Some Basics to Consider

Why a Men's Training Class?

1. To help equip the men of this congregation to efficiently serve the church in public worship. As Christians, we should be concerned about anything which will aid or enhance scriptural worship.
2. As individuals we need to be constantly concerned about our spiritual growth; hence, we should be always looking to increase our abilities in every part of God's service (II Peter 3:18; Hebrews 5:11-14). This course affords us with an opportunity to help in that growth.

What Are Our Goals?

1. To learn to do things in the work of the church which you would like to do but never felt that you could.
2. To help you do that which you are now doing but which you would like to do better.
3. To prepare you to do work in the church that you may never expect to do, but which may be forced upon you someday through unforeseen circumstances (Titus 3:1).
4. To convince you that you are neither too old or too young to develop further in your service to the church.

Some Things You First Need

To be successful in these areas of public service, you must:

1. Be living a good Christian life. The old mottos of "Practice what you preach" and "Actions speak louder than words" are really true. You cannot expect to influence others or gain their respect if they know you are a hypocrite in your life (Titus 1:16).
2. Have a real desire to learn more and do more. In almost every field, if you want to badly enough, you can. It is true in this realm as well.
3. Adopt the motto: "I'll try." No high pressure will be exerted on anyone, but we do want to encourage you to stretch to your maximum potential (Matthew 25:14-30).

What to Do About Being Afraid

Stagefright is a natural bodily reaction.

1. In times of emergency, the body adjusts itself for a response. True stories are told of people lifting cars single-handedly because of this.
2. Several normal body functions are accelerated (heart rate, breathing rate, etc.) due to adrenalin secreted into the bloodstream
3. Thus a large amount of energy is available for rapid use.
4. In the case of stage fright, however, there are no apparent means of using this energy that has been suddenly generated. The results are trembling hands, dry mouth, shortness of breath, and the like.

How to get over stagefright

1. Being afraid is a great hindrance to public service in the church, but it can be overcome.
2. Remember that what you are doing is important.
3. Realize that the audience is composed of your friends who want you to succeed.
4. Be prepared. Know your material thoroughly.
5. Seek every opportunity for practice.
6. Don't expect your fear to suddenly disappear. It will fade gradually.
7. You can do certain physical things to take your mind off your fear. Take a small drink of water or inhale deeply.
8. Don't allow yourself to dwell on the fact that you are afraid.
9. Don't give up!

Realize that a certain amount of fear is necessary to help you perform your best. Some of the best public speakers are actually very nervous about each performance. If you ever do get totally over your stage fright, you'll need to find a way to bring some of it back.