A Great Joy

I got an invite to preach this upcoming Sunday.  The preacher needed to be somewhere else and someone remembered me.  Invitations are few and far between, but I am always ready to go.  It has been a few months since my last opportunity to preach so the congregation this Sunday may have a preacher who preaches longer than he should since it is not an every Sunday event.  Since getting out of the Sunday to Sunday preaching discipline, I have found writing sermons to be a bit more difficult.  There is something about the discipline of doing it every week which makes it an easier task.  

I suppose it has a lot to do with the way our minds get programmed to do certain things.  Mine is programmed right now to write a three paragraph blog posting, but I hate to preach such a short sermon.  After hearing a little of this preacher finding himself in the pulpit again, my Sunday congregation may decide that a little is better than a lot!  When you are a retired preacher like I am, it is always tempting to go to the barrel where old sermons are stored, close your eyes, and pull one out for warming up.  However, what I remember is that warmed over sermons are never exciting to preach and, most likely, even less exciting to hear, or endure.   

Anyway, I have my text and have started the process of letting it marinate a bit in my mind and heart.  I have been praying for guidance as I get settled into the discipline of writing a sermon once again.  What I have realized so many times over the years is that preachers are truly blessed in that they are called to a work which gives them the opportunity to proclaim the Word of the Lord (or preach the gospel) every week.  There are surely those times in the life of every preacher when it become a chore, but what we know in our heart is that it is one of life's greatest joys.