How do you hit your creative peak as a preacher? How do you get beyond the weekly grind of sermon prep and get ideas flowing? For Pastor Ken Shigematsu from Vancouver, B.C. it started with an observation from master preacher Dr. Haddon Robinson about our "ten-day creative cycle." Based on Robinson's comments, Shigematsu developed some revolutionary and practical ways to approach his weekly sermon prep. Read the whole thing in this week's skills article—"Hitting Your Creative Peak."

Also, last week we featured a sermon that put the issue of homosexuality in the context of God's larger story of redemption. In this week's sermon—" Your Body: Under New Management"—Mark Mitchell explores sexual intimacy in God's larger story. If you think sexual immorality is a new problem for the church, Mitchell reminds us that Corinth also had a warped view of sex. Mitchell writes, "Every day hundreds of priestesses from the temple of Aphrodite, which stood atop the city, would come down into the streets and ply their trade. Sex was offered as a way of worship. And this kind of thing had crept into the church. Most of the people in the church at Corinth had come out of a background of immorality." Sound eerily familiar? But there's hope in the good news of Christ.

Also, check out these new resources:

• Featured Illustration: Johnny Unitas and Joe Namath: Two Paths of Life
• Featured Video: A Father's Day Welcome: This mini-movie is a great way to honor the fathers in your congregation and let them know just how important and special it is that they are being strong examples to all those around them.
• Featured Sermons: "Your Body: Under New Management," by Mark Mitchell
• Featured Skills Article: "Hitting Your Creative Peak," by Ken Shigematsu

Matt Woodley
Editor, PreachingToday.com
mwoodley@christianitytoday.com

P.S. Find the most timely sermon illustrations each week with our News That Illustrates!

Matt Woodley is the pastor of compassion ministries at Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, Illinois.