W. Floyd Bresee

Imagine for a moment a five-year-old girl we will call Mary. The two things Mary loves the most are her father and her favorite game, hide-and-seek. In fact, one of the many reasons she loves her father is that he sometimes…

UNION COLLEGE ministerial students may choose to take their evangelistic training in either of two ways.

When you preach, don't aim to lecture on the water of life, but to give your listeners a drink. Halford E. Luccock illustrates by postulating a scenario in which someone is speaking to a man dying of thirst in the Sahara: 'Let us…

On March 17-19 of this year, the entire General Conference elected staff came together for a special three-day colloquium in order to discuss issues, plan for more effective service, and to pray and study the Word together. Dr. Floyd…

Ali Baba, in an old Arabian Nights tale, was fleeing for his life. Suddenly he was face to face with a dead end. Mammoth rock walls rose before him and on either side. His enemies were closing in from behind. It seemed there was no way to…

The white-haired couple sat together in their usual pew the one down front. As their pastor preached on, the old man turned to his wife and asked in a loud whisper typical of the hard of hearing, "What's he talking about?" She turned toward…

There are just three ways to persuade a person to do anything. Now, there are lots of ways to force him: twist his arm, hit him with a baseball bat, or point a gun at his head, for instance. But preachers must help people want…

The old lady entered the church carrying her ear trumpet in a little black box. As the morning sermon began she opened the case and painstakingly screwed the hearing device together. Putting it to her ear, she turned it expectantly toward…

Ministry: Dr. Bresee, what is the Center of Continuing Education for Ministry (CCEM)? When was it started, and what is its purpose?

Bresee: The purpose of CCEM is to encourage and provide…

After four years in the ministry Ruben Pereyra felt he was failing. And his employing organization was inclined to agree. He had worked at evangelism, but with very little positive result. There was no power. He didn't fit. The brethren decided…

MINISTRY: From time to time you have remarked that you feel one of the most important things the General Conference Ministerial Association can do for the pastor in the field is to help him to find the tools…

It is 3:00 a.m. The plane I'm in is winging me home from a month's itinerary of Africa, including a week spent at the Annual Council held in Nairobi—the first ever held on the African continent. Since this article is due the moment I touch…

Christmas Sermon Seeds

Jesus and joy are in separable. You can't have either without the other. We waste our time, some of us a lifetime, trying to find joy without Jesus. On the other hand, if…

Every time I go to the city library I come away both excited and embarrassed. I am excited over the tremendous services they offer. I am embarrassed over how seldom I use them.

Have you used the services of your ministerial secretary…

Preaching is some thing you do, not just with your mouth, but with your whole body. Research indicates that when you preach, your listeners are more influenced by what they see than by what you say. We may not like it, but our body language…

The Commission on the Role of Women recently brought to Washington, D. C., some 80 men and women from around the world principally to discuss the ordination of women to the gospel ministry. Twenty-two papers had been sent to, and hopefully…

I put a small alarm-radio into my suit case when I travel. Sitting alone in a lonesome corner of the world, I sometimes try tuning in some local music and news. Often, however, I'm at a church institution far away from cities and radio transmitters,…

Who pastors the pas tor? One of the most consistent concerns coming to the Ministerial Association from both pastors and their spouses goes something like this: "We're all the time ministering to others; yet when our cup is drained and we…

In drawing an analogy comparing a worship service to a theatrical performance, we would generally assume that the actor would represent the preacher; the prompter who leads the preacher through his or her "performance," God; and the audience,…

Whatever was a huge circus-type tent doing pitched there on the lawn right in the heart of the Columbia Union College complex? And why the big banner there on the corner con fronting the Takoma Park traffic? Had the college invited a circus…

Bones tend to repel rather than attract. We draw back from the ugly leer of a skull. We use skeletons to frighten people. We speak of the ominous "skeletons in our closets," implying that a skeleton is something to be hidden, to be ashamed…

One of the main problems the Seventh-day Adventist Church's present ministerial intern program faces is lack of supervision. Conferences often feel pressured by finances to place their beginning interns virtually by themselves or…

Baumann is a Baptist minister and former seminary professor. He points out in his introduction, "The volume unfolds as a commentary on my own definition of preaching: Preaching is the communication of biblical truth by man to men with the…

The young college couple was enjoying their marriage immensely, even before the miracle happened. Then she became pregnant. As she grew bigger, her smile became broader. The love of husband and wife was about to produce something beautiful.

Then…

With all its commend able emphasis in recent years on advanced academic training for the ministry, our church has neglected one of the best educational programs available to the beginning minister—the ministerial internship. Some things can…

Johnny comes skidding into Bible class—eyes bright, hair askew, wet with sweat from his most recent confrontation with life. Teacher has carefully prepared a story about Jesus. Wisely, she has provided the latest visual aids…

Evaluation is essential to growth. Practice does not necessarily make perfect. It may only make permanent. If you do anything wrong often enough, it becomes the only way that feels right. Pastoral or any other kinds of skills are best learned…

Flying over Mid- America in summer time, one sees myriads of giant, circular fields. Each is kept green by a huge, central-pivot sprinkler system showering well water on the crop day after day for the entire growing season. But sometimes…

In a cartoon a secretary is answering the church phone. Someone wants to talk with the pastor, but she replies, "Can he call you back? He's listening to a tape of his sermon." Meanwhile behind her, in the midst of his listening, the pastor…

Jesus' death shows us how to live:

1. He died forgiving. As the cross bearing our Lord dropped with a thud into its black hole, Jesus mounted His last pulpit. "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary,…

Adventist eyes are focused on the Inter-American Division, especially since it is now our largest, having recently become the first to pass the 1 million membership mark.

We must not pretend IAD does everything perfectly. It does…

My heart beat just a little faster as our bus pulled into the tiny town a few miles north of Detroit, Michigan. Traveling by the cheapest mode of transportation available, I was doing personal interviews with the…

Church leaders of 100 years ago have often been accused of failing to lead the church as it should have been led in 1888. There is a far more important question, however. Will 1988 church leaders learn the lessons…

Preaching is persuasion. That may sound too secular, too manipulative. Not so. Every time you stand up to preach, you are hoping to persuade people of some Christian truth, to persuade them of its value, or to persuade them to act on that…

Once upon a time God called three ministers to preach. To Preacher A He gave the ability to preach five-talent sermons, to Preacher B the ability to preach two-talent sermons, and to Preacher C the ability to preach…

I was walking nonchalantly through a gift shop at the Grand Canyon in Arizona. Looking up, I saw, filling the wall just in front of me, one of the ugliest paintings imaginable. It looked as though the artist had haphazardly…

It's a given that Christian clergy are to be committed persons. But precisely what should they be committed to? Revelation 14:1-5 portrays God's special people—which should surely include the ministry—as committed…

The 1991 Annual Council enthusiastically voted 1993 as "Year of the Pastor." The plan calls for each world division to find a way to listen effectively and consult with its pastors, especially during 1992, in preparation for the pastors'…

If you were given pencil and paper and asked to draw a picture of Seventh-day Adventism, what would you draw? I was given such an assignment by the building committee of a congregation I pastored when we were designing…

What should the preacher preach from? Manuscript? Notes? Nothing?

We usually think of four options in sermon preparation and presentation: (1) impromptu—no specific preparation; (2) extemporaneous— thoughts…

Topical preaching tends to be popular and practical. But is it biblical? The answer is an emphatic yes!

Topical defined

A topical sermon is one in which the subject is chosen and the Bible as a whole is researched on that…

Feeling lazy, the paperboy dumps his bag of newspapers in the garbage can rather than taking them to his subscribers. Have the papers been delivered? He's gotten them off his hands. But a thing is not really delivered…

A century ago the role of the minister's wife was pretty well defined. Hints for a Clergyman's Wife, a book published in 1832, advised, "A minister's wife should be a co-pastor, social worker, visiting nurse and educator, an evangelist…

Bob Spangler, who has been on the Ministry editorial staff for the past 28 years, retired as the journal's editor on May 1.

In the fireplace of life, Spangler is pure cedar. Cedar catches fire quickly…

Too many Adventist congregations are like the fisherman who caught fish but had nothing to show for it because he put them in a sack with a hole in the bottom. God has blessed our church with success in fishing for…

The ideal sermon conclusion speaks to the mind by pulling together and briefly summarizing what the sermon teaches. But that is never enough. It also speaks to the will by encouraging the listener to act on what the…

The story of the Seventh-day Adventist Church is largely a success story. In 1890 there were 19 Adventists per million of world population. One hundred years later there are more than 1,000. In 1940 we baptized an…

Which is better preaching—expository or topical? The question sometimes generates much heat and precious little light. One answer is that every sermon should be both. That is, every sermon should be expository—it ought to expose some Bible…

A sermon is like a love affair—it's easier to start one than to end one.

The conclusion of the sermon is usually the hardest part of the sermon to prepare. However, it is also the most important part of the…

The Bible tells us precious little about husband-wife team ministry. Aquila and Priscilla seem to be our only New Testament models, and we don't know much about them. But since the two-by-two concept was so basic to Jesus (Matt. 10:2-4; Mark…

Preaching a sermon is like flying an air plane. Some parts of it are fairly easy. But there are two crucial moments—getting off the ground, and getting back on the ground.

Broadus said it best: "The beginning…

The funny thing about homileticians, specialists in religious oral communication, is that they don't communicate much with one an other. They don't even get together enough to agree on definitions.

For example, what types of sermons…

New experiences are both fun and frightening. I learned it was both fun and frightening to fall in love and marry. It was fun and frightening to hold each of our four babies for the first time. It was solemnly fun…

Adventist ministers in several parts of the world are frustrated about the form of their weekly worship hour. We have used pretty much the same order of service, made the same announcements, sung the same songs, prayed the same prayers, and…

It was my first year in the ministry, and I was privileged to be working as an assistant to Pastor A. O. Sage. He had just finished preaching and I was standing in the foyer greeting and befriending people as they left. A member of the congregation…

Chairing committees is one of the most significant, time-consuming, and some times exasperating things you do. Do you want to do it better? Here are 10 tips.

1. Prepare an agenda. An agenda…

Every pastor longs to lead an active, growing congregation. But how do you organize for action? How do you plan for growth? Two basic suggestions: set objectives; use commit tees to reach those objectives.

Set…

Pastors may be many things, but there is one thing they must be: spiritual leaders.

Research indicates that growing churches usually have strong pastoral leadership. This does not mean dominating or manipulative…

Newly transplanted trees need lots of attention. Established ones need only a little pruning now and then. Previously I mentioned two ways we can help newly planted Christians survive: prepare them carefully before baptism and make their…

A sign in the window of a variety store read "Dry goods and notions." I always loathed the possibility that it might fit over my pulpit. Dry goods interesting and inspiring to no body. Notions shallow ideas spoken…

You've heard the story before, haven't you? A preacher with a bandage on his face is standing before his congregation. "Excuse my appearance," he says. "I was thinking about my sermon while I was shaving, and I cut my face." After hearing…

Our home sits on a wooded lot that borders a beautiful bubbling creek. The mixture of flowing water, ferns, and moss creates a delightful little Eden that's all our own. And so we built a gazebo overlooking the creek, a perfect place to relax…

It happened in a ministers' meeting of the Evangelical Church in Germany. A young pastor waxed eloquent in recommending his new approach to preaching. He no longer needed to spend long hours in sermon preparation.…

A sermon is a little like a horse. Each has three basic parts: a head (introduction), a body, and a tail (conclusion). It's easy to see why a horse needs a head, but why does a sermon need an introduction?

Sermon introductions should…

My wife and I were enjoying a couple of days between appointments in Kenya, Africa. Joining a tour group in a game preserve, we stood with our heads through the roof opening of a four-wheel-drive Land Rover as we…

For years I've had a recurring nightmare that still haunts me every few weeks. It comes in ever-changing versions, but the context is the same: I'm about to preach and I'm not ready. I can't decide what to preach about, or I've forgotten…

Effective preaching has humanity within it and divinity behind it. The humanity within comes from a study of human nature in general and your own congregation in particular. The divinity behind comes…

It was one of my wife's favorite possessions—a cedar chest over laid with richly grained walnut veneer. I'd given it to her as an engagement present. But time had taken its toll. Thirty years of wax buildup, to say nothing of multiplied moves…

I was painting the house. I'd made a scaffold by laying planks across two sawhorses. But my reach was a couple feet short of the highest point. Foolishly I put a stepladder on top of the scaffold and started up. But the ladder pushed the…