Contributed by Don Jones on Jan 7, 2007
There was a young pastor fresh out of seminary. Had finally gotten called to his first church and was extremely excited. He had 3 years of fresh new ideas and he couldn’t wait to take over so he could show and tell the church what to do.
The first Sunday he stood before the church and gave
...read more
Denomination:
Baptist
based on 2 ratings
| 1,278 views
My first pastoral appointment was the Marissa and Zion United Methodist Charge in St. Clair County, Illinois, about forty miles southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Zion had only three members and no electricity or running water. In past decades light had been provided in the sanctuary by kerosene,
...read more
Denomination:
Methodist
Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008
based on 34 ratings
| 4,743 views
Spiritual Health Checks
(True Devotions)
Rick Warren wrote, "The key for churches in the 21st Century will be church health, not growth." When a congregation is healthy, it will grow spiritually and enjoy the benefits of a live, vibrant relationship with Jesus Christ. A healthy Christian
...read more
Scripture:
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 11, 2009
based on 1 rating
| 1,939 views
"THAT'S JUST DENNY."
John Ortberg tells of a man in a church he once pastored whom he called Denny. Denny was not a happy man. He had attended church his whole life, but he had never been happy. Even the expression on his face was perpetually negative - so much so that one day a deacon asked him,
...read more
Tags:
Contributed by Richard Mcnair on Nov 4, 2004
based on 1 rating
| 3,040 views
Ignorance is bliss! Maybe I should say innocence is bliss. A world of rich possibilities and dreams carry many young people from high school graduation to attend college and eventually a career. These innocent minds leave home and if they aren’t already, they are seduced into allowing their
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Baptist
Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 1, 2001
based on 242 ratings
| 3,303 views
I heard about an African-American who tried to attend a church. Sadly, the church wouldn’t even let him attend a service.
The pastor said, "You just need to pray about it."
About three weeks later the pastor saw him and asked, "Did you talk to the Lord about it?"
The man said,
...read more
Tags:
Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 27, 2006
based on 6 ratings
| 2,970 views
Friendship Factor" A new Gallup study commissioned by Group Publishing shows that people with close friendships in their church are very satisfied with their congregation, less likely to leave their place of worship, and have a strong friendship with God. Church members who have a best friend at
...read more
Tags:
Contributed by Maurice Schaus on Feb 11, 2008
based on 1 rating
| 2,254 views
There’s a story in Greek mythology about a young man named Narcissus. He was a beautiful young man, and he knew it. One day Narcissus saw his reflection in a stream, and he instantly fell in love with the reflected image of himself. What he saw staring back at him from the water was so beautiful
...read more
Denomination:
Lutheran
Contributed by Spencer Cunnah on Oct 4, 2002
based on 49 ratings
| 2,441 views
Th Lord is a personal God and there are some ministries for which He has no deputies because He wants to do them Himself. He is the One who cares for His people.
Illustration.
I remember coming home the first time from university. My mother came up as I was ready to go to bed and asked :
Son, are
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Independent/Bible
Contributed by Paul Fritz on Oct 18, 2000
based on 4 ratings
| 1,920 views
Self-righteous service comes through human effort. True service comes from a relationship with the divine Other deep inside.
Self-righteous service is impressed with the "big deal." True service finds it almost impossible to distinguish the small from the large service.
Self-righteous service
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Jan 28, 2007
Adrian Dieleman tells the story of one man’s transformation: “Oscar Cervantes is a dramatic example of the Spirit’s power to transform lives. As a child, Oscar began to get into trouble. Then as he got older, he was jailed 17 times for brutal crimes. Prison psychiatrists said he was beyond
...read more
Denomination:
Methodist
Contributed by Jim Kane on May 18, 2009
There were two brothers named John and Charles. They grew up in a religious home. They believed there was a God. They had religious training. One even became a minister.
But it was not until their 30’s or so, did they truly have their hearts, as one of them put it, ‘strangely warmed.’ That heart
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Feb 22, 2010
I'm now just another number in the system of "New Start". I made a phone call for Unemployment Benefits yesterday, while I am looking for a ministry opportunity. It took me a long time to get through and I was asked by a computer a series of questions before speaking personally to someone. Then the
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Evangelical/Non-Denominational
Sermon Central