Me - a Public Speaker???

For most of my life I have had a deep faith in God. My relationship with Him has grown through the years and I continue to discover daily His love for me. Since long ago I knew that God was my helper, and that I could always depend on His care and direction. However, speaking in public was something I said I could never do. In school I always dreaded those times when it was required that we give oral presentations. I loved the research and writing part of it, but standing in front of the class and giving the speech almost did me in! Even when I trained as a teacher, it was difficult for me to speak in front of my peers. In my youth I took part in several productions with singing or speaking parts, but as I got older it became more and more difficult for me to be anything but a member of the audience or a backstage worker! Even reading a scripture passage in church was more than I could manage.

So, when the women's group that I belonged to held a "Day Out" for ladies, and each of us was to take part by giving a short talk, I wrote my little talk, fully intending to somehow back out of giving it. But I was stuck - everyone was taking part and that was it! When it was my turn to talk, my legs were like jelly and I thought I would faint! But facing this crisis, I had never stopped praying. As I stood to go to the podium, I felt strength come into me. My legs did not shake, nor did my voice. I spoke naturally and confidently! I knew that only God had enabled me to overcome my fear of public speaking. But I never dreamed what would come next!

A friend and I were asked to help with the church services in our parish, due to the illness of our minister. With much trepidation, I agreed to lead prayers and announce hymns, which was comparatively easier for me to do than give the sermon. However, the time came when it was decided that I would be the one in charge of the sermon! In our church we follow the common lectionary, which means that there are particular scripture readings pre-chosen and assigned for each Sunday, rotating every three years. So there is the challenge of finding what the four passages of scripture have in common, and how to tie them together. Often, when I first look at the readings for the week, I am clueless about how one message could cover all the readings. In the first sermon I gave (and every one that I have prepared since), as I prayed and read and made notes, the Holy Spirit truly showed me how the Scripture readings fit together and what the message was to be. Each time I am asked to write a sermon, I am amazed to see what God brings from His Word! In fact, it has become exciting to search the commentaries and make my notes, all the while asking God what He wants to say to His people. And every time, I am able to stand confidently to speak, knowing that what I have written has been inspired by the Author of the Word Himself!

So I thought I would create a new blog and put in it some of the talks I have given, and maybe some random things I might like to share, all concerning messages that have come, not from my heart, but from the Heart of God.