In Sermon Illustrations: "Helpful Lessons"

More Than A Decade Ago, Matt Thom, A Few Help...

Contributed by Charles Wilkerson on Aug 1, 2008

More than a decade ago, Matt Thom, a few helpful young teens and me conceived of and set in motion a tree house for our back yard. The tree had a great section where branches came together but it wasn’t large enough for a good side platform. Instead, we placed four 12’ pressure treated 4x4’s around ...read more

Tags: Workplace

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The First Time I Helped My Dad Prep A Car For ...

Contributed by Charles Wilkerson on Aug 1, 2008

The first time I helped my dad prep a car for painting I got the glamorous job of wet sanding it by hand. I got done, went in the house and my dad said, "Are you done?" I got my usual senior high ego in a twist and said, "Of course. It wasn’t that hard." After lunch, my dad went out to look at the ...read more

Tags: Learning

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Unsung Heroines-They Helped Rebuild Jerusalem’s Wall

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on May 12, 2022

Introduction: The Book of Nehemiah is almost like a report or memoir of what Nehemiah did, and why. He led the effort to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, as these walls were in sad shape. Chapter 3 of his book lists a number of people and groups who did work on these walls. The word “repaired” is ...read more

Scripture: Nehemiah 3:12, Numbers 27:1-11

Tags: Nehemiah, Walls Of Jerusalem, Unsung Heroines

Denomination: Baptist

Pastor, I Have A Besetting Sin, And I Want Your ...  PRO

Contributed by Clark Frailey on May 3, 2002

Pastor, I have a besetting sin, and I want your help. I come to church on Sunday and can’t help thinking I’m the prettiest girl in the congregation. I know I ought not think that, but I can’t help it. I want you to help me with it." The pastor replied, ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:3-5

Tags: Humility, Temptation Pride, Help

Denomination: Baptist

Bono On The Poor

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 8, 2013

Bono, lead singer of U2, said this: "Look, whatever thoughts you have about God, who God is or if God exists--most will agree that God has a special place ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:26

Tags: Poverty, Poor, Helping Poor

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Encourage: Plant A Tree

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Mar 6, 2024

There was a man that looked around the barren community where he lived. The man wanted to do something to help the lifeless areas around his community. The man decided there was nothing he could do to help his neighbors. He prayed and asked God to help him help his family and his friends to bring ...read more

Scripture: Jude 1:22, Ezekiel 11:19

Tags: Help, Encourage, Make A Difference

Denomination: Assembly Of God

[011] A Message From A Poem - A Very Present Help In Times Of Trouble

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Jun 14, 2024

[011] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - A VERY PRESENT HELP IN TIMES OF TROUBLE Stanza 1 - Psalm 54:1-4 Stanza 2 - Psalm 56:3-4 Stanza 3 - Psalm 50:15,23 Stanza 4 - Psalm 55:22 This poem of four stanzas has a stanza dedicated to each of four verses in the Psalms. I love the Psalms and at times of ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 54:1-4, Psalm 56:3-4, Psalm 50:15, Psalm 55:22, Psalm 50:23  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Help, Burden, Deliverer, A Present Help, Save Me, The Day Of Trouble  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

I Used To Ask God If He Would Come And Help Me. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2005

I used to ask God if He would come and help me. Then I asked if I could come and help Him. Finally I ended by asking God to do ...read more

Tags: Christian Love

I Used To Ask God If He Would Come And Help Me. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 10, 2006

I used to ask God if He would come and help me. Then I asked if I could come and help Him. Finally I ended by asking God to do ...read more

Tags: Faith

We Need Old Friends To Help Us Grow Old And New ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

We need old friends to help us grow old and new friends ...read more

Tags: Compassion

Unsung Heroes: Ebed-Melech, A Man Who Helped Jeremiah The Prophet

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Sep 9, 2021

Introduction: The Old Testament prophets sometimes faced severe persecution. Jeremiah certainly had his share of troubles and in this instance, he had preached God’s message but was thrown into a cistern! Most likely he was going to be left there to die, but an unsung hero helped rescue Jeremiah. ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 38:7-13, Jeremiah 39:15-18

Tags: Jeremiah, Persecution, Ebedmelech

Denomination: Baptist

Have You Ever Hurt Anybody?  PRO

Contributed by Ken Ritz on Dec 30, 2005

Brennan Manning tells a story in his book The Ragamuffin Gospel. 25 years ago, he had a drinking problem. He voluntarily entered a 28-day treatment program. Early on in the treatment program they had to sit in a circle with a leader and tell the other people in the group, about the extent of their ...read more

Tags: Richard Celtzer, Mortal Lessons, Addiction, Brennan Manning

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

What Do Girls Do Who Haven't Any Mothers To Help ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 8, 2006

What do girls do who haven’t any mothers to help them through their troubles? Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), U.S. author. Jo ...read more

Tags: Parenting

Have You Ever Heard Of Lieutenant Hirro Onada? ...  PRO

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Jan 16, 2007

Have you ever heard of Lieutenant Hirro Onada? He was the last Japanese soldier to surrender after World War II. He was left on the island Lubang in the Philippines in 1944 --- along with three other soldiers. They were left with the command to “carry on the mission even if Japan surrenders.” ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 8:5-13

Tags: Strength, Stress, Encouragement, Easter, Help  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Supporting The Poor  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 8, 2013

SUPPORTING THE POOR In a 1998 article in Christian History magazine, Rodney Stark said: "In a world lacking social services, Christians were their brothers' keepers. At the end of the second century AD, Tertullian wrote that while pagan temples spend their donations "on feasts and drinking ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:26, Galatians 2:10

Tags: Charitable, Poor, Benevolence, Helping Poor

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

So All May Eat

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 22, 2013

So All May Eat Brad and Libby Birky opened a restaurant in Denver, Colorado. It is a 40-seat restaurant that has one thing conspicuously absent: a cash register. They serve healthy food to people in need. The Birkys do not charge for their meals, telling people "Pay whatever you can afford." ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:37-40

Tags: Benevolence, Helping Poor, Hunger Thirst

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

How Many Of You Know The Name Paul Aurandt? He ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

How many of you know the name Paul Aurandt? He also has an alias. You know him as Paul Harvey. He has published books about The Rest of the Story (Bantam) and More of Paul Harvey’s The Rest of the Story (Morrow). Stories built around the surprise ending format have been compiled into books that ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 121:1-8

Tags: Protection, Divine Help, God's Omnipotence

Let Us Not Be Like Charles Chu Who While ...  PRO

Contributed by Sylvester Fergusson on Nov 3, 2007

Let us not be like Charles Chu who while travelling on a tour bus in China during a snow storm witness ahead of him a bus skid and tip over on its side in a rice field. In his haste to help he ran and jump on top of the bus. He grabbed the handle of the emergency door and pulled but the door did ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:17-29

Tags: Wisdom, Knowledge, Education, Hastiness, Helpfulness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Adventist

The Worth Of Someone You Love

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Mar 3, 2025

My niece was going through a bit of a hard time, so I decided to send her a tiny bit of money to help. I included it in a nice card thanking her for solving a big problem for me recently. The money wasn’t as much as I would like to have sent I thought, as I was writing a note to include. I ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:8, John 13:34, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Tags: Love, Debt, Helping Others, Needy

Denomination: Charismatic

It’s Like The Lutheran Pastor Who Always ...  PRO

Contributed by Richard Jones on Nov 1, 2000

It’s like the Lutheran pastor who always started each service with "The Lord be with you." The people would respond, "and also with you.” But, one Sunday the PA system wasn’t working so the first thing he said was "There’s ...read more

Scripture: Nehemiah 1:1-11, Proverbs 7:6-27

Tags: Conflict, Communication General, Church General, Prayer Answered, Help, God's Help, Temptation Pride  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist