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What if one of your most spiritually formative sermon series was also one of your most attractional?

Pride, lust, greed, envy, sloth, wrath, gluttony — these aren't just ancient categories or Roman Catholic relics. They're principal vices, the thick branches from which countless other sins grow. And when you preach them well, something powerful happens: people don't just feel convicted, they feel dissatisfied with the status quo and hungry for a different way of life.

Here's the distinction that changes everything: The seven deadly sins aren't just morally wrong but they're bad for you. They don't just earn you a bad grade on the heaven test. They ruin your life. And when you preach that with good argumentation, people start to go, "I don't want to live this way anymore."

This episode unpacks everything you need to consider before preaching a series on the seven deadly sins:

• Four preliminary questions you'll need to answer (and why your congregation is already wondering about them)
• The historical origin of the list and why it's not a Roman Catholic thing
• How to pair each vice with its corresponding virtue for a "don't do this, do this" framework
• Why this series demands personal sanctification from the preacher, and how to navigate vulnerability with integrity
• The surprising attractional quality of confronting sin head-on

The seven deadly sins don't just exist in grotesque, extreme forms. They show up in ordinary life... in your scrolling, your striving, your silence. And just when you think you've beaten pride, here comes vainglory knocking on the door.

If you're looking for a series that offers both spiritual depth and missional intrigue, this one belongs on your preaching calendar.

Mentioned Resources

Glittering Vices by Rebecca K. DeYoung

Seven Deadly Sins Sermon Series (Ironwood Church)

Seven Deadly Sins Resources from Ironwood

The Preaching Lab Cohort

Related Episodes

Preaching Through the 4Gs

Preaching Through Argumentation

Preaching Through an Annual Theme

Evergreen

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Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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What do you do when you've done everything you know to do—and it's just not working? When attendance is flat, baptisms are sparse, giving fluctuates week to week, and you can't point to any clear sign that God is actually moving? Or worse: what happens when your own soul feels dry, and you still have to get up and preach about a God whose goodness you're struggling to feel?

Here's the distinction that changes everything: This isn't "Preaching Away Stagnation"—it's preaching through it. Stagnation is coming. The question isn't whether you'll face seasons of spiritual dryness or ministry plateau. The question is: when it happens, how do you keep showing up?

"Healthy things grow" sounds right until you realize: only one of the four seasons is harvest. A lot of faithful ministry looks like planting, watering, waiting—and wondering if anything is happening underground.

This episode unpacks two types of stagnation every pastor will face:

• Church Stagnation
• Personal Stagnation

The Psalms are full of people crying out to God when things feel stuck. This conversation charts a way forward for you to do the same — and practical handles for how to keep preaching when you don't feel like it.

📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• Spurgeon's Sorrows by Zach Eswine
• John Piper's biographical talks (search "The Swans Are Not Silent" or "Men of
• Whom the World Is Not Worthy" on Desiring God)
• Authentic Masculinity Podcast hosted by Seth Troutt
• Accidental Pharisees by Larry Osborne

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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What do you do when your passage is four chapters long—or when one chapter has five completely different stories?

The temptation is to cover everything. Hit every verse. Explain every detail. But that's not how compelling preaching works. The difference between a message people remember and one they forget often comes down to this: did you linger on what's obvious, or land on the "oh wow"?

This episode unpacks how to preach through long passages of scripture without losing your people—or yourself. There's a case study on how the plagues of Exodus became one of the most energizing sermons ever preached (hint: God wasn't picking random punishments—he was dunking on Egypt's idols). And a breakdown of Luke 18 that reveals an unexpected thread holding five scattered parables together.

Not all of God's word is equally interesting. Knowing that might be the key to preaching it more faithfully.

It is possible to preach long passages in a way that's both faithful and genuinely compelling and we'll share with you one approach to do just that.

Resources Mentioned

Romans For You by Tim Keller

The Preaching Lab Cohort

Related Episodes

Preaching Through a Sermon Calendar
Preaching Through a Capital Campaign
Preaching Through the Book of Revelation
Preaching Through Judges

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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What if the secret to a successful capital campaign has almost nothing to do with fundraising?

New buildings don't fix stagnant churches. If God isn't already stirring something, more square footage won't change that. That's why the most important thing you can do during a capital campaign is preach vision — not obligation.

This episode walks through the full anatomy of a capital campaign (or as we refer to them, resource initiatives):

• The realistic math on what churches can raise
• Why late-fall timing captures four year-ends instead of three
• How to sequence vision meetings and pre-work so people have time to pray and process.

But the real substance is in the preaching itself. This isn't a series on giving — it's a casting a vision for the mission. You're not preaching about the building. You're preaching about the heart behind it.

Discover why people give to successful vision — they need to see what you're already doing, just at a larger scale. Learn how to cast concrete visual pictures instead of vague abstractions. And hear what it looks like when commitment day doesn't go as planned—and why that might be exactly what refines you as a leader.

In this episode you're going to learn how to preach through a capital campaign that casts vision, tells stories, and Christ mission above money.

Mentioned Resources

90-Day Tithe Challenge Training Day

The Preaching Lab Cohort

Lead Pastor Leadership Intensive

Related Episodes

Preaching Through A Vision Series

Preaching Through Money

Preaching Through Efficient Sermon Prep (2025)

Preaching Through Efficient Sermon Prep (2024)

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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How many hours did you spend on sermon prep this week? If the answer is "more than I needed to" or "more than I thought I would" you're not alone.. But here's what matters: did those extra hours actually make your sermon that much better? Or did they just delay the rest of your ministry?

Here's the distinction that changes everything: Efficiency isn't about cutting corners. It's about eliminating the stuff that doesn't move the needle so you can reclaim time for everything else you're called to do. Pastor, you do so much more than preach. The question isn't whether you're busy. The question is whether you're protecting the rhythms that let you prepare faithfully without it consuming your whole week... or if you let even the best things to derail your sermon preparation.

The real problem with sermon prep isn't effort. It's process. Without a defined process you are building a new system every week or you're trying to hit a home run with every sermon. Both strategies lead to the same place: burnout, last-minute scrambling, and a gnawing sense that sermon prep should feel less like a grind.

In this episode we'll discuss:

• Impact of a preaching calendar
• How to gather sermon content ahead of time
• Building (and protecting) a consistent weekly rhythm
• Inviting others into the process
• Why "good enough" beats "perfect" every single time.

This isn't about rushing or phoning it in. It's about working smart so you're not spending 20 hours to achieve what's possible in 8.

Mentioned Resources

8-Hour Sermon Prep Training Day

Designing Your Ideal Week Training Day

Sermon Architecture Simplified Training

Related Episodes

Preaching Through a Sermon Calendar

Preaching Through Busyness of Ministry

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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When's the last time you convinced your kid to take a shower by just telling them they should? Exactly. So why do we expect people to deny themselves and follow Jesus just because we said so?

Here's the distinction that changes everything: Asserting truth assumes people are ready to receive it. Arguing truth assumes they're not, and you have to convince them. Every sermon happens on contested ground. The world, the flesh, and the devil are whispering "Did God really say?" before you even open your mouth. Argumentation is how you fight to take that ground back.

This episode unpacks how to move from proclamation to persuasion. Not trusting your communication theory over the Spirit, but removing obstacles that keep people from hearing.

In this episode:

• Why surface-level preaching feels shallow (hint: it's all assertion, no argumentation)
• Three diagnostic questions that expose where people actually resist: Why do they resist this truth? Why don't they live like it's true? What assumptions make it difficult?
• The concept of "defeater beliefs," the hidden assumptions that make people dismiss your point before you even make it
• Steel manning vs. straw manning: how to articulate objections better than your congregation can
• Five tools for building your argument: biblical text, logic, historical examples, personal experience, and analogies
• Why you don't have to win the whole case in one sermon. You're just taking another swing at the tree.

The bottom line: Preaching that feels deep and insightful isn't about coming up with new ideas. It's about understanding their ideas well enough to pick them apart and replace them with something better.

Mentioned Resources

The Reason for God by Tim Keller
The Air We Breathe by Glenn Scrivener
Sermon Architecture Simplified
The Preaching Lab

Related Episodes

Preaching Through an Annual Theme
Preaching Through Contextual Dynamics

Preaching Through Your Sermon Points

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

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Do you ever preach something that lands perfectly at one service and completely misses at the next?

Same message. Same words. Totally different response. That's the reality of contextual dynamics. This is the often-overlooked skill of adapting your preaching to connect with the actual people in the room.

This episode explores the tension every preacher faces:

How do you meet people where they are without sacrificing biblical truth?

Over-contextualize and you adopt the idolatry of the culture. Under-contextualize and you become irrelevant. The goal is a faithful missionary encounter — connecting deeply enough to earn the right to challenge.

Discover practical ways to build a contextual profile for your church, why pre-sermon feedback beats post-sermon critique, and how to sprinkle in illustrations that make overlooked groups feel seen. There's also a compelling test for every message: are you preaching in such a way that people wish they had invited their friends?

In this episode you're we'll share how you can share the unchanging truth of Scripture in a way that actually lands with the variety of people sitting in your seats — and the ones you hope will be there soon.

Mentioned Resources

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

The Preaching Lab

Lead Pastor Leadership Intensive

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

Send us a text

Ever looked out at your congregation mid-sermon and seen glazed eyes, heads nodding, or worse... someone scrolling their phone? If you're preaching with any regularity, you've been there. The questions isn't whether people will lose interest. The question is: what are you going to do about it?

Here is the distinction that changes everything: Teaching assumes people are interested. Preaching assumes they are not, and it is your responsibility to make them interested.

You can't control someone's affections or make them care about the music or the sermon or any other part of the Sunday experience. That's the work of the Lord. But you absolutely can make them care about what you're saying. And if they're not tracking with you, you're not providing much for the Spirit to use in the moment.

This episode unpacks specific mechanics you can lean on that keep people engaged.

Sermons aren't measured in minutes. They're measured in minutes beyond people's interest. Even a 15 minute sermon can lose people and so you can leverage introductions, illustrations, and vocal dynamics to keep people locked in.

Mention Resources
The Preaching Lab
Preaching Evaluation Form

Related Episodes
Preaching Through Introductions
Preaching Through Illustrations
Preaching Through Vocal Dynamics & Body Language

Evergreen

Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.