How To Make Message Prep More Efficient

One of the worst feelings in youth ministry is getting up to preach an unfinished message. It may be technically “finished,” but because of your schedule, the difficulty of the text, or maybe even a lack of discipline, it is not where you want it to be, and you are out of time to get it where you really wanted it. And then you remember, you have to do it all over again next week, and that may be even more difficult! The natural question after that terrible feeling is, “Is there a better way?”

While you may have weeks where your message feels rushed, that does not have to be the norm. Your weekly message is one of the most weighty things on your calendar. Because, after all, you are conveying the very Word of God to your students. It is time-consuming because it matters. But there are a few tricks and habits that, once implemented, can make the entire process more efficient, which will help make your messages better quicker. To be clear, the goal is not to rush sermon prep or get it done as quickly as possible. The goal is to be more efficient, removing time-wasters or distractions that sidetrack us from this important work. Here are five tips that can help you be more efficient with your prep time:

Tip 1: Pray Regularly For Your Messages

One of the greatest hindrances to efficient message prep is prayerlessness. Prayerlessness shows a lack of dependence on God’s Spirit, whom we need to correctly interpret and apply His Word. But when we regularly bring our messages before the Lord, we can count on His guidance through the entire process. However, that requires our prayers throughout the entire process, not just at the beginning of our prep time but also before the message. Make an effort to include prayer in every step of the process. Pray when you read the text for the first time. Pray when you look at next week’s preaching schedule. Pray when you get stuck on a tough question or have writer’s block. Pray when the message is written and after it is delivered. Soak every step of the prep process in prayer, and you will be more efficient and effective.

Tip 2: Prepare Your Prep Time

To modify one of Benjamin Franklin’s more famous quotes, an ounce of preparation yields a pound of productivity. What you do before you put pen to paper can save you time and make the preparation process more free, inspiring, and enjoyable. First, prepare your texts. Whether you plan a month out, three months out, or a year out, make sure you have a schedule for your weekly messages. I like to plan at least three months out with a title, a text, and a main idea for each message. This helps me know exactly where I am going each week and even helps me prepare my mind for future messages all the time.

Second, prepare your resources and study space. Before your hands touch the keyboard, make sure you have everything you expect to need at your fingertips. A quick way to break your efficiency and flow is to leave your desk or office to get a resource. I keep different stacks of resources set aside on my desk for each topic I am preaching on in a particular season. Also, make sure any online resources you will need are already pulled up and ready to go. Talk to your team about limiting distractions or go somewhere you will not be easily interrupted for an extended period of time. And don’t forget the coffee!

Tip 3: Collect Your Content And Inspiration

While the meat of your message should come directly from your study of the text, many aspects of your message may come to you in your daily life. One way to collect content is to have a system for saving and annotating potential sermon ideas. Whether it is a note-taking software, voice memos, or index cards, have a plan for what to do when inspiration hits. I use Evernote, a note-taking program, to quickly clip and categorize news articles, voice memos, inspirational quotes, or personal stories. This way, they can be easily searched at a later time when needed.

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The second way to collect content is to invite others into your message prep process. If you have a Student Leadership Team, have your students read the text and see what sticks out to them. Perhaps they have a story that you could share that connects with the text, or even better, they could share the testimony during your gathering. Recently, on long drives, I have asked my wife to read the upcoming text out loud, and we will just talk about it for a while. Some of the things that we say may not make it into the message, but it fills our hearts with God’s Word and gives us a chance to be more creative.

Tip 4: Start With A Strong, Dependable Outline

Introduction, Body, Conclusion, Invitation. Easy enough, right? Rather than getting stuck at the top of a blank page, it is important to focus on laying down the track of your message so the creative train can roll. For me, the first thing I do is study the text to outline the text. I mark out the two or three points with scripture references and any potential sub-points or lists that may give further structure. Now, I can work at one point at a time rather than the whole message at once.

Next, to fill in the gaps, I prefer to start off with Wayne McDill’s four rhetorical elements of persuasive preaching from 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching: Explanation, Illustration, Argumentation, and Application. Explain the point, illustrate the point, argue the point, and apply the point. You do not have to do that necessarily in that order, but those elements are extremely helpful and help you take bite-size chunks of your message quickly and efficiently.

Tip 5: Practice Your Message Early

Lastly, you should consider practicing every message you preach. You may be able to preach a message well your first time, but you probably will not be able to preach it best your first time. Verbalizing your written message will help you notice several things: Is the message too long or too short? Is what I’m saying coming across the way I’m meaning it? Was my explanation of that verse clear or confusing? How is my tone? These questions are more easily answered when you actually preach the message out loud.

Also, practicing your message earlier in the process gives you plenty of time to tweak things before you deliver it. Consider preaching the message just after you finish it while it is fresh. I have found that practicing it, even a few hours before the actual delivery, gives me the confidence and clarity to be flexible with the message. There have been so many times during the practice that I have cut parts of my message or skipped entire stories because I realized they were unnecessary, unhelpful, or too long. Usually, I make those decisions during practice.

We all know how important teaching is in our ministry roles. It’s my hope that as you get to teach God’s Word to your students, you will do so with confidence, without burden, and in a way that brings the Lord honor.

Share your thoughts with others in our YM360 community:

1. On a scale of 1-10, how efficient is your message prep process? Is it dependable and consistent, or is it rushed and scattered?
2. What is one action step that you could take this week to make your process more efficient?

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