Preacher's Block

This preaching tip was shared by Preacher’s Block co-founder, Hunter Bethea. If you’re interested in joining the most focused preachers in the world and getting these tips sent to your inbox every week, sign up here.

As preachers, we need to be wary of our use of “I’s,” “you’s,” and “we’s.”

I’s are good and helpful in moderation. Sharing a way the Scripture passage has impacted you or a personal story related to the application helps people connect with you and know that it’s possible for God to do through a person what you’re telling them He can do. But if a sermon has too many “I’s,” we can come off as self-focused. People don’t listen to sermons to learn more about you.

You’s are also helpful in moderation. We empathize with you’s (e.g. “you may have felt this before…”) and we help people sense God’s challenge to transformation with you (e.g. “maybe God is inviting you to…”). But if a sermon has too many “you’s,” we can come off as condemning.

We’s are also helpful… in the right way. We’s make the sermon us-focused instead of self-focused. Rather than condemning, they’re invitational. But we can use “we’s” improperly. One example that bothers me the most: “We all know the song…” Unless you know every person’s musical repertoire and can ensure that there’s no memory loss in your conversation, you can’t guarantee that “we all know…” And when you say “we all…” but someone doesn’t have that knowledge/experience, it makes them feel excluded from the sermon.

Use I’s, you’s, and we’s, but use them in moderation and use them in helpful ways.