(You may not have filed the form, but your preaching is patented . Only you can produce your particular sermons.

When Warren Wiersbe first published this article (Summer 1981), readers ranked it the most valuable of any we had published to that point. It brought both welcome news and a warning: each of us has been given a unique dialect by which to preach the gospel; the warning is against the tendency to compare ourselves to other preachers and to imitate a style we like.

Now Wiersbe says, "l believe it more now than I did twelve years ago. Plagiarism and imitation still plague the pulpit and rob preachers and congregations of the unique personal ministry any preacher can have. Blessed are those preachers who know themselves and aren't afraid to be themselves as they share the Word."

The less we compare apples with kumquats the more satisfying, and significant, our preaching will be.)

It doesn't make sense!" said my pastor friend.

We were lingering over lunch and discussing the Bible conference ...