What does it take to adequately prepare for Christian ministry? It’s really a trick question because Christian Ministry demands constant preparation and training. If you’re a pastor who preaches exegetically each Sunday, you already know what’s involved in preparing for that sacred weekly task. It doesn’t matter if ten people, a hundred people, or a thousand people or more, are going to hear it, it still requires around 20 hours a week (and more) to get ready. This requires reading, researching, praying, writing, structuring, and supplementing with graphics and multi-media. Over the past eight years I have been preaching a weekly series on the Book of Jeremiah (which has punctuated and interspersed with several much smaller topical sermon series as well). I recently preached part 180 in this 200 part series. Each week as I prepare my sermon it feels as if I am preparing to take an exam. I am often up late on Saturday night (and very early on a Sunday morning) still getting everything ready to preach. If you are not a preacher, it might be good for you to ask your pastor what they have to do each week to prepare their weekly sermon as well.