Over the past 2 weeks, I had that opportunity. I spent time on the phone and via text and email helping a younger preacher craft his message. He was a guest speaker - a counselor - asked to preach on mental health: Pursuing a New Mind in the New Year from Romans 12:1-6.
Today, I was privileged to listen and take notes on the message during the early service, before he had to preach 2 more times.
We debriefed between the 1st and 2nd service for the purpose of his leadership development.
I took notes in my journal during the first message under 4 headings: 1) Keep. 2) Add. 3) Tweak. 4) Cut.
So, we met after that first message. And processed. It's a tricky thing to do. A message is a preacher's work of art. It's personal. It's an expression from the heart. Critiquing another person's message is a very delicate thing.
Keeping that in mind, I started with "What did YOU think? What did YOU like about what you did/said?" Then, I move to "What would YOU change?"
In other words, get his feedback first before you share yours. Then, share your own thoughts. Say something like, "This is my opinion. So, take what I'm about to share with you as what it is: One fallen, humble man's opinion."
1) Keep.
I shared 1.5 pages of things that I felt he should keep. I even showed him the journal so he could see how many things I wrote down that he should keep. Why? I wanted to encourage him with sincere, specific, and strength-based encouragement BEFORE I shared a few things that might help his message.
2) Add.
I had 3 things I thought he could add that, IMHO, would make the message better. For example, early in the message, he told a great story about a personal struggle in his family, but he didn't resolve it. I encouraged him to resolve it at the end of the message to help him land more squarely on the big idea.
3) Tweak.
I gave him 3 things to tweak. For example, I knew that the church he was part of growing up didn't handle his family issue well. I suggested that he let us know how that church "missed it" so we could avoid the same mistake.
4) Cut.
I suggested that he cut 2 things. For example, I shared that his message lost momentum somewhere in his 1st point but picked it back up again in the last 2 points. I suggested that he lose about 1/2 the content of his first point.
I listened to the next message and sent this text: "Nice adjustments. Thx, bro. A much needed word! I love your heart and your humility. Praise God for you, bro."
He texted back: "Your input has been amazing. Thank you - obviously only you & I know how your fingerprints are all over this message. :)"
To which I responded: "Ha! Co-laboring is fun. What we want and what I think we have are the Lord's fingerprints. What I think you have is a message that churches throughout the US need to hear. Idea: What if you had a manuscript that our preaching team could look at and tweak with you? What if your church's preaching team could do the same? And your wife? Then, you would have lots of co-laborers helping you tweak this much-needed message that could be delivered at churches and conferences all around. Who knows? God may open many doors of opportunity for you!"
I had lots of fun helping my friend get better at the craft of preaching. It's a true joy to see others soaring and knowing that you played a small part in helping them fly.
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So, what are your ideas and best practices when it comes to developing leaders as preachers? How do you develop younger preachers - encouraging and challenging them to keep on growing? What is one idea you can take from my experience to help you develop a leader to be a better preacher?
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