In Sermon Illustrations: "Development"

Letting Children Free To ...

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Dec 8, 2008

Letting Children Free to Develop? I’ve used this illustration before, but I think it speaks so well as to the nature of guidance and children: A Gentleman was once talking with a man who told him that he did not believe in giving little children any moral instruction whatsoever. His theory was ...read more

Tags: Parenting

Denomination: Other

Payer Is The Strongest Form Of Abiding That There ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

Payer is the strongest form of abiding that there is. -- A retired teacher was giving her little nephew some help with his schools work. He was normally a good, attentive child, but on this occasion he could not fix his mind on his work. Suddenly he said, "Aunt Sally, may I kneel down and ask God ...read more

Tags: Prayer General

The Dreamer Was A Favorite Son. (Vv. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

The dreamer was a Favorite son. (Vv. 3-7) The Bible tells us that Joseph was loved more than all his children because he was the son of his old age. When Joseph’s brethren saw that he was loved more than they were, they hated him and could not speak peaceably unto him. The coat of many colors ...read more

Tags: Ot Characters

Prayer Is The Strongest Form Of Abiding That ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 27, 2008

Prayer is the strongest form of abiding that there is. -- A retired teacher was giving her little nephew some help with his schools work. He was normally a good, attentive child, but on this occasion he could not fix his mind on his work. Suddenly he said, "Aunt Sally, may I kneel down and ask God ...read more

Tags: Prayer General

The Dreamer Was A Favorite Son. (Vv. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

The dreamer was a Favorite son. (Vv. 3-7) The Bible tells us that Joseph was loved more than all his children because he was the son of his old age. When Joseph’s brethren saw that he was loved more than they were, they hated him and could not speak peaceably unto him. The coat of many colors ...read more

Tags: Ot Characters

A Pastor Friend Was Telling Me About Two Men In ...

Contributed by Ed Sasnett on Jul 8, 2010

A pastor friend was telling me about two men in his church who are stricken with Alzheimer’s. One man is a retired pastor. He and his wife still attend church. Sometimes it takes this retired pastor longer than usual to say something. My friend spoke of being patient with him as they ...read more

Tags: Servanthood

Denomination: Baptist

Philadelphia 11 Fighting Pa "Hate Crimes" Law

Contributed by Larry Wilson on Jul 13, 2010

'Philadelphia 11' fighting PA "hate crimes" law Attorneys for 11 Philadelphia-area Christians arrested and charged with felonies after protesting at a homosexual event will announce new developments in the case tomorrow and will show a videotape of the controversial arrests. As WorldNetDaily ...read more

Tags: Homosexuality

Denomination: Baptist

Pull Up The Roots Of Bad Habits Early  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 2, 2010

PULL UP THE ROOTS OF BAD HABITS EARLY A wise old tutor was once taking a stroll through a forest with a curious youth. The tutor suddenly stopped and pointed to four plants close by. The first was a tiny sprout, just coming out of the earth. The second had rooted itself quite firmly in the fertile ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 15:7-20

Tags: Character

Patience And Jell-O

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 6, 2011

PATIENCE AND JELL-O Jell-O celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1997. I was fascinated to read the story of the man who invented it. In 1897, a man by the name of Pearle Wait wore several hats. He was a construction worker. He dabbled in patent medicines and went door to door selling homemade ...read more

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 12:32

Tags: Christian Values

Open Table Ministry

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012

OPEN TABLE MINISTRY Open Table started with a chance encounter with a homeless man named Ernie who simply asked a youth group serving him a meal if he could come worship at their church. The adult youth workers were moved to agree to come the very next day to bring Ernie to their church service. ...read more

Tags: Action

Denomination: Methodist

The Story Of Open Table

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012

THE STORY OF OPEN TABLE Open Table started with a chance encounter with a homeless man named Ernie who simply asked a youth group serving him a meal if he could come worship at their church. The adult youth workers were moved to agree to come the very next day to bring Ernie to their church ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

Persuaded By The Mail

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 11, 2014

"I GIVE UP!" In the early 1960s, the publishers of Time Magazine were concerned about their declining circulation, so they designed a campaign to send out thousands of letters making an emotional appeal to potential subscribers. In the past, such mailings had been done manually, at a great cost in ...read more

Scripture: John 3:16-17

Tags: God's Love, Surrender, Persuasion

Various Studies Conducted By Yale, John Hopkins ...  PRO

Contributed by Steve Malone on May 15, 2001

Various studies conducted by Yale, John Hopkins and other groups have documented the following; The absence of a father is a stronger factor than poverty in contributing to juvenile delinquency. In 48 cultures around the world crime rates were highest among adults who as children had been raised ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Tags: Parenting, Father's Day, Family

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

My Daughter Served As A Camp Counselor This ...  PRO

Contributed by Sheila Crowe on Aug 26, 2003

My daughter served as a camp counselor this summer. It is a camp in which there are several camps contained in one location. She was a gap counselor and therefore served in several different ones. One camp is called Camp Sparrowood. It is a camp for the mentally challenged ages 8-99. She was ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 2:20

Tags: Love Of The Disciples, Discipleship

Denomination: United Methodist

So I'm Going To Share With You A List I Came Up ...  PRO

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Jan 10, 2007

So I’m going to share with you a list I came up with of Seven steps guaranteed to embitter your Children: 1. Discipline your child only when you lose your temper. Let him get away with everything, then without warning, let ‘em have it! Blow your top! Scream and Yell! Let ‘er Rip! Go Crazy! ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:4, Colossians 3:21

Tags: Children, Call, Leadership

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Prayer Works  PRO

Contributed by David Yarbrough on Oct 15, 2001

PRAYER WORKS The researchers at Columbia University conducted a study with 199 women at an in vitro fertilization clinic in Korea. Unknown to the patients and their doctors, groups of strangers from the US, Canada, and Australia were asked to pray for their success in getting pregnant. Pictures ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:12

Tags: Gifts Healing, Prayer Adoration, Prayer Answered

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

In Leadership Magazine, Dave Wilkinson Writes The ...  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Jan 23, 2002

In Leadership magazine, Dave Wilkinson writes the following to pastors… Have you ever wondered why your pastoral resume doesn’t evoke more enthusiasm? Do you ever think, "What are these people looking for?" Perhaps the question should be, "What aren’t they looking for?" because with the numbers of ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:2-3

Tags: Leadership General, Sacrifice

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Hugging Is The Answer!  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 8, 2002

HUGGING IS THE ANSWER! Perhaps I feel this way because my wife is affectionately known as "The Happy Hugger." If it’s moving she’ll stop it and hug it, and if it’s not moving she’ll dust it off and sell it! However, there’s another reason I believe hugging is the answer. According to Greg ...read more

Tags: Christian Love

How To Turn A Disagreement Into A Feud

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Jun 12, 2001

How to turn a disagreement into a feud: 1. Be sure to develop and maintain a healthy fear of conflict, letting your own feelings build up so you are in an explosive frame of mind. 2. If you must state your concerns, be as vague and general as possible. Then the other person cannot do anything ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Anger, Dealing With Conflicts

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Several Years Ago There Was A Well-Known ...  PRO

Contributed by John Williams Iii on Sep 26, 2001

"Several years ago there was a well-known television circus show that developed a Bengal tiger act. Like the rest of the show, it was done "live" before a live audience, One evening, the tiger trainer went into the cage with several tigers to do a routine performance. The door was locked behind ...read more

Tags: Examples Of Faith, Faith

Denomination: United Methodist