Resources

Writing Sermons in an Oral Style
Garth Pauley
Calvin Symposium on Worship 2006 

In comparison with written language, oral language should use:

1.          More personal pronouns such as "I," "you," "we," and "our" to establish identification.

2.          More familiar words to increase identification and make the message easier to understand.

3.          Shorter words, including more contractions, to make the language sound more conversational.

4.          More repetition of words, phrases, and sentences to make the message easy to follow and memorable.

5.          More signal words to help the listener follow and keep track of the message.

6.          Shorter thought units, including sentence fragments and interjections, to make speeches easy to follow.

7.          More interactive constructions to cultivate listener involvement.

8.          More rhythmic sentences to make the message memorable and pleasing.

9.          More examples and narratives to enhance listeners' understanding and capture their imagination.

10.        More strategic organization to make the message coherent and cohesive.

To employ a good oral style, speakers should:

1.          Focus on ideas-not words or phrasing-when preparing a message.

2.          Present their messages extemporaneously­.

3.          Speak from a key word outline rather than a manuscript or memory.

4.          Rehearse your message out loud.