In this short series on developing a teaching team, we’ve focused on how to make each message the best it can be. In part one, we talked about the importance of a teaching team. In part two, we decided who should be on the team. In this installment, we’ll get to the nuts and bolts of the teaching team approach and consider how to make the most of your meetings when you get together as a team.

Let’s start with the content of the meeting, taking a long-term view and then zeroing in on what’s necessary for the present weekend. There are three main areas of focus you need to cover.

 

Plan Your Yearlong Sermon Calendar

Start by writing out your entire one-year preaching calendar. This isn’t something you’ll do every meeting; rather, you might work through it twice a year. But you’ll need to revisit your plans every occasionally, to make changes and make sure you’re still on track.

First, decide what weekends you’ll take off from preaching. Not only does it give everyone a heads-up, but it also gives you a chance to ensure you aren’t overextending yourself. Taking time off regularly to recharge will make you a better preacher when you do speak.

When you employ a team approach to teaching, you can multiply your impact exponentially.

Next, fill in the slots on the calendar for guest speakers, special events or important dates, including Christmas and Easter. This gives the calendar an overall structure so you can start planning the individual sermons and series.

 

Outline Each Sermon Series

Not everyone preaches a series format, and that’s fine. But even if you preach a string of standalone messages, you’ll still want to plan ahead. During your one-year preaching calendar meeting, divide the Sundays according to specific series, themes or simply months.

One approach is to ask yourself what your church needs to hear this coming year. Make a list of those topics, themes or texts, and check them off as you enter them into the calendar.

As with the one-year preaching calendar, you won’t need to cover this in every meeting, but you will want to revisit it often to make adjustments as you go. This is also the time to get your creative department involved to get ideas for the overall theme of each series or emphasis. Come up with an idea that ties all the messages of each series together.

This is your opportunity to plan for effectiveness! Every church has a different flow. There will be weeks when you have more visitors than others. I think it’s wisest to strike while the iron is hot. That means put a big emphasis on the weeks you know unsaved people will show up. Go all out these Sundays, and make it count by giving them a reason to show up. Learn the flow of your church, and lean into it.

 

Finalize This Week’s Message

One area that will need weekly attention is that weekend’s message. Use your time to go over your notes with the team. Each pastor preaches in his or her own style, and personal notes reflect that. However you like to preach, make sure you put together something in writing that you can share with others for critique and suggestions.

Take any criticism seriously, but not personally. That means that you listen attentively to what your team is thinking and saying. God has put your team together to make you a better communicator. But don’t let minor disagreements get you off track.

Craig Groeschel is a great communicator, and he often suggests an approach to preaching that includes focusing on the know, do and feel. What that means is asking yourself, “What do I want my audience to know, what do I want them to do, and how do I want them to feel when they leave this Sunday?”

When you start with those goals in mind, you’re sure to be more effective when you preach. Ask your team to identify the know, do and feel. Is it obvious from your notes? If not, how can you sharpen your sermon?

Finally, go over how you plan to land the plane. What’s the intended response? How do you plan on giving a compelling call for salvation? And what are the clear next steps on that day? Make sure everyone is on the same page, especially the worship leader.

 

Some Final Tips

Here are some other things to keep in mind each time you meet with your teaching team:

• Always open in prayer. Perhaps this is a given, but it’s important enough to mention. Keeping the focus on the spiritual will create the right atmosphere for successful meetings.
• Plan ahead so that your team members come prepared. Send out an email in advance, outlining each team member’s responsibilities. Assign ownership to each task during the meeting so everyone knows what you expect of them.
• Let everyone have a say, even if you have the final say. It’s important that each person feels they have an equal opportunity to bring their talents and opinions to the table. But ultimately, the sermon is yours, and your leadership is key.
• Balance long-term planning with short-term priorities. If you plan well enough in advance, you are better prepared for curve balls, unforeseen problems and the spontaneous move of the Holy Spirit. But don’t let the calendar overwhelm the meeting to the point that you have little to no time for what’s just around the corner.
• Keep the church’s vision front and center. Just like with any other team, the focus needs to be on how they work together to accomplish this common goal. I have sometimes assigned this task to a particular team member, having them chime in when needed to redirect us toward the vision of the organization.

Preaching may be your biggest responsibility as a pastor, but it doesn’t have to be your biggest burden. When you employ a team approach to teaching, you can multiply your impact exponentially.