The iPad can be a valuable tool for the pastor and preacher. By incorporating the iPad into your sermon preparation and delivery, you can utilize its convenience and functionality. But how can you bring the iPad into your sermon workflow? Here's one pastor's way of using the iPad in his sermon building and delivery.

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Using the iPad in Preaching
Back in October 2010, I received an iPad as a Pastor Appreciation Gift
from my church. Needless to say, I was overwhelmed. And, as a preacher,
I wondered how I might use the iPad in the pulpit.
I immediately set about finding a way to work the iPad into my sermon
preparation and preaching. I have always used sermon notes. Over the
years, I have refined how I prepare and use them, but generally I put
them together in my word processor, WordPerfect. My criteria for my
notes are that they have to fit on the front and back of one 8.5 x 11 sheet
of paper, which usually means a 10 or 11 point font. I don't like more
than one page because (a) the sermon will be too long, and (b) I will
invariably lose one of the pages. With that done, I fold them up and stick
them in my Bible, making it easy to carry into the pulpit. I also have a
Sunday morning ritual where the notes are refined. Before heading to the
church, I review and mark them up using different colored highlighters. I
usually add extra notes in the margins. This routine helps me memorize
the sermon and add other points and ideas as I go through them. As I
head to the church, I stick the single page back in my Bible and I'm ready
for the message.
The challenge is to incorporate the iPad into that workflow. How can I
continue my routine while stepping over to the iPad? With WordPerfect
as a PC program, the trick was getting my notes to the PC.
I've found a solution that let's me continue using WordPerfect, and still
use the iPad in the pulpit. I have continued typing up my notes in
WordPerfect, still trying to keep them to the size limit of one page, front
and back. When the notes are complete, I make a change that enhances
their use on the iPad. I select the entire sermon notes document and step

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up the font size to 18 point. This destroys my page limit, but with the
iPad, that page limit is no longer necessary. Then I move to the next step.
The next step is saving my notes as a.pdf file. I'm still using an older
version of WordPerfect, and there's no export to.pdf function. But I've
found a freeware program, CutePDF, that allows me to make a.pdf from
my WordPerfect file. CutePDF installs as a printer driver. So I print my
sermon notes to the CutePDF driver, and I've got a.pdf file. Newer
versions of WordPerfect, as well as Microsoft Office and Libre Office will
export.pdf files internally. No matter the software, the ability to create
a.pdf file provides a way to get the sermon notes to the iPad.
The next step is actually moving the.pdf sermon notes files to the iPad. I
send the.pdf to the iPad using the app GoodReader. GoodReader is the
swiss army knife of iPad apps when it comes to text files and pdfs. One of
it's many abilities is to wirelessly connect to your PC. I can upload from
my PC to the iPad with GoodReader's wifi transfer. Additionally, I can
also upload the sermon notes to my Dropbox account, and then use
GoodReader's ability to download from Dropbox to move the file to my
iPad.
Once I have the notes on my iPad, I use another one of GoodReader's
functions, marking up my sermon notes. GoodReader allows you to type,
or actually write, on your sermon notes. There's also highlighters, adding
color to particular parts of the sermon notes I want to be sure to include
in the sermon.
At this point, the step earlier when I increased the font size comes into
play. With a 10 to 12 point font, the text is just a little too small on the
iPad screen. I have experimented and found an 18 point font to be a
good fit for my eyes.

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While my sermon notes have moved from paper to an LCD screen, my
routine remains basically the same. I have the continuity of routine. But
now, I've found, both the routine and my sermon notes, are vastly
improved.
I take the iPad on stage with me, of course. On our heavily lighted stage,
the iPad is much easier to read from than paper. Since I am no longer
concerned about the number of pages, I have started adding the Scripture
passages to my notes. With GoodReader, you simply turn the page by
touching either side of the screen.
Overall, I'm very pleased with this set up. The iPad is much better than
paper notes when in the pulpit, and I can still continue my refined and
familiar routine of sermon preparation. With some adjustments, the iPad
can be a very effective and valuable tool for the preacher.
Author: Rob Westbrook
Author of Sermon Outlines for Busy Pastors Book Series
- http://busypastorsermons.com. Three volumes, each containing 52 complete sermon
outlines of detailed exposition and depth, and over 250 pages in every volume.
Author of the Read Through the Bible in a Year Journal
- http://readthebibleinayearjournal.com. A new tool to reach your goal of reading
through the Bible this year. Great for individuals, small groups, Sunday School classes,
and your entire church.