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Because of the horrifying tragedy in Myanmar (rescue officials think the death toll may climb as high as 100,000), many of us will probably want to lead our congregations through difficult issues like pain and suffering. We've gathered a few illustrations and tagged them as "Free" for the next 30 days to help you in your preaching. Most of these stories come from past tragedies—the tsunami that killed over 400,000 people, Hurricane Katrina, the attacks at Virginia Tech—and obviously speak to the heart of what we're watching unfold in Myanmar.

Every week, Preaching Today posts new illustrations - a mixture of stories, statistics, quotes, humor, and scenes from popular movies or TV shows. As a regular part of our PT Talk sessions, Brian Larson and I would like to take a moment to talk about how we might use some of our illustrations in a sermon. We decided to try this out on a classic: Master Violinist Goes Unrecognized. We felt it was the best illustration of 2007.

To hear us talk about specific and more abstract ways to use this illustration, click "Play" on the audio player below to listen to PT Talk via audio stream. If you'd rather download the audio file so you can have it on the run, there is a link just below the player.

To download this episode of PT Talk, click here.

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In late 2005, the long-anticipated movie version of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was released. It went on to earn $745 million at the box office worldwide (and over $1 billion in DVD sales). On May 16, its sequel—Prince Caspian—arrives in theatres. The world is abuzz. It's safe to assume it will be a hit. It's also safe to assume it will open the door to conversations over its Christological content. You might be planning to weave themes from Prince Caspian into your preaching. Here are a few links to helpful resources from our sister sites:

*Update: For some reason our audio player was streaming an older episode of PT Talk. The problem has now been fixed. Sorry about the inconvenience!

Sarah Baldwin, Preaching Today's editorial coordinator, recently ran an annotated bibliography on the theme of Relationships. For this episode of PT Talk, we talk about why you'll want to check this resource out (along with other bibliographies on Emotions, Money, and Spiritual Formation).

Click "Play" on the audio player below, and you can listen to PT Talk via an audio stream. If you'd rather download the audio file so you can have it on the run, there is a link just below the player.

To download this episode of PT Talk, click here.

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Here's what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about...

Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Rated R)
2. The Forbidden Kingdom (Rated PG-13)
3. 88 Minutes (Rated R)
4. 21 (Rated PG-13)
5. Prom Night (Rated PG-13)

We thought that in light of the current news about the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you might need some materials to work with in your church. Below are some book reviews and related stories that may help you find a way forward in addressing particular issues concerning Mormonism from the pulpit or in related pastoral settings. Please exercise caution, however, in relating all Mormon practice to the more fundamentalist branch that is being highlighted in Texas. Most of these resources speak to the Mormon faith in general with a few hints of insight into the FLDS.

PreachingToday.com recently ran an illustration that was the unfortunate victim of embellishment. We've posted the corrected version for your records. These retractions don't happen often for us, but when they do, they often happen because of the very issue just mentioned: embellishment. For this episode of PT Talk, we discuss what happened, why it happened, and how to make sure it doesn't happen.

Click "Play" on the audio player below, and you can listen to PT Talk via an audio stream. If you'd rather download the audio file so you can have it on the run, there is a link just below the player.

To download this episode of PT Talk, click here.

Though I can't say I've read everything out there on the subject, I can say that Thomas Long's "Stolen Goods: Tempted to Plagiarize" is the best thing I've read so far about issues pertaining to preaching and plagiarism. Brian Larson, editor of PreachingToday.com, offered the same sentiments when he first received permission for us to run the article. If you haven't read it, take a moment to check it out. Also, we'd love for you to give a listen to the most recent episode of PT Talk to hear us discuss this controversial topic. This entry builds off of thoughts I briefly shared in that audio cast.

PreachingToday.com is currently running "Stolen Goods: Tempted to Plagiarize", an article by Thomas G. Long about the necessity of citation and the damage of deceit in preaching. The editors of Preaching Today wanted to use our new weekly audio feature - PT Talk - to chime in with a few thoughts on this controversial topic. Please use the comments section to share your own reflections.

Click "Play" on the audio player below, and you can listen to PT Talk via an audio stream. If you'd rather download the audio file so you can have it on the run, there is a link just below the player.

To download this episode of PT Talk, click here.

Here's what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about...

Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. Street Kings (Rated R)
2. 21 (Rated PG-13)
3. Prom Night (Rated PG-13)
4. Nim's Island (Rated PG)
5. Leatherheads (Rated PG-13)

PreachingToday.com is currently running "Stolen Goods: Tempted to Plagiarize", an article by Thomas G. Long about the necessity of citation and the damage of deceit in preaching. If you're a member of Preaching Today, you can read it at any time by clicking on the link. Brian Larson (chief editor) and I will be discussing the article and its implications in the next episode of PT Talk (to be posted very soon). In the meantime, here are a few juicy quotes from Long's work:

Here's what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about...

Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. 21 (Rated PG-13)
2. Leatherheads (Rated PG-13)
3. Nim's Island (Rated PG)
4. Horton Hears a Who (Rated G)
5. The Ruins (Rated R)

Here's what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about...

Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. 21 (Rated PG-13)
2. Horton Hears a Who (Rated G)
3. Superhero Movie (Rated PG-13)
4. Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (Rated PG-13)
5. Drillbit Taylor (Rated PG-13)

Here's what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about...

Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. Horton Hears a Who (Rated G)
2. Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (Rated PG-13)
3. Shutter (Rated PG-13)
4. Drillbit Taylor (Rated PG-13)
5. 10,000 B.C. (Rated R)

PreachingToday.com has posted part three of a three-part article on dialogical preaching. In part three, Bob Hyatt, paints a picture of what a dialogical approach to the sermon event looks like at The Evergreen Community and offers a few ideas for any who would like to introduce dialogue into their preaching

At the National Pastors Conference in San Diego, PreachingToday.com's Brian Lowery got to interview N. T. Wright about his latest book—Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church—and how it relates to preaching. Since we are all in the midst of the Easter journey, his words are timely, challenging, and above all else, hopeful.

Preaching Today: In your book Surprised by Hope, you talk about a deeper understanding of hope "that provides a coherent and energizing basis for work in today's world." How has that deeper understanding influenced your preaching through the years?

Bishop N. T. Wright: [Studying] the Resurrection for an earlier book, Resurrection of the Son of God … ended up rubbing my nose in the New Testament theology of new creation, and the fact that the new creation has begun with Easter. I discovered that when we do new creation—when we encourage one another in the church to be active in projects of new creation, of healing, of hope for communities—we are standing on the ground that Jesus has won in his resurrection.

Because we're well aware you're knee-deep in preparing sermons and meaningful worship gatherings for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Resurrection Sunday, we've combed through all the materials in our database and put together a special Hot Topic on Easter. Click here and you'll find plenty of illustrations, images, and videos that deal with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

PreachingToday.com has posted part one of a three-part article on dialogical preaching. For the first quarter of 2008, Preaching Today has focused on the idea of group sermon preparation. More and more preachers are putting together their messages in community, allowing for insightful, idea-producing dialogue with others. For more about this process, check out our interview with Dave Ferguson on "Group Sermon Preparation" (part one and part two) and an observational piece entitled "Loosening My Grip." For the final stretch of our quarter's theme, we decided to add a twist to the concept: What happens when a preacher engages in a similar type of dialogue—but during the Sunday sermon itself?

Scot McKnight, professor of religious studies at North Park University, Chicago, IL, and author of The Jesus Creed, recently designed a hermeneutics quiz to help us raise questions about how we both read our Bible and don't read our Bible. As Scot is careful to point out in his introduction to the quiz: "No single test can reveal all the nuances needed, but broad answers are enough to raise the key issues." In other words, this quiz will at least help you get a big picture of where you land on a hermeneutical scale. Are you a conservative when it comes to hermeneutics? A moderate? Are there any progressives among us? Take the quiz and find out. Though you'll probably have a few quibbles here and there with the questions and the answers from which you get to choose, I think you'll find it incredibly helpful as a student and preacher of the Word.

Out of Ur recently posted an entry about addressing the issue of politics from the pulpit. Check it out and head back here for some conversation on the matter...

Now that you've read the article, a question begs to be answered: regardless of what the preacher is allowed legally to do, should he/she address politics from the pulpit? Why or why not? If you feel preachers should, to what extent should they address it - should he/she offer something along the lines of a more general, theological overview or something much more specific, like a personal endorsement?

Our sister site, Out of Ur, recently initiated a conversation about the potential dangers of pursuing excellence in ministry. The conversation is built upon an article that was written by Daniel Schantz for Christian Standard magazine. You can find the full article by Schantz here.

The conversation on Ur mostly focuses on big picture issues (i.e. excellence in overall programming). I'd like to hear from you all about something specific: excellence in preaching. What do you perceive are the dangers in pursuing excellence in preaching?

Some of the richest theology concerning Advent is found in the songs we'll sing together in the weeks ahead. Theologians, professors, and preachers have much to offer, but both head and heart are often most moved by the work of musicians. It's maddening, isn't it? You slave over a sermon for hours on end, but it is only when the little girl with blonde curls stands up to sing "Away in a Manger" that the crowd swoons over the startling majesty of the Incarnation.

Here's one of the ten illustrations we have to offer this week to members of PreachingToday. After you've taken a moment to read it, please brainstorm with us in the comments section. How would you use this story in a sermon?

Bad Relationships Are Bad for Your Health

Researchers from the University of Utah found there's a price to pay when couples don't get along. Videotapes recorded 150 husbands and wives discussing sensitive issues (how money is managed or doing household chores) and found the following:

Women who buried anger rather than speaking out were more likely to succumb to heart disease than wives who were vocal, the study found. And when women became domineering and controlling, rather than seeking consensus, damage was done to husbands' coronary health.

In case you missed the article in the print edition of Leadership journal, Skye Jethani's "Glimpses of Glory" is now an abbreviated post on Out of Ur. I'd love for you to take a look at what he has to say and then make your way back to the PT Blog to leave a comment or two in reflection. Does Skye have a point about the difference between preaching and teaching? How does this challenge the dichotomy we've often created between visionary preaching and "regular" expository preaching? Is this something you've been wrestling with as a preacher? If not, how would you contest Skye's thoughts? If you have been, how has this challenged and even changed you as a preacher?

Stephen Langton, a professor who later served as Archbishop of Canterbury, added chapter-verse divisions to the Bible in 1205. The widely accepted divisions were then added to the actual Hebrew text (1330) and Greek text (1516). As you well know, the church has never looked back. These are our cherished coordinates in large and small worship settings. Reading plans and preaching plans bend to the traditional framing, telling us when to stop and when to begin again. Would a Bible be a Bible without the little numbers scattered across its pages?

Clark Cothern, a regular contributor to our weekly batch of illustrations, shared this short, but intriguing story. Take a moment to read it, and I'd like to offer just a few words on the other side:

Would you consider yourself successful if you had written a novel a year for 52 straight years? Would you feel successful if you had written shelves of books on mythology, biography, folklore, theology, and travel? One man did all of the above—and in only one lifetime. I kid you not! This one man wrote 85 books in his 89 years on Earth. And get this: the same man even once rescued a young girl from drowning!

But I doubt seriously that you know his name.

Our cart was filled with red ink pens, file folders, scotch tape, and blocks of putty for hanging posters. That can only mean one thing for my wife the teacher: back to school. While I walked the aisles beside her, I spotted a family of four. The boy held his dad's hand while he stared back longingly at the bikes. The girl hung her head and walked slowly behind her mother, peeking up every now and then when asked what folder she liked best. I felt like I was watching a funeral. In a way, I was: summer, may she rest in peace.

The same scene is probably being played out right this very moment at your local Target or Wal-Mart. Shopping carts are banging into one another, and they're all filled to the brim with the usual array of school supplies. If two Boston fathers have it their way, there among the High School Musical folders and colored pencils you'll find a backpack—a bulletproof backpack. The long shadow cast by Columbine, Virginia Tech, and other assorted school shootings inspired the two men to design a $175 knapsack that is lined with a lightweight, bulletproof plate. Should a shooting occur, the student need only curl up behind the bag or wear it across their chest for protection ("Back-to-School Armor," TIME [8-27-07], p. 17).

In Preaching to a Postmodern World, Graham Johnston writes (p. 79):

It's no longer enough just to know one's Bible. Preaching must demonstrate a working understanding of the issues, concerns, and the interaction of people's daily lives, helping listeners to interpret their world from a biblical standpoint.

Look at the apostle Paul's approach on Mars Hill in Acts 17. The apostle evidences some prior inquiry into the nature of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophies, which disregarded any belief in an afterlife.

The preacher in the twenty-first century will be one-part theologian, one-part sociologist, one-part evangelist, and one-part mystic.

From October 2006 through March 2007, Preaching Today surveyed listeners and readers about preaching on family topics. I thought I would put together some highlights from the feedback we received (349 respondents, +/- 5.25 percentage points). Enjoy!

We asked preachers what family-oriented topics should be addressed from the pulpit. As a follow-up question, we asked how many of them had actually addressed those topics from his or her pulpit. Here's what we discovered:

Preaching Today: Could you tell us a bit about your planning process for preaching?

Leith Anderson: Each July, I plan the following year's preaching schedule, including titles, texts, themes, sermon summaries, benedictions, and thematic elements for the services. Once that's determined, the elders and pastors of Wooddale are free to comment on the planned year. With a mostly finished product in hand, then, I create a folder for each sermon. Throughout the year, materials are added to the folder, building up a reservoir of commentary notes, illustrations, pertinent articles, and other creative ideas.

In our two-part interview with Wayne Shaw, "The Dire Need for Doctrine" (Part 1 and Part 2), Shaw shared his concern over today's preaching being void of doctrine. Near the end of part one, Shaw offered this interesting insight:

If we're going to form a Christian community into what the Bible calls the church, we're going to have to deal with the major tenets biblically—what we're to believe and what we're to do. In other words, "What marks us as Christians? What marks us as a community of faith?" If we don't know that faith, then we're just joining another organization. That's how serious it is to me.

In our two-part interview with Haddon Robinson, "The Biggest Idea" (Part 1 and Part 2), Robinson discussed the power and necessity of doctrinal preaching. When asked what kinds of sermons we often end up with if our preaching is light on doctrine, Robinson had this to say:

They end up being nothing more than moralisms: We should, we must, we ought. Or, here are three ways in which we can be better off financially. A sermon I heard a while ago on how to deal with procrastination had as its first point to get a Day Timer. You knew you were in trouble when you heard that. I have no doubt that when people left that church, if they were procrastinators, they thought it was a helpful sermon. But it was simply something that a motivational speaker could have done.

In an article that will appear on PreachingToday.com, Ligon Duncan, senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Jackson, Mississippi, speaks to the issue of sermonic bells and whistles. He writes:

The truth of the Bible is the most exciting truth in all the world, and so, while our job is not to make it exciting, our presentation of it ought not to diminish the excitement, practicality, and power of the truth of God’s Word. We always ought to aim to do justice to the power and practicality of whatever passage we’re preaching.

Last Sunday I completed my in-depth look at Ephesians 4:2 with "be patient, bearing with one another in love." As so often happens, as I began thinking about the message, my first concern was how I would find anything interesting to say on this that would change anyone's life because the call for patience is such a commonplace in both Christian and secular morality.

Eugene Peterson, the translator of The Message, is now writing a five-volume series on spiritual theology. The first was the magisterial and masterful Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places. Now, in Eat This Book, Peterson prophetically proclaims the centrality of the Bible to any true Christian spirituality. Peterson argues that we dare not read (or preach) the Bible merely for information, inspiration, or guidance for living. Peterson wants us to read the Bible personally, receptively, responsively to the Trinity who speaks through it: “We open this book and find that page after page it takes us off guard, surprises us, and draws us into its reality, pulls us into participation with God on his terms.”

Chapter 4 alone is worth the price of admission for preachers. Here are four appetizers on the subject of exegesis: