Preparing Your First Few Teachings
At least one month before teaching:
- If you've never carefully studied the passage, perform an inductive study (an inductive overview of the entire book and a specific study of your passage).
- Identify primary interpretive questions about the passage and attempt to answer them. Remember the "iceberg" principle--understand the passage to a much greater extent than you actually teach it.
- Listen to a Central Teaching audio tape of your passage (use the most recent series) and make an outline of the teaching.
- Identify sections of the tape to omit for a shorter teaching format.
- Develop a burden. Focus on the topic's effect on your own life and visualize its effect in the lives of specific individuals in the audience, especially those in your own ministry.
- Prepare a preliminary teaching outline.
- Identify personal examples and illustrations you want to include. If the tape has more effective illustrations than you can create, use the tape's. But don't use the teacher's personal examples--come up with your own!
At least two to three weeks before teaching:
- Meet with an experienced teacher to get feedback on the steps listed above.
- Iron out any rough spots in your preparation thus far.
At least one week before teaching:
- Completely write out your teaching. This will reinforce the coherence of the thought development and expose weak transitions and development.
- Begin preparing your teaching notes. These notes should be much shorter than your teaching outline--one side of a 5.5 x 8 inch sheet.
- Meet again with an experienced teacher and give them your teaching. Talking it through once might be sufficient if you've already written out your teaching. Give it to others if you need more practice.
In the final week:
- Resist the temptation to make significant changes in your outline.
- Whittle down your teaching notes as much as possible--your goal should be one small page.
- Memorize the text of most of your cross-references so you won't have to turn to them during the teaching.
- Pray through the teaching, pray for the people coming, and trust God to fulfill his role.
After the teaching:
- Listen to an audio tape of your teaching and prepare a written self-critique.
- Seek feedback from other experienced teachers. Feedback should include both positive and critical observations.
- Pray against Satan's accusations.