A United Methodist Pastor's Theological Reflections

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory (nikos) through our Lord Jesus Christ." - I Corinthians 15:57


Monday, June 21, 2010

Christians & Facial Expressions

Someone noticed recently that I put smiley faces in the margins of my sermon notes to help me remember to smile at the appropriate times as I preach. I picked up this tip years ago from a veteran pastor who convinced me that it's easier to frown than it is to smile and if we're preaching about the joy of our faith in Jesus Christ, our facial expressions should match what we are saying.

This reminds me of a tongue in cheek quote which I came across this morning by the great 19th century English preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon who once said to a class of aspiring young preachers, "When you speak of heaven, you should smile. But when you speak of hell, feel free to use your normal face."

We've all heard that our body language and facial expressions convey more to the people around us than our spoken words. Hopefully, when we talk to others about our faith in Christ, even our normal facial expression will radiate with joy and assurance.
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