When someone says to us after our reading, "Great Job!" or "You really nailed it up there," these accolades can be dangerous to our health as a lector when we bask in them too much . . . (Read On)

What do we cling to today that dilutes our relationship with Christ? What “Isaac” distracts us from focusing on him full-time. Could we sacrifice this lamb up on the altar as Abraham did with his son?

In Mark 4:21-22a, Jesus asks, "Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand?" The ambo is that lampstand from where our hidden emotions can be made visible,

As lectors, let us always remind ourselves that each time we proclaim God's word from "just the ambo," typically just a few feet from "The Altar," we are literally standing on Holy Ground.

My college teacher of a salesmanship class once said, “The strongest human motivation is the desire to be superior. And if we’re naive enough to judge our superiority or equality by what we show on our backs or in our driveways, then we (literally) pay the price.

When we think we're all prepared to proclaim our assigned Sunday readings, are we sure? What about the Prayers of the Faithful we're also assigned? Don't they deserve ample preparation as well?

Discernment should not only be exercised with new ministers, but veterans as well. Our enthusiasm about a ministry may die down over time, or we may feel burned out; just a few reasons why discernment should be ongoing.

There are many things we can do to serve God, but not necessarily the one good thing God wants us to focus on. We're asked to do this and that. We run from one ministry to the next. Tuesday here, Sunday there. And who's laughing at us more than Satan!

We've all heard people say, "Each time I read the same Scripture, I always get something new from it." Dig for that something new. Then convey its freshness from the depths of your heart.

To succeed at any endeavor, we need to visualize our success in advance: a corner hi-rise office, promotion, sale of a business, running a marathon, etc. And for lectors, this exercise can also bear fruit.

If we get too familiar with a reading where we feel we've "got it" and no longer need to study it, we risk proclaiming from the top of our heads instead of the depth of our hearts, and lose our listeners.

One of the most striking examples of the ultimate lector is from the Book of Nehemiah, describing how the prophet Ezra's deep knowledge and dedication to the Torah resulted in a delivery so powerful that he captured the full attention of the people,

Search “Public Scripture Reading” online, and you’ll find concerns about the lack of attention to it in non-Catholic services. But one way for non-Catholic preachers to better appreciate the value of public scripture reading their services is to visit a Catholic Mass.

Is the lector ministry in your parish or diocese set up for a fixed number of years? I hope not. To decide who goes out based on their time in service is short-sighted, especially among the best lectors who make an impact on their listeners.

As we look out over our listeners, we should always ask ourselves, “What am I'm telling them about myself before I even say a word? What fruits of the Holy Spirit are shining through in me?

Unlike the quality and professionalism parishes demand from their musicians or cantors, few make similar demands on their lectors, leaving them on their own to find sources of self-development and enrichment.

Just as pro athletes fall into slumps, writers get writer's block, and our many great prophets had their dry spells, so does the lector hit these walls.

When we maintain our readiness for Christ’s return by living according to his will, we can “prevent” him from saying to us, “I never knew you.” Call it preventive maintenance of our relationship with him. 

We are all hybrid humans living on a right-to-left or “sheep-to-goat” scale. As we grow in our faith and love for Christ, we start to become more selfless and giving toward others, and less selfish or “goat-like.” We begin to live more on the right side of the scale of inhabitants who will be welcomed into God's kingdom.  

When we serve in too many different ministries at a time, nobody's lovin' it more but Satan, because we have less time to zero in on the one important thing God may be calling us to do. If certain ministries are interfering with us where our true passions are, we're being lead by Satan's "Plan B."