May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)

Preparing to speak at a retreat or conference is a lot like packing a suitcase for an out-of-town trip. You begin by making sure you’ve packed enough “essentials,” you throw in a couple of contingency items, and then – if it looks like there’s room – you add a few accessories.

Then comes the second guessing: “Maybe I could use a couple more nice shirts;” “It wouldn’t hurt to squeeze in my running shoes;” “Last time I was in Florida I wished I’d packed flip-flops;” “I’m not scheduled to go anywhere fancy, but I think I have room for some dress pants and a couple of ties.” And so it goes.

That’s how it’s going with my retreat prep. Palma Ceia Presbyterian has asked me to speak four times. Two 45-minute teaching sessions; one “after-dinner” message; and one 45-minute Sunday morning class. All the essentials are covered. Then yesterday I got into, “This extra story would go nicely with that third point;” and, “I almost forgot to talk about this other passage in 2 Timothy;” and, “Maybe I can squeeze in…;” and, “I bet they’d enjoy hearing….”

There’s no way I’m going to be able to squeeze it all in!

CONFETTI: Then sometimes you stand up, start to speak, and realize that what you have prepared is not what you need to say. My favorite example happened just a couple of years ago in Brandon. My wife, Rebekah, woke up wrestling with her message, wrote all over her sermon during breakfast, continued with the x-outs in her office before worship, messed with it some more during the opening praise songs, then carried five pages of scribbled-over text to the lectern.

She read the scripture, looked out over the congregation, sighed, said, “I can’t believe I’m going to do this,” tore her manuscript into a dozen small pieces, and then tossed it off the pulpit like so much confetti.

There was an audible gasp from the congregation. Rebekah then proceeded to preach the simple, yet powerful, sermon God had been speaking into her heart over the previous couple of hours.

HOLY SPIRIT: You see, preparation is important; good writing helps; preparing key phrases and paragraphs makes sure the message I’m sharing remains on track and moving forward; but I have to remain sensitive to the Spirit, or all I’ll have is an overpacked suitcase full of items that may or may not fit in with what God has in mind.

Spirit of God, descend upon my heart,
wean it from earth, through all its pulses move;
stoop to my weakness, mighty as thou art,
and make me love thee as I ought to love

– George Croly (1780-1860)

– DEREK