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Following is an excerpt of "How to Help the Preacher Preach " by J. Gerald Harris added on 10/07/2009.
How to Help the Preacher Preach
Dr. Gerald Harris
James 1:19-25

Tonight I want to speak on the subject "how to help the preacher preach." I have never professed to be a great preacher, but I do believe that you can help me to become a better preacher of the Word of God.

I don't want to be like the new preacher who had been in town for about six months and two neighbors were talking about him one day and one said, "Yes, our preacher has a real problem,. He suffers from foot and mouth disease."

The neighbor said, "Well, what does that mean?"

The woman said, "Foot and mouth disease- he won't visit and he can't preach."

Now, I really don't want that to be said of me. I want to be a better preacher. I believe that you can help me to become a better preacher. Someone has wisely said, ‘Great preachers don't always produce great churches, but great churches always produce great preachers."

I mean you want to get the most out of these messages. You want to get the most out of these worship services. I mean, anyone wants to get ten cents out of every dime. You want to get every possible mile out of a gallon of gasoline. You want to squeeze every minute possible out of life. You want to get the most for your investments. You want to get the most for your visit to the theater. You want to get the most of your visit to the opera. You want to get the most out of your visit when you over there to see the dogs play between the hedges. You want to get the most out of your visit to the concert. How much more should you want to get the most out of the worship experiences and the message proclaimed from the pulpit in the house of God?

James, in our text for tonight, offers some very significant suggestions concerning how you can help the preacher to preach, concerning how you may profit supremely from the proclamation of the word of God.

I. Notice what you are to do before the sermon

James gives us some very helpful information concerning what we are to do before the sermon, before the corporate worship experience. Now, as I began to study this passage of scripture I suddenly came to the stark realization that the preparation for worship must begin with the pastor, because so often I can look into the congregation and see weakness and realize that it is but a reflection of my weakness. The truth of the matter is that the most difficult thing for me is not preparing the message to deliver, but preparing myself to deliver the message.

Because, you see, I believe the word of God ought to be preached with conviction. I believe it ought to be preached with power. I believe when we come together for public worship, it is a time when God's glory can uniquely come down from heaven and fill or souls with joy.

Richard Baxter said, "I preach as never sure to preach again the message of a dying man to dying men."

An old preacher stopped by to hear a young colleague and after the sermon was over he said to the young fellow, "I suppose y ...

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