Preaching in an Age of Distraction has really stuck with me since I finished reading it a few days ago. I’ll be turning back to its pages in the weeks and months to come to remind myself of some of its winsome insights into the preaching process. Here is one:
A preacher would do well to set up this inner standard: that every sermon will have in it some insight, some personal awe, some wonder of Scripture that is for him or her quite new—and therefore quite exciting. Obviously I’m not suggesting insights outside scriptural and doctrinal integrity; rather, I’m calling for insights that make the familiar idea come alive with a new glory, like a suit or dress that reveals a personality not formerly apparent in the wearer. The longer a preacher serves a given congregation, the more important it is that this kind of creativity mark the pulpit fare.
See my review of the book here. The above quotation can also be found in the press kit for the book (PDF), which contains a lengthy excerpt.
Words on the Word 