In Sermon Illustrations: "Asking"

Parenting "To Make My Child Happy"

Contributed by Kerry O'neill on Mar 12, 2010

PARENTING "TO MAKE MY CHILD HAPPY" Several years ago, I was part of a great church in Omaha, Nebraska that ran a Christian school. When the parents of the students were surveyed and asked "What is your main role as a parent to your child?" the number one response was "To make my child happpy." ...read more

Tags: Happiness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Real Mothers

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on May 3, 2010

REAL MOTHERS Real Mothers don't eat quiche; they don't have time to make it. Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils are probably in the sandbox. Real Mothers often have sticky floors, filthy ovens and happy kids. Real Mothers know that dried Playdoh doesn't come out of shag ...read more

Tags: Mother's Day

Denomination: Pentecostal

Cookie Ingredients And Kids

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 30, 2010

COOKIE INGREDIENTS AND KIDS One time a preacher had a minute with the children before the sermon. He called them up front and he spoke about the ingredients required to make up a church, using a chocolate chip cookie as an example. He explained to the children that, as with a cookie requiring ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:3-8

Tags: Children

The Importance Of Perspective  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 13, 2010

THE IMPORTANCE OF PERSPECTIVE When I think of perspective I am often reminded of a conversation between me and my son in the summer he turned four. That spring, Mark had asked for a spot in the family garden to call his own. He turned the soil, broke the clumps, and planted his favorite ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 55:8-9

Tags: God Brings Hope

Jesus Knocking

Contributed by Kent Kessler on Oct 14, 2010

JESUS KNOCKING A nurse on the Pediatric Ward before listening to the little ones' heart beat would plug the stethoscope into their ears and let them listen to their own hearts. Their eyes would always light up with awe, but she never got a response to equal four-year old David's comment. She ...read more

Tags: Heart

Denomination: Methodist

The Love Of Christ Alone

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 22, 2010

THE LOVE OF CHRIST ALONE When Hudson Taylor was director of the China Inland Mission, he often interviewed candidates for the mission field. On one occasion, he met with a group of applicants to determine their motivations for service. "And why do you wish to go as a foreign missionary?" he asked ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:14

Tags: Missions

Denomination: Brethren

They Didn't Live Happily Ever After

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Dec 4, 2010

THEY DIDN'T LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER For the first time in her life, four year-old Suzie had just been told the story of "Snow White." She could hardly wait to get home from nursery school to tell her mommy. With wide-eyed excitement, she retold the fairy tale to her mother that afternoon. After ...read more

Tags: Marriage General

Denomination: Brethren

Are You Prepared?

Contributed by Jimmy Haile on Sep 25, 2011

ARE YOU PREPARED? One day, a king died. His servants spread the unbelievable news all over the palace. He had died in his bed of natural causes. "Where has he gone?" asked one of the king's wisest counselors "Why, to Heaven of course!" answered all the others. "No", said the other gravely, "I ...read more

Tags: Heaven

Denomination: Baptist

The Free-Food Tree

Contributed by Johnny A. Palmer Jr. on Dec 7, 2011

THE FREE-FOOD TREE One year, a tree on the campus of Green Acres Elementary School, near Santa Cruz, California, bore strange fruit—mostly sandwiches, but sometimes a cookie, a cupcake, an apple or an orange. It came into full bearing from a seed planted by teachers Sophie Farrar and Sandra Enz, ...read more

Tags: Giving General

Denomination: Baptist

The Ultimate

Contributed by Guy Mcgraw on Feb 1, 2012

THE ULTIMATE In the early 1970s the Dallas Cowboys had a star running back named Duane Thomas who was kind of a head case. One year the Cowboys made it to the Super Bowl and someone asked Duane Thomas what he thought about playing in the "ultimate game." He replied "If this is the Ultimate Game, ...read more

Scripture: John 19:30

Tags: Apologetics Jesus

Heaven And The Post Office

Contributed by Ken Henson on Jul 5, 2012

HEAVEN AND THE POST OFFICE When I was a teenager, we went to a meeting with Billy Graham in a high school football stadium. There were probably 20,000 people sitting in the bleachers in the cold of the morning to hear Billy Graham. And he related a story about how he arrived in a small village ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:1-9

Tags: Children, Heaven, Preaching, Billy Graham

Denomination: *other

The Woman And Acts 2:38

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 1, 2014

THE WOMAN AND ACTS 2:38 An elderly woman had just returned to her home from a church service when she was startled by an intruder. As she caught the man in the act of robbing her home of its valuables, she yelled, "Stop--Acts 2:38!" (..repent, turn from your sin..".). The burglar stopped dead ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:38

Tags: Prayer, Repent, Humor

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Gold, Frankincense, & Myrrh

Contributed by Gerald Manning on Dec 21, 2015

The little boy was no more than seven years old. It was time for Church, and he wanted to take his teddy bear, whom he had always called Frank. His parents protested, but he insisted that he had to take Frank, today, and they finally relented. When the offering plates were passed, he put the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:11

Tags: Offering, Giving, Tithing

Denomination: Nazarene

How To Persuade A Burglar

Contributed by Larry Hinkle on Jun 12, 2020

An elderly Widow woke in the middle of the night, alerted by a noise> She tiptoed down steps to discover she had a Burglar in her home. She shouted at the intruder, “Stop in the name of the Lord, repent for the forgiveness of your sins. Acts 2:38!” the burglar immediately froze, raised both arms ...read more

Scripture: John 16:8, Acts 2:38, Hebrews 9:14

Tags: Persuasion, Communication, Conscience, Conviction

Denomination: Methodist

Prayer

Contributed by Roy Fowler on Sep 13, 2020

This statement is many times use as a stand alone statement without regards to the actual meaning. When the context has to be considered and an understanding of who God is and his teachings are most important. A famous Bible scholar John Gill puts it this way: For whatever is asked in faith, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 21:22

Tags: Faith, Prayer

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Cheeful Giver

Contributed by Rev. Duraimony Dickson on Nov 20, 2020

A missionary in Africa was preaching his first sermon in a mission church. When time came for the offering, the people danced their offerings forward. They danced and sang praise to God as they brought their offerings to the altar. For they were “coming before God's presence with ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:7

Tags: Cheerful Giving, Dancing

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

When A Bar Had More Faith Than The Church!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 8, 2022

DO YOU BELIEVE IN PRAYER? A tale is told about a small town that had historically been “dry,” but then a local businessman decided to build a bar. A group of believers from a local church were concerned and planned an all-night prayer meeting to ask God to intervene. It just so happened that ...read more

Tags: Church, Prayer, Humor, Jokes

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Language Deficit

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Mar 9, 2022

. As families become more dysfunctional, social skills decline. A number of school counselors are noting a rise in “language deficit.” Some parents rarely converse with their children but use the television as a nanny. The result: children recognize but do not grasp the meaning of COMMON words. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29-32

Tags: Communication, Speech, Talking, Social Skills, Language Skills  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Senator Mark Hatfield, Former Governor Of Oregon ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Senator Mark Hatfield, former Governor of Oregon and U.S. Senator for 30 years visited India and toured Calcutta with Mother Teresa. They visited the so-called "House of Dying," where sick children are cared for in their last days, and the dispensary, where the poor line up by the hundreds to ...read more

Tags: Parable Shrewd Manager

There Was A Man Living In The Hills Of Arkansas ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

There was a man living in the hills of Arkansas who was brought to Christ. He was known as “Mr. Moonshine” because of the many LIQUOR STILLS that he had hidden away back in the HILLS. After becoming a Christian, his life CHANGED dramatically. He DESTROYED all of his STILLS and POURED out all of ...read more

Tags: Joy