Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart

By Donna Giver-Johnston

Words bombard us every day. Words can be noisy and cheap. And yet, words are all preachers have. In Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart, Donna Giver-Johnston addresses the question: How do you capture ears in an era of noise? Many preachers want to get away from their notes and make a more personal connection with their listeners, but they have not been mentored in methods that enable them to do that.

Grounded in a theology of incarnation and articulation and coupled with an awareness of what listeners most need and want to hear, Giver-Johnston explains how preachers can communicate more effectively--how they can write sermons for the ear, with the fewest, most impactful words to craft a memorable message. She also provides guidance on how to preach sermons by heart, without notes, to communicate a message that captures the ears and hearts of listeners.

In a time when attention spans are shortening and church participation is declining, this book provides a proven method for preachers to communicate in ways that are meaningful and memorable to aching ears today and that can change the world for good, and for God, one longing heart at a time.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• Release date: Aug 10, 2021
• ISBN: 9781506463247

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Cover Page for Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart

Praise for Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart

"In Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart, Donna Giver-Johnston demonstrates, in highly practical terms, how to craft and preach sermons that go beyond words written on a page to words inscribed on the hearts of listeners. She spells out a method of writing for the ear that involves crafting sermons in the language of today, aiming for fewer words and greater impact as well as incorporating speaking the sermon into the preparation process. In the delivery of the sermon, the preacher is then able to speak a message she has internalized, not merely memorized, freeing her from the manuscript to communicate a message that is clear, connectional, and compelling.

"Giver-Johnston grounds her strategic suggestions in an analysis of our listeners’ contexts: declining interest in the church, secular suspicion of the transcendent, and shortened attention spans. She sets her process in the biblical context of the importance of memory and remembrance and the context of historical and current homiletical theories. The result is a valuable roadmap for an ‘oral embodied homiletic that can communicate in the current context, creating a dynamic interaction between preachers and listeners.’ Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart is a fresh, helpful guide for the preacher who yearns to be able to remember her sermon during its delivery and for it to live in her congregation’s memory long after she has ceased to speak."

—Alyce M. McKenzie, Le Van Professor of Preaching and Worship, Perkins School of Theology, and director, the Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence at Southern Methodist University

"Donna Giver-Johnston’s Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart is packed with the wisdom of experience—a step-by-step approach as inspirational as it is practical. The author encourages preachers to take new risks for a new time and then empowers them with the skills and confidence to do it."

—Anna Carter Florence, Peter Marshall Professor of Preaching, Columbia Theological Seminary and ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

In this beautifully crafted book, Donna Giver-Johnston has provided a deeply practical guide for preaching that genuinely connects with hearers. She teaches well how to create sermons that leap from the preacher’s heart to the listener’s ear. But this book is far more than simply a preaching manual. Giver-Johnston reveals her own heart for human need, her own ear for the cries of suffering, her own capacity for lament over fractures in our society, and her own tenacious hope in the healing power of the gospel.

—Thomas G. Long, Bandy Professor Emeritus of Preaching, Candler School of Theology

"All who listen to sermons will welcome this contribution to the oral public performance of scriptural interpretation that is the task of preachers today. By recalling this cultural moment, Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart calls preachers to embody their words in a way that reaches the imagination of the listener. This book distills immense scholarship without distracting, itself evidence that the task of writing for the hearer creates content that should never be boring. Giver-Johnston has provided an invigorating book for preachers."

—Joy J. Moore, vice president of academic affairs, academic dean, and professor of biblical preaching, Luther Seminary, and an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church

The Christian faith is an auditory, acoustical affair. As Paul said, ‘Faith comes from hearing.’ In this lively, heartfelt book, Donna Giver-Johnston encourages us preachers to recover Christian preaching as a miraculous undertaking in which the gospel arises from the heart of the preacher and goes forth to the ears of our listeners, enchanting and engaging them in ways that take us to the heart of the gospel itself.

—William Willimon, professor of the practice of Christian ministry and director of the Doctor of Ministry program, Duke Divinity School

"Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart transcends a simplistic tips-and-tricks manual for preaching without notes. Instead, Donna Giver-Johnston composes a theologically rich, spiritually sensitive, and pastorally wise guide for all preachers. She shows us that preaching can meet our shifting cultural landscape and how, from sermon preparation to delivery, we can break down barriers between pulpit and pew."

—Richard W. Voelz, associate professor of preaching and worship, Union Presbyterian Seminary, and author of Preaching to Teach: Inspire People to Think and Act (Abingdon, 2019)

The day after our city was traumatized by a hate-fueled mass shooting at a local synagogue, I visited one of the 135 congregations under my care. I was captivated and comforted on that horrific day by the word of the Lord through its pastor, Donna Giver-Johnston. She launches this sterling handbook for working preachers by recounting the story of that sermon, eventually detailing step-by-step her unique process for preparing and delivering impactful sermons without manuscript or notes. Listen to her. Walk with her. Her sermons stick. Informed by deep engagement with homiletical scholarship, years in fruitful parish ministry, and genuine love for Jesus, this winsome book is rich with wisdom for preachers willing to risk doing something new to better fulfill their marvelous calling.

—Sheldon Sorge, general minister of Pittsburgh Presbytery, former pastor of three congregations, and associate for theology and worship for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Recently, Donna Giver-Johnston shared an event that caused a ‘swirl of words’ in Pittsburgh. There was so much noise, she realized her call was to listen for the right word to speak. Such a tension in our society today: the exhausting, noisy words of anger and unleashed grief and the need for gospel words in response. Our ears, as a society, are tired. We ache to hear otherwise. Donna Giver-Johnston offers a way forward here; she has me listening.

—Lisa Nichols Hickman, pastor, teacher, and author of The Worshiping Life, Writing in the Margins, and Praying the Alphabet

"Grounded in Scripture and tradition, in the study of shifting culture and changing homiletical practices, and most of all in the weekly rhythms of congregational preaching, Donna Giver-Johnston provides a lifeline to preachers in Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart. She vividly describes an accessible, dynamic method of sermon preparation and presentation and provides helpful exercises to practice these strategies. Giver-Johnston is convinced that the word of God can be spoken in every sanctuary, every week—and her confidence is contagious. This book reminded me that the sermon is no relic of a bygone era: it can be a lived encounter with Christ and an invitation into community."

—Liddy Barlow, executive minister, Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania

Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart

Writing for the Ear, Preaching from the Heart

Donna Giver-Johnston

Fortress Press

Minneapolis

WRITING FOR THE EAR, PREACHING FROM THE HEART

Copyright © 2021 Fortress Press, an imprint of 1517 Media. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles and reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Email [e-mail] or write to Permissions, Fortress Press, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209.

All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, represented by Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

William Willimon, Personification, in Preaching the Incarnation, ed. Peter K. Stevenson and Stephen L. Wright (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2010), 21–36. Reprinted by permission.

Donna Giver-Johnston’s sermons may be viewed at http://cpcba.squarespace.com/sermons.

Cover Design: Emily Harris / Tory Herman

Print ISBN: 978-1-5064-6323-0

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5064-6324-7

While the author and 1517 Media have confirmed that all references to website addresses (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing, URLs may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.

For Brian, Rebecca, and Christian,

whose love is forever written on my heart

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Aching Ears

2. Longing Hearts

3. Writing for the Ear

4. Preaching from the Heart

Notes

Acknowledgments

This book would not be possible without the congregations who called me as pastor and worshipped with me as preacher, affirming both my gifts and my growth with grace, including Brick Presbyterian Church (Brick, NJ), Oak Grove Presbyterian Church (Retreat, NJ), First Presbyterian Church of Findlay (Findlay, OH), and Community Presbyterian Church of Ben Avon (Pittsburgh, PA). Thank you! Your appreciation for my connectional way of preaching inspired me to write this book, in hopes that it might encourage and equip other pastors to try writing for the ear and preaching from the heart.

I am appreciative of Fortress Press’s dedication to the Working Preacher Books series guided by the belief that God uses good preaching to change lives. I am grateful for Karoline Lewis, who invited me, a working preacher, to write for the series; for Scott Tunseth, who encouraged me to submit a book proposal; and for Beth Gaede, who brilliantly edited my manuscript with critical expertise and continual encouragement. While Beth and I were editing this book, both of our fathers died within the same week. In the midst of our grief, we share in the hope of the resurrection that we have both heard and preached in sermons throughout our lives. While my father, Nick Giver, sadly will not get to have the first autographed copy of my book I promised him, his pride and love are written between the lines.

Donna Giver-Johnston

Eastertide, 2021

Everything healthy, everything certain, everything holy, if we can find such things, they all need to be emphasized and articulated. For this it is necessary that there be communication between the hearts and minds of men, communication and not the noise of slogans or the repetition of clichés. Communication is becoming more and more difficult, and . . . speech is in danger of perishing or being perverted in the amplified noise of beasts. . . . There is therefore it seems to me every reason why we should attempt to cry out to one another and comfort one another, in so far as this may be possible, with the truth of Christ.

—Thomas Merton, Cold War Letters

Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk in the Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani, was one of the most influential Catholic authors of the twentieth century. One of his sixty books, Cold War Letters, published in 2007, was originally written in 1961–62 to friends and fellow intellectuals and artists. According to the book jacket, "As the world seemed to tumble toward a nuclear apocalypse, Merton sought to create a community of concern that might raise a moral counterweight to the forces of fear and destruction. Cold War Letters are Thomas Merton at his best, writing to us at our collective worst."

Introduction

Memory is the mother of all wisdom.

—Aeschylus

I remember the first time my first serious boyfriend, Brian, took me home to meet his parents. Linda and Al were lovely people, welcoming me with engaging conversation and many questions. I was able to answer their questions with ease, and I tried to think of this inquiry not as an intense interview but simply as a relaxed conversation. That worked well until Linda asked me a question I had never been asked before: What is the first thing you can remember? What is your earliest memory? After a long pause, what came to mind was something that happened when I was only four years old. I was playing with my sisters on a neighbor’s porch and thought it would be fun to swing from the rungs on the bottom of the mailbox where the newspaper goes. Falling onto the concrete porch below, I split open my chin. I remember the pain and the tears. And I remember sitting on my mother’s lap on the car ride to the hospital to get stitches. But what I remember most is her speaking words of assurance and comfort and love. Her words were the key that transformed my earliest memory from trauma to trust.

What is your earliest memory? What specifics