Substance
Although my opening comment may not belong in this category, James Merritt, in my opinion, was the most personable of all the speakers. As the listener, Merritt was not only personable, but very easy to understand. In fact, Merritt came across as an average Joe, who was just trying to make a difference in the lives of the audience. The overall theme of Merritt’s message centered on unjust suffering and how God uses that suffering to a believer’s advantage, and for His own glory. Throughout the sermon, Merritt emphasized the point (by repeating it several times) that believers should remain in control of their emotions and count it as a blessing when unjust suffering occurs, simply because God is sovereign, and God is using unjust suffering to shape the believer, and as a platform for doing something good. Unfortunately, counting unjust suffering as a blessing is a tough pill to swallow, but Merritt sold the idea well through his use of personal stories. Both the introduction and conclusions were …show more content…
In addition, Merritt maintained both good posture and good eye contact with the audience. Furthermore, Merritt’s use of body language and gestures fit the message. What I loved the most about Merritt’s style is that when he was addressing the audience with a takeaway point, he would stop and say, “now listen.” Although some might find Merritt to be a little arrogant when he said, “now listen,” I found it to be purposeful. In fact, Merritt caused me to listen up. As I noted earlier under the substance category, Merritt, in my opinion, was very personable, and rather than eye contact, gestures, or anything else related to delivery, it was Merritt’s personable demeanor that made him believable. While this sermon was not showy or flashy, it was simple, and because of the sermon’s simplicity, the average person could easily grasp the meaning of Merritt’s message and apply it to everyday
Although my opening comment may not belong in this category, James Merritt, in my opinion, was the most personable of all the speakers. As the listener, Merritt was not only personable, but very easy to understand. In fact, Merritt came across as an average Joe, who was just trying to make a difference in the lives of the audience. The overall theme of Merritt’s message centered on unjust suffering and how God uses that suffering to a believer’s advantage, and for His own glory. Throughout the sermon, Merritt emphasized the point (by repeating it several times) that believers should remain in control of their emotions and count it as a blessing when unjust suffering occurs, simply because God is sovereign, and God is using unjust suffering to shape the believer, and as a platform for doing something good. Unfortunately, counting unjust suffering as a blessing is a tough pill to swallow, but Merritt sold the idea well through his use of personal stories. Both the introduction and conclusions were …show more content…
In addition, Merritt maintained both good posture and good eye contact with the audience. Furthermore, Merritt’s use of body language and gestures fit the message. What I loved the most about Merritt’s style is that when he was addressing the audience with a takeaway point, he would stop and say, “now listen.” Although some might find Merritt to be a little arrogant when he said, “now listen,” I found it to be purposeful. In fact, Merritt caused me to listen up. As I noted earlier under the substance category, Merritt, in my opinion, was very personable, and rather than eye contact, gestures, or anything else related to delivery, it was Merritt’s personable demeanor that made him believable. While this sermon was not showy or flashy, it was simple, and because of the sermon’s simplicity, the average person could easily grasp the meaning of Merritt’s message and apply it to everyday