Give a 5 Minute Church Talk on Any Subject with 5 Minutes Notice

555
Tool Purpose: How to give a 5 minute talk at church on any subject with just 5 minutes notice using 5 easy steps.A year ago, as is the tradition in many wards, the bishopric assigned a sacrament meeting to our Aaronic Priesthood young men in April to coincide with the restoration of the Aaronic Priesthood. I am serving as our ward's Young Men’s president again but I'm not complaining! Anyway, I have been so impressed with our four graduating priests that I decided to do something a little different. As part of their missionary preparation, I have taught these young men how to speak on any subject with just a minute’s notice. Whenever we practice it in quorum meetings I have been blown away at the quality of their talks!

So I got the bishop’s permission to surprise these four young men from the pulpit and assign each of them a gospel topic to speak on in that very meeting. They only had the five minutes during a musical number to prepare. These leaders of tomorrow did not disappoint. They spoke so eloquently, so authoritatively and so filled with the Spirit that when the bishop got up to close the meeting, he simply stood at the pulpit and wept. He was not alone.

So- here is my simple tool that once learned will help anyone give a 5 minute talk on any gospel topic with just 5 minutes notice.

1. Pray for guidance. I have a testimony that God cares what is said in His church meetings. Take time for a quick silent prayer and ask the Lord to use you as an instrument in His hands to fulfill His purpose.
2. Use the Hymn Book- Look in the Index for the subject you have been given and choose a hymn on the topic. Hymns are poems set to music. Start your talk by reading some of or the entire hymn as a poem to introduce your topic.
3. Read Scriptures- Look up the scriptures printed at the bottom of the hymn you use. Take some time in your quick 5 minute preparation to read the scripture and the chapter heading. Get a feel for when and for what purpose the Lord or his prophet shared such counsel and doctrine. Tell the story of how the scripture came about in you talk and then read the scripture.
4. “Liken to us”- Liken the message of the hymn and scriptures used to your own life or the life of someone you know. Share modern day examples of this gospel principle.
5. Bear Testimony- Always close in bearing witness.


Background:
Those that know me are aware that in this digital age of smart phones, iPads and notebooks, I still carry around my beat up Franklin Day Planner. I am not against hi-tech gadgets, in fact I often use my smart phone to read a scripture along with all the priests I teach every Sunday who do the same. (No more, "Oh, ah... I forgot my scriptures" from these great young men. I love that!)

Nevertheless, although I no longer use my Franklin to keep me on task, I carry 30 years of church experience, notes and talks that I like to keep at my disposal at a moment's notice. (I also can’t bring myself to replace the worn out cordovan leather cover given to me by an incredible ward council some 15 years ago) One thing being in five bishoprics teaches you is that you are "always on". Who knows when you will be needed to fill in and speak at the last moment, substitute a class or share a spiritual thought. It just made sense to me to keep everything I ever took the time to prepare close by. This includes notes I have taken while attending leadership meetings with the brethren or thoughts and impressions I might have had while waiting for an interview or temple session. It was my way of always being prepared.

But what about the great young men I have served as a stake and ward Young Men’s president recently who don't have the experience to fall back on as they accept calls to serve the Lord as missionaries? They too will soon be “always on" filling in and giving talks with little notice. No reason not to be an instrument in the Lord’s hands! So, I developed these 5 steps and chose 555 as the hook to help remember them. I hope you find it helpful. You can also print a 555 card that fits in your scriptures and lists the 5 steps below.

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