As a former middle school principal, I often saw my teachers frustrated by students who didn’t seem to want to learn. Many students rolled their eyes and yawned, leaving teachers discouraged.

I would remind the teachers that no thirteen-year-old boy wakes up thinking, “I hope I learn about photosynthesis today,” or, “I can’t wait to hear about the Western Expansion.”

Too often, teachers have to get students to learn something they have no interest in. The same applies to preachers and teachers in church—are your listeners truly interested in what you’re teaching? Do you see glazed-over eyes or nodding heads as you preach?

God Created Natural Learners

God created us to be natural learners, with an incredible capacity to absorb knowledge. Linguists say that learning a first language is the hardest thing a person will ever do, yet no one formally teaches us—it happens naturally.

So why is it so hard to teach people what we want them to learn?

Why People Learn

I believe that people naturally learn what they either need or want to know.

For example, if I’m building a cabinet, measuring the wood becomes crucial. I might try to remember, or relearn, the measurement skills I learned in school. In the 6th grade, I didn’t need that knowledge beyond passing a test. Now, I need it to build a proper cabinet.

I also learn what I want to know. As a teenager, history bored me. But as an adult, I love it because now I want to learn about history.

Motivation is Crucial

The common factor here is motivation. People are motivated to learn what they either need or want to know.

Effective teachers and preachers know they must create motivation so people will want or need to learn what they’re offering. The effective preacher convinces their audience that what they’re teaching will have relevance in their lives.

To be effective, you must create that motivation.

Use Creative Solutions

How do you do this? One method is the creative use of good church presentation software.

Often, people need a “hook” to prepare them to receive the message. A hook grabs their attention and makes them want to listen. Increasingly, short videos are the most effective hooks.

Any preacher who has tried to use videos in sermons knows the challenges. Videos can be difficult to edit or convert to the right format for church systems. There’s always that anxious moment when you wonder if it will work—and too often, it doesn’t. Awkward.

Risen Media, a church presentation software, makes it easy to use videos, images, graphics, and music.

Do you want to use a YouTube video or worship song? Simply drag and drop it into your Risen Media presentation, and it will quickly populate, ready to play with a single click.

Do you want to use images, photos, or maps to spark interest? They’re all available in Risen Media.

Risen Media offers many features that elevate your Sunday presentations. The easy integration of videos and images is just one.