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Writer's pictureJohn Woods

Read the Room


I was asked about what strategy Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones used when he sensed that he might be losing his congregation on a warm Wednesday evening in Cardiff.


Some preachers feel that in such situations you simply plough on regardless or shout to regain people’s attention. This is most certainly evidence of a lack of emotional intelligence.


What did the Doctor do?


He paused.


Preachers do not always appreciate how important it is to pause from time to time while they are preaching.


He had sensed that the long sermon on Genesis chapter 3 was not reaching everyone, so he paused, recognised the moment and gathered people up again.


Preachers need to know how to read a room and be flexible enough to change tack or change pace to engage with the congregation.


How do preachers go about doing this?


One of the ways I do it is to stand at the back of the church during the first part of the service. It is a great way of getting a feel for the mood of a meeting. (You also get to say hello to the latecomers!)


Sometimes it is a matter of giving attention to the physical temperature in the room. It is difficult to listen when you are feeling too hot or too cold.


Sometimes it is about getting a seat. At the church in Mid-Sussex where I am helping this year, they do not put out all the chairs at the beginning. They tend to add rows as people arrive. This means that lots of people get to sit on the back row, at least for a while. It also means that you do not get that “no-man’s land” effect of the first three or four rows being empty. It is difficult to connect well to a congregation when they appear detached.


Sometimes it is about thinking about the spiritual temperature in the room. I was thinking about this when giving a lecture on preaching on 1 Corinthians 12–14. Paul is writing with the intention of gently applying the brakes on the Corinthian congregation. You must adapt the message if you are trying to put your foot on the accelerator. As I have said before in these blogs, preachers need to preach to the congregation they have rather than the congregation they wish they had!


This consideration helps to govern decisions about what to preach. Preachers might be thinking about preaching on the letters of Galatians or James. The former deals with the importance of grasping salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone. The latter tackles the need give practical evidence in our lives of that faith that saves by faith alone in Christ alone.


Sometimes preachers misjudge the mood of a congregation by comforting those who need to be challenged or challenging those who need to be comforted.


Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction.” (2 Timothy 4:2)


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