Monday Morning Preacher: Easter redux

At 10:48 pm on Saturday night, I posted on my Facebook page: "Guess it's time to get started on the Easter sermon."  I wasn't kidding.  Well, I was and I wasn't.  I'd been pondering for ages, but writing? Not so much.  Boy, was I glad not to have a Vigil to do as well. Whew! Good Friday and Easter Sunday were plenty for me.

Sermon writing outfit

This is only the second time I've preached on Easter Sunday.  The other time was my very first year out of seminary; I was still a transitional deacon at that point.  The rector offered me the gig and I fell all over myself thanking him.  He told me, "I'm not doing you any favors." He was so right. Easter is a tough, tough gig. Can I get an amen?

For all that I was putting it together until 7 AM Sunday morning, I thought the sermon turned out well.  It helped a lot that I did indeed have a clear idea of what I wanted to say long before I started writing things down.  The other thing that helped immensely was a book called Roll Back the Stone: Death and Burial in the World of Jesus , much of which I could read on Google Books.  For me, at least, it helped to picture what it was the women were expecting to see.  I hope it helped the congregation as well.

Sermon preaching outfit

The congregation, by the way, was wonderful.  If you have a congregation that laughs at your jokes and responds when you ask questions, it makes preaching so much easier and more fun.  And I have found that almost every congregation is willing to do that, willing to be with you in the midst of the preaching, so I do try to invite them in to participate--mostly for my sake.  It just feels so much better preaching when you don't feel like you're talking to yourself. So, thank you, St. Giles!

And Happy Easter, everyone! How did it go for you?