Ask, Seek, Knock

According to the electoral college, tonight is the preaching competition topic. Stay tuned for a story about Jason's childhood (which may be highly fictionalized), a book review, and a story from my childhood.

Every year, Bethel hosts two preaching competitions. One open to all students, and one open to graduating students. This year, they are trying a new format with the one open to all students, due to poor turnout and performances the last couple years.

Previously, they had only asked students to turn in a manuscript of a sermon, and they chose 3 finalists based on that alone. They found that they were not getting many entrants, and the ones they got often couldn't deliver their sermons well. This year, the new head of the preaching department has changed things.

Every entrant will preach a sermon on the same passage. It is the "ask, seek and knock" portion of the sermon on the mount found in Matthew 7. Entries must be submitted by dvd. You must turn in a dvd of yourself preaching that message to a live audience. The 5 teachers of the preaching department will then watch all the videos and pick three finalists. Those finalists will all speak in the Seminary chapel to be viewed by the students of the Seminary. They student body will then count for one vote, the preaching department one vote, and all other faculty one vote. They will place those three finalists in order.

3rd place gets $300 dollars.

2nd place gets $400 dollars.

1st place gets $500 dollars and will preach their sermon in the large chapel for the entire Bethe Undergraduate community in May.

I am still debating if I will enter a sermon into this competition. It has been opened up to one of my classes (expository preaching of the New Testament) that we can do one of our in class sermons on this text and have it video taped at that time. If I decide to enter, this will be the avenue I take. I simply don't know if I have the time, motivation, or confidence to make it worth my while.

The date I would need to preach this sermon in class is still about a three weeks away, but i've already had to turn in one sermon brief and outline of a narrative section of the Gospels which I could easily (and originally was supposed to) preach in class. I would have to find the time to write another one.

Only time will tell, maybe i will, maybe i won't.