In Sermon Illustrations: "Growth"

Once At A Meeting, Some Young People Were ...  PRO

Contributed by Melvin Shelton on Jul 26, 2003

Once at a meeting, some young people were discussing the text, “ye are the salt of the earth.” They were suggesting uses of salt, and the meaning. Salt gives flavor to food. It preserves food to keep it from decaying. Then one girl said, salt makes ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:13, Matthew 5:13

Tags: Growth In Christ, Basics Of Christianity, Sharing Your Faith

Denomination: Baptist

Don't Sit On Me, Lord!  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Feb 24, 2005

"DON'T SIT ON ME, LORD!" Romans 6:8-14 Key verse(s): 6: "For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the bod of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin...” There are many things that a dog does not like. Chief among them for many dogs is the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 6:8-14

Tags: Disciplines, Holiness, Holy Spirit Attributes, Growth, Sanctification  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Lutheran

Things I Have Learned From Gardening  PRO

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 10, 2010

THINGS I HAVE LEARNED FROM GARDENING • Nothing ever looks like it does on the seed packet. • Your lawn is always slightly bigger than your desire to mow it. • Whichever garden tool you want is always at the back of the shed. • The only way to ensure rain, is to give the garden a good soaking. ...read more

Tags: Creation, Growth, Discipleship, New Life, Church Planting  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Brethren

In The Recent Summer Games (2012), Kim Rhode Won ...  PRO

Contributed by Kelly Mitchell on Aug 11, 2012

In the recent Summer Games (2012), Kim Rhode won the gold medal in skeet shooting making her the first American to win 5 olympic medals in 5 consecutive olympic games. That’s a span of 20 years and not her only distinction. In the 2012 games, she hit 99 out of 100 skeet setting a new Olympic ...read more

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 9:24-27

Tags: Preparation, Commitment To Christ, Disciplines General, Growth In Christ

Denomination: Baptist

Emily's 9-5 Struggle

Contributed by Jung Lee on Jan 19, 2024

Emily, a young woman from the MZ generation, recently started her career with a standard 9-5 job. She quickly finds herself feeling trapped and miserable in this routine. Every morning, the thought of going to work at 9 AM and staying until 5 PM feels unbearable to her. She often voices her ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:17-22

Tags: Letting Go, Spiritual Growth, Comfort, Purpose, Danger  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Augustine's 3 Stages Of Dealing With Sin

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 22, 2024

Augustine's three stages of dealing with sin in the life of a believer: STAGE ONE -- "Lord make me good, but not yet!" STAGE TWO - "Lord, make me good, but not ...read more

Tags: Sanctification, Sin, Growth, Discipleship, Understanding, Maturity, Self  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

How Does The Branch Bear Fruit? Not By ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 11, 2007

"How does the branch bear fruit? Not by incessant effort for sunshine and air, not by vain strugglesIt simply abides in the vine, in silent and undisturbed union, and blossoms and fruit appear as of spontaneous growth. How then shall a Christian bear fruit? By efforts and struggles to obtain that ...read more

Tags: Character

Material Gains Are Not Enough

Contributed by Dave Kinney on Jul 26, 2009

MATERIAL GAINS ARE NOT ENOUGH William Bennett is a great American, Secretary of Education, and a compelling writer. He wrote in wrote in his best seller, America: The Last Best Hope, "Material gains will never be enough for America, if we achieve full employment, have great economic growth, have ...read more

Tags: Worldliness

Denomination: Baptist

Social Researcher Icon, Daniel Yankelovich, Is ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 6, 2006

Social researcher icon, Daniel Yankelovich, is quoted Forbes, “The culture of affluence is fading now. It’s being replace by a new interest in the spiritual side of life. Its yearning that has nothing to do with church and sectarianism, but with a search for why the so-called material good life ...read more

Tags: God Brings Hope

Global Religion: According To Idea News Service, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 27, 2006

Global Religion: According to Idea News service, the fastest growing religion in the world is Islam, followed by Hinduism. Christianity is the 3rd fastest growing religion, with a 1.3% annual growth rate. The report also found that over 26% of the world’s population has not heard the Christian ...read more

Tags: World Religions

More Men Out Of Workforce: While Men Lost Jobs ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 3, 2006

More Men Out Of Workforce: While men lost jobs less frequently in the ’90s, those who did tended to remain out of a job longer. The economists estimate that some 40% of the growth in men no longer in the labor force reflected a rising number claiming to be ill or disabled -- a change that may ...read more

Tags: Men And Women

Hispanic Online Community Profile: • Size: 16.5 ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 15, 2008

Hispanic Online Community Profile: • Size: 16.5 million (37% of total population). • Growth rate (new users coming online): 12% per year vs. US overall: 1%. • Median income: $40,000. • Hours spent online: 9.2/week vs. US overall: 8.5/week. • Language ...read more

Tags: Internet

India)--Elsewhere, Christian Aid Mission ...

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Jul 7, 2002

(India)--Elsewhere, Christian Aid Mission reports that a ministry based in Tamil Nadu is seeing a rich harvest of souls. Missionaries of the outreach say over the last year, there were more than 12-thousand professions of faith that eventually grouped into nearly 300 small churches. The ministry ...read more

Tags: Great Commission, Sharing My Testimony

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Consider

Contributed by Charles Wilkerson on Nov 10, 2009

Consider "The Christmas Pledge" in Jo Robinson and Jean Staehali’s book Unplug the Christmas Machine. They write, "Believing in the true spirit of Christmas I commit myself to: • Remember those who truly need my gifts • Express my love in more direct ways than gifts • Examine my holiday activities ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Ten Basic Statements About Ministry

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Sep 9, 2007

Ten Basic Statements about Ministry Warren and David Wiersbe, said in their book: Making Sense of the Ministry 1. The foundation of ministry is character. 2. The nature of ministry is service. 3. The motive for ministry is love. 4. The measure of ministry is sacrifice. 5. The authority of ministry ...read more

Denomination: Other

Living Standards In Britain Are Set To Rise ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 15, 2008

Living standards in Britain are set to rise above those in America for the first time since the 19th century, according to a report by the respected Oxford Economics consultancy. It says the GDP per head in Britain will be £23,500 in '08 vs. £23,250 in the U.S., reflecting both the strength of the ...read more

Tags: Money

Nothing Disciplines The Inordinate Desires Of The ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 17, 2002

Nothing disciplines the inordinate desires of the flesh like service, and nothing transforms the desires of the flesh like serving in hiddenness. The flesh whines against service but screams against hidden service. It strains and pulls for honor and recognition. It will devise subtle, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:1-4

Tags: Service, Servanthood, Disciplines, World

There Is Nothing So Hardening As Delay. When ...  PRO

Contributed by Clark Tanner on Jun 22, 2005

“There is nothing so hardening as delay. When God speaks to us, He asks for a tender heart, open to the whispers of His voice of love. The believer who answers the ‘today’ of the Holy Ghost with the ‘tomorrow’ of some more convenient season, knows not how he is hardening his heart; the delay, ...read more

Tags: Faith

Denomination: Orthodox

Barna's Latest Survey Shows 11% Of The People Who ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 5, 2006

Barna’s latest survey shows 11% of the people who attend a Christian church at least once a month plan to change their place of worship in the coming year. If true, more than 15 million people will change their church home in the next 12 months. Barna concludes, "Despite their fascination with ...read more

Tags: Worship, Unity

Willow Creek Association, Out Of 16,000-Member ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 6, 2006

Willow Creek Association, out of 16,000-member mega church pioneer Willow Creek Community Church, now claims 4,000 members, 75% in the U.S. The most common definition of a mega church is one with regular attendance of 2,000 or more. Many of the Association’s members are smaller than this (average ...read more

Tags: Church General