In Sermon Illustrations: "Heart's Desires" showing 441-460 of 5,209

Active Vs. Passive Hardening Of The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 13, 2010

ACTIVE VS. PASSIVE HARDENING OF THE HEART We have to distinguish between active hardening and passive hardening (of the heart). What we have in this verse is an example of God’s punitive judgment against a wicked man. Pharaoh was already wicked. Pharaoh already had an evil heart, out of which came ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:24-28

Tags: Hard Heart, Sin General

Internal ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 23, 2010

Internal Audit My wife Tina is an internal auditor for T. Marzetti. When she walks into a plant to do an audit she can tell a lot about that plant by what she sees. If she finds that the financials, employment records, inventory, and quality control aspects of the plant are good it is an indication ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 12:33-37

Tags: Tongue, Guarding Your Heart

Clean Conscience

Contributed by Shine Thomas on Jul 24, 2017

Xaviera Hollander wrote a book with a title: The Happy Hooker. Hollander, a prostitute, sought to silence the people who believe that no prostitute could find joy in what she was doing. In her book, Hollander celebrates the joy that she experienced in her profession, saying that she never felt ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 32:1-6

Tags: Guilt, Conscience, Pure Heart

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Hey, This Is My Story!

Contributed by James Snyder on Dec 4, 2021

Dr. James L. Snyder I am just now concluding that narcissism is a virus that has infected everybody in the world that is breathing air. I even apply this to my own life with a great deal of regret. Nobody wants to admit they have narcissistic leanings in their life. And yet, if you listen to ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:23

Tags: Heart Attack, Narcissi Okaysm

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Max Lucado, In His Book In The Eye Of The Storm, ...  PRO

Contributed by Joe La Rue on Feb 18, 2008

Max Lucado, in his book In the Eye of the Storm, tells the story of Chippie the Parakeet. He writes: "Chippie the Parakeet never saw it coming. One second he was peacefully perched in his cage. The next he was sucked in, washed up, blown over. The problems began when Chippie’s owner ...read more

Tags: Clean, Heart, Remember, Unclean

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

What Does God's Voice Sound Like?  PRO

Contributed by Anne Benefield on Feb 4, 2009

WHAT DOES GOD'S VOICE SOUND LIKE? Erwin McManus, a pastor in Los Angeles, tells a great story about recognizing God's voice. My son, Aaron, was five or six when he began asking me, "What does God's voice sound like?" I didn't know how to answer. A few years later, Aaron went off to his first ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 3:1-21

Tags: Hard Heart, Dealing With Conflicts

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

When Christmas Doesn't Make Your Heart Swell Up ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 15, 2004

“When Christmas doesn’t make your heart swell up until it nearly bursts and fill your eyes with tears and make you all soft and warm inside then you will know ...read more

Scripture: John 1:14

You See, My Brethren, My Heart Is Full; I Could ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 9, 2006

“You see, my brethren, my heart is full; I could almost say it is too big to speak, and yet too big to be silent, without ...read more

Tags: God Brings Hope

God Can Mend A Broken Heart If We Give Him All ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

God can mend a broken heart if we give Him ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

What Did You Find When You Opened My Heart?

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Oct 16, 2023

Here’s a story about a little boy that was to have heart surgery. The surgeon sat beside the boy's bed and his parents sat across from him. The surgeon said to the little boy, "Tomorrow morning, I'll open up your heart." The little boy interrupted the surgeon and said; ...read more

Scripture: John 1:1-12, Romans 10:13

Tags: Jesus, Heaven, Evangelism, Death, Children, Unbelievers  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

King Midas Got What His Heart Longed For. How He ...

Contributed by Gregg Bitter on Oct 25, 2009

King Midas got what his heart longed for. How he loved gold! Now everything he touched turned to gold. An oak twig. A rock. He had what his heart treasured, until his little ...read more

Tags: Money, Love Of Money

Denomination: Lutheran

Prayer Is The Strongest Form Of Abiding That ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 1, 2008

Prayer is the strongest form of abiding that there is. A retired teacher was giving her little nephew some help with his schoolwork. 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 to ...read more

Tags: Faith

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

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

A. W. Tozer, Another Wonderful Devotional Writer ...  PRO

Contributed by Mary Lewis on Jul 2, 2002

A. W. Tozer, another wonderful devotional writer said this: The widest thing in the universe is not space; it is the potential capacity of the human heart. Being made in the image of God, it is capable of almost unlimited extension in all directions. And one of the world’s greatest ...read more

Tags: Giving Yourself, Fulfillment, Heart, Miracles

Denomination: Baptist

Take Off And Never Come Back

Contributed by Davon Huss on Feb 29, 2020

The New York City transit company was missing a bus and a driver some years ago. For over a week, authorities searched with no success. Finally, 10 days after they had disappeared, the bus and driver were found- in Miami, Florida. The driver said, “I’d had it with the cold weather, the ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:1

Tags: Quit, Run Away, Losing Heart

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Keep Away From Sin!

Contributed by Paul Clemente on Oct 24, 2022

Genesis 4 Devotional Part 2 The first children from Adam and Eve grew up having 2 different interests: Abel took care of animals while Cain took care of plants. When it was time to worship God (how did they learn and why did they worship God?), Cain offered firstfruits from the field and Abel ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 4:6-15

Tags: Heart, Cain, Sin, Relationship, Love  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

The King Who Owned Everything

Contributed by Jim Butcher on Apr 11, 2018

Once upon a time there was a king who ruled a vast domain. He was the wealthiest person in the world: thousands of horses, dozens of homes, access to anything his heart desired. There was nothing anyone could give him that he did not already possess. One day at the door of the throne room a ...read more

Tags: Worship, Praise, Generosity

Denomination: Baptist

Appetite Killers

Contributed by Richard Tow on Mar 27, 2023

If we want our appetite for righteousness to grow, we must avoid appetite killers. This is true in the natural. Every parent knows that kids who eat too much candy will not have an appetite for the healthy food at dinner time. The same is true with our spiritual appetite. If we snack on the things ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:6, Colossians 3:2, Ephesians 4:24, Psalm 81:10, Psalm 42:1-2, Luke 6:21  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Hunger, Entertainment, Desire, Righteousness, Seek, Worldliness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

I Heard Of A Couple Who, As They Were Paying For ...  PRO

Contributed by James H. Cook, Jr. on Oct 13, 2001

I heard of a couple who, as they were paying for groceries in the check-out line, were discussing their soon to be 50th wedding anniversary, when the young cashier interjected by saying, "I can’t imagine being married to same man for 5o years!" The wife wisely replied, ...read more

Tags: Marriage Commitment, Unconditional Love, Change Of Heart

Denomination: Baptist