Sermon Envelopes

D. L. Moody's method of sermon preparation, while not keeping with standard homiletical procedures, worked well for him. 

In preparation of a sermon, he would gather all of his material on the particular text that he was going to preach and stuff it into what was called a "Sermon Envelope"—an envelope that measured about 6" x 9". Therefore, since he regularly preached the same sermon as he traveled, with his Sermon Envelope at his side, he could "update" the sermon by constantly incorporating into it any new material that he had collected.

Also, of great help, was his practice of putting the place and date on the Sermon Envelope in his own handwriting each time he would preach the sermon. It is not unusual to find an envelope with a dozen place and time notations written on it. This habit has provided a large set of documents that chronicle when, where and what Mr. Moody preached. 

The Archives has more than 100 of these envelopes, both as originals and as photocopies. There also exists a "Subject Index to D. L. Moody's Sermons" that has been compiled from fifty books of Moody's sermons. This index indicates where to look for messages by Moody on various subjects.