A few years back, Pastor John was asked how he writes his sermons, and this is what he

had to say.

My pattern is not to be followed by anybody except those who are wired exactly like I am,

which is probably no one, because we're also different.

So when I teach preaching to the guys, I really stress, please, please, please, look how

I do it, take that into account, but don't try to imitate me because when I work for

you, so my approach is if I know my text fairly well, if it's familiar to me, then I'm not

on it until Friday.

I just pick it out either weeks or days ahead of time.

I have to get a text entitled to the worship guys by Tuesday, and I'm not studying it,

and I'm not writing or working on the sermons until Friday morning.

Then I devote all of Friday to sermon preparation, and if I need to, I'll stay up all night.

I've never stayed up all night on Friday, but I've stayed up till two.

And that's when the text really blocked me.

I just, oh man, I don't know what I'm going to say about this.

I need to study this a little more.

I get an interruption in the day that's totally unexpected for a ministry crisis or whatever.

But the nights are always there as buffers, I almost never do that.

So I'm starting on Friday, and I put on my computer, English Greek or English Hebrew,

and I read through the original language, getting all the help I need with my little mouse,

and I've got a half sheet of paper in front of me on the desk, and I'm writing out the

text, and I'm making comments as I go.

...