Preach the word. - 2 Timothy 4.2

Kentucky Fried Chicken ran out of. . .chicken.

Last week the British division of the fast food giant faced a glitch in its supply chain and wound up with a shortage of poultry. They had to close nine hundred restaurants. The few hold-outs served popcorn nuggets and corn for as long as supplies lasted. They still had all eleven herbs and spices - just nothing to season or spice. People actually called the cops. The chain in charge of providing the birds apologized for its "teething problems," which left extra crispy as rare as hen's teeth in the UK.

How does KFC run out of the "C"? "Chicken" - it's right there in the name!

Amidst all of Timothy's problems as a pastor, Paul admonishes him not to run out of his signature product. "Preach the word." Elsewhere, the apostle exhorts his young protege to give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhorting, to teaching (1 Tim 4.13). Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth (2 Tim 2.15). Never face a hungry flock only to dole out deep-fried nuggets of nothing or platters of corny platitudes. 

In "Lycidas," an elegy by the poet John Milton, Saint Peter tears a strip of hide off the English clergy of the day. In a line that rings down the centuries the fisherman bellows, "The hungry sheep look, up and are not fed." Instead of beefing up on solid fare, Peter complains, they swell up on wind and mist. Sometimes a flock can look fat when they are actually just bloated. 

People want a lot from pastors these days: Secular society wants a chaplain to the culture; church growth gurus want a CEO; congregations want a concierge who interfaces with the latest trends to provide an entertaining religious experience. God wants preachers of the Gospel.

Avoid the temptation to become a popcorn pulpiteer who serves up tasty moral morsels, a corn cob orator whose starchy thoughts stick between people's teeth. Unlike the Colonel, we have a King who provides an unlimited supply of meaty truth. Stay in touch with the warehouse and fill the flock with solid food.