spoken
Posted by Drew | Filed under General
A couple times in the last few years I’ve had speaking opportunities that just haven’t gone well. I’m learning that one essential element to preparation is to make sure that the talk or sermon comes to a clear conclusion at the end. Not necessarily in content, because there isn’t always a neat wrap up to the topics of discussion, but at least in presentation, or in the thoughts I am highlighting.
Tuesday afternoon I felt a sense of anxiety because I felt like the thoughts on Mark were relevant, and I was glad to be able to share them with the students at our Bible Study. But I couldn’t seem to pull it together into a clear conclusion. And then I needed to translate it.
I showed up 45 minutes late with copies of the discussion questions in hand, alongside Cecilia who had helped me use proper Italian. But all I missed was the part where we eat dinner together. The content didn’t start for another 20 minutes or so.
I was so grateful when it was over. The conclusion wasn’t neat. But there were some relevant points to take home and chew on. “Chew on”, I’m pretty sure, doesn’t translate literally.
I’m grateful for all of the prayers. I never really felt stressed. I once walked into a weekly meeting at Auburn even less prepared than I was this week, and my stomach was in knots. Tuesday, though, I felt comfortable and surprisingly confident. I can accept that God showed me grace, and He did so in response to many of your prayers. and I’m grateful.
