Is your church malnourished?

In January, I was blessed with an opportunity to visit the CURE Childrens Hospital in Niamey, Niger, Africa. While there I learned the hospital had several children who were awaiting surgery while the hospital staff increased their nutritional levels. You see, many of the hospital patients come from remote villages where food is scarce. Some of the children at the hospital had been living on a cereal grain called millet and nothing else.

They weren’t getting the vitamins, minerals, proteins, and nutrients necessary for strong bodies. As a result, they were severely malnourished. So the hospital had a farm on sight where a variety of fresh vegetables were grown to help support a healthy diet for the children. Once their bodies were strong enough, the children could have the life changing surgeries and start on the road to recovery.

Spiritual nutrition works the same way. Our congregations need a variety of sermon topics and styles to help them develop. If we only deliver sermons about blessings, our people will miss out on the benefits of sermons about righteousness. If all of our sermons are about sin our people will be malnourished in the area of grace. Our people need preaching, teaching, exhortation, encouragement, correction, inspiration and so much more.

I want to encourage you to nourish your church with a variety of sermon topics and speaking styles. Don’t be afraid to teach from the pulpit from time to time. Consider the spiritual needs of your congregation and pray for direction from the Lord. I believe he will guide you to develop a spiritually healthy church.