How Much Time Do You Invest In Sermon Prep?

Tim Challies says there are minimalists and maximalists, and everything in between.


Tim Keller – 14-16 hours.

John Piper – All day Friday, half day Saturday.

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Matt Chandler – All day Tuesday, all day Thursday.

Kent Hughes – 20 hours.

John MacArthur – 32 hours.

Mark Dever – 30 to 35 hours.

Mark Driscoll – 1 to 2 hours.

Driscoll explains:

By God’s grace my memory is very unusual. I can still remember a section of a book I read 20 years ago while preaching and roll with it. I’ve also never sat down to memorize a Bible verse. Yet, many just stick, and I can pull them up from memory as I go. Lastly, I’m a verbal processor. I think out loud, which is what preaching is for me. A degree in speech and over 10,000 hours of preaching experience also helps. And most importantly and thankfully, the Holy Spirit always helps.

When I get up to preach, the jokes, illustrations, cross-references, and closing happen extemporaneously.

http://www.pastoralized.com/2013/09/26/the-number-of-hours-keller-piper-driscoll-and-5-others-spend-on-sermon-prep/