Contributed by C Jordan on Mar 24, 2008
ILLUSTRATION: Some time ago I saw a painting of an old burned-out mountain shack. All that remained was the chimney...the charred debris of what had been that family’s sole possession. In front of this destroyed home stood an old grandfather-looking man dressed only in his underclothes with a
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*other
Contributed by Todd Leupold on Nov 3, 2008
Timothy J. Keller, Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC, remarks:
"...when Jesus weeps, we see that he doesn't believe that the ministry of truth (telling people how they should believe and turn to God) or the ministry of fixing things is enough, does he? He also is a proponent of the
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Baptist
Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 6, 2006
based on 2 ratings
| 2,070 views
Mega Church Growth Slows: A new study by Scott Thumma, Hartford Seminary, indicates that after 20 years of rapid growth, churches of more than 2000 members, growth has markedly slowed. There are approximately 500 such mega churches in the U.S. and nearly all have a conservative theological
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Contributed by Derrick Tuper on Jun 11, 2010
Jim went to church on Sunday morning. He heard the organist miss a note during the prelude, and he winced. He saw a teenager talking when everybody was supposed to bow in prayer. He felt like the usher was watching to see what he put in the offering plate and it made him boil. He noticed the
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Christian/Church Of Christ
Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 26, 2007
based on 6 ratings
| 3,505 views
Tony Campolo tells a story about being in a church in Oregon where he was asked to pray for a man who had cancer. Campolo prayed boldly for the man’s healing.
That next week he got a telephone call from the man’s wife. She said, "You prayed for my husband. He had cancer." Campolo thought when he
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Contributed by David Smith on Apr 21, 2005
A guy called David Randolph spoke about a time when he was in Milan in Italy, and was watching a circus parade moving through the streets. Suddenly one of the elephants veered off and marched into a church. The church doors were large, and were open because of the summer heat. So the elephant
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Episcopal/Anglican
based on 3 ratings
| 2,580 views
In his Alpha Talk “What About the Church,” Nicky Gumbel tells this story about John Wimber, the founding pastor of the Anaheim Vineyard Christian Fellowship and the Worldwide Vineyard Movement: “John Wimber was once approached by a member of his congregation who had met somebody in great need.
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Methodist
In a previous church I served, we had a young couple in our congregation whose names were Barry and Cindy, and both Barry and Cindy were blind. This was an impressive young couple who managed to live a normal life despite their disability. They maintained their own apartment, held down jobs,
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Presbyterian/Reformed
Contributed by D. Greg Ebie on Oct 29, 2003
based on 1 rating
| 1,769 views
Many of you will probably recognize this song. “It make you want to go where everybody know your name, and they’re always glad you came. You wanna be where you can see our troubles are all the same. You wanna be where everybody knows your name.” The theme song for the 80’s TV sitcom “Cheers”
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Assembly Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jan 8, 2009
"TRUDGE"
The word "trudge" gives us a definite picture. We trudge through snow. It is laborious walk. It is tiring. It takes work. It seems to me to be rather unmotivated. Sometimes doing what is right seems like trudging. Sometimes doing what we need to do is not glamorous and exciting. Sometimes
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Church Of God
Contributed by Dana Chau on Jul 1, 2003
based on 13 ratings
| 3,745 views
Sometime ago Time Magazine ran an article that reported on the benefits of religion and the church, and some of the observations included:
1. Heart-surgery patients who draw comfort from their religious faith have a significantly higher survival rate than those who do not.
2. The blood pressure of
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*other
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 21, 2009
based on 1 rating
| 1,706 views
So often, it seems like people and even churches want grace without responsibility. With forgiveness comes a responsibility to be forgiving. Our response comes through the ability to confess our love to Jesus and confess our shortcomings, our flaws, and our sins. It is the response to grace that
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Church Of God
Contributed by Andrew Chan on Mar 22, 2002
based on 99 ratings
| 1,949 views
Bill Wilson pastors an inner city church in New York City. His mission field is a very violent place. He himself has been stabbed twice as he ministered to the people of the community surrounding the church. Once a Puerto Rican woman became involved in the church and was led to Christ. After her
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Evangelical Free
Contributed by Jim Dillinger on Jun 5, 2003
based on 2 ratings
| 1,862 views
Muynak was once a thriving port on the Aral Sea, but today it sits on the edge of a bitter, salty desert. Sand dunes are strewn with the rusted, hollow hulls of a fishing fleet that once sailed high above on the surface of Central Asia’s fountain of life.
Things began changing 30 years ago when
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Christian/Church Of Christ
Contributed by Wayne Burnett on Jan 15, 2001
based on 170 ratings
| 3,934 views
Life’s a little thing! Robert Browning once wrote. But a little thing can mean a life. Even two lives. How well I remember. Two years ago in downtown Denver my friend, Scott Reasoner, and I saw something tiny and insignificant change the world, but no one else even seemed to notice. It was one of
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Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Beaird on Nov 2, 2000
based on 84 ratings
| 2,152 views
A school teacher lost her life savings in a business scheme that had been elaborately explained by a swindler. When her investment disappeared and her dream was shattered, she went to the Better Business Bureau. "Why on earth didn’t you come to us first?" the official asked. "Didn’t you know about
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Denomination:
Pentecostal