Lay Preaching Basics - Print.
A Practical Guide to Leading Worship. By Rosalie Sugrue
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A comprehensive and encouraging handbook that equips lay preachers and worship leaders with practical tools, creative resources, and confidence to lead meaningful services.
A practical guide that will help you:
- Gain confidence in preparing and leading worship services
- Understand essential Bible content and its relevance for worship
- Create meaningful reflections and sermons tailored to your congregation
- Develop engaging services for different settings, including cafés and rest homes
- Access tried and tested prayers, liturgies, and complete service outlines
- Learn practical tips for using PowerPoint, service sheets, and managing time
- Support your spiritual formation as a competent and authentic worship leader
Features
- Step-by-step guide to planning and leading worship services
- Comprehensive background on Bible content and key theological concepts
- Creative ideas for children’s talks, devotions, and family time
- Sample service outlines for different occasions and settings
- Valuable appendices including prayers, liturgies, and worship resources
Soft cover, 230pp
6″ x 9″ (0.5 kg)
ISBN 9781927260869
Philip Garside Publishing Ltd (2018)
Are you being called to lead worship, but not sure where to start?
Lay Preaching Basics is a practical, down-to-earth guide for beginners and experienced lay preachers alike.
Drawing on her decades of experience as a Methodist lay preacher and educator, Rosalie Sugrue offers a treasure trove of wisdom, encouragement, and ready-to-use resources that will inspire and equip you to lead worship with confidence.
In this comprehensive handbook, Rosalie takes you step-by-step through everything you need to know to plan and deliver meaningful worship.
The first third of the book provides an accessible introduction to the Bible, key characters, and essential theological concepts.
She then guides you through the nitty-gritty of creating and leading services—whether in a traditional church, a café, a rest home, or an alternative worship space.
You’ll find a wide variety of complete service outlines, prayers, meditations, children’s talks, and creative ideas designed to engage congregations of all ages.
Rosalie also shares invaluable practical tips, including how to use PowerPoint effectively, how to adapt services for different settings, and how to develop your own authentic preaching voice.
Her advice on sermon preparation reminds preachers that a sermon must be their own prayerful reflection, rather than something copied from a book or the internet.
Lay Preaching Basics is an essential companion for anyone stepping up to lead worship in Aotearoa New Zealand’s evolving church landscape.
Whether you are just starting out or looking to refresh your approach, this book will inspire you to engage souls and foster authentic, relevant worship experiences.
About the Author
Rosalie Reynolds Sugrue is a fifth-generation West Coaster and lifelong Methodist lay preacher. A former president of the Lay Preachers’ Association, Rosalie has led hundreds of services in New Zealand and the UK. With a professional background as a psychiatric nurse, teacher, and motellier, she brings a lifetime of diverse experience to her ministry. Rosalie is a passionate advocate for lay leadership and has contributed significantly to the Methodist Church through her roles in women’s and social justice organisations. Now retired, she continues to lead services regularly and enjoys writing, family life, and community involvement.
Contents
Introduction
1 — Help! The Preacher hasn’t arrived
2 — Introduction to the Gospels
3 — Essential Background Knowledge
4 — Making Reflections Memorable
5 — Making Services Meaningful
6 — How to organise a church service
7 — Lectionary and Liturgy
8 — How to prepare a reflection (sermon)
9 — Service sheets and PowerPoints
10 — The Preacher’s Satchel
11 — Children’s Time / Family Time
12 — Circle and Cafe style services
13 — Services for rest homes
14 — Devotions: Ideas to build on
15 — Complete Service Samples
16 — Sample ‘Family Time’ slots
17 — Sample Cafe Serv