preaching Archives - Brian Harris https://brianharrisauthor.com/tag/preaching/ Tue, 05 Aug 2025 02:17:28 +0000 en-AU hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/brianharrisauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-brianharrisauthor-favicon-1.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 preaching Archives - Brian Harris https://brianharrisauthor.com/tag/preaching/ 32 32 93416650 When Life is Like an Egg… and When it Isn’t. https://brianharrisauthor.com/when-life-is-like-an-egg-and-when-it-isnt/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/when-life-is-like-an-egg-and-when-it-isnt/#comments Sat, 19 Jul 2025 22:00:00 +0000 https://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=5726 Not all images work. I wasn’t at all sure that this one would. The speaker was likening life to an egg – not a hard boiled one, long dead and simply waiting to be eaten, but one of those with a fledgling chick inside. As the young bird attempts to come out, it pecks away […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/when-life-is-like-an-egg-and-when-it-isnt/feed/ 2 5726 Preachers or story tellers? https://brianharrisauthor.com/preachers-or-story-tellers/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/preachers-or-story-tellers/#comments Sat, 14 Oct 2023 22:00:00 +0000 https://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=4514 Though the title might make you think this post is aimed at church preachers, it isn’t. It was a comment made in a podcast exploring communication styles. The podcaster suggested that there is a preacher and a story teller in each of us, and that we need to soften the preacher and develop the story […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/preachers-or-story-tellers/feed/ 4 4514 How to listen when the preacher doesn’t have anything to say… https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-listen-when-the-preacher-doesnt-have-anything-to-say/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-listen-when-the-preacher-doesnt-have-anything-to-say/#comments Thu, 17 Dec 2020 22:00:00 +0000 https://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=3411 I always like to be fair, and as my last post was on how to preach when you don’t have anything to say, I thought it only proper to look at the other side of the coin – how to listen when the preacher doesn’t have anything to say. Now don’t misunderstand the motivation behind […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-listen-when-the-preacher-doesnt-have-anything-to-say/feed/ 4 3411 How to preach when you haven’t got anything to say… https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-preach-when-you-havent-got-anything-to-say/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-preach-when-you-havent-got-anything-to-say/#comments Mon, 14 Dec 2020 22:00:00 +0000 https://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=3401 Amusing though the title is, let me start with the disclaimer that it isn’t mine, but was the topic given to Mark Oakley when asked to preach at a recent Church Times event. Now Mark Oakley always has something worthwhile to say – so do listen to his podcast on this topic, though other than […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/how-to-preach-when-you-havent-got-anything-to-say/feed/ 4 3401 Thinking about preaching: What to learn from Jeff Manion https://brianharrisauthor.com/thinking-about-preaching-what-to-learn-from-jeff-manion/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/thinking-about-preaching-what-to-learn-from-jeff-manion/#respond Mon, 19 Jun 2017 22:00:54 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=2581 I’ve recently finished teaching a unit in preaching at Vose Seminary, and one of the assignments was to assess the preaching of a well known pastor whom the student could select, evaluating both the strengths and weaknesses of the approach, and asking what we could learn about preaching from this person. Several excellent essays resulted, […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/thinking-about-preaching-what-to-learn-from-jeff-manion/feed/ 0 2581 Every Brilliant Thing… Reflections on a movie https://brianharrisauthor.com/every-brilliant-thing-reflections-on-a-movie/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/every-brilliant-thing-reflections-on-a-movie/#comments Thu, 09 Mar 2017 22:00:13 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=2492 On a recent flight back to Perth, I watched a HBO documentary, “Every Brilliant Thing”. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the brief blurb about it said “Adapted from the hit Broadway-show, and balancing sobering loss with cathartic laughter, this deeply poignant film recounts a life lived in the shadow of suicide.”  I guess […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/every-brilliant-thing-reflections-on-a-movie/feed/ 5 2492 Why do we preach? And should we… https://brianharrisauthor.com/why-do-we-preach/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/why-do-we-preach/#comments Mon, 25 Jul 2016 22:00:00 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=2032 My home church is Carey Baptist in Perth, and at present our night time service is asking some questions about basic church practices – like why we preach, take communion, worship, and others. I got to kick the series off by trying to answer the question, “why do we preach?” and it did feel a […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/why-do-we-preach/feed/ 3 2032 What makes a sermon bad? https://brianharrisauthor.com/what-makes-a-sermon-bad/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/what-makes-a-sermon-bad/#comments Mon, 23 May 2016 22:00:52 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=1853 While by instinct I prefer to focus on things that are positive, given that I posted on what makes a sermon good, it is only appropriate that we look at what makes a sermon bad. While it might be tempting to look at the earlier post and say, ‘everything that’s the opposite of the seven good points’, that is […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/what-makes-a-sermon-bad/feed/ 3 1853 What makes a sermon good? https://brianharrisauthor.com/whats-a-good-sermon/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/whats-a-good-sermon/#comments Thu, 19 May 2016 22:00:37 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=1842 The last post asked if preaching has a future. I guess many would answer – ‘depends on the preaching. There is no future for shabby preaching, but good preaching, bring it on.’ Fair enough, but what is a ‘good’ sermon? I came up with these seven ideas (I like the ‘one for each day of […]

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]]> https://brianharrisauthor.com/whats-a-good-sermon/feed/ 4 1842 Does Preaching have a Future? https://brianharrisauthor.com/does-preaching-have-a-future/ https://brianharrisauthor.com/does-preaching-have-a-future/#comments Mon, 16 May 2016 22:00:26 +0000 http://brianharrisauthor.com/?p=1838 What do you feel when the preacher steps up to preach… a surge of enthusiasm? a sense of expectancy? a bit of a sigh and an inner comment ‘hope this doesn’t last too long’? In a twitter age, do 30 minute monologues have a future? I wrote this article in 2013, and it has been […]

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