Expository Preaching Trust launches its 2022 Programme.
2022 is the 11th year of the Trust’s ministry. Our ministry takes three forms:
1. Preaching Workshops
The first of our 3 day Preaching Workshops was held in January, 2022 with 8 Pastor/Preachers at Kyogle, NSW.
David Cook and Al Burke were the coordinators of the group, limited to 8 people and this workshop focused on preaching historic narrative – the book of Judges.
All participants preached one old and one new sermon.
This was a time of real encouragement in the beautiful hills outside Kyogle/ Casino.
Other workshops are planned for Sydney later this year – please use the contact form to enquire.
2. Mentoring
One of our Preaching Mentors, David Jones writes, “ This year I have been mentoring three very different preachers on a regular basis. In each case, I have witnessed God’s truth mediated through their strikingly different personalities. It has been a privilege to know these guys, to sit alongside them as they prepare, to listen to them as they preach and to give feedback afterwards. I have found these sessions a real stimulus to my own preaching’.
You can register your interest in having a preaching mentor via the contact form.
Mentors are David Jones, Stuart Coulton, Janet Riley, David Cook and Barry Dudding.
3. Preaching Clubs
These meet 4 times each year in Abbotsford, Marrickville, Wahroonga and Armidale in NW NSW.
Janet Riley, who has critiqued sermons for many years through the SMBC School of Preaching and who is now a member of the Trust team writes, ‘Preaching the word of God is hard work. Spirit-empowered, vital, rich, privileged work but a labour filled with challenges. Sermon critique, as in the Preaching clubs, is a tool which provides help. Certainly to have your own preaching under the microscope, but also as you listen to others preach and learn from their models and together consider what worked and what didn’t and why.
Engaging with fellow workers in this way is a great encouragement to press on in the work. We’re spurred on when we hear more than,” Thanks for the sermon, Pastor”. We’re encouraged to keep growing good habits – preaching into the text, preaching its message with clarity, applying with vigour and relevance.
It also helps identify blind spots and bad habits we’ve fallen into along the way. Importantly, it grows us in humility as we come with a learner’s posture, inviting others to speak honestly about the weaknesses of our sermon and help us see better ways forward.
Perhaps sermon critique is a little like doing Pilates, not on your own, but under the critique of a Physio. Twin dangers are avoided – I think neither, ‘I’m nailing this!’ Nor, ‘ This is too hard, I’m giving up’.
To register your interest in one of the Preaching Clubs, please use the contact form.
We thank God for the opportunity to work with the church in the encouragement of faithful and engaging preaching of the Bible.
All these ministries are available freely to all participants, we look forward to hearing from you through the Contact form on this page.