How A Minister Uses Time: Part 1 - Introduction

By Dave Redick

Author's Note: The following presentation was made to our congregation at an evening service. The occasion
will become evident as the article is read. Basically, it was written to inform well meaning, but uninformed people
about a minister's time use. Since it is a common issue in churches, I have chosen to reprint it here in hope that
it will help someone else facing a similar situation. I did my best in the presentation to be "matter of fact" and not
emotional. My aim was to take the high road, welcoming the opportunity to speak on a subject that, normally,
there is little opportunity to address. There are three parts: This introduction is the first. The second is called
"General Areas Where a Minister Spends His Time." The third, which I did not go over, but merely used as a
hand-out, is called "How A Sermon Is Prepared." This author claims no corner on the market of wise time use,
nor does he hold himself up as any special model. These lessons were presented to deal with a specific
situation.

Good evening. I appreciate and welcome the opportunity to speak to you tonight about the special subject of
how a minister uses his time. As you may or may not know, I was late getting back from the airport week-before-
last due to the storm we were having and I missed the scheduled men's meeting I was to chair. In the course of
that meeting the subject was raised and discussed about how ministers in general and I in particular use time
each week. The topic grew out of discussion about our hiring of an associate minister to do some of our
evangelistic work, particularly following up visitors and delinquent attenders. I believe the question raised was
something like, "Why do we need a second man? Why can't Dave take care of these things?" It was a legitimate
question and I am glad it was asked. Matter of fact, I'm particularly happy I wasn't present at the meeting,
because it gave some of our men who have questions about this an opportunity to discuss something they might
not have discussed had I been present.

It is not uncommon for people to have questions about how a minister uses his time. Many of you see me once
or maybe twice a week standing up here in front and that is all. You have no way of knowing what else is
involved without someone telling you or your following me around. As one man said one time, "What could be
easier than speaking once or twice on Sundays, then playing golf the rest of the week?" It really isn't like that.
Most ministers I know are as busy or busier than the other working members of their congregations.

You need to understand the difficulty involved in a minister himself speaking about this subject and maybe then
you'll see why I welcome this particular opportunity. You see, if I were, out of the blue, to begin telling you
Sunday after Sunday all the things I did the week before, it could easily be misconstrued as boasting. Most of us
tire quickly of a person who always toots his own horn. In a forum where letting our good works rather than our
words glorify God, there really is no place for a minister to give an account. He doesn't punch a time clock. He's
paid a salary. Usually he files no reports. So it follows that unless you could somehow go with him, you wouldn't
know what it is he does. Until I entered full time ministry in 1977, I had no idea of all that is involved.
Understand, then, tonight, the spirit in which I come to you. It is not my intention to boast or toot my own horn.
Nor do I want this to be anything negative. I am simply answering the sincere and legitimate questions of some
of our men and perhaps even a few more of you

All of us need to realize that a lot of trust is put in the man people call their minister. One wizened preacher
once told me that trust and integrity are the coin of the minister's realm. If he has neither, his work will be
bankrupt. How true!

When it comes to trust, I have found that there are three kinds of people in the church with regard to this issue
of how a minister uses his time. There are those who trust him implicitly and wonder why anyone would ever
question his integrity. They usually get their back up in his defense when this issue comes up. Then there are
those who are willing to trust as long as they can see reasonable evidence that he does not abuse their
confidence in him. Finally, and this is sad but true, there are those who will never trust him no matter how
accountable he becomes.

That first group of people who trust him implicitly make a minister's work a joy. I confess that to you. I suspect
they are put there by God to keep his spirits up. The second group who expect some reasonable accountability
are a great benefit to the church and to the minister because they help him have tangible reasons to maintain a
high level of integrity. Accountability is a good thing! A sincere minister should appreciate such people and
welcome their questions (as I do tonight.) The third group, usually in the minority, of people who will never trust
him no matter how accountable he becomes, well, what should we say about them? The fact that they are in
every church probably is an indicator that God considers them necessary. If you'll take this with the levity
intended, perhaps it is comparable to the fact that there are mosquitoes or ants at nearly every picnic. God must
considers them necessary for something (bless their hearts!) or they wouldn't be there.

Our issue at hand is really no less difficult than the challenge that would come if some of us tried to explain all
the things we do in our jobs and professions. The uninitiated might have trouble understanding, looking on from
the outside. Take the work of an electrician. It appears to me that all an electrician does is string wires. Suppose
I need to install a couple of extra outlets in a hallway. I've never wired anything before, but it couldn't be all that
difficult now, could it? Surely I don't want to pay an electrician! Brother Leroy is an electrician. He's done many
things here in the church. When it comes to wiring, he does it and he does it right. We appreciate him and his
work. But it couldn't be that hard, now could it? It's just a simple matter of connecting things. So I cut a length of
wire, pull off the face plate, attach one end, string the wire across the hallway, and hook it in to the new face
plate. There! Done! Now I have my new outlet. I repeat the procedure two more times and I'm in business. Why
would I ever want to pay an electrician the kind of money electricians make? I can string a wire just like Leroy
does. A piece of cake. Of course, brother Leroy might not be too sympathetic toward me when my house burns
down! There is a bit more involved than what is evident on the surface.

The same is true with any of our occupations. I could assume that I know enough to run a modern sawmill like
brother Amos did for many years because I can run a power saw. I could consider I know enough to drive a
modern log truck like Russ and Rollie and others because I can drive a car. I could consider myself to be an
advisor to brother Harold who drives a dump truck and a cat because I've pushed a wheel barrow around the
back yard and can use a hand shovel. I could consider myself to be an adequate spray technician like Jake
because I've pushed the button on the top of a can of Raid. But these things wouldn't be wise.

My point is that most of us don't really know how a modern minister spends his time or what is expected of him,
any more than we understand all that is involved in any of the rest of our occupations. It takes some
explanation.

You have before you two documents. The first has to do with general areas where a minister spends his time.

The second paper concerns how a sermon is put together. Since this is a minister's foremost responsibility, it
should certainly be one of the issues considered. I won't go into great detail in my discussion of this. I do invite
you to spend more time looking it over when you get home if you are interested.

As soon as we have those two issues out of the way, I want to address directly a few of the very good and
legitimate questions raised in my absence at the last men's meeting.

Finally, I'll give you an opportunity to ask me any questions you might have remaining in your mind.

Outline of Presentation:

1. Go over general areas where a minister spends his time

2. Briefly mention sermon preparation document.

3. Go over specific questions raised in last meeting.

4. Further questions from congregation.

Conclusion

I thank you all for listening. I also thank the church (that's all of you) for supporting me and my family so I can do
this work. I look forward to more years with you if the Lord gives opportunity.

How A Minister Uses Time: Part 2 - General Areas Where

A Minister Spends Time

By Dave Redick

Author's Note: The following presentation (Part 2) was made to our congregation at an evening service. Part 1
should be read before reading this . The author claims no corner on the market of wise time use, nor does he
hold himself up as any special model. These lessons were presented to answer general questions about a
minister's time use.

I. Study

A. The Study of God's Word.

1. For personal growth and edification (I cannot encourage others to be what I'm not.)

2. Sermon and lesson preparation

a. Planning what to preach (Weekly, yearly)

b. Study of material

c. Actual preparation (gathering, organizing, typing, etc.)

d. Actual preaching and teaching

e. Fielding questions afterward

B. The study of theology, languages, church history, homiletics, apologetics and other subjects to keep up with
the field and enhance ministry.

1. Formally by taking classes.

2. Privately in reading books and journals.

C. Study of current events.

D. Attending and traveling to attend conferences, workshops, church growth seminars, etc.

E. Visiting other churches.

II. Prayer

A. For family and personal matters.

B. For members of congregation.

C. For work of church, missionaries, etc.

III. Socializing

A. Visiting members in their homes.

B. Hospital visitation.

C. Visiting shut-ins.

D. Visiting delinquent and problem members (on phone and in person.)

E. Visiting members at church building before and after services.

F. Feeding and entertaining traveling speakers and missionaries.

G. Unscheduled drop-ins at office.

H. Unscheduled phone calls.

IV. Counseling

A. In office (scheduled and unscheduled)

B. On phone (scheduled and unscheduled)

C. Marriage and family counseling, grief counseling, personal problems counseling, employment counseling,
financial counseling, misc. counseling.

V. Evangelism

A. Setting up personal Bible studies.

B. Calling.

C. Conducting evangelistic studies.

D. Baptizing.

E. Conducting follow up studies.

F. Checking on new converts.

G. Organizing formal outreach activities.

H. Holding evangelistic meetings.

VI. Funerals and weddings

A. Scheduling.

B. Meeting with families involved.

C. Arrangements and rehearsals.

D. Actual conducting of services.

E. Follow up later.

VII. Administration

A. Elders meetings.

B. Congregational (or men's) meetings (planning and conducting).

C. Meeting with leaders of various ministries.

D. Dealing with legal and corporate matters.

1. State and federal laws (correspondence, keeping informed, assuring compliance, etc.)

2. State and federal tax matters (same categories as above)

3. Ministerial record keeping (Mileage, expenses, hours spent, etc.)

E. Oversight of church office and internal record keeping.

1. Secretary helps here, but final responsibility is mine.

F. Correspondence

1. To and from surrounding community (promoting good public relations.)

2. To and from other churches.

3. Misc.
VIII. Camps and retreats.

A. Planning, coordinating, attending, teaching.

IX Discipling future leaders

A. Personal nurture of other Christian men to be leaders via meetings, accountability classes, one-on-one
fellowship and encouragement.

B. Teaching at Bible College every other year.

X. Unscheduled emergencies, opportunities, crises, interruptions, etc., to which it is

difficult to say "no" without undesirable consequences.

Is anybody tired yet?

How A Minister Spends Time: Part 3 - How a Sermon Is

Prepared

By Dave Redick

Author's Note: The following presentation (Part 3) was made to our congregation at an evening service. It is
intended to inform an average person, unfamiliar with the work of sermon preparation. It is not intended to be a
technical presentation for preachers. Parts 1 and 2 should be read first. The author claims no corner on the
market of wise time use, nor does he hold himself up as any special model. These lessons were presented to
answer general questions about a minister's time use.

HOW A MINISTER USES TIME Part 3

HOW A SERMON IS PREPARED

Continuing with my presentation of How A Minister Uses Time, the following steps are the ones I typically use to
prepare a sermon. The process may differ from minister to minister, but most who preach biblical sermons will
probably approximate the steps below.

The process begins with in-depth study.

1. Choose the Preaching Portion.

This selection of a passage must be relevant to the congregation and also something about which the preacher
can sermonize. I often select such preaching portions as much as six months in advance, though room is left for
short term needs, too. If I'm doing a series through a book, selection is somewhat easier, though concern must
be exercised in the way the material is divided.

2. Read and Study Entire Context of Preaching Portion.

This might be a chapter or two or it might be an entire book of the Bible. The aim is to discover the Holy Spirit's
purpose and meaning in the passage before the actual sermon preparation begins. This helps prevent
misrepresentation of the meaning of the Scripture.

3. Read Repeatedly Through Preaching Portion Perhaps as Many as a Dozen Times.

This not only familiarizes the preacher with the passage, but it also helps to find those points that will ultimately
be useful in the sermon. Several different translations are used, but the message will ultimately be anchored in
the translation used regularly by the minister and congregation.

4. Outline the Passage.

This step may or may not provide the ultimate outline of the sermon. The purpose is to divide the passage into
manageable pieces and give a bit of a summary of the main parts of the passage.

5. Check Key Words and Phrases in the Original Language.

Some preachers translate entire passages from original texts. Unless one is very proficient in this, time may not
afford to opportunity. Thus the emphasis on key words.

6. Discover the Theme of the Passage.

What did the original writer intend to convey? What was his key topic? What are any secondary topics? One
must be careful not to abuse the passage by superimposing another agenda over the original writer's intent.

7. Consult Commentaries and the Writings of Others.

I usually save this step for last in the study section because I like to form my own conclusions before seeing
what others have said. Often as many as 8-10 commentaries are used, depending upon the difficulty of the
passage.

Now it's time to begin writing the sermon.

8. Discover an Angle for the Sermon.

The angle or slant is the perspective from which the sermon will be written. It is a homiletic prop that serves to
draw attention to the content of the message. For instance, in a sermon I wrote called "Don't Get Bent Out of
Shape," based on Luke 13:10-17, I found my angle for the sermon when I noticed the number of persons or
things in the passage that were bent out of shape. Thus, The Bent Out of Shape Lady, The Bent Out of Shape
Leader, and The Bent Out of Shape Law. This popular "Bent Out of Shape" metaphor provided an interesting
twist on which to hang the truths I wanted to emphasize from the passage and gave an attention-grabbing angle.

9. Formulate a Proposition.

This is a single statement of what is going to be said in the message. It may or may not be a statement of the
angle. It should be clearly stated before the main body of the message. My proposition for the "Don't Get Bent
Out of Shape" sermon above was "Three things that are bent out of shape in this passage."
10. Write the Sermon Outline.

I prefer to group the parts of my sermon under major points or divisions. It provides mile posts as the sermon
progresses. These may or may not be the same as the study outline mentioned earlier. Effort is made to word
them in an interesting, attention-grabbing manner.

11. Write the Sermon Draft.

I manuscript all my sermons, so for me this means typing out what I am actually going to say.

12. Choose a Title.

For me this is usually one of the last steps, though a good title may be discovered at any point of the sermon
preparation process.

13. Revise, Tighten, and Reword Where Necessary.

The aim of this is to word things more concisely where possible and also to remove typos and poorly worded
points. I "step back" from the message at this point and check to be sure that my main points answer my
proposition and that the entire message clearly reflect what is promised. This step is preferably done on a
different day than the earlier steps. Setting the sermon aside for a day allows a fresher perspective when it is
picked up again. I continue this process right up until my deadline on Sunday morning.

14. Get the Final, Printed Copy to the Church Secretary for Distribution to Absentees, Deaf Ministry, Shut-ins,
etc.

15. Preach Message. Distribute Tapes and Printed Copies.

16. Repeat This Process, at Least in Part, for the Evening Service. Start Over Again on Monday.

Copyright (c) Dave Redick, The Preacher's Study, 2000. All Rights Reserved. Reprint by permission only (which
will probably be granted if you just ask.) Please do not cut articles out of this ezine and paste them anywhere
else without permission. You may, however, forward this entire Ezine to friends freely.

Dave Redick is the Pulpit Minister of the Hwy 20 Church of Christ in Sweet Home, Oregon. He may be reached
at dave@preacherstudy.com . http://preacherstudy.com/time1.html