This thesis considers the relationship between the spiritual maturity of the preacher and preaching. As the author recognized a growing spiritual maturity in his own life, he sought to ascertain if and how this was identifiable in the preaching event. The theory guiding this thesis is espoused in The Fully Alive Preacher by Mike Graves, which states "if we want to become better preachers, we should first consider how we might become deeper persons." The author found a symbiotic relationship between the spiritual maturity of the preacher and reception of the preaching. Congregational listeners verified the validity of this finding through both an analysis of their experience of the author's spiritual growth and through feedback on eight sermons preached within the congregation over three years.
