The crowd loved him, so as he exited the stage, the manager grabbed him and told him to go back out for an encore. “That’s all the material I have, ” he said. It didn’t matter; the crowd was cheering and the manager wanted him to do an encore.

Newhart went back onstage and waited for the applause to die down. Then he asked them, “Which one do you want to hear again?”

He had three routines; if they wanted to hear more, it could only be more of the same. The story goes that Newhart repeated part of one sketch and got laughs all over again.

Preachers feel this way sometimes, I think — like we’ve got only a certain number of messages and we repeat ourselves too often. I feel this way especially when I’m preaching through a book that addresses the same topic chapter after chapter. I also feel it during December; how many ways are there to talk about Christmas?

In preaching, there are certain themes we turn to again and again. Sometimes it feels as though we’re saying what’s already been said by countless others countless times. This is OK, to a certain extent. C.S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity that “people need to be reminded more often than they need to be instructed.” Returning to the simple topics of how to pray and have a devotional, the importance of loving others and sharing your faith, accepting God’s forgiveness and forgiving others — these are things we need to be reminded of again and again.

Peter told his readers, “Like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the Word that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.” (1 Peter 2:2) Milk is food for beginners, but we never get past the need for milk. Neither do we get past our need for the basics of the Christian life.

While it is important for us to strive always to be fresh in our approach to presenting the gospel, we must also remember that our people (and we ourselves) need to hear those same wonderful truths again and again — they never lose their power. — SM

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The same could be said for our preaching. If you don’t live it, it won’t ring true in your sermon.

This doesn’t mean that you must master prayer before you can preach on prayer. You don’t have to attain sinless perfection before you can preach on holiness. But it does mean that you need to know something of the struggles related to both before you can develop messages that genuinely help your listeners in their struggles. As Paul said, “I may not be a trained speaker, but I do know what I’m talking about.” (1 Corinthians 11:6)

Too often our sermons are filled with easy promises: Jesus gives you joy, the Holy Spirit comforts you, God answers prayer. These are things we know are true, and it is also true that sometimes joy and comfort and answered prayer elude us. It is also true that the Christian life contains some dark nights. This difficult (though temporary) reality must be reflected in our teaching.

For preaching to be powerful, it must be personal. It must reflect your experience — your victories as well as your struggles.

Charlie Parker talked about authenticity in music. It’s authenticity that is most needed in the sermons we preach. This is what touches the hearts of people.