Equipping to Evangelize: The PREACH Initiative

Taylor University's PREACH Initiative seeks to prepare, resource, equip, and coach current and future pastors for homiletic excellence. Director of the Preach Initiative Rev. Dr. Tim McConnell also actively serves as lead pastor of First Presbyterian Church, a 3,000-member church in Colorado Springs with a 150-year history of ministry.

The program's development began two years ago with support from the Lilly Foundation, and classes began fall 2025.

The Preaching and Spoken Word Minor

The PREACH Initiative is committed to developing future pastors through the Preaching and Spoken Word minor. The curriculum focuses on teaching students the theological, cultural, and practical skills to understand the gospel and apply it to people’s lives today. With a foundation in exegesis and hermeneutics, students will gain training in sermon preparation and learn from a variety of preachers and chapel speakers.

The minor consists of six courses, including Intro to Preaching, Preaching Appreciation, and a J-Term course during which students travel to First Presbyterian Church in Colorado.

Inside Reade Liberal Arts Center, students utilize the Preach Lab, which houses a cutting-edge preaching simulator. The lab also houses assets like tracking cameras, confidence monitors, and audio and video systems, allowing preachers to practice and play back videos to evaluate themselves and grow their delivery techniques.

“You really only learn if you begin to teach others what you’ve been doing and what you’ve been learning,” McConnell said, reflecting on his role as Director. “I’ve felt my own preaching skills sharpen as I’ve been teaching the students.”

Present Impact and Future Hopes

The Preaching and Spoken Word Minor has been fruitful in its mission to prepare students to be effective communicators of the gospel. McConnell has watched the half dozen students in the program grow in readiness to preach the Word faithfully through their practice in the Preach Lab and in chapel.

McConnell anticipates growth of the Preaching and Spoken Word minor and interdisciplinary student engagement. McConnell explained, “Every Taylor student will be called upon at some point to speak the gospel with clarity.”

Alongside these goals, the PREACH Initiative also has plans to present the first Joseph P. Blades award, which is accompanied by a financial award and opportunity to speak in a Taylor chapel service. Candidates are student-nominated pastors who have faithfully preached the Word to their congregations.

Additionally, the PREACH Initiative is offering a Certificate in Homiletics program in spring 2026, led by McConnell. The four-month curriculum is for current pastors or preachers-in-training to sharpen their skills and reinvigorate their passion to bring the Word of God to their communities.

“We’re just excited for how Taylor is supporting pulpits around the nation through this initiative,” Dr. McConnell says, “and we’re praying to see effective preaching at work more and more.”