In Sermon Illustrations: "Be Ready" showing 581-600 of 1,231

The Cocoon  PRO

Contributed by Dennis Jones on May 19, 2003

THE COCOON A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could ...read more

Tags: Endurance, Faith

Denomination: Pentecostal

I Remember When I First Started Training To Be A ...  PRO

Contributed by Bruce Morrison on May 26, 2003

I remember when I first started training to be a pilot. I was a young pastor and lived in Labrador in the north east part of Canada. The church purchased a bush plane to be used for outreach in parts of the region where there were no churches of any kind so I needed to learn to fly. On my very ...read more

Tags: Knowing God's Will, Doing God's Will, Change

Denomination: Independent/Bible

In 1955, President David Eisenhower Was In ...

Contributed by James O. Davis on Oct 30, 2003

In 1955, President David Eisenhower was in Denver, Colorado, for a few days of business. In the Saturday morning newspaper, one of the president’s aids read a letter to the editor from a teenaged boy with cancer, named Paul Hailey, who expressed his dream of someday, somehow, someway meeting the ...read more

Tags: Second Coming

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Flying A Plane Down  PRO

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Jul 6, 2004

FLYING A PLANE DOWN Robert and his pilot friend Wesley went for a flying trip from Indianapolis to Muncie, Indiana, in June 1998. During the flight, his pilot had a heart attack and slumped over the controls. He was dead. The Cessna 172 single-engine plane began to nosedive and Robert grabbed ...read more

Denomination: Independent/Bible

During World War Ii, A Passenger Ship Set Sail ...

Contributed by David Elvery on Nov 14, 2004

During World War II, a passenger ship set sail from Great Britian headed for port in New York City. The Captain of the ship being afraid of enemy vessels, sought the advise and guidance of the British Admiral. The Admiral calmly assured the captain that no matter what happens, he should be sure ...read more

Tags: God's Provision

Denomination: Baptist

What You Don't Know Can Get You Hurt! In Texas ...  PRO

Contributed by Ed Wood on Jun 10, 2005

What you don’t know can get you hurt! In Texas there once lived a Mexican bank robber named Jorge Rodriquez. He had been so successful that the Texas Rangers put a whole posse on his trail. For months they tried to catch him as he slipped across the Rio Grande. Finally a ranger cornered Jorge in a ...read more

Tags: Gifts General, Gifts Discernment

Denomination: Baptist

A Father Told The Story Of His Son's First ...  PRO

Contributed by Klaus Mehrl on Jul 10, 2005

A father told the story of his son’s first serious conflict at school. His boy was being picked on by three bullies. They would punch him, push his bike over, and generally made his life miserable. They told him that they’d meet him the next morning before school and beat him up. That evening the ...read more

Tags: Temptation General, Temptation Resisting

Denomination: Lutheran

Instruments Of Grace In His Service  PRO

Contributed by John White on Aug 15, 2005

InstrumentsOf Grace In His Service The grace of God can  turn problems to patience, vexation to victory and tragedy to triumph.   The same pressure that can cause a destructive explosion can be harnessed to drive the wheels of progress.   Pressure usually produces and the production can be good or ...read more

Tags: Peace, Character

Denomination: Baptist

Baptizing A Drunk  PRO

Contributed by Paul Wallace on Oct 12, 2005

BAPTIZING A DRUNK A man was stumbling through the woods, totally drunk, when he came upon a preacher baptizing people in the river. He proceeded to walk into the water and bumped into the preacher. The preacher turned around and, though almost overcome by the smell of alcohol, asked the drunk, ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:8

Tags: Others, Peace, Peanut Butter, People, Lose, Loser, Love, Knowledge, Love Heart, Mistakes, Kids, Shortcut, Prayer, Succeed, Success, Successful, Time Is At Hand, Storm, Transformation, Trial, Tribulation, Witness, Finding God, Baptism, Accept Jesus, Children, Child  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Wesleyan

During The Middle Ages There Was A Popular Story ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 9, 2005

During the Middle Ages there was a popular story which circulated about Martin of Tours, the saint for whom Martin Luther was named. It was said that Satan once appeared to St Martin in the guise of the Savior himself. St. Martin was ready to fall to his feet and worship this resplendent being of ...read more

Tags: Kingdom Of God

According To James Hamilton, There Are Two Kinds ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2005

According to James Hamilton, there are two kinds of Bible readers—those who skim the surface and those who dig deep. He describes them by comparing them to two common insects. He writes, “One is remarkable for its imposing plumage, which shows in the sunbeams like the dust of gems; as you watch ...read more

Tags: Bible Study

According To An Old Fable, A Man Made An Unusual ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 20, 2005

According to an old fable, a man made an unusual agreement with Death. He told the Grim Reaper that he would willingly accompany him when it came time to die, but only on one condition—that Death would send a messenger well in advance to warn him. Weeks winged away into months, and months into ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:1-6

Tags: Death Nearness

Eliminate The Little Sins

Contributed by Scott Sharpes on Apr 12, 2006

Eliminate the Little Sins (7) When a person becomes a Christian, he usually undergoes some radical life changes, especially if he has had an immoral background. Through the first steps of spiritual growth and self-denial, he gets rid of the large, obvious sins. But sad to say, many believers stop ...read more

Tags: Evangelism The Lost

Denomination: Nazarene

I Was Working In A Hospital In The ...

Contributed by Randall Mitchell, Sr. on Jun 1, 2007

ILLUSTRATION: I was working in a hospital in the Facility Safety Department as the night supervisor. I received a call from the E.R. nurse that they needed someone to watch a patient in one of the rooms. The man wanted to leave because, as he said, "I just have a scratch." The man couldn’t see ...read more

Denomination: Pentecostal

Houston Pastor John Bisagno ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

ILLUSTRATION Houston pastor John Bisagno describes a time when his daughter Melody, age five, came to him and asked for a doll house. John promptly nodded and promised to build her one, then he went back to reading his book. Soon he glanced out the study window and saw her arms filled with ...read more

Tags: Faith

Grim Reaper

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Grim Reaper According to an old fable, a man made an unusual agreement with Death. He told the Grim Reaper that he would willingly accompany him when it came time to die, but only on one condition—that Death would send a messenger well in advance to warn him. Weeks passed into months, and months ...read more

Tags: Death

As Time Passed, However, The Inevitable ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

As time passed, however, the inevitable occurred. They began to lose and lose and lose. The blame fell, at least in part, not on Coach George Allen, but on a quarterback named Sonny Jurgenson, in my opinion one of the most gifted and effective quarterbacks to ever play the game. Jurgenson possesses ...read more

Tags: Leadership General

The Year Was 1992 I Was Playing Baseball At ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

The year was 1992 I was playing baseball at Campbell (the fighting camels). I was playing shortstop a position I had played for about 13 years. I was fielding balls keeping my bottom down and I have to admit I thought I was a pretty good fielder. Yet all my life I had struggled with my batting. It ...read more

Tags: Guilt

Dr. Adrian Rogers Tells, "Before The Late And ...

Contributed by Dr. Franklin Kirksey on Jul 3, 2007

Dr. Adrian Rogers tells, "Before the late and great Dr. R.G. Lee died I was in his home with Billy Graham, Cliff Barrows, and Tommy Lane, our minister of music at Bellevue Church. Dr. Lee was one of my predecessors at Bellevue, considered perhaps the best preacher of the twentieth century and one ...read more

Tags: Apostles General

Denomination: Baptist

Haddon Robinson Tells The Story Of Young Chinese ...  PRO

Contributed by Timothy Smith on Aug 3, 2007

Haddon Robinson tells the story of young Chinese boy who wanted to learn all about jade. He went to an old teacher who specialized in the beautiful gem and asked him to teach him. The old man agreed. In lesson 1 the old man placed a piece of the precious stone into the young man’s hand and told him ...read more

Denomination: Christian Church