Bible Heaven/Bible Heaven.iso/alphon_2/7658/leader.l08

Text File | 1992-10-28 | 13KB | 235 lines

                                TO THE GLORY OF GOD
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     Study No 8
                           COMMUNICATION IN LEADERSHIP

         "Go ye into all the world,  and preach the gospel to every creature."
        (Mark 16:15)

        "Teaching  them  to  observe all things whatsoever  I  have  commanded
        you..." (Matthew 28:20)

            Preaching  has  not  achieved its ultimate unless the  message  is
        received,  understood and acted upon.  While there is a sense in which
        preaching  is  declarative,  and is valid whether it  is  received  or
        rejected, it must always be understood.
            Before  we  can  effectively  understand  how  real  communication
        occurs, we must ask ourselves some questions:

        1.   What is Communication ?

            For many years it was believed that communication was based on the
            idea of the telephone,  ie communication occurs when the receivers
            (people)  receive  100%  of  the  sender's  (preacher's)  message.
            However,  people  are not necessarily like telephone receivers and
            are not always able to receive or decode the message sent to them.

            In  the  early  1960's Marshal McLuhan shook  the  foundations  of
            communication  studies  with the statement,  "The  Medium  is  the
            Message".

            With this statement he pointed to two basic facts:
              a. The message is not central to the act of communication.
              b. The communicator (Medium) is central.

            While  many people would dispute McLuhan's hypothesis,  I  believe
            there  is  a lot of truth in it as far as preaching is  concerned.
            In fact, it is totally in line with one of the basic principles of
            ministry  - "God's  methods  are men".   Preaching  is  more  than
            imparting  true  information.    It  is  the  packaging  of   that
            information  in a man or woman demonstrating the authentic  nature
            of  the  message.   In other words,  the preacher becomes his  own
            message regardless of what he preaches.

            Communication therefore is nothing less than the establishment and
            nurturing of relationships between the parties involved.

            Communication  is  an event,  not merely content.   It is  a  life
            inspiring or life changing meeting.

            Communication  is taking the risk to share yourself  with  people,
            rather  than your words alone.   The ultimate act of communication
            was  when God Himself took on human flesh and  became   His  own
            message.  Jesus didn't bring the message.  He was the message.

        2.   What is the Goal of the Message ?

            This  needs  to be clearly thought out.   What is  the  preacher's
            intended  result?   Does he simply want to be a successful orator?
            Is  his goal to get off for another week?   Or has he  planned  to
            impart  a quality of truth to his hearers which they will  receive
            into their lives and be changed through it.

            Preaching will never go beyond its goals.
        3.   How can we Improve Communication Skills ?

            a.  The use of Body Language.
            Communication studies show that 93% of what we convey is unspoken.
            The following shows some of the parts of communication. The largest
            neglected sections are non-verbal (body language) and tone of voice.

            The  preacher  should  take care to develop  skills  of  conveying
            himself  and  his  message  in consistent ways.   If  there  is  a
            difference between what we feel and what we say,  the message will
            be confused.   eg, don't preach the love of God with a closed fist
            and a scowl.

            As  a handshake will tell you much about a person,  so  your  non-
            verbal  communication will reveal much to your audience about your
            attitude to your message.

            b.  Never Be Dull.
            It is the unpardonable sin of preachers.   If you dare to be  dull
            it says that you didn't care enough about your hearers to get fire
            and truth from God and package it attractively.

            Charles Spurgeon, called the Prince of Preachers, says of Jesus:

        Jesus' preaching was attractive;  He sought above all means to set
        the pearl in a frame of gold, that it might attract the  attention
        of  the people.   He was not willing to place himself in a  parish
        church  and  preach to a congregation of thirteen and a  half  but
        would preach in a style that people felt they must go to hear him.
        Some  of them gnashed their teeth in rage and left his presence in
        wrath,  but the multitudes still thronged to him to hear and to be
        healed. It was no dull work to hear this King of preachers, he was
        too   much  in  earnest  to  be  dull,   and  too  humane  to   be
        incomprehensible.

            c.  Make your Message Clear.
            The  following  quotation illustrates the need for clarity in  our
            communications:

                 In  the classified ad section of a  small-town  newspaper,
               the following ad appeared on Monday:
                 "FOR  SALE:  R.D.  Jones has one sewing machine for  sale.
               Phone 958 after 7p.m.  and ask for Mrs. Kelly who lives with
               him cheap."
                 On Tuesday: "NOTICE: We regret having erred in R.D. Jones'
               ad yesterday.   It should have read:  One sewing machine for
               sale. Cheap. Phone 958 and ask for Mrs. Kelly who lives with
               him after 7p.m.
                 On  Wednesday  the  ad  was  confused  again.  Finally  on
               Thursday the ad read:   "NOTICE:   I,  R.D.  Jones,  have no
               sewing  machine for sale.  I smashed it.   Don't call 958 as
               the telephone has been taken out.   I have not been carrying
               on with Mrs.  Kelly. Until yesterday she was my housekeeper,
               but she quit."

            If the message is garbled, the response will be weak.

            1 Corinthians 14:8 - "For if the trumpet give an uncertain  sound,
            who shall prepare himself to the battle?"

            d.  Develop Story-telling Skills.
            Learn to tell stories effectively and to paint pictures with words
            and the tone of your voice.   Packaging the message in illustrated
            form.

            Note Nathan's technique with David - 2 Samuel 12:1-13.

            e.  Use Illustrations.
            Examples or illustrations of your points are like windows that let
            in  light to your message.   It is mistake to fill the sermon with
            abstract, theoretical or technical information.

            Good  pulpit communication moves back and forth from the  abstract
            to  the concrete.   Each time the preacher states a broad  general
            truth,  the mind of the hearer asks "for instance".   That's  when
            you need some example or incident which illustrates the point.

            The  best  illustrations  are  those  which  represent  your  life
            experience.  However, care should be taken with illustrations that
            they  do not take over the message and overshadow the point  being
            conveyed.  It is too easy for the illustration to become an end in
            itself.   Never tell a story for its own sake.  Draw illustrations
            from life,  from  your reading,  from history,  from science, from
            current events,  and from Biblical examples.   As much as possible
            avoid  pre-packaged illustrations as they tend to be lifeless  and
            stilted.

            f.  Use Humour.
            The  best humour is in real life situations.   Avoid slapstick and
            jokebook  humour  and negative humour.   Don't rubbish  people  in
            jest,  and especially not your wife or husband.   Use humour  like
            syrup  on a sundae or icing on a cake - a little sets it off,  but
            too much spoils it.

            g.  Relate your Message to the People.
            It  must always  be relevant.

            It will not be possible to do this,  however clever you may be  at
            putting  ideas  and  words  together,  unless  you  are  genuinely
            interested   in  your  people.    This  brings  us  back  to  what
            communication  really is.   It is the developing  of  relationship
            between the preachers and the hearers.

            In  order  for you to be successful in knowing where  your  people
            are  in life,  you will have to discipline yourself to the dynamic
            skill  of "listening".   Find out all y[ can about  your  people's
            needs and study their aspirations and desires.

            We  speak  at 120- 180 words a minute,  but most people  think  at
            least five times faster than that.   Often when people are talking
            to  us  we let our attention wander.   The ability to  listen  and
            respond can make the difference in any relationship.

        h.  Study the  Ministry and  Communication Skills of Current
             Successful Pastors.

        4.   Hindrances to Communication

            The preacher is himself the message.  He can detract from it by:

        a.   His  attitude.    Never be offhanded or careless with the Word.
            People  can see it.   Never advise the people that you haven't had
            time to study properly.  They will tune out immediately.

        b.   Dress.   Work   at   being  neatly  and  inspiringly  dressed.

        c.   Mannerisms.   The  preacher  should  deal  with  all offensive
            mannerisms which will take  his  hearer's  attention  from  the
            message Gestures, habits, eccentricities which detract  must be
            broken.

        d.   Poor  Grammar  and Use  of  Language.
            Since  the  message is couched in  words, the diligent preacher
            will do all in  his  power  to use them correctly.  People tend
            to  subconsciously correct the preacher's bad grammar, etc, and
            so lose concentration on his message.

        e.   Length of the Sermon.   The mind can't assimilate more than the
            seat can endure!  Stop when you get through.

            Frederick  Temple  was Archbishop of Canterbury in the  late  19th
            Century.   He was a humane,  liberal and sensible man.  It is said
            that  he  once remarked:   "In making a sermon,  think up  a  good
            beginning  then  think up a good ending;  then bring these two  as
            close together as you can."

            A negro's prayer sums it up - "Lord, fill my mouth with worthwhile
            stuff, and nudge me when I've said enough."

        f.   Avoid  weak  points.    Always assess the  total  message  once
            you've  written  your  drafts and delete any weak  or  unnecessary
            points.   Remember  that you can fool all the people some  of  the
            time,  and some of the people all of the time,  but you can't fool
            all   the  people  all  the  time.    If  you  persist  in   using
            unsupportable statements and points you will lose your credibility
            and eventually your congregation.

            The  aim  of communication must be to make the hearers  understand
        your message.  You can't do this unless you con hold their attention.

          "Our  Minister  was  once assigned to a town in  which  the  post
          office provided the community gossip.  For about six weeks he had
          the  feeling  that people were laughing at him behind  his  back.
          Finally he asked - and learnt that the source of the humour was a
          postcard sent to him by a member of his former parish.   She  had
          written,  "This new preacher is okay,  but he doesn't hold me the
          way you did."!

                                END of STUDY EIGHT