You come home from church with a page of notes. Three points, a few verses, a phrase you underlined twice. A few days later you can’t remember what the sermon was about, and the notebook is on a shelf.
That’s common, and it has a simple cause. Most of us were taught to take notes for the wrong purpose. We write down what was said, as if the goal were a good record of the sermon. But a sermon isn’t preached to be recorded. It’s preached to be lived.
Jesus said something about this that is easy to read past. Right after the parable of the seed and the soils, He told His disciples:
“So pay attention to how you hear.”
Luke 8:18 NLT
How you listen matters, and for many people, how you take notes is part of how you listen. Here is a simple way to take sermon notes that help you do something with what you heard.
Why Most Sermon Notes Go Nowhere
Most sermon notes fail in one of three ways.
They try to capture everything. If you’re writing as fast as the preacher talks, you’re transcribing, not listening. You end up with a lot of words and very little of what God was pressing on you.
They stay general. “God is faithful.” “We need to forgive.” Both true, both important, and both easy to agree with without anything changing. Notes like these describe the sermon. They don’t connect it to your life.
They’re never opened again. The notes are finished when the sermon ends. Whatever God began to show you on Sunday has nowhere to go in the week that follows.
The fix is simple: aim your notes at a different target.
What to Write Down During the Sermon
Keep it light. You’re there to worship and to hear.
The basics. The date, the speaker and the Scripture passage. You’ll want these when you look back.
A few short phrases. Write down what catches you: a line that convicts you, a verse cross-reference, a question you want to come back to. If you miss something, let it go.
The one truth you heard, in one sentence. Before the sermon ends, try to put its main truth into your own words. Just the heart of it, in a sentence. For example: God’s peace guards my heart when I bring my worries to Him. If you only write one thing all morning, write this.
Name Where It Meets Your Week
This is the step most sermon notes leave out, and it’s the one that makes the difference.
Underneath your one truth, name one specific place it meets your life this week:
- A person. My daughter, when we argue about her phone.
- A moment. Sunday night, when I start thinking about Monday’s bills.
- A behavior. Snapping at my husband when I’m anxious.
Three simple rules keep this honest:
1. No vague answers. “I need to be better” or “trust God more” doesn’t count.
2. Make it personal. Your situation, not general theology.
3. Connect it to real life: a person, a moment or a behavior.
James wrote that we are to do what God’s Word says, not only listen to it (James 1:22). Naming a specific place is where listening starts to become doing. It takes the sermon out of the sanctuary and puts it into your week.
Come Back to It Before Next Sunday
Jesus described the good soil this way:
“And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.”
Luke 8:15 NLT
Hearing is the beginning. Clinging to the Word and patiently living it happen during the week. So plan to come back to your notes at least once before next Sunday. When you do, four simple questions help:
- Recognize. Where did the old response show up this week? What happened? (It’s fine if you only noticed afterward.)
- Examine. What does Scripture say about it? What is true?
- Respond. How did you respond, or how will you respond next time, according to that truth?
- Reinforce. What verse will you keep before you, and what will you keep practicing?
These are the four parts of The Process we teach at Renewing Your Mind Discipleship Ministry, and you can begin with any one of them. Even one honest answer is a big step.
And remember who is doing the deeper work. You aren’t changing yourself by filling in a page. God is the one who transforms us; your notes are simply a way to pay attention to what He is showing you and to respond.
Before the next sermon, ask one more question: What has God been showing me this week? Then bring that with you on Sunday.
Should You Take Notes at All?
Some people find that writing pulls them away from worship and from really hearing. If that’s you, simply listen fully, then take five minutes after the service to write down the one truth and the one place it meets your week. That’s enough.
Others find that writing helps them stay attentive. If that’s you, keep your notes short and keep your eyes up. Either way, notes are simply a tool. The aim is a heart that hears and a life that responds.
A Free Sheet That Does This for You
If you’d like a page already set up this way, we’ve made one. Sermon Notes for Living Life Intentionally has room for your notes, a place for the one truth and where it meets your week, and the four questions for the days that follow. You can print it, fill it in on your computer, or use it on your phone. There are versions for children too, and you won’t be asked for an email address.
Taking It Further
Sermon notes become even more useful when they’re shared. Talk through the one truth with your family over lunch, or bring your notes to your small group and ask, “Where did this meet your week?” Children can join in with a version made for their age.
If you’d like to understand the four parts more fully, and why they help truth move from Sunday into ordinary life, read The Process (opens in a new tab).
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
