All of us come upon times when our time with the Lord is not as fresh as it could or should be. Below are tips I recently shared with my Sunday school class. They were a blessing to me to compile, and I hope they’re helpful to you. Perhaps you could pull just one or two of these to incorporate into your time with the Lord.

The life and influence of Richard Hester extend from the farmlands of the great American plains, through Muslim neighborhoods in Lebanon, to Arabic refugee immigrant populations in Australia. It is a life dedicated to serving Christ in a ministry that spans more than six decades and three continents.

If you want to read some thriller stories, pick up a biography about Hudson Taylor, David Livingstone, or William Carey. If you want to be stirred by heroic endurance and courage, read about Adoniram Judson, Mary Slessor, or Amy Carmichael. These Christians—and a host of others—saw God do the impossible in foreign fields. They took seriously Christ’s command to give the entire world the Gospel, and they acted. And because they acted, to this day there remains fruit to their efforts.

Recently I was preparing a message encouraging our people to implement godly habits in their lives. As I thought about habits I was reminded that doing something habitually can lose its power for good.

Occasionally, I am asked why a Christian should become a member of a local church. Some insist that membership is merely a technicality, not seeing much difference between attendance and membership. Some argue they can worship God on their own disconnected from a church family. Others feel qualified to invent their own definition of the word church is an attempt to release themselves of responsibility.

China’s best-known monument is the Great Wall that surrounded the country during the Ming Dynasty. At four thousand miles long and over twenty feet tall, the Wall was designed to be an impregnable obstacle to invading armies. The idea was a good one, and it would have worked well—except that the enemy was able to bribe the gatekeeper. With the compromise of one guard, an impenetrable wall was rendered useless.

When preaching to children, it is important to purposely tailor your message to them. If you do not, you will find that it goes over their heads and is of little practical help to them. Here are a few thoughts that may help you as you preach to children.

In spiritual leadership, the way up is down, and the way to greatness is the path of service. We already know that, and we pray for a servant’s heart. But sometimes we forget what a servant’s heart actually looks like. What, specifically, are we praying for when we ask for a servant’s heart?

As church leaders, we challenge others to reach the lost. We remind them it is Christ’s last command and should be our first priority. We encourage them to schedule time for purposeful outreach.

Apart from the power of the Holy Spirit, you don’t have a sermon, you just have a lecture. I learned many, many years ago I cannot preach without the power of the Holy Spirit.