“We are such a sound-bite culture; people are so accustomed to flipping through their television so quickly that we only have just a few seconds to grab someone's attention.” PeopleCultureSoundAttentionTelevisionSecondsBitesAccustomedSound Bites Author:Max Lucado
“A story does that: it will reach out and hook somebody and hold them for just a few moments while you unpack this story in their presence.” DoeMomentsStoriesReach OutHook Author:Max Lucado
“I think a story is an attention grabber. I think it's a truth conveyor. Those are two great features of a good story.” ThinkingTwoStoriesAttentionFeaturesGood Story Author:Max Lucado
“I think you can tilt too far to the side of the story where the message is just simply entertainment. So I think your goal has to be to craft in one sentence what the truth is you are trying to convey. And then you find or create a story that you wrap around that truth.” ThinkingTryingStoriesSidesGoalTruth IsMessagesEntertainmentSentencesCraftsWrapsOne SentenceTilt Author:Max Lucado
“The Prodigal Son story is, I think, the greatest short-story ever written. It has such drama in it, such great characters, it's so clear and concise, and it's entertaining in the sense that everyone can relate to it. But you have no doubt what our Lord was trying to communicate in the heart of that story. So the truth was not sacrificed on the altar of entertainment in that case. And it can be.” ThinkingTryingHeartCharacterStoriesLordCasesClearDoubtWrittenSonDramaEntertainmentCommunicateRelateNo DoubtShort StoryEntertainingOur LordAltarsGreat CharacterProdigalsConciseProdigal Son Author:Max Lucado
“I think there is a time, if I can say this; there is a time in a message where you might just tell a story to give your audience a break.” IfsThinkingGivingI CanStoriesMightBreakAudienceMessages Author:Max Lucado
“I've found great virtue in two-thirds of the way into the message; right before I'm really want to nail home a point, pausing to tell a joke or to tell a light-hearted story, because I know my audience has been working with me now for 20 or 25 minutes. And if I can get them to laugh, get oxygen into their system, it wakes up those who might be sleeping, so there's something about using a story to draw people back in right before you drive home your final point. In that case I think it's real legitimate just to use a story for story's sake.” PeopleIfsThinkingKnowsWayWantHas BeensI CanTwoRealStoriesUseHomeLightMightFoundSleepCasesAudienceLaughingVirtueMinutesMessagesDrawsJokesThirdsWake UpFinalsSakeNailsOxygenHeartedPausingLight Hearted Author:Max Lucado
“I don't think I have ever created an entire fiction piece or followed a historical piece and made that into a sermon.” ThinkingMadeFictionPiecesHistoricalSermons Author:Max Lucado
“I do think there is great strength, though, in starting a sermon with a story, then returning to that story at the end. That puts book ends to a sermon. It is a real simple technique that communicates to the audience that there is a sense of closure, that they have a package here, or we began and we closed with this. I think that's just a nice technique.” ThinkingBookRealEndsStoriesSimpleAudienceNiceStartingCommunicateTechniqueSermonsPackagesClosure Author:Max Lucado
“All of my books began as sermons, so really the heart of the message is still the same.” HeartStillsBookMessagesSermons Author:Max Lucado