text and the people to whom that Word is now to be spoken again, as a living Word for them. The question is, where to begin. The obvious starting place, of course, is with the choice of text. But what guides that choice? Two things, basically. Either (1) you are working your way through the biblical text and recognize the need to apply a given passage to your congregation, or (2) you recognize a certain need among the people and come to the Bible looking for a word that will address that need. The