While He was Preaching

In the arena of the church leadership world being a "preacher" or "preaching" no longer carries the positive connotation it once did - it isn't negative, but it definitely sounds less dignified; somehow church has become elitist too!  They say he is a "speaker", "communicator", "teacher", "a giver of talks"...whatever (btw - it is stupid).  In Acts 11, Scripture says that "while Peter was speaking, the Holy Spirit fell (literally came down) as in the beginning (Acts 2/Day of Pentecost)."  Whether you speak, teach, give talks or preach - the question is what is the Spirit doing in the lives and hearts of people while it is happening? It isn't a judgment call - "it was a good message or a bad delivery or how was my homiletical technique on point 2? kind of thing" I guarantee the people who heard Peter that day couldn't remember 1/2 of what he said - but they never forgot what they experienced, ever - it changed their lives! The Word and the Spirit work together in a beautiful tandem. The goal of coming together is not for people to experience a speaker, but to experience the Spirit.  The speaker will be used, hopefully as powerfully as Peter was that day, but lets not lose sight of the point.  Your voice may be loud or soft, you may speak fast or slow, you may have props and a bar stool or you may have a big honkin' podium - who cares...seriously no one does but the church team who thinks that is what people want.  Truth is what people want is God...bottom line. I am not letting people off the hook here, ministry should be done with excellence, and it should be amazing all around, but at the end of the day transformation is the goal, and only the Holy Spirit can do that - whether bringing someone over the line of faith for the first time or baptizing a believer in His power or healing a person's body or mind - that is God.  Yesterday, in the middle of one of our experiences, while I was "speaking" :), the Holy Spirit fell and lives were transformed and those who were touched may not remember what I said, but they will remember what God did and that is what you call a good day!