You go to church to hear the minister preach, and you may preach tolerance to your friends by your example. But when someone preaches at you, they’re self-righteous and they don’t let up, and you’ll probably tune them out.
Have you ever heard anyone say, "That's preaching to the choir"? That means you're wasting your words on somebody who already believes what you believe. If you're giving an impassioned speech about recycling to an audience dressed in reclaimed clothing and sandals made of old tires, you're likely to be preaching to the choir. The word preach comes from the Latin prae, "before," and dicare, "declare." When you preach, you're not just talking — you’ve speaking with zeal and conviction.
