One of my favorite parts of every week is Sunday night when I download that week’s episode of This American Life, a story-telling radio show based out of Chicago. This American Life is hosted by Ira Glass. In the show, the show’s staff tell stories around a given topic in 3 parts. It’s one part radio theater, one part folk story, one part investigative journalism, one part comedy.

The show is really brilliant. Every week I am amazed at how fresh and creative the episode is. I always learn something, I always laugh, and a few times I have even been deeply move (not to tears yet, but perhaps one day). My favorite episodes lately are “Bad Baby” and “Animal Sacrifice“. Perhaps my favorite episode I’ve ever heard was called “Break-Up“, which is exactly what the name suggests− an episode about breaking up in relationships. Having been on both ends of a break-up, I laughed nearly the entire episode!

Because of This American Life, Ira Glass has become something of a role model to me. I devour everything he says. Doing creative work is a large challenge for me, though I am passionate about it. His creative process, his story-telling, his demeanor has taught me a good bit about doing those things in my own life. As an aspiring preacher, I think men and women like Ira have a great deal to offer me and those like me. Crafting a sermon is an art, and art spans far beyond Christian teachers and artists. I hope you will listen to the following video for some great advice on creative work and gain as much from it as I did.