In Sermon Illustrations: "After Christmas"

You Break It, You Fix It

Contributed by James Snyder on Oct 19, 2024

Every once in a while, I hear or see something that reminds me of my father. He’s been gone for over 15 years, but his memory is still fresh in my mind. His most famous saying, that I remember, was, “It’s better to ask for forgiveness than for permission.” He lived that to the very end of his ...read more

Scripture: James 1:5-6

Tags: Wisdom, Fixing

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

I Thought She Said, "Doughnut”

Contributed by James Snyder on Nov 2, 2024

As hard as I try, and believe me I try, I don’t always hear correctly, especially regarding The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. I don’t always hear every word she says. I know God gave me two ears and only one mouth, but I must confess I use my mouth a lot more than I use my ears, which has ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 6:10

Tags: Humor, Hearing

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

I Didn’t Know I Loved It That Much

Contributed by James Snyder on Nov 16, 2024

One important thing I have learned is that you don’t appreciate something until it’s missing. I’ve learned that by many things that I just took for granted. Last week, for example, I had some problems with my truck, so I had to take it in for service. It took longer than I had expected, but ...read more

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 2:13

Tags: Love, Appreciation

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Another Turkey On The Table

Contributed by James Snyder on Nov 30, 2024

It was a Monday morning, and I was busy starting my week by organizing my schedule and organizing some of my projects. The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage came to my door, looked in, and said, "Are you ready for the week?" I don't recall her ever asking me that question, but I ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:17

Tags: Thanksgiving, Celebration

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

[067]. A Message From A Poem – Eden’s Garden And Gardens Of Significence

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Mar 27, 2025

[067]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – EDEN’S GARDEN AND GARDENS OF SIGNIFICENCE This poem is an examination of the Garden of Eden, mainly dealing with Satan’s temptation and man’s fall into sin. There are a lot of teachings that derive from this account in Genesis 3 and in the poem I try to bring ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:45-47, Matthew 19:4-6, Revelation 21:1-2

Tags: Eden, Poetry, The Fall, Mary Magdalene, Poem, Gardens, Satan, Temptation, Serpent, Gethsemane, Adam And Eve, Garden Of Eden  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

How Much Sleep Is Too Much?

Contributed by James Snyder on Apr 19, 2025

I have noticed recently that sleeping has become a very important part of my life. This just snuck up on me overnight. When I was young and living at home, I tried to come up with excuses and reasons for not going to bed at night. My parents had an early bedtime schedule that they enforced rather ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 127:2

Tags: Sleep, Energy

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Who Has The License To Drive Me Crazy?

Contributed by James Snyder on May 24, 2025

I will confess that I am crazy, but I didn’t get there by myself. Somebody has been driving me crazy. When I use the word “somebody,” I mean a lot of people. I didn’t always know I was crazy until a few years ago The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage looked at me and said, “Are you crazy or ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 7:9

Tags: License, Crazy

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Unwanted-Zimri, The King For Seven Days

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jul 2, 2025

Introduction: Some kings in Old Testament days had very long reigns, like Uzziah (52 years), Manasseh (55 years) and Jeroboam II of the Ten Northern Tribes (Israel, 41 years). The reigns of others were sometimes very short, but nothing like the week-long reign of Zimri, one of history’s most ...read more

Scripture: 1 Kings 16:8-20

Tags: Palace Coups, Zimri, Suicides

Denomination: Baptist

[178 ]. A Message From A Poem – Lost Three Things - Lost One Sheep

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Aug 26, 2025

[178 ]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – LOST THREE THINGS - LOST ONE SHEEP What are the best-known parables the Lord Jesus gave? I suppose there could be some debate about that but for me, I think The Prodigal Son, The Sower and The Good Samaritan. The Lost Sheep is near the top. Two of those I have ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 23:1, Psalm 23:4, Luke 15:3-7, John 10:11, John 10:14  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Shepherding, The Lost Sheep, The Shepherd Psalm, One Sheep Lost, Sheep, Search, The Good Shepherd  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[202]. A Message From A Poem – Pictures From A Counting Song - (Part 1)

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Sep 16, 2025

[202]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – PICTURES FROM A COUNTING SONG - (PART 1) THIS IS PART 1 OF THE POEM WITH PART 2 TO FOLLOW IN THE NEXT POSTING. “ONE, TWO, BUCKLE MY SHOE” OR “1, 2, BUCKLE MY SHOE” is a counting song dating back to late 18th century in the USA. It was heard for the first time ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 3:2-5

Tags: Nursery Rhyme, Christian Poems, Wrentham Massachusetts, Christian Application, Counting  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Boy, Oh Boy, What A Day It Was

Contributed by James Snyder on Sep 27, 2025

Dr. James L. Snyder Throughout my years, I have had many crazy days. I guess it's crazy days that develop character. If so, I have a lot of character. I never had a day quite like last week. Everything seemed to go wrong for me. When we got up, our electricity was off. It had been off for ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:13

Tags: Accident, Scam

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

If She Cannot Fix It, It’s Not Broken

Contributed by James Snyder on Oct 4, 2025

Life has its many ups and downs. There are some weeks when there are more downs than ups. But if I didn’t have a down, I probably wouldn’t appreciate an up. This past week was one of those down weeks. One day, we lost our electricity for maybe six hours, my printer died on me and some scammer ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 147:3

Tags: Frustration, Fixing

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

[233]. A Message From A Poem - Remember Me Until I Come

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Oct 21, 2025

[233]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - REMEMBER ME UNTIL I COME This poem was written as a Communion meditation with the view of being a Communion hymn. It uses a Metre 12 in the four lines. I adapted this for another poem based on this one using a Metre 10 that can be sung to various tunes. At the ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 2:20, 1 Corinthians 11:24-26

Tags: Passover, Cup, Remember Me, Christian Poetry, Christian Poems, Until I Come, Communion, Bread, Remember  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

It’s My Pain I’ll Use It If I Want To

Contributed by James Snyder on Nov 1, 2025

When I think I've turned a page to a new chapter in my life, I realize there is nothing new in life. I'm referring to pain. I cannot remember a time in my life when I didn't have some pain. In the years of my naivety, I never imagined that when I got older, I would experience more ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:18

Tags: Tylenol, Pain, Doctors

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Why Are Flies So Attracted To My Nose?

Contributed by James Snyder on Dec 6, 2025

Throughout my life, I have dealt with many "pesky" things that provoke the dickens out of me. I sure do miss those "dickens.” When I think I've got one pesky thing under control, another comes along. I've had so many "pesky" things, but I'm still not a master ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:6-7

Tags: Flies, Aggravation

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Multitasking Is Not My Cup Of Tea

Contributed by James Snyder on Apr 24, 2026

Dr. James L. Snyder Usually, I have a lot of work on my desk, from writing to radio programs. Even though I have many projects, I can only do one at a time. I have often wished I could multitask, which would help me get through many more projects more quickly. But that has never been my style of ...read more

Scripture: James 1:19

Tags: Work, Multitasking

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

[363]. A Message From A Poem – Don’t Follow And Be Aware

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Jun 6, 2026

[363]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – DON’T FOLLOW AND BE AWARE This is a corrupt world and I think that is the general consensus among people, though the non-believers see some things differently. Jesus said something once that is hard to put into practice. {{Matthew 10:16-17 “Behold, I send you out ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:16-17, Luke 16:8, 1 John 4:4, John 17:14-16

Tags: Shrewd, Beware, Imposters, Evil One, Crooks, Unbelievers, Thieves, Aware, Fakes, Rogues, Scammers, Frauds, Cheats, Christian Poems, Phoneys, Beware Of Men  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

One Man's Life Provides A Dramatic Answer To The ...  PRO

Contributed by James Dunn on Mar 12, 2002

One man’s life provides a dramatic answer to the question, can God indeed bring positives out of troubled times? This young man’s name is David, and he is an awesome picture of God’s using difficulties for good. For years he viewed trials as something that affected only his external world, and any ...read more

Scripture: 2 Samuel 2:6, 2 Samuel 6:6

Tags: Growth In Christ, Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Baptist

The Room  PRO

Contributed by Ely Lambert on Aug 19, 2002

The Room In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishing features save for the one wall covered with small index card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, ...read more

Tags: God's Provision, Forgiveness In Jesus

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Parable Of The Good Muslims  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 14, 2002

THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD MUSLIMS It is difficult to imagine more bleak circumstances; the young mother and her small children, truck packed full of all of their belongings, were in process of moving from rural North Carolina to the mother’s childhood home in Connecticut. Life had taken a tragic ...read more

Tags: Parable Good Samaritan, Christian Love, Compassion