Most Important Step to Sermon Prep

When asked, "What is the most important thing you do in preparing to preach each Sunday?" Dr. G.A. Buttrick responded: "For two hours every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, I walk through the neighborhood and make home visits. There is no way I can preach the gospel to these people if I don't know how they are living, what they are thinking and talking about. Preaching is proclamation, God's word revealed in Jesus, but only when it gets embedded into conversation, in a listening ear and responding tongue, does it become the gospel."