FAQ: Sermon Sources

QUESTION:  "Where do you get message ideas and content? How do you prepare a message?

ANSWER:  Creative material, ideas, concepts, and content for my messages and our services come from a variety of different sources.  Some of it is "home grown" so to speak, and is an insight, idea, or concept that either myself or our creative team has developed.  Some of what we use and what I preach comes from outside sources, including books, conferences, podcasts, commentaries, blogs, and messages from other pastor-teachers.

For example, during our JONAH series we used a graphic from LifeChurch.tv.  This church makes all of their resources available for free and asks for no credit, only that it be used for building God's kingdom.

For FOOLPROOF-Part 3 I included several concepts in the explanation of I Samuel 24 that I derived from Andy Stanley's teaching on that same passage.  Another similar example was during Part 5 of FOOLPROOF on responsibility, when I used an adapted version of an explanation I heard Andy Stanley give on that subject.  His church has an entire resource ministry called North Point Resources that makes many of their messages and songs available for purchase and use by other churches. They require permission only if more than 100 contiguous words are used. We at Rock Bridge are very grateful for churches like North Point and LifeChurch.tv.

When I begin to prepare a sermon, I am on a "truth quest" that ultimately starts with and comes from God's Word.  After immersing myself in God's Word, I frequently will read material and listen to other messages that pertain to the subject or the passage of Scripture I am using.  If I find something taught, explained, or worded in a way that I think would be helpful, I will adapt it into a message or series.  Many times what I read or hear helps me gain clarity about a subject so I can teach on it with greater understanding.  For any given message, I probably use between 4-8 different sources, plus what God reveals directly to me through prayer and my own study of the Scripture.  Our creative team goes through a similar process when preparing songs, videos, dramas, and graphics so that God's truth is enhanced, amplified, and clarified.

I am going to begin including on my blog, listings of all the sources used in message preparation and in our different series, under the category, "Series Sources & Resources".  Our worship staff already does this for the song sets on the Rock Bridge Worship Blog.  I am doing this for several reasons:

1. Some of you are curious.


2. Some of you would like to study more on your own.


3. I do not want to give the impression that everything I say or teach is "my" idea or take credit that is not mine to take.  My goal is to share God's truth in a relevant, understandable, and clear way so God's Spirit can work and God's truth can set people free; my goal is not to be 100% original, but 100% clear with biblical truth.