A Word for Preachers...John Stott on Letting the Text Be Your Guide

"In our sermon preparation, we must not try to by-pass the discipline of waiting patiently for the dominant thought to disclose itself.  We have to be ready to pray and think ourselves deep into the text, even under it, until we give up all pretensions of being its master or manipulator, and become instead its humble and obedient servant.  Then there will be no danger of unscrupulous text-twisting.  On the contrary, the Word of God will dominate our mind, set fire to our hearts, control the development of our exposition and later leave a lasting impression on the congregation."

John Stott