement as well as suggestions for improvement.
Our goal is to be able to clearly explain and apply the Scriptures and to help the church see Jesus in every text. I’m excited for the church to hear different voices present the truth of the Bible and tell us what they see of Jesus there. That’s healthy for the church.
Just so you know, there are five of us in the preaching guild at this time. I will continue to do the bulk of the preaching and the others will each preach three or four times a year. David Smith is preaching this week on “I am the true vine.”
You can be a part of this effort by praying for me, for these developing preachers, and for each and every person in our church family to be more impressed with Jesus as a result of the preaching.