The Deputation Process: Your Deputation Messages

The Deputation Process: Your Deputation Messages

Last week we looked at what to do when preaching while on deputation, but this week we want to look at what goes into those messages!

1. Preach the passage not your opinion—It is very easy to preach what our opinions are and not follow what the Bible is truly saying. We must preach the Bible and must preach what God is saying in the passage, not what we are trying to say. God has a purpose and message in every passage of Scripture. Many times these are obvious but other times it takes more digging to discover them. Preach the passage! Tell the people what God is saying!
2. Be able to preach in any time frame— You never know how long you will have to preach. Be able to preach in as little as 2 minutes up to 30 minutes! This will be helpful as you go into different churches and you have different time frames given to you!
3. Use illustrations— People love illustrations and these help drive home the points of your message. Use illustrations from your country or things that have happened in your life to help illustrate your points and what God is saying in the passage of Scripture. Illustrations help make things personal.
4. Make sure they are encouraging— You are there to be a help to the pastor and his people. Your messages should encourage them. They should encourage them that God can use them and is still with them. 
5. Make sure they are challenging— Challenge the people to take the next steps in their lives. Challenge them with getting more involved in service, soul winning, discipleship, etc. You want to challenge them to serve God and do more for Him. Challenge them to give their life to missions or full time Christian service!
6. Preach for a decision— Every time you preach it should be for a decision. What decision/decisions will be made because of the Word of God? You want to preach with the invitation in mind. You want God to work in their hearts and lives and move them to take that next step of faith in their lives!
7. Make sure you have your main idea clearly stated—You may have several points, but what is the whole purpose of the message you are preaching. This should go back to what the Bible is saying in that passage of Scripture and what the idea and main thought that God is trying to convey with that passage. That is what your main idea is!

These are just a few things to keep in mind with the messages you will preach while on deputation. We must learn to study and to prepare messages. No matter how many messages you have, always be mindful of God and what He wants you to preach in every situation. Spend the time studying and preparing and learning your messages and God will guide you with what to preach! Are you a missionary who is on deputation or has finished deputation? What are some of your thoughts on the deputation messages you would have? Leave a comment below as we would love to hear your thoughts!