This month, I want to focus on pastors who clearly want to improve on the dynamics of voice, movement and gesture from the pulpit. If you are a seasoned communicator, then this truth will help you push your boundaries to try something new (doing a character monologue, trying a demonstration, using new technology).

It took me years to fully understand this point – particularly when it comes to coaching new speakers. Here it is . . . “You must practice in private in exactly the same way that you plan to speak in public.” Seems simple, doesn’t it? I find, however, that pastors rarely get up on the platform when the church is empty and walk through a trial run of a sermon – a rehearsal, if you will. Why is this needed? Why not just rehearse in your office?

Rehearsing in a smaller space – like the church office or at home – tends to keep a speaker in one place. And because there is no need to project his or her voice, it remains low. This reinforces bad habits. By staying in one place and keeping your voice at a minimal level, you are setting patterns of presentation that will be hard to break when standing in front of the congregation.

If you are immobile and quiet in practice, then, most likely, you will not move on the stage and your voice will not be sufficiently loud enough for the larger venue. Note that if a speaker is using a wireless microphone, variety in voice volume is still important to create emphasis and emotion. By now, you can guess that how you practice is how you perform.

• Go into the sanctuary, and go out onto the platform.
• Practice parts of the sermon.
• Let your voice get louder, softer.
• Move confidently around the speaking area.
• Move away from the pulpit and use emphatic gestures.
• Try moving from the platform to the aisles.

When you practice these vocal, gesture and movement strategies at full value, they become part of your communication repertoire. In fact, I would go so far as to say that you should move, speak and gesture exactly the way you plan to do it on Sunday. As pastor, you will not be inhibiting God’s direction in the service but, rather, will be providing a competent and prepared base from which to minister from.

If you plan these communication changes in your mind only, then the pressure of the ministry moment, or of having many eyes on you, will inhibit and weaken any vocal or movement changes you want to try.

For those pastors trying new technology, wearing theme-related clothes or using an object lesson or monologue for the first time, you should know this: equipment will always fail you when you need it most.

I was performing at a national Lutheran youth rally years ago and was using a lapel microphone with a transmitter pack. It was a climactic moment in the presentation, backed with a moving soundtrack and vocal chorus. At the midpoint of the theatrical story, the microphone plug was shaken from the transmitter. My voice was amplified, then gone, amplified, then gone. I reached around to hold the jack and transmitter and haltingly made it through most of the story. Because I was unfamiliar with this type of wireless microphone and its connection, a moment that could have been profound was weakened.

I am thankful that the Lord is not limited to my preparation or expertise in being effective for the Kingdom of God. Yet I always practice using the equipment or object lesson in private before attempting its use it in public. How you practice is how you perform.

Dr. Randy Ritz is a passionate educator, actor and communication coach. He helps leaders use the power of narrative to transmit vision, values and history to others in an entertaining manner. He is currently head of drama at Concordia University College and can be found at Randyritz.com.