Maybe you're looking toward 2009 and developing a sermon calendar. Here's an idea to get you started.
First, block off the special Sundays that serve as opportunities for specific topics (New Years, Valentine's Day, Mothers Day, etc). Once you've marked off those days, it's eye-opening to see how few Sundays are actually available.
Next, think in terms of series that you feel God wants to address in your church (Prayer, Marriage and Family, Stewardship, Outreach, Vision for your specific church setting, etc).
Then, consider when those series might fit best into the year. You might begin with the Prayer series, and then move to Marriage and Family in February to build it around Valentine's Day. (Check out the new Enrichment Magazine for some great ideas on Marriage and Family. There is material for a couple of series in this one magazine!).
Once you've got these ideas in mind you can start files for each of the series. Get creative about titles and media that you might be able to use to supplement the message and communicate it more powerfully. Sometimes is helps (if you're creatively challenged like I am) to talk about your series outline with someone and ask them to bounce ideas around with you. Talk to other pastors to see if they've done similar series, get their permission, and then "steal" all their ideas that might work in your situation.
I've found that a sermon calendar (even if it isn't absolutely complete for the year) is a real help in so many ways. It removes some of the stress from you when you know where you're headed each week. It gives you time to be creative as you consider future messages. It helps you to stay balanced in your preaching and helps you to cover topics that you feel are most important for your church. Series also give your people another great reason to invite friends to your services, as you advertise upcoming messages that might pertain to their specific situations.
I'd love your feedback on the sermon calendar ideas. Post your comments and we'll help each other as we prepare for 2009!
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Another great benefit to the sermon calendar is that it helps staff to know where you are going - associates who preach can fit into a series where they have something good to offer and it is extremely beneficial to a music minister to have this info available as he/she plans the worship service. If you have a "worship team" that plans the services together it gives them opportunity to offer resources on media clips, drama, etc to add to the variety of ways to get the message across. I LOVE to do series preaching...it keeps my sermons shorter because I know I don't have to get it all in on one Sunday, it encourages the people to come prepared, and it enables you to cover a subject in a broader context. Most of the series preaching that I do is expository but it works well with other styles just as easily.
Who knew that planning your work could be so fun?
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