Preaching--4 Ways to Gain Attention and 3

Ways to KEEP It!

R. Larry Moyer
How do you rate on the two critical skills every preacher needs?
A man asked his friend, What color are your pastors eyes? He answered, I dont know.
When he prays he closes his eyes and when he preaches I close mine. Thats how a lot of
people feel about a lot of sermonsan excellent place to get a good nights rest. So much so,
that as you approach the pulpit, they slouch down in their seats. Theyve already made up
their minds that you are going to be dull and irrelevant.
Thats one reason you dont have 30 minutes to get their attention. Thats how long you have
to keep it. You only have 30 seconds to get their attention. If you dont grab those first 30
seconds, their minds will quickly divert to the happenings of last week or the plans for next
week. And furthermore, no matter how important what you desire to say is, it will not be
heard.
How do you get their attention in 30 seconds? Four ideas are invaluable.

1. Do a passion check.
Are you stepping into the pulpit because you have to say something or because you have
something to say? If you are not extremely burdened about the truth you need to share, its
doubtful that your audience will feel burdened to listen to you. To be an effective
communicator, that burden must be expressed with a passion. Your need to be passionate
about the truth you are going to impart; it cant be overstated. That passion can be seen in the
way you step into the pulpit, your excitement and even your opening words.

2. Your first words are critical.

Haddon Robinson has said, The first 25 words you speak are the most important ones of
your message. If those dont engage your audience to listen, you wont have their attention.
Thats why it is crucial you dont spend those opening words talking about the weather last
week or the forecast for next week. Why tell them what they already know? Even if you need
to say something prior to your message to relate to your audience, say it quickly and make it
a touchstone with their lives. As I spoke in a farming community in Minnesota, I started,
Although I now live in Dallas, Texas, I was born and raised on a dairy farm in Lancaster
County, Pennsylvania and love being in the farm country of Minnesota. I then moved
quickly into my message.
You might ask, "How can you make those first few words attention-getting?" Lets say you
are speaking to the issue of problems and use a particular text that addresses our problems
and His solutions. Dont stand before your people and begin, Most of us have problems. In
fact, we have so many of them we are at a loss at what to do. I am tempted to yawn and
begin my morning nap. But suppose your first words are, All of us have them. Some of us

have more than others, and some of us feel like every time they come, they come in a giantsized package. But all of us have them. I begin to wonder, What is he talking about? What
is he getting at?
Then you continue, That simple thing Im talking about is that serious thing called problems.
In fact, some of us have so many problems that pulling into the driveway at night is no easier
than backing out in the morning; crawling underneath the covers is no easier than crawling
out. A national magazine told about a man who would come home every night from work,
only to be hit with the day's calamities by his wife. One night he said to her, Honey, before
you hit me with everything that has gone wrong, would you at least let me sit down and enjoy
a good nights meal?' The next night, as soon as he came through the door his wife said to
him, Honey, hurry up and eat, I have something terrible to tell you." You have my attention,
and you got it in 30 seconds. Choose wisely what you say. Those first words are more than
important; they are critical.

3. Strike a need.
What need are you speaking to? Beginning your message by saying, Last week we were in I
Timothy 2; this week we are in I Timothy 3 is not an introduction; it is simply a start. I
sincerely dont mean to be sarcastic, but the fact that you were in I Timothy 2 last week may
be a good reason not to be in I Timothy 3 this week. Some may have felt last weeks message
was pretty bad!
Instead, strike a need that causes me to say, I need to hear what he is going to say. That
need may be struck by speaking to a subject that interests me: guilt, loneliness or death. Or it
may be caused by asking one of several questions that relate to the subject I am about to
address. For instance
Have you wondered why the best of friends sometimes end up the worst of enemies?"
Why does the raising of children have to be so difficult?"
Why, when everything is going so well, does it seem that life is still boring?"
You might even strike a need by telling a story that I can relate to, that introduces the
necessity of what you are about to explain. It has been said, There are three kinds of
preachers: those to whom you cannot listen; those to whom you can listen; and those to
whom you must listen. Strike a need, and you are someone to whom I must listen.

4. Talk my language.
Dont make me feel like I am sitting in church. Make me feel like you are sitting alongside
me at home. The language you use will help you do that.
Call a pew a seat, a hymn a song, and an epistle a letter. Refer to a paragraph in the Bible
instead of a passage. That way you are speaking my language, not asking me to speak yours.
Church language doesnt communicate effectively to people.

How many times have you enjoyed a conversation with a friend and had him or her say, You
are so easy to talk to. I feel like we are on the same page. Reflect on those conversations and
Im certain you will agree the language used made a difference. The relatability in your
choice of words gets attention.
Once you have your audiences attention, now the question becomes, how do you keep it?
The answer is simpler than you might suppose. Some of the same things used to get their
attention are the same things used to keep it. Three more ideas will be helpful.

1. Be enthusiastic.
The authentic emotion of enthusiasm breeds authentic enthusiasm. The opposite is also true.
If you are not excited about what you are saying, Im certainly not going to be; thats why
keeping a close walk with Christ is crucial. The closer you are to the Savior, the more excited
you become about Him. But may I also mention how much you need to watch your physical
fitness? Studies have shown that when you preach a 30-minute message, it is the equivalent
of four to six hours of physical labor. Physical fitness affects your energy level, which in turn
impacts your enthusiasm.

2. Stay relevant.
Jesus Christ was a master communicator. How many times do we read where the Scriptures
say, And He spoke to them a parable. Put truth in the language of your audience and do it
like Christ did it, through human interest stories.
Speakers who hold an audiences attention use stories drawn from everyday life. A few of
those need to be humorous. Im convinced that Christ, being the effective communicator He
was, said things that caused people to smile. While they were smiling, He made a point that
impacted their lives for change. He was speaking truth and used humor to help make His
point. When people are laughing, they are listening. Laughter is the universal language that
not only does everyone enjoy, it also communicates.
Relevancy, communicated through language, stories, humor and numerous other ways, has to
be a thread that runs through the entire message, not just the first 30 seconds. The Scriptures
are written in the context of the people of that day. You, through a proper application and use
of the Scriptures, have to know how that truth is relevant to the people of our day.

3. Entice me to hear more, not less.

The pressure a speaker places himself under to capture the audiences attention in 30 seconds
must be same pressure he places himself under to keep its length to 30 minutes. If you are
committed to being an expositor, you will have more to say than can be said in 30 minutes.
The Word of God is a buffet. There is always more food for the audience to digest from a
particular paragraph of Scripture than you have time to serve. But the art of communicating is
knowing what to take out of a message, not just what you leave in. Leaving an audience
where they desire to know more is preferable to their wishing you had stopped sooner.

Conclusion

Truth, by itself, does not change lives when it is spoken. It only changes lives when it is heard
and understood. If the introduction to the message does not make the audience sit up and
listen, the message is not likely to impact their lives. Get your audiences attention in 30
seconds, then keep it. Which would you rather hear as a speaker: I cant wait until the
service is over or I cant wait to hear you speak?