One of the things I enjoy to write about are short book reviews. Many of the books I’ll share over the next several months have been out for some time, but in the event that you haven’t read any of them I hope I can help provide you with some insight. .

8 Hours Or Less

Written by Ryan Huguley and published last year, I really enjoyed reading this book. Huguley makes a strong case for quality and effective sermon preparation in about 8 hours.

I seriously thought that there’d be no way one can knock out sermon preparation in 8 hours so I was definitely curious. After reading it, I was quickly convicted; realizing the quality of my sermon preparation was ineffective and scattered.

Huguley provides a daily plan for sermon preparation and because I love scheduling and tasks, this provided me with some really helpful insights into sermon prep:

• Monday: Exegesis and build the frame of the sermon;
• Tuesday: Get feedback from team;
• Wednesday: Work on the introduction;
• Thursday: Work on the conclusion;
• Friday: Put it all together;
• Sunday: Preach

Within his timeline, Huguley devotes about 1-2 hours per day on his sermon. I especially loved the section on spending time to build out on a conclusion as I always struggle to “land the plane.” I was also encouraged by his weekly feedback on Tuesday’s as I, too, meet with a group of guys weekly to discuss our sermon outline. As a young preacher, it made me feel like I was “doing something right” and left me encouraged.

In general, here’s what I dig about the book:

1. The schedule: It’s tight, but what I appreciate is that it’s time devoted to the whole sermon or specific areas in order to develop quality sermon/content. When I first began preaching and my schedule was pretty scattered, I was spending time on Wednesday mornings and then Saturday evenings from 6:00 p.m. - 3:00 a.m.. Not good.

2. Clear Direction: I also appreciate the clear directions on the steps we can take in sermon preparation. Before, I had tried knocking it all out at once. Again, setting time aside to dive into specific areas was incredibly helpful and liberating for me.

Additionally, here would be my reservations about the book:

1. The schedule: While I appreciate the time and days devoted to each part of the sermon, I simply don’t have 5 days to give. And that’s okay because everyone’s schedule is different. After reading this book, I attempted his same schedule and felt behind. If you don’t have the kind of schedule Hughley provides, then you’ll simply need to look for what works best for you;

2. 8 Hours: Again, I appreciate a lot about this book; notably quality and wisely used time for sermon preparation, I simply don’t think I could knock out my sermon in 8 hours. I believe that if preaching is your first priority (not your only one) then you should be spending a little more than 8 hours on your sermon.

Either way, I would recommend this book for its structure. If you’re having trouble working on a sermon prep schedule and need a little bit of help trying something new or modifying what you have (that’s what I did), then this is a really helpful book that you’ll benefit from.

Will you knock out your sermon in 8 hours? I have no clue. I know I can’t. But what I hope this teaches you as it taught me is that you use your sermon preparation time wisely and effectively.