Meeting Transcripts

‍Opening Remarks

Welcome

Thanks again, everyone, for coming here to the church this morning. I also want to take this opportunity to thank the webcast audience for joining us. Some are joining us live. Others in different time zones will check in later by way of the archived video that will be posted this afternoon.

Response to Worldwide Needs

I want to thank the branch churches who participated in responding to the letter I sent out in April. That letter let it be known that we had some major needs around the world. Though I was expecting nothing, I wanted to make branch churches aware of existing projects.

We don’t advertise what the Portland headquarters does each year to help different areas of our work. If we did, other areas would be left wondering why we did not help them. The reality is that there are never enough resources to meet all the demands.

In this instance, the needs were urgent and not just for small items, but for projects requiring as much as twenty, thirty, or forty thousand dollars each. The letter I sent included a list of projects totaling nearly $200,000. The response was overwhelming, and funds came in to meet every need. We thank God. Some of the areas helped were Angola, Burundi, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Malawi, Tanzania, and more. In the coming months, look for reports of the impact on our website in World Reports.    

If you did not get the letter, it went primarily to the West Coast and Midwest churches. It was also made available to the Portland congregation. You were not excluded for any other reason than that I did not want to place an undue burden on anyone. I understand that all geographic regions have their own needs, and I did not want to presume upon anyone. I do, however, want you to be aware of what is going on among our churches around the world so you can pray.

Preaching Pointers

“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).

Introduction

Today, we will look at the topic of “Preaching” and go over some pointers. Our text is 2 Timothy 4:1-2. I will focus on verse 2 which begins, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season . . .”  

Character Counts

When it comes to who stands at the pulpit, we are first concerned with the character of the messenger before the content of the message.

A person with poor character can proclaim God’s message truthfully. One example is Balaam whose account is found in Numbers 22-24. He was covetous and wicked, yet he was able to deliver God’s message. In addition, his brute beast, having no character, was able to comply with what God was demanding. 

Good conduct can mask poor character for a time. However, the quality of a person’s character will eventually be revealed—usually in the heat of battle. What exists within will become evident.

When we were drafted into the ministry, we were viewed as men and women of high character, or we would never have preached our first sermon. We met the Biblical criteria, which was covered in our March meeting, and we met the Apostolic Faith criteria. We would not invite someone to enter the ministry who does not faithfully attend church, does not pray around the altar, is never in the prayer room, does not tithe to the church, testify, or support leadership and God’s order.

All those qualities existed in us when we began preaching. It is important that those qualities be present as we continue. If at any point in time we are failing to meet the criteria, we need to evaluate ourselves and realize that we no longer qualify to be in the ministry.

Subordination must continue, especially when we find it challenging to work with a certain personality. Anyone can be subject to someone who is easy to be subject to, but that is not life. Eventually, we will all be challenged by a personality different than our own in a leader to whom we must subject ourselves. When that happens, we want to continue to have the quality of character that properly represents the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Apostolic Faith ministry. We have differing personalities, and we would not want it any other way. Otherwise, we would be clones, and that would be very boring.

The Method of Delivery

Over the years, I have read any number of public-speaking books, not all of them related to preaching, and I have some favorites. Our Minister’s Manual is a good resource that covers a lot of material, a portion of which is about preaching. We also have the Elements of Public Speaking written by Brother Mark Staller who pastors our church in Tehachapi, California. He gave a presentation on this in 2021 that will challenge you. In the next few days, we will make a video link available to you along with a PDF of his handouts.

Brother Mark is a professor who might give a failing grade to any number of us. I can’t compete with his material nor with multiple other resources available in print and online. That is not my intended goal for today. What I can do is share some pointers that I received from Brother Nolan Roby, who asked me to preach my first sermon, and from others subsequently. I can also share some of my own personal observations.

When it comes to public speaking, including sermon structure, Brother Mark taught us that there are four methods of delivery: impromptu, manuscript, memorized, and extemporaneous.

Impromptu speaking is “off the cuff.” This is what Peter did on the Day of Pentecost. He did not know he was going to preach that day. However, the circumstances demanded it, so he stood up and spoke.

I have been told, though hearsay is not very reliable, that in the early days of this work, the preaching was always impromptu. My understanding is that there was no assignment ahead of time. I think that as the meeting flowed along, when it came time for the preaching, whoever felt led to give the message got up and delivered it. If that were to happen in our day, I wonder if anybody would even get up! I wouldn’t, but this is one form of public speaking we no longer use.

The manuscript style of speaking is where one reads a speech word for word. I use this method to some extent in these ministers’ meetings, but we don’t recommend it in our preaching. We want evangelistic preachers rather than lecturing speakers for our services.

The memorized method is where a manuscript is delivered word for word from memory.

The extemporaneous method is when minimal notes or a brief outline are used to keep one on track while delivering a message. Today, I am speaking somewhat extemporaneously, but reading more than what we should do for sermons. Our preferred method is to use brief notes, preach the Gospel, and let our personalities come through. God will use that, though there is some risk involved.

The risk with extemporaneous speaking is that at times we will fall short of what level of decorum we should maintain. It happens to all of us. I made a spontaneous comment last night, though not while preaching, and immediately thought, Why did I say that? We do our best with God’s help, and beyond that we are thankful for merciful audiences.

When it comes to preaching, we might be our own best evaluators. When was the last time you watched or listened to one of your sermons? Don’t choose one where you were satisfied; start with the last one you gave. You will observe some shortcomings that nobody has the courage to tell you about, but it will be a worthwhile exercise.

Deliver Rather than Declare the Message

Delivering a message is more than declaring it. It is not good enough to say, “I preached it.” The audience must choose to receive it.

We can make a comparison to a FedEx driver who has a delivery for you. He stops in front of your home, puts a package on your porch, and drives off. He delivered your order but does not know if you received it. In contrast, if you need to sign for a package, he brings it to your door, hands it to you, and gets your signature. In that scenario, he delivered your order and knows you received it. So it is with preaching; there is never doubt about who is speaking, but is anyone listening or receiving?

This subject reminds me of how husbands and wives or men and women tend to communicate. I’ve read studies that show how many words men use in a day compared to women. By a show of hands, how many here think that men use more words in a day than women? How many think women use more words than men? Everyone here feels that women speak more than men. So, if women speak more, do men hear more? The women are unanimous in saying, “No,” and I agree. Often, husbands get a glazed-over look while their wives are speaking. The women speak more, but the men do not hear more. It is the same with preaching. When we keep speaking after our audience has quit listening, it is similar to an email being bounced back undeliverable. 

Answer Questions

People have questions regarding the Gospel, and our sermons should answer them. We find examples of this in the Bible. The New Testament preachers followed the lead of John the Baptist in this matter. In Luke, chapter 3, we find that he was asked by the people, “What shall we do then?” This was followed by the publicans asking, “Master, what shall we do?” Then the soldiers asked, “And what shall we do?” (verses 10, 12, and 14). He gave an answer to each group.

“And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then? He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise. Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do? And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you. And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages” (Luke 3:10-14).

On the Day of Pentecost, Peter responded to the questions, “What meaneth this?” (Acts 2:12) and “. . . what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37).

“And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this?” (Acts 2:12).

“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37).

John the Baptist and Peter both provided answers for their audiences, and this was common practice. In studying the sermons in the Acts of the Apostles, we find that Peter, Paul, and Phillip were all asked questions and responded to them. Phillip did so even though he had an audience of one—the eunuch.

The Apostles gave answers, and our preaching should also answer questions rather than raise them.

Point to Jesus

Jesus is the answer to most questions, so we want to point our audiences to Him. John the Baptist did this. We read in John 1:29, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” He directed attention away from himself to Jesus. That’s what we want to accomplish in our sermons.

A pattern of preaching exists throughout the Acts of the Apostles. We could go through one sermon after another and find a common theme. The Apostles consistently spoke of Jesus’ crucifixion, atonement, resurrection, ascension, and return. Acts 2:22-23 is one example.

“Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:  Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain” (Acts 2:22-23).

A Recent Question

I would like to take a little detour from the topic of preaching and address a question that came to me not long ago. It was, “Can an Apostolic Faith pastor serve simultaneously as a legislator?”

The short answer to this question is, “No. You need to choose between your political ambitions and your ministerial calling.”

This reminds me of a question we have spoken about in past years: “Which comes first, your marriage or your ministry?” The answer is that we cannot separate them. To prioritize one over the other would severely damage both. Similarly, if we attempt to mix political activism with our ministerial calling, we will not be able to separate the two, and our effectiveness at each will be hindered.

One reason our ministry will be damaged is that politics causes division. Jesus on the other hand unites, so preach Jesus! There is no risk in doing that, except from the world. This is what our people want to hear. They are bombarded enough with politics already.

This is not to indict Christians who engage in business and civil and governmental matters. We need Christian legislators, but we don’t need Apostolic Faith ministers to be legislators.

Think of the distinction between the ministry and a legislative position. Legislators employ the art of compromise while also representing the will of the people who elect them. Ministers of the Gospel are uncompromising and represent the will of God. We are not here to satisfy itching ears. We are here to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, so let’s keep to that.

Let’s not compromise our ministerial calling by giving voice from the pulpit to personal, political, and social opinions. Our audiences literally do not care what our political opinions are. I don’t care what athletes think about current events. I expect them to pitch, dribble, shoot, catch, throw—they are not qualified to educate me on political matters. If you are a baseball pitcher, pitch; if a home builder, build homes; and if you are a preacher, preach the Gospel.

Brother Lonny Carlson’s dad had it right. Brother Lonny, who died just over a year ago, used to testify about his dad pouring oil and water into a jar and shaking it vigorously. This was an object lesson he used to teach his children that the Gospel and the world do not mix. He would shake the jar and then set it on the mantel over the fireplace. Brother Lonny would walk by it sometime later and see that the oil and water had separated. Just as oil and water don’t mix, it won’t work to mix politics with a ministerial calling in the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Apostolic Faith. If you attempt to do both, it would be counterproductive, because it would destroy your ministry. 

Structure Your Sermons

We can’t see the framework of this church building, but it certainly exists. A sermon is similar in that it has an underlying structure. In simple terms, a sermon is comprised of an opener, the body, and a closing. In writing and in public speaking, we have all heard this guideline: “Tell them what you are going to say, say it, and then tell them what you said.”  

Another way of putting this is that early in the sermon, you should declare to the audience what you are going to preach about. Then preach about it, and then tell the audience what to do with what you just preached. It is a simple structure that we want to comply with: an opener, the body, and a closing.  

Effective sermons have a flow of thought from that opening statement to the closing. Ineffective sermons tend to meander about and somehow end up at the closing, we know not how. Hopefully, the end relates to where the sermon began—that is certainly necessary.

When we are speaking extemporaneously, unintended and unscripted diversions can happen. One of my favorite public speaking books is Simply Speaking. The author is Peggy Noonan, a former presidential speech writer who may even yet write for the Wall Street Journal. I wouldn’t claim that she is a Christian, but what she said in her book is that it can be refreshing to an audience to have a detour.¹

Earlier, I took a detour and addressed the question about mixing politics and the ministry. It was not intended to be refreshing, but it had nothing to do with the message itself.   

A planned detour can be beneficial, similar to a rest stop on a long road trip. It can have the effect of getting the audience engaged again. However, for some of us, it happens randomly. Those who have heard me preach, know that I wander off, but I try to get back quickly, and that’s what we ought to do. Whether planned or unplanned, we want to keep the detours short and then move on, resuming the journey.   

The Sermon Opener

Start with the Text

Good speeches, we are told, often have an early attention getter. However, we’re not giving speeches; we’re preaching God’s Word. Therefore, we want to start with the text.

I hearken back to when I was a new convert seeing the minister stand up to the pulpit. I was anxious to know what he was going to preach about and wanted to hear the text. I still feel that way, and I assume everyone in the audience wants to hear the text as well.

I realize that circumstances are different at times. When I travel abroad, I bring greetings from the saints in Portland, but even then, I will often announce my text first. Regardless of the circumstance, we want to move quickly into the text.

When announcing our text, we don’t want to apologize for it. Declaring your text as a “familiar” Scripture can give the same impression as saying, “Saints, prepare yourselves; this is going to be really boring.” In fact, your text is not going to be familiar to your audience, because they have never heard you preach on it. They have never heard you expound on that text extemporaneously, expressing with your personality what you have observed in it.

Be Prepared

We need to come to the pulpit with an opening and a framework for our sermons in mind. Exceptions should be rare. When Peter preached his first sermon from Joel 2:28-32 after the fire fell on the tenth day, it was impromptu. He didn’t go prepared that day, expecting to preach from the second chapter of Joel. The fire fell, and as the Holy Ghost gave him inspiration, he stood up and preached. If we are put in a position where we are suddenly called on to speak, the Lord will help us. There are Scriptures that support this, such as Psalm 81:10 which reads, “Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.” However, one thing I was told early on by Brother Nolan was that the same God who inspires at the pulpit can give inspiration during study. We need to study and prepare. We must show ourselves “approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

Introduce the Message

In addition to the text, our opening should make a statement that introduces the message. I like what Charles Spurgeon said about this in Lectures to My Students. He said the introduction should not be too long, and I quote, “It is always a pity to build a great porch to a little house.”² A similar analogy could be made from these tables. We can appreciate that they have been beautifully decorated, but at some point, we will begin to expect a meal. If you go to someone’s house and are seated at a table that has been set, before long, you are expecting to eat.       

Your introduction cannot go on forever. Make one primary point and then within the first minute or two, let the audience know where you are leading them. If someone were to leave two or three minutes into your sermon, that person should still be able to answer the question, “What did he preach about?” The audience should know your topic early on. For this, you must have a target in mind from the beginning. If you don’t have one, you certainly won’t hit it.

The Sermon Body

Give Context

After our opening, where we have set the table, we move to serving the meal. We do this by giving context to the text. There is a balance to giving context. If we spend too much time on it, there will be less time for the sermon. If we spend too little time on it, we risk taking the text out of context.

As stated in the New Testament, we don’t want to “wrest” the Scriptures, which means to “force or twist” the text (see 2 Peter 3:16). This would be like trying to make a square peg fit in a round hole. If it doesn’t fit, it is out of context and not what the writer had in mind. So, we should spend some time on context, but not too much. 

We have the benefit of a friendly rather than hostile audience. Just as I described myself earlier as a new convert, they are eager to hear us develop the idea we have just proposed to them in the opening. They want to know what we are going to deliver; let’s deliver it.

Use Illustrations

We support our messages with illustrations, including from outside Scripture. Spurgeon described illustrations as the windows of a house that allow the light to shine in.³ Sometimes when preaching, we will see the audience with a glazed-over look, but then we season our sermon with an illustration and suddenly, they are back again. Our illustrations should be worthwhile. Spurgeon also said that trivial illustrations are like a house with broken windows.⁴ Most importantly, when we use windows of illustration to shed light on our sermons, we want to make sure there is something in the house worth seeing.

George T.B. Davis spoke of the use of illustrations in his book titled Dwight L. Moody: The Man and His Mission. Moody’s sermons are widely available online, and they are good. Some have debated his theology, so I won’t speak to that.

Davis wrote of Moody, “His favorite instrument of speech was the story; as was the case also with his Master. He did not push the mind; he illuminated the heart . . . With his naive stories, he slipped around behind the stubborn intellect, flanked the line of doubts and occupied the heart. He was a great general. When you capture a man’s heart, his intellect comes in next day and surrenders.”⁵

Encourage and Inspire

In terms of our style of delivery, harsh, demanding, critical tones toward the audience are not productive. We recently heard in one of the teachings that this is not a “beat-down” Gospel, but a “build-up” Gospel. It will not work to take the position that “I need to break them down so I can build them up.” This is applicable to our workers who are faithfully giving their best to serve the Lord. The approach of being so demanding, so exacting, and so rigorous in our expectations of workers, will do us no favors. It’s true that sometimes we see things in others’ lives that we want corrected, but they may see things in our lives that they want corrected too. Let’s remember, “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7).

At times, it feels as if we are too exacting, especially of our young ladies more so than of our young men. Some seem to expect our ladies to dress like it was 1922 instead of 2022. Do we really want our women to present themselves as women did one hundred years ago? I told one leader (and I wouldn’t say this publicly from the pulpit, because I do not want to undermine our leaders) that we don’t want to be like the Taliban. We don’t want to be punitive to our faithful ladies, making them feel like second-rate Apostolics. They are first-rate Apostolics. We were just served by them, and some men as well.

One more word comes to mind concerning this topic: fixation. When we notice things about the way our women dress, whether young or old, it might say more about ourselves than about them. Why are you fixated on the way women dress if you’re a man? That does not present a good look.

We need to be careful that our approach is not strictly cultural or geographic or generational. We want our approach to our people to be Biblical. Bible culture does not vary from place to place. It sends a confusing signal if we set a too rigorous standard in one region while modesty is displayed in a more relaxed manner somewhere else. Over time, this approach will be problematic. So, we must be careful in this area.

I hope I have not taken a too harsh, demanding, or rigorous approach in stating this. I am aware that I will be judged by my own words. You are assessing them right now, and well you should. Our audiences will judge us as well by what they hear from us. Our job is to inspire others. Instead of focusing outward on others, let’s look inward and ask God to help us to inspire the response that we want to see.

We should exercise patience, but if we see gross immodesty, it needs to be addressed. This is not something we do publicly from the pulpit, because those in violation would be evident to everyone. Our goal is to encourage, inspire, and edify, not shame.

All our sermons should encourage and inspire. For example, we wouldn’t devote a whole sermon to Hell. Every sermon topic can have a negative spin or a positive one. We want to stay positive. If you plan to preach on eternity and are going to cover Hell, please cover Heaven also. If you’re going to cover division and the damage it causes, cover the blessing of unity as well. If you’re going to preach on the destructive nature of sin, also preach on the remedy—the power of the Blood of Jesus to mitigate sin. If you’re going to preach on the Great Tribulation, include the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

James 3 speaks of the destructive nature of the tongue. If you are going to preach on this, make sure you also mention the potential positive nature of the tongue. Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.” Remember this verse the next time you want to cover the ability of the tongue to create havoc, which it does.

Be Aware of the Time

The clock is our friend. It forces us to consolidate our thoughts and articulate them more succinctly. Frank Luntz is a man who conducts focus groups and advises politicians. These focus groups have been used to determine which words or phrases certain demographics or audiences respond to favorably. I have mixed feelings about Luntz, but he studies words, and I like what he wrote in Words that Work. He said, “Be as brief as possible. Never use a sentence when a phrase will do, and never use four words when three can say as much.”⁶ He emphasized brevity with the use of short sentences. For politicians, these become “soundbites,” which are easily repeated by the media. It is effective. About Calvin Coolidge, he wrote, “We still remember ‘Silent Cal’ for his brevity. When Coolidge’s dinner guest bet him that she could make him say more than three words, he responded, ‘You lose.’”⁷

Our sermons should be long enough to make the intended point, but once our point is made, we need to stop. Referring to Peggy Noonan’s book again, she quoted a written exchange that took place between Edward Everett and Lincoln after the two gave speeches at Gettysburg. Everett wrote to Lincoln, “I shall be glad if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion in two hours as you did in two minutes.” There are two things I love about Lincoln’s reply: his brevity and his graciousness. He responded, “In our respective parts yesterday, you could not have been excused to make a short address, nor I a long one.”⁸  

How many in this room have ever read what Everett said at Gettysburg? One! Most remember only that his speech was apparently long and tedious. However, I daresay we have all read Lincoln’s speech multiple times.

Dale Carnegie gave good advice in his book The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking. He said, “Assemble a hundred thoughts around your theme, then discard ninety.”⁹ Just because we have written something in our notes, doesn’t mean we have to declare it from the pulpit. Hopefully, when we preach, we will sense the momentum of the message in the response of the audience and know when to stop. Get them right where you want them and then end the message. Let them have opportunity to respond at the altars. When you are in an airplane, how many times do you want the pilot to circle the runway before he finally lands? The main key to remember here is to stop when you are finished. You don’t want to be the only one in the building who doesn’t know the sermon is over.

Limit the Number of Biblical Illustrations

When selecting a Biblical illustration, it is better to choose one and make it come alive than to reference several. This is a pointer I was given early on. A day or two ago, I went back and looked at my notes from the first sermon I preached. That day, I spoke on Esau, Cain, the rich young ruler, Abraham, and the Prodigal Son. That was in sermon number one! I think it was after my third or fourth sermon that Brother Nolan told me, “You can’t use one account after another; you are going to run out. You’re ruining future sermons.” It is better to consolidate your thoughts and make your point. Choose one Biblical account and develop it. Save the others for another time. Brother Dick Taylor was good at this. He would pick one account and bring it to life. He was as effective as anyone I have in memory.

The Sermon Closing

A Successful Close

Perhaps the two most misused words in Apostolic Faith sermon vocabulary are “in closing.” Once you utter those two words, everyone is expecting you to close, so don’t prolong it.

The purpose of the closing is to circle back to where you began. You told us what you were going to say, you said it, and now you need to tell us what to do with what you said.  

The Gospel message demands a response, and successful preaching inspires the audience to act. When Brother Dick preached, I always felt that no matter where anyone in the audience stood spiritually, he inspired them to go further. That is the unction of the Holy Ghost, and that is what we need. One can be the most polished, effective speaker in the world and present a message that is without flaw, and yet it elicits no response. Another can take the same text and see results. The difference is that one speaker is anointed and the other is not. There is value in logic and reason, but as Moody said, we must also capture the heart. That is what Brother Dick did.

Closing Thought

Preach under the Anointing of the Holy Ghost

I will close where I began with 2 Timothy 4:1-2.

“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).

In our preaching, this Bible maxim still applies: “The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). The words that inspire in Gospel meetings are words conveyed with the power of the Holy Ghost. For that we pray! We don’t claim to possess it like we should, but it’s certainly apparent when we lack that anointing. May God help us. We cannot counterfeit or manipulate the Spirit. We don’t try to work up people’s emotions with a sermon. The Spirit of God cannot be worked up; He is prayed down. This concept is not new to us.

Returning to 2 Timothy 4:2, let me close with, “Preach the word.” We can do that by the grace of God.

Closing Remarks

God bless you. I hope you can reflect on what was said today and assess yourself some. May God help us all to be even more effective going forward. We pray for the rest of this camp meeting to be greater than the first days, and that many more victories are yet to come.

We are going to have Brother Gary Riler lead us in a song as we stand together, and then we will be dismissed in prayer by Brother Tony Boyce.

Footnotes

1. Peggy Noonan, Simply Speaking: How to Communicate Your Ideas with Style, Substance, and Clarity. (New York: HarperCollins, 1998).

2. Charles Spurgeon, Lectures to My Students. (London: Passmore and Alabaster, 1875), 143.

3. Charles Spurgeon, “Illustrations in Preaching,” in The Art of Illustration. (New York: Wilbur B. Ketcham, 1894), https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/42558.

4. Ibid

5. George Thompson Brown Davis, Dwight L. Moody: The Man and His Mission. (Chicago: Monarch Book Co., 1900). 248, https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hw1x3i&view=1up&seq=248

6. Dr. Frank Luntz, Words that Work, It’s Not What You Say, It’s What People Hear. (New York: Hyperion, 2007), 7.

7. Ibid

8. Peggy Noonan, Simply Speaking: How to Communicate Your Ideas with Style, Substance, and Clarity. (New York: HarperCollins, 1998), 65.

9. Dale Carnegie, The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking. (New York: Pocket Books, 1962), 68.