It's Thursday afternoon.
I'm staring at my sermon notes for Sunday, and honestly?
They look like a theological car accident.
Seventeen browser tabs are open.
Three of them are the same commentary I keep forgetting I already read.
One is a YouTube video titled "The REAL Meaning of Philippians 4" that I'm pretty sure was made by a guy who thinks the KJV is the original Greek.
My outline?
A half-finished Google Doc that reads like someone tried to exegete Scripture during a sugar crash.
This is sermon prep in 2026.
The information is endless.
Your time is not.
Here's the thing:
AI isn't going to replace you. But pastors who use AI are going to replace pastors who don't.
Not because AI is magic.
Because it gives you back the one thing you can't manufacture: time.
According to my totally unscientific observation, 97% of pastors have no idea where to start with AI.
So let me save you the trial and error.
Here are the 3 AI tools that will transform how you prep sermons, capture ideas, and learn...
Without turning you into some "tech bro" who drinks oat milk lattes.
Tool #1: ChatGPT: Your Brainstorming Partner, Not Your Ghost Writer
Let's get this out of the way:
If you're typing "write my sermon on John 3:16" into ChatGPT, you're doing it wrong.
(This goes for its competitor models, like Claude, Gemini, etc.)
AI-generated sermons sound exactly like what they are:
Written by something that's never wept with a grieving family or baptized a new believer.
Your congregation can tell.
Here's the shift:
AI isn't your ghost writer. It your brainstorming partner.
Think of it like having a sharp seminary buddy who never sleeps and doesn't judge you for asking basic theology questions at 11:47 PM on Saturday.
It's not ChatGPT.
It's Chad... your overly caffeinated intern who works for free.
The Right Way to Use It
Wrong: "Write my sermon."
Right: Round One... "You are a Bible scholar who believes in the verbal plenary inspiration of Scripture. Write Ephesians 2:8-10 in the Greek, translate it, and comment on the keywords that have the greatest bearing on the interpretation of the text."
Round Sometime Later... "What are 3 natural analogies or illustrations of grace as a gift that would resonate with blue-collar families?"
See the difference?
You're sharpening your thinking, not outsourcing your calling.
The Phone App Advantage
ChatGPT has a mobile app that syncs across all your devices.
You can capture ideas on the go (voice input while walking, driving, or contemplating life in the Starbucks drive-thru), start conversations on your phone and finish them on your laptop, and actually have back-and-forth dialogue instead of one-off questions.
Here's a sample from my workflow:
My after-lunch walk. Phone out...
"Working from our exegesis on Philippians 4:10-13, brainstorm 5 angles on contentment that aren't cheesy that are relevant to the passage."
ChatGPT gives me 5 ideas. I pick one.
"Expand on #3."
By the time I'm back at the desk, I've got a direction.
The Secret Most People Miss
Don't ask one question and bail.
Have a conversation.
It's about iterative back-and-forth.
Ask for 5 angles.
Pick one. Ask it to expand.
Ask for counterarguments.
Ask for application ideas.
Ask what objections your congregation might have.
It's like having a research assistant who actually shows up and doesn't eat all your keto bars.
(It's a convenient alternative to the old "sermon team" model my seminary preaching professor use to encourage.)
Bottom line: ChatGPT is a partner, not a replacement.
You're still the preacher.
It just helps you get to "done" faster.
Tool #2: Google NotebookLM: Searches Only What YOU Give It
Here's the problem...
You've got Logos® Bible Software exports (pages of them!), PDFs, articles, and sermon notes scattered across your hard drive like theological shrapnel.
Traditional AI searches the entire internet.
Which sounds great until you ask about "grace" and get motivational speaker nonsense.
Google NotebookLM is different.
It searches ONLY what you upload.
How It Works
I know a pastor who exports 80-100 pages from Logos on a passage, uploads it to NotebookLM along with trusted commentaries and his notes, then asks:
"What do these sources say about the believer's christological union and any greek word meanings that support the doctrine in Romans 6:1-14?"
NotebookLM synthesizes answers from his sources only.
No random internet theology.
Just the material he trusts.
It's like having all your commentaries in a blender, but the smoothie actually tastes good.
Why This Changes Everything
No more flipping through 6 commentaries at 11 PM trying to find that one quote.
No more generic internet answers.
YOU control the theological guardrails.
Upload solid sources, get solid output.
Quick Tips
Start small—upload 3-5 sources on one passage and test it.
You can even drop in links to YouTube videos, and links to online articles.
Use it beyond sermon prep...
Explore other topics related to your roles.
Ask it to create briefing docs...
It can condense 100 pages into a 2-page summary.
Test the infographic feature...
You get an amazing visual of your content.
Upload your sermon and test the audio overview feature...
You get a natural sounding conversation between two people about your sermon, podcast style!
(Which is great for convenient review before Sunday.)
One warning:
Garbage in, garbage out.
Don't upload sketchy theology and expect gold.
Tool #3: Glasp: Turn YouTube Lectures Into Instant Summaries
YouTube is a goldmine of sermons, lectures, and theology content.
But who has 90 minutes to watch a full lecture?
Nobody.
So most pastors bookmark videos they'll "watch later" and then never do.
Glasp is a Chrome extension that summarizes YouTube videos and feeds the summary into ChatGPT.
(Yes, Notebook LM does this, but this is faster for one-off summaries.)
It works on long-form content... hour-long lectures, panel discussions, that 3-hour series everyone keeps telling you to watch.
Instead of watching the whole thing, you get a summary.
Then you ask follow-up questions.
The Power Move
Glasp lets you customize the default prompt.
I changed mine to: "Take notes on this content as if you are a college student who will be tested on it."
That creates actionable summaries, not fluff.
Other options for pastors:
- "Summarize this as a preacher looking for illustrations and insights."
- "Extract the 3 main arguments and supporting scripture."
- "Identify practical application points for a local church."
Real-World Use Cases
Sermon research: Summarize a 2-hour lecture on your passage, pull key quotes, move on. You just saved 90 minutes.
Continuing education: That conference you missed? Summarize the keynotes. Catch up in 20 minutes instead of 6 hours.
Counseling prep: Find a video on conflict resolution, get the highlights, walk into your meeting prepared.
Pro tip: After you get the summary, continue the conversation with ChatGPT and ask follow-up questions.
One caveat:
This isn't a replacement for deep study.
It's a way to triage what's worth your time.
Put These Together. That's Called 'Leverage."
ChatGPT on my walk: "Give me 5 angles on Philippians 4."
Export Logos material, upload to NotebookLM: "What do these sources say about Paul's contentment in suffering?"
Find a 75-minute lecture on YouTube, run it through Glasp, review summary, paste into ChatGPT for follow-ups.
Refine sermon with ChatGPT back-and-forth collab, pull quotes from NotebookLM, polish by Friday.
AI just saved me 10+ hours.
Which means I have margin for the people who need me.
This isn't about working less.
It's about working smarter so you're not fried by Sunday "game day."
The Guilt You're Feeling (And Why It's Wrong)
Let me guess...
You're feeling guilty.
Like using AI is cheating.
Bro, stop.
Using AI isn't lazy any more than using a concordance is lazy.
Or Logos.
Or that search engine you've been using since the Clinton administration.
Tools are tools.
You are still doing the work.
You're just not doing unnecessary work.
"What if I get doctrinally off-track?"
YOU control the sources.
Upload solid theology, get solid output.
"I'm not tech-savvy."
These tools are easier than setting up your church's Wi-Fi.
And you survived that. So, let's go.
"What about the Holy Spirit?"
AI doesn't replace prayer or Spirit-led insight.
It clears the clutter so you can hear God more clearly.
1 Corinthians 2:13 says we speak in words taught by the Spirit...
BUT, Paul also used scribes, travel companions, and letters from other churches.
Tools don't replace the Spirit.
They serve Him.
Bottom Line
Here's your AI productivity suite:
- ChatGPT — Brainstorming partner for ideas and research
- NotebookLM — Deep research tool that searches only what you give it
- Glasp — Summarizes long videos so you can learn faster
Pick ONE tool this week.
Test it on your next sermon.
AI won't make you a better preacher.
It can't give you a shepherd's heart or the Spirit's anointing.
But it can give you back the time and margin you need to become the preacher God's calling you to be.
Brother, your time is precious.
Your calling is sacred.
Your people need you at your best... not your most exhausted.
Use the tools.
Let them serve your ministry.
Then get back to doing what only you can do:
Shepherding the flock God gave you.
Now go preach like you've got a research team in your pocket.
Because you do.
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