In Sermon Illustrations: "Feeling Down"

All By Myself?

Contributed by Perry Greene on Dec 27, 2011

ALL BY MYSELF? The story is told of an old lady who had moved to the United States from Europe when she was a child, but now she wanted to officially become a citizen of this country. After months of going through all the necessary red tape, she was finally ready to take the required ...read more

Tags: Confidence

Denomination: Independent/Bible

The Connected Life

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Apr 10, 2012

THE CONNECTED LIFE In his novel, Edge of Eternity, Randy Alcorn has the main character, Nick, reflect upon how different things are now that He has encountered the risen, reigning Lord Jesus Christ. "I remembered now why I'd stopped looking at the stars. They made me feel so lonely, so ...read more

Tags: Self

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Where Was God On 9/11?

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 13, 2012

WHERE WAS GOD ON 9/11? In his article, "Ten Years Later", R.C. Sproul said: "A full decade has passed since America suffered the tragedy of 9/11. Ten years ago, I repeatedly heard the question raised: 'Where was God in all of this? Where was God on 9/11 when the planes crashed into the twin towers ...read more

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 20:6-9, 2 Chronicles 20:15-17

Tags: God In The Hardships

The Nfl...a Moral Compass?

Contributed by Robert Harmon on Oct 4, 2014

How would you like to have the NFL as your moral compass? Last week, we were hammered by reports about Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson and how the NFL was responding (or not responding) to the allegations of abuse. Tabloids, Social Media, and ESPN have been overloaded with their stories and many ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:24-27

Tags: Firm Foundation, Becoming Like Christ, Nfl

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Nearness Of God

Contributed by Bruce Lee on Jun 9, 2015

Acts 17:27 says, "He is not far from each of us." A little boy and his sister were playing outside. The boy said something ugly to his sister. She said, "God hears what you say." The boy said, "No, God didn’t hear me He is to far away." That’s how many people think of God. So, we rely upon our own ...read more

Scripture: Acts 17:27

Tags: Wisdom, Strength, Nearness Of God, Self-Reliance

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

When God Speaks

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jul 7, 2016

WHEN GOD SPEAKS Did you hear about the old golfer who was standing in front of the first tee, a hazardous hole with a green surrounded by water, and wondering if he should use his new golf ball? Deciding that the hole was too dangerous, he chose an old ball that he could afford to lose and placed ...read more

Scripture: John 10:28-30

Tags: The Good Shepherd, Voice Of God, Will Of God, Hearing God

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Awesome Achievement (Moffatt's Law)

Contributed by Andrew Moffatt on Jan 31, 2018

Awesome achievement And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - Paul. (1 Corinthians 13:13) Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians writes about love in chapter thirteen, but he finishes the chapter by mentioning two other powerful things, ...read more

Tags: Achievement, Confident Belief, Faith, Love, Law, Hope, Action  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Salvation Army

Helping People Help Themselves

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 24, 2019

From Parade magazine comes the story of self-made millionaire Eugene Land, who greatly changed the lives of a sixth-grade class in East Harlem. Mr. Lang had been asked to speak to a class of 59 sixth-graders. What could he say to inspire these students, most of whom would drop out of school? He ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 1:4-8, Revelation 1:17-18

Tags: Wise Generosity, Benevolance, Help, Success

Denomination: Independent/Bible

The Boat

Contributed by Dr John Singarayar Svd on May 13, 2021

A seeker decides to meditate alone, away from his place. He takes his boat out to the middle of the lake, moors it there, closes his eyes and begins his meditation. After a few hours of undisturbed silence, he suddenly feels the bump of another boat colliding with his own. With his eyes still ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 8:23-27

Tags: Anger, Boat

Denomination: Other

Cloudy Days

Contributed by Dr. Ronald Shultz on Sep 18, 2021

My wife told me about a dream where she is looking up at a cloudy sky with two arms sticking through the clouds and says, I love you. The arms sign back to her, "I love you." I am cautious about dreams and interpretations because most are just our brains doing what we call in the IT ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 13:5

Tags: Dark, Alone, Cloud, Silence, Sile, Arms, Love, Heart  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Narrow Definition Of Neighbor

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 20, 2022

With their passion for definition, Jewish Rabbis sought to define who a man's "neighbor" was. They confined the word "neighbor" to include only their fellow Jews. For instance, some of them said that it was illegal to help a Gentile woman in her time of childbirth for ...read more

Tags: Kindness, Good Samaritan, Levites, Priests, Rabbis, Parable, Neighbor  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Sowing And Reaping

Contributed by John Bright on Mar 20, 2026

I want to remind you of a basic truth of Scripture - the Law of Sowing and Reaping that we read about in Galatians 6:7: “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” I always illustrate this with the same example: if I plant an apple tree, can I expect ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7

Tags: Peace, Sowing, Reaping

Denomination: Methodist

Don't Be Afraid!

Contributed by John Bright on Mar 20, 2026

Another book I would recommend is “The Screwtape Letters” (1942) by C.S. Lewis. This is from the preface: “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and ...read more

Scripture: Jude 1:8-10, 1 Peter 2:10-13

Tags: Holy Spirit, Satan, Cs Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

Denomination: Methodist

The Great Wall Of China Is A Gigantic Structure ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 21, 2005

The Great Wall of China is a gigantic structure which cost an immense amount of money and labor. When it was finished, it appeared impregnable. But the enemy breached it. Not by breaking it down or going ...read more

Tags: Sin Deceptive

Todd Peterson: 12-Year Nfl Kicker Now Playing For ...  PRO

Contributed by Mickey Bell on Dec 28, 2005

Todd Peterson: 12-year NFL kicker now playing for the Atlanta Falcons said this about why he shares his faith. ”It just comes down to ...read more

Tags: Grace

Denomination: Baptist

Twixters, 20-Somethings Caught Between Youth And ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 27, 2006

Twixters, 20-somethings caught between youth and adulthood, as a generation is more interested in job satisfaction than in settling down. The driving question in their lives: “What ...read more

Tags: Workplace

I Am Convinced That All Writers Are Optimists ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 11, 2007

"I am convinced that all writers are optimists whether they concede the point or not . . . How otherwise could any human being sit down to a pile of blank sheets and decide ...read more

Tags: Books And Literature

The Problem With Defending The Purity Of The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"The problem with defending the purity of the English language is thatit not only borrows words from other languages; it has on occasion chased other languages down dark alley-ways, ...read more

Tags: Communication General

A Good Conscience Is More To Be Desired Than ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"A good conscience is more to be desired than all the riches of the East. How sweet are the slumbers of him who can lie down on his pillow, and review the transactions of the day ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 17:3-5

Tags: Character

Stop Procrastinating I Have Only To See Those ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"Stop procrastinating I have only to see those words and Im jerked into starting immediately, because I know only too well from personal experience ...read more

Tags: Productivity