Communicating Your Message, Part 2
By Dan Reiland                                                                             

I love those moments when even the best of communicators allow a string of words to fly out of their mouth that they would give any amount of money to retrieve, but can't. One of those times recently happened at Crossroads, the church where I serve as Executive Pastor in Lawrenceville, Georgia.

Our senior pastor, Kevin Myers, was the one who experienced the unforgettable moment. He was in rare form, delivering God's Word with skill and confidence when he with great passion said, "God intended for you to have great sex!" The statement was loud, clear and unmistakable. The problem was that he had meant to say, "God intended for you to have great success." It was as if all the oxygen was sucked out of the worship center, followed by uncontrollable laughter. One little word, but such a big difference.

If you have communicated for any length of time, you surely can relate with such a highly unplanned and definitely "not in the notes" faux pas during your message. Thankfully, in Kevin's case, the congregation had great laugh and he got right back on track.

The truth is, communication isn't easy, not even for the pros. This series is dedicated to helping you become a better communicator.

In Part One of this series (click here to read), I listed the Eight Key Components To Effectively Communicate Your Message, each illustrated with one of my favorite pastoral communicators. Here they are again:

• Jack Hayford (Consecration)
• Orval Butcher (Compassion)
• Billy Graham (Credibility)
• Kevin Myers (Connection)
• Andy Stanley (Creativity)
• Bill Hybels (Clarity)
• Chuck Swindoll (Cheerfulness)
• Jack Wolfe (Conviction)

We covered the first three, so we'll pick up where I left off with the fourth Key Component, Connection.

Eight Key Components To Effectively Communicate Your Message: (continued)

4. Connection.
I have listened to Kevin Myers teach at Crossroads for about two years and he is clearly one of the best communicators I know. (Despite the occasional faux pas!) Kevin has a number of noteworthy skills among this list of eight, but his ability to connect with the people stands out the most. Kevin has a unique ability to be real and vulnerable while at the same time communicating with strength and confidence. Candidly, I suspect that one of the reasons is because he first connects with God before he ever attempts to connect with the people. (See Key Component on Consecration from the last article.)

Kevin is able to reflect on his own life and his relationships with others in such a way that comes through in his teaching. It never sounds like an academic message prepared independently of what anyone might think or feel. Common responses we often hear are, "Do you guys have video cameras in our home?" and "You seem to know right where I'm living." The truth is that Kevin is honest about where he is living, and generally speaking, he knows that his life is not substantially different than many of the people in the congregation.

Connection is vital because it is the component that grabs the hearts of the people. It is the component that prevents your message from being ranked among thousands of other "biblical masterpieces" that accomplished nothing for the sake of the Kingdom.

Connection is basically the availability of two human hearts to understand each other. Connection is an affinity between persons, it is an identification with another person, or simply put, a vibe that makes that personal relationship work. Without it, your message, no matter how brilliant, will fall on deaf ears.

Connection is not possible without being in touch with others, being honest with yourself, and being willing to speak the truth in love. If you are a pastor, you have an advantage. You have some built in connection because the people already know you; but just because they know you doesn't guarantee good connection. If there is tension between you and the congregation (or any group you are addressing), the connection can be a negative one and actually work against you.

The following is a partial checklist from John Maxwell's 21 Laws Audio Resource that will help you assess your level of connection:

• People are listening and eager for more.
• Even though you are the communicator, there is a sense of exchange taking place.
• People often ask you questions or write you letters after the message.
• You have an intuitive sense within you that your message is going from your heart to theirs.
• People you are talking to seem relaxed and at ease, but attentively listening.
• People are focused and engaged with the appropriate response. (e.g laughter, note-taking, etc.)

Remember, you can't connect if you are tying to impress!

5. Creativity.
When it comes to creativity, there are few that compare with Andy Stanley, Senior Pastor of North Point Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. He truly is a master communicator. I had the privilege of listening to his messages every Sunday morning for several years while on the INJOY staff. And without fail, on passages of Scripture that I had either taught myself dozens of times or heard others exposit, Andy would put a fresh twist on it that made it seem like I had never even read that passage before!

From storytelling to unique platform art, Andy delivers a touch of creativity that is truly amazing.

Let me be clear on something: As gifted as Andy is, creativity is not reserved for the highly intelligent and gifted. It is not even reserved for those with a creative and artsy bent. Creativity is available to any communicator who is willing to ask God, The Creator, The Creative One to help.

If you don't sense that this is your strength, the good news is that while you make feel like you are out of fresh ideas, God isn't. He won't let you down if you ask. The challenge is that God doesn't perform creative tricks for us on Saturday night. Creativity comes from a lifestyle of soaking and saturating yourself in the Holy Spirit's presence.

Creativity is not a mystical thing. God can give you great ideas by exposing yourself to great books, creative people and creative sermons that other pastors have delivered. I'm not suggesting that you copy someone else's sermon, but if another sermon sparks an idea for you, thank God for the idea (because they all belong to Him) and go for it.

6. Clarity.
I don't mean any disrespect, but there are far too many messages I've heard that upon their conclusion, I silently commented to myself, "What the HECK was he trying to say?!" The embarrassing thing is that I have delivered more than one of those myself.

In contrast to those fuzzy messages, Bill Hybels, Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Church in Barrington, Illinois communicates with the most precise and laserlike clarity I've ever heard.

At the end of any of his messages, there is never a doubt that you know exactly what Bill wanted to say. He is a wordsmith and a "thought-smith" extraordinaire. Bill has a predetermined focus, a thought-through flight plan, and a pre-arranged place and purpose for landing the plane. Every time!

Clarity requires discipline, and lots of it. Discipline is often a challenge, especially to highly intelligent communicators because they can wing it. But I can assure you, while you may get away with it, you will not have near the impact you would if you added disciplined thought and preparation into every message week after week. Furthermore, no matter how good you are, cutting corners eventually will catch up with you.

Writing out your message in detail, even if you don't use your notes in the pulpit, is the greatest tool to help you clarify your thinking. Another tool is to let others read your message each week and have them tell you in a sentence or two what they perceived your primary thought to be.

7. Cheerfulness.
Growing up in Southern California, and gaining my spiritual foundation during the seventies and eighties, I was blessed to hear Chuck Swindoll often, who was at that time the pastor of First Evangelical Free Church in Pasadena, California.

What a delight it was to listen to Chuck! I could hear his smile coming through over the cassette tape in my car. Even if I didn't think his funny story was funny, I would laugh because it was obvious he did! In other words, his sense of humor was contagious.

Church leader, no one wants to listen to a serious stick in the mud. You may be Godly and smart, but if you are dull and depressing, people will miss the richness of the truth of God. Take God seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously because no one else does. Lighten up. It will help your communication immensely.

This doesn't mean you need to be a comedian and tell jokes. Please don't. It means to look for the humorous, light-hearted side of life and tell stories. Life will provide all the humor you will ever need. If you still have trouble, ask people to help you find humorous stories from the life and ministry of your own church environment. If at all possible, avoid canned humor. You can occasionally sneak in a "funny" you found on the internet, but the best stuff comes from your life and the lives of those around you.

Remember, people need to laugh. It's important to their soul and even their physical body. People need to see the joy of the spirit alive in you and your messages, as well as in the life of the congregation. Life is often tough, and humor is medicine for the soul.

Joan Augland said it well, "A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song!" You have a song--the most powerful life-changing song ever...so sing away!

8. Conviction.
Thomas Fuller said, "When the heart is afire, some sparks will fly out of the mouth!" Jack Wolfe, who is a good friend and the pastor of Calvary Christian Fellowship in Duluth, Georgia, understands this principle. I have watched God use him to grow his church for years and Jack is one of the most passionate, conviction-filled preachers I know. I recently listened to a CD of one of his messages and I nearly pulled my car over to the side of the road to look for an altar to go up to and pray!

When I listen to Jack, whether in the pulpit or in Starbucks, he speaks with passion. Jack cares deeply about his church and the mission God to which has called him. When Jack speaks, you never wonder if he has passion for the work that God has called him.

Let's be blunt for a moment, have you not heard a pastor deliver a message that he or she seemed completely unmotivated about? I'm not referring to personality. We all know that some communicators are more lively than others; that is style. I'm talking conviction--a fire in the belly--a leader who is willing to risk to see God's work go forward. The absence of that pulls the soul right out of an otherwise good message. I have heard average messages that stirred the souls of the listeners because of the fire in the belly of the communicator.

Don't mistake this idea with yelling and screaming. Volume has nothing to do with passion and conviction. Conviction comes from the heart and leads to courage and boldness in the pulpit.

When there is conviction in your heart, you are not afraid to make the "big ask." The big ask means that you deliver the "Thus says the Lord" without hesitation. You call for the people to do what God is asking them (and you) to do without flinching or blinking an eye. You don't mince words. You deliver exactly what God had in mind for the people to hear and obey.

Conclusion:
These eight components will serve you well as a way to reflect and evaluate your communication skills. I'm including a simple tool for your use. If you would like to find even greater value from this article and are courageous enough, print both Part One and Part Two for several of your key leaders and let them evaluate a couple of your upcoming sermons.