Plan for: Thanksgiving | Advent | Christmas

Sermon Illustrations

Allison was an upbeat, enthusiastic teen. She was positive, eager, and energetic. She was one of the teens in my group and was always a joy. It was terrible the day I got the call about her dad.

Allison’s dad died suddenly of a massive heart attack sitting in his office at work one day. I got to the hospital to see them carrying his belongings with them into the counseling room. They were silent, stunned, sobbing. The cheerfulness that was always on Allison’s face had been washed away with sorrow and tears. We talked for a long time, the family and I. They were trying to get their minds around what had happened. I wondered what would happen to cheerful Allison. Her daddy meant the world to her. She would be crushed.

In the days that followed I kept a close eye on Allison and her family. They each had their own way of dealing with the grief. Allison’s was simple. She said, every day my daddy told me, “I love you”. She said, “Even though he’s gone, I’ll never doubt his love…that means everything.”

The power of “I love you” can be expressed in so many ways. We’ve covered that this morning. But the key comes down to this. You’ve got to express love everyday for it to really show you mean it. When’s your last chance to say to God, “I love You”? Don’t leave your gratitude unexpressed.

Related Sermon Illustrations

  • An Umpire Named Babe Pinelli ...  PRO

    Contributed by David Hill on Jul 8, 2004
    based on 2 ratings
     | 5,892 views

    Illustration: An umpire named Babe Pinelli once called Babe Ruth out on strikes. When the crowd booed with sharp disapproval at the call, the legendary Ruth turned to the umpire with disdain and said, "There’s 40,000 people here who know that the last pitch was ball, tomato head." Suspecting ...read more

  • Every Time You Make A Choice  PRO

    Contributed by Philip Harrelson on Feb 10, 2005
    based on 2 ratings
     | 4,832 views

    C. S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity: Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are ...read more

  • I'm 14, Depressed And See No Reason To Live

    Contributed by Bo Lane on Dec 8, 2004
    based on 1 rating
     | 3,522 views

    I’m 14, depressed and see no reason to live. Hi. Look I am 14 almost 15 and well I am depressed. Majorly depressed. I have no life. I mean come on, I have no friends, I am picked because my appearance is different, soccer practices are really crappy (I get made fun of, tripped, soccer balls are ...read more

  • William Booth Tied Faith And Works Together ...  PRO

    Contributed by Noah Kaye on Apr 21, 2005
    based on 3 ratings
     | 3,483 views

    • William Booth tied faith and works together perfectly when He said this in an article in Christianity Today “Faith and works should travel side by side, step answering to step, like the legs of men walking. First faith, and then works; and then faith again, and then ...read more

  • John Wesley And A Preacher-Friend Of Plain Habits ...  PRO

    Contributed by Lou Nicholes on May 25, 2005
    based on 2 ratings
     | 3,364 views

    John Wesley and a preacher-friend of plain habits were once invited to dinner where the host’s daughter, noted for her beauty, had been profoundly impressed by Wesley’s preaching. During a pause in the meal, Wesley’s friend took the young woman’s hand and called attention to the sparkling rings she ...read more

Related Sermons