Please Say A Few Words
Please Say A Few Words
I’m taking a break from the Conversational Preaching series that we’ve been on. In this post I am going to reflect on those scary moments when someone says to you, “Please say a few words.” That moment can be terrifying. You’ve not prepared, and so, this going to be a challenge. What do you say? This has happened to me while visiting a mission station in Mexico, a prison in Michigan, and a mission church in Honduras and at a missions meal in a church. Let’s look at a few hints that will help you if this happens to you.
In Pocket
The first and obvious suggestion is that you have something in your proverbial back pocket. I try to keep a message in mind. Many times the message is one I’ve preached in the recent past, something generic enough that it can be adjusted to the situation.
Right now the message is one about God holding the future, so we can go with confidence into it. However, it requires obedience and trust.
When you are going to be somewhere where this might happen, you might even want to think through a few notes that you carry with you.
Being Prayed Up
A second hint is something this one: Before you enter a situation where this might happen, pray for God to give you a message. One of the craziest times I was asked, Please say a few words was in a nursing home on Sunday afternoon. They had an afternoon service, and the expected person didn’t show up to preach. So, “Please say a few words,” became their solution.
Your prayers
I didn’t have anything appropriate, so I prayed for God to say something through me. Surprisingly, Idecided to totally wing it. I opened the Bible with the commitment that wherever it opened I would “say a few words”. This is the only time I’ve done this. Full disclosure. I don’t remember what I said that day. However, I remember as I was speaking I had the feeling that this was a good message. Others who were there said that they appreciated it.
I I don’t generally recommend this as an approach just because it is so scary. But it may be a good practice every once in a while to give God the opportunity to do something that directly relates to the people to whom you are preaching.
Now it is my practice to stay prayed up. When I am going to be somewhere where someone might say, “Please say a few words,” I pray that God will give a word if that happens.
The Prayers of Others
One of the people I turned to often while making sermons every week was a man named Stephen Brown. He was a professor at a seminary, but had been a pastor. In one of his books he tells the story about a speaker for his evening service who had cancelled at the last minute. He was worrying over what he would say when he got a call from a friend. Brown shared his dilemma and his fear that he would bomb. His friend started laughing and said, “This service isn’t that important. It’s not like it’s a major presentation. If the enemy was going to attack, he’d do it for a major presentation. Step up, step out, and expect God to say something important.”
Conclusion
I actually hope that this happens to you sometime. It’s good for the development of your soul to have to depend on God in this way. If you are more interested I this subject, you can check out this article.
