Finding Your Preaching Voice: Why Authenticity Matters More than Imitation
“Honestly? They thought you preached angry!”
I couldn’t believe it. I was shocked. I had been angling for a compliment—positioning myself to be flooded with awe of my preaching prowess. Instead, I was humbled. Surprised. I walked away, well, angry.
The year would have been somewhere around 2008 or 2009. The music minister’s parents were in town visiting for the weekend. Naturally, they attended the worship service on Sunday. Monday morning I asked him what his parents thought of the service. I couldn’t wait to hear how their lives were changed by the preaching. Instead, I was told how angry I appeared to be throughout the sermon. As I considered how wrong they were, my fury rose. In other words, I got angry at their comment about my seeming anger. The nerve!
As fate (read: God’s powerful Spirit) would have it, his parents would be the first of several who would share similar sentiments in the weeks that followed. They were right. I did preach angry. It wasn’t Matt Pearson who was preaching. I was trying to imitate another.
Ten years earlier I had been introduced to John Piper. I became enthralled with him—his writings, his blog posts, and, yes, his preaching. Looking back, I cannot honestly say I intentionally wanted to “be him” behind the pulpit. But I knew I wanted my preaching to have the same effect on others as it had on me. I listened to sermon after sermon after sermon. I watched conference messages. I sat in wrought attention in live audiences at various venues where he spoke. In the meantime, when I should have been finding my own preaching voice, I was mimicking his. I became, not Matt Pearson preaching, but Matt-Pearson-Wanting-To-Be-John-Piper preaching. That came across as Matt-Pearson-Angry-Preaching. (This is not to say John Piper preaches angry. When I tried to mimic him, my personality came across as angry.)
When it hit me what was happening (read: when I finally recognized that what others were saying was an accurate assessment), I did what I now recommend to every young preacher: I cut off John Piper. That’s right. I think I have listened to only one or two sermons of his in the past 15 years.
This isn’t to say Piper isn’t a wonderful preacher. He is. This isn’t to say preachers cannot learn from him and his preaching. They can. But it is to say that Matt Pearson cannot listen to his preaching without wanting to preach like him. I could never find my own preaching voice while still having his voice in my head. So I cut him off. It was one of the best things I could have done for my preaching.
Finding your own preaching voice is essential. If God has called you to preach, He wants YOU to do the preaching. Not someone else disguised as you. That person already exists. The world already has John Piper. The world does not need another. The world needs you. Your voice. Your style. Your personality. Your way of delivering the Word.
If you’re searching for your own preaching voice, let me make four recommendations:
1. Cut off that celebrity preacher.
Learn from other preachers. Listen to other preachers. Sit at the feet of anointed orators. But don’t try to be them.
If there are one or two preachers you constantly listen to, and you find yourself sounding like him, cut him off. It’s not helping you. In fact, it’s hurting you. And it is hurting the congregation. They didn’t hire that preacher. God didn’t call that preacher to your church. He called, and they hired, YOU.
2. Pay attention to your unique personality.
What do people say about you when you aren’t preaching? Are you naturally a funny person? Are you studious? Do you laugh a lot? Are you more on the serious side? Do you have a unique perspective on human nature? Are you able to see how Scripture applies to people?
What are aspects of the text that stand out to you (as opposed to just the things that stick out to commentators)? What were you like as a child that has continued on to the present? Seriously. Consider these things.
And when you enter the study to craft the sermon and walk out of the study to preach it, don’t push your personality down. Let it out. Let it shine. Be YOU.
3. Manuscript your sermons.
For each and every sermon, type out what you plan to say—word for word. It will help you think through everything. It will get the sermon into your bones. It will allow you to read over it again and again before Sunday. And it will unveil for you whether or not it’s you or another.
I am not sure if I can adequately describe in words what manuscripting the sermon does for your preaching and your voice—but if you do it, and pay attention to the nuances, it will take your preaching to another level of authenticity. In other words, it will help chisel out YOU.
4. Preach. Preach. Preach. Preach. And Preach.
The best way to become a better preacher is by preaching. The best way to find your voice is by preaching.
If you are pastoring a church, constantly evaluate your own preaching and preaching style. Do you feel free? Do you feel like you are you? Perhaps ask trusted congregation members for feedback.
If you don’t yet have a church to pastor, find ways to preach. Call your local and state association. Get into prisons (to minister, not by breaking the law!). Request opportunities to larger groups that gather on Sunday mornings. Find out when worship gatherings are at local senior centers. Ask your pastor if he ever needs a Sunday off. Find ways to preach.
The more you preach, not only will your preaching improve, but you will discover (if you are paying attention) your unique voice. More preaching leads to more of YOU.
Preacher, if God called you to preach—He called YOU to preach. Not someone else. Be the unique and particular preacher He has anointed YOU to be.
Curious how to preach authentically while navigating shared sermon series and multiple campuses? Watch Matt Pearson on this episode of the Elevate Podcast, Finding Your Voice: How Team Preaching Shapes Your Impact, as he unpacks practical wisdom for growing preachers and seasoned communicators alike.
Matt Pearson is the Campus & Teaching Pastor at The Church at West Franklin, where he has faithfully served for a decade. With a deep love for the local church, he longs to help churched people move beyond routine religion to encounter the wonder-filled God of the Scriptures. Matt and his wife, Katie, have three children. To read more from Matt, subscribe to his Substack.