How To Choose A Sermon Topic
1) Prayer - pray before you start your sermon preparation, of course
Inspiration flows where humility goes. Inspiration to open the hearts of your congregation to the full power of the word of God can only come if you too humble yourself to receive His word. The powerful sermon topic that you are looking for to move your congregation can only come if you also allow yourself to be moved by Spirit. Psalms 25:9 teaches us that, “He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way”. The ability to relay the message of God is a gift bestowed upon those who humble themselves through prayer to receive, without the shadow of pride to cloud or pass judgement upon His word.
Thankfully you don’t have to feel alone in your prayers. FaithStreet offers both a private and public prayer feature for you, and the members of your congregation to come together to pray digitally. What better way to help bring the perfect message to your religious community, than asking them to pray with you to facilitate inspiration from The Holy Spirit? All of which can be done from the convenience of your cell phone. We are making community prayer easier and more accessible than ever before by bringing the power of daily prayer into the modern era.
2) Poll the congregation for sermon topic inspiration
When searching for preaching topics to keep your congregation engaged, not only is self-humility through submission and prayer necessary, but you’re going to need to keep the congregation’s attention.
Whether you are a Fortune 500 Company, or a humble servant of the Lord, user feedback is key to forming and maintaining an interested and engaged audience that can’t help but come back Sunday after Sunday looking for more.
Don’t be afraid of leaning into technical assistance to help keep your congregation enthralled when searching for encouraging sermon topics to discuss. Incorporating a bit of user-friendly technology into your neighborhood Sunday services can help keep younger believers coming in through the doors, week after week.
There are a variety of ways to get digital congregational feedback that are easy to implement. Whether it is Doodle, an easy-to-use online polling system, or Google Forms, a highly accessible and very user-friendly way to create polls, quizzes, queries, or questions open for all to answer, this day in age there are more than plenty of options. That’s why the FaithStreet app offers the option to poll your congregants, while also keeping donations, and prayer requests, all in the same app- something revolutionary, easy and comprehensive that other applications just simply can’t do.
3) Draw sermon topics from a liturgical calendar
Do not be afraid to draw inspiration from the same sources as those who came before you.. In a world that is very much focused on moving forward, it is also important to remember the past. A tree that grows without roots will fall in even the lightest of storms, so do not be afraid to pull inspiration for how to choose a sermon topic from the ancient liturgical calendar, something that all denominations can do.
Comfort from fear of an unknown future can be eased through teachings of the past. Think of the joy and warmth that the Christmas season brings to believers each year, or the excitement of family celebrations of the Easter holiday. So too may the ancient story and season of Passover bring peace, comfort and hope for future and present generations to feel connected to spiritual traditions of the past, present, and future. Drawing inspiration from the traditions of the liturgical calendar,( info on which can be found here.) can help ferment ancient Christian and Abrahamic tradition into the ways of today’s modern age.
4) Choose a sermon topic from current events
Consider keeping each weekly sermon culturally relevant. We often look to Him for comfort in times of anguish or confusion. The fast-paced and oftentimes baffling and upsetting state of the current world can leave many looking to fill the spiritual gap. As Psalm 9:9-10 says, “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble”. By looking to draw inspiration from the current events of today, not only can we keep the attention of our current congregation members, but we also may open the hearts of new members, attracting them into the embrace of a spiritual fellowship full of those who are also looking to fill their spiritual cup.
The current era of information that we live in has left many feeling hopeless and without faith for the future, however the age of technology also opens the door to allow for many of those who are jaded to turn to spiritual teachings for emotional nourishment, from the convenience of their own cell phones. Don’t be afraid to pull inspiration from the current events of today, as Christ’s ancient, but timeless teachings of unconditional love are exactly what many need to balance out the often saddening events of today’s modern age.
5) Summary - How FaithStreet can help you choose a sermon topic and publish your sermons
Know you are not alone! FaithStreet is dedicated to helping both pastors and congregants alike accelerate forward in their spiritual journeys. FaithStreet provides an easy-to-use platform to help church members exchange virtual prayer requests. We are helping you take your prayer requests into your pocket in everyday life. Our “Respond” question and answer polling tool is perfectly designed for religious leaders to help keep their congregations engaged, and receive feedback, even from outside of the church! Our “Sermons” tool is an innovative and user-friendly way to digitally deliver those sermons you prayed for, into the pockets of your followers, regardless of whether or not they can make it into the pews that day.
FaithStreet is a modern, high-tech, yet very user-friendly solution to helping bring your church into the modern age of today. Finding spiritual support from your church community has never been more convenient, FaithStreet is dedicated to helping you take the best of Sunday with you throughout the rest of the week!
Prayer: https://help.faithstreet.com/article/159-sharing-a-prayer-request
Feedback tools: https://help.faithstreet.com/article/162-respond
Sermon library tools:https://blog.faithstreet.com/sermons/
Learn more about FaithStreet: faithstreet.com