A common fear amongst everyone is the fear of public speaking. There are so many of us who couldn’t fathom standing up infront of a large group of people and delivering a message that could last 15-45 minutes. It can be incredbily intimidating. This is why so many people never entertain the idea of delivering a message to others. They believe that it isn’t something for them. Here is the problem with this belief. Everyone has a unique perspecctive and voice. It’s the same reason we have 4 gospels rather than just one. When the content is important enough, I don’t want just one viewpoint. I want to see it from other angles. I believe some of you reading have a unique perspective on certain topics, and I beileve those perspectives need to be shared. You also don’t need to fear reinventing the wheel. The goal is to communicate biblical truths that don’t change. So let me help you break down some of the fear you may have when it comes to delivering a message.
Step one is ALWAYS the same. We start our preperation with prayer. These are not our words. They are God’s words and we need to seek Him in prayer to be certain that we are speaking the words He desires to communicate through us. I often pray something along the lines, “God, what is it you want to say through me? What part of your word do you want to be spoken to Your people.” Then you wait. This is why it’s so important you don’t rush the preperation of a mesage. If you do, you will feel a need to speak your words rather tahn His words, as your words are often quicker to create. Once God speaks to you on a passage or topic, we move on to stage 2.
Research. This is the phase that, depending on your personality, can be the most fun or the most tedious. This is where you find the context and history of the passage you want to explore. It makes it much easier to communicate something that ou have the full picture of. If you understand who is talking, who they are talking to, and why they are saying it, it all becomes much more real to you. Through this your message becomes more real as well. It is important to note that you do not need to share ALL of the research you found. A lot of that is for you to better understand but if you try and communicate all of this to the audience, they cane asily get confused. There is sometimes a desire to show people how hard you worked on the message and how much you know. Just remind yourself this is the temptation from the enemy. The goal of communication is to be understood. Not just heard.
Once you have prayed and discovered what God wants you to talk about, and you have researched that, then comes time to place pen to paper. Here is the biggest key to this part: Just start writing something! It doesn’t have to be the most profound thing ever said. It doesn’t have to be structured like a college thesis. You can always structure the message later(this is what I often do). The important thing is you start to get the ideas God gives you through His word on paper and out of just your head. They can be unorganized and chaotic but just force yourself to write them down. Writing works off momentum. Once you start, the ball starts rolling and ideas start flowing and before long, you have more ideas than you could possibly put into one teaching.
Our final stage is practice. This was taught to me by a former boss and current friend. Don’t allow the first time your delivering a message be infront of your intended audience. Practice often in front of the mirror, in the shower, and even better if you can practice on a stage with a mic. When you practice, practice as if it’s the real deal. Full energy, maximum effort, and as much charisma as you can possibly muster. Go through the illlustrations. Make all of the jokes. Practice your transistions and closing. This practice will make you feel SO much more comfortable when it comes time to really deliver the message. It also makes sure you are giving the best possible version of your message to the audiencece.
I am by no means an expert on communication. It is a passion of mine that I have spent the last decade improving and learning. I believe that you, the reader, have more potential as a speaker than you realize. Find an oppurtunity to leverage this ability and then give it all the time, energy, and effort possible.
Let me know your thoughts on communication in the comments below. I would love if you let me know your next speaking oppurtunity so I can pray for you. That is what this community is all about. Getting better together as a community, pursuing God.