In Sermon Illustrations: "Overcoming Fear"

What Are You Afraid Of? The Barney Story

Contributed by Michael Deutsch on Sep 11, 2012

WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF? THE BARNEY STORY A few years ago, a church in Seattle, Washington was having a big kick-off Sunday. They wanted to do something for their children's programs. So they brought in Barney the Dinosaur. They learned, Kids like Barney when he’s on TV or in a stuffed animal. ...read more

Tags: Fear And Worry

Denomination: Baptist

Even Billy Graham Doesn’t Win Them All. ...

Contributed by Scott Bayles on Dec 18, 2012

Even Billy Graham doesn’t win them all. There’s a story about Billy Graham when he was visiting a city for one of his crusades. He had written a letter to his wife and was looking for a place to mail it. Outside the lobby of his hotel, he came across a young boy. He asked the boy if he knew how to ...read more

Tags: Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: Christian Church

An Old Feud And A New Bridge  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 6, 2013

AN OLD FEUD AND A NEW BRIDGE There were two old geezers living in the backwoods of the Ozarks: Rufus and Clarence. They lived on opposite sides of the river and they hated each other. Every morning, just after sunup, Rufus and Clarence would go down to their respective sides of the river and yell ...read more

Scripture: Numbers 13:1-33

Tags: Fear And Worry

The Intruder

Contributed by James Dorman on May 11, 2017

One night I was certain that I was about to become the victim of a home invasion. Something had awakened me. I heard a strange noise and became even more alert. As I slowly looked around with my heart thumping I saw him! He was standing there looking at me. I wasn’t sure what to do. I ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:6-7

Tags: Fear, Perception

Denomination: Baptist

Alone In A Dark Cave

Contributed by Steve Kinnard on Feb 14, 2019

Alone in the dark in the Cave Back in my teenage years we would go exploring caves. One day five of us went cave exploring, we only had two flashlights but being young , we thought that was enough. We were deep inside the cave and I decided to climb up a shelf, while the others waited and held the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 31:1-5

Tags: Fear, Trouble

Denomination: Pentecostal

Over Your Head

Contributed by Steve Kinnard on Feb 15, 2019

OVER YOUR HEAD I remember struggling in the water and I remember going under. I also remember the distinct feeling that I was going to die. What I learned as a young child was that one should be careful about getting in over one's head. I would like to ask you a question. How many of you can ...read more

Scripture: Ezekiel 47:1-2

Tags: Fear, Commitment

Denomination: Pentecostal

Oh, Those Alluring Lizardly Eyes

Contributed by James Snyder on Jan 4, 2020

After months of planning and rearranging our schedule, the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage finally organized a little vacation time for Christmas. It takes an awful lot of work for her and, I let her work as hard as she wants to work. That’s the kinda husband I am. She scheduled us to stay for ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 27:3

Tags: Fear, Vacation

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

The Alleged Warrant For My Arrest

Contributed by James Snyder on Oct 24, 2020

This past week was one of the best weeks I've had in a long time. I got everything completed, as well as some overdue projects. There’s no feeling quite like the feeling of having accomplished your goals for the week. As far as I was concerned, this called for an Apple fritter celebration. ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 4:18

Tags: Fear, Humor

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Three Types Of People

Contributed by John Bright on Apr 3, 2021

It has been well said that there are only three classes of people in the world today: those who are afraid, those who do not know enough to be afraid, and those who know ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:7

Tags: Bible, Fear

Denomination: Methodist

Scarecrow?

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Sep 17, 2025

I had a dream. In the dream I saw some huge power lines. There were thousands of birds sitting on the power lines. Some of the birds were falling off the power lines. The birds were weak. Actually I could see some fell to their death due to starvation. The picture opened wider and I could ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:7, Genesis 3:8

Tags: Fear, Worry

Denomination: Assembly Of God

John Wesley Said: "If I Had 300 Men Who Feared ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

John Wesley said: “If I had 300 men who feared nothing but God, hated nothing but sin, and determined to know nothing among men but Christ, ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

[203]. A Message From A Poem - On The Eve Of Trial

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Sep 17, 2025

[203]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - ON THE EVE OF TRIAL This poem was written at the airport when I had to go away for a very unjust hearing before a wicked, unjust Commissioner/Judge, and the whole setup was so evil. If you ever feel the dragon’s breath then you will know what I mean. I don’t wish ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:13, John 16:33

Tags: Unjust, Trials, Trepidation, Peace, Overcome, Tribulation, Control, Trial, Injustice, World, Fear, Christ  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Survivor Eva Hart Remembers The Night, April 15, ...  PRO

Contributed by Ryan Johnson on Mar 6, 2002

Survivor Eva Hart remembers the night, April 15, 1912, on which the Titanic plunged 12,000 feet to the Atlantic floor, some two hours and forty minutes after an iceberg tore a 300-foot gash in the starboard side: "I saw all the horror of its sinking, and I heard, even more dreadful, the cries of ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:7-9

Tags: Great Commission, Fear And Worry, Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Christian Author's Miraculous Testimony On Psalm 91

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Sep 26, 2025

Christian author, William MacDonald had a miraculous testimony about Psalm 91. He began by saying: "Psalm 91 is my Psalm. In 1922, in the Western Hebrides, a five-year-old lad was dying of diphtheria. A mucous membrane was forming across his throat, and breathing was becoming increasingly ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 91:1-16

Tags: Fortress, Eternal Life, Refuge, Cross Of Christ, Messianic Prophecies, Fear, Protection, Resurrection, Trust, Overcome  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

God's Ultimate Protection - Psalm 91

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Sep 26, 2025

God's Ultimate Protection - Psalm 91 Judy Anderson grew up as a missionary kid in Zaire. As a little girl, she went to a day-long rally celebrating the 100th anniversary of Christian missionaries coming to that part of the country. After a full day of messages and music, an old man came ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 91:1-16

Tags: Eternal Life, Refuge, Cross Of Christ, Messiah Prophecies, Fear, Protection, Resurrection, Trust, Overcome, Fortress  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

An Elderly Lady Was Asleep In Her Bed One Night, ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 5, 2001

An elderly lady was asleep in her bed one night, when she was awakened by a strange noise from the living room. Cautiously, she walked in and discovered a burglar in the process of stealing the stereo. Overcome with fear, she whispered a desparate prayer, "Help me Jesus!" The burglar heard her and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 21:25-36, John 18:33-37, Jude 1:20-25

Tags: Fear And Worry, Bible Influence

I Fear One Day I'll Meet God, He'll Sneeze And I ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 10, 2006

“I fear one day I’ll meet God, he’ll sneeze and I won’t know what to ...read more

Tags: God The Father

From Refuge To Valedictorian

Contributed by Matt Neace on Jun 19, 2018

2 Chronicles 15:7 God tells King Asa, "But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded." It is like the following story from the Dallas Morning News: When Albana Gllareva met her high school counselor, the Dallas freshman said bluntly, “I want to be ...read more

Tags: Goals, Focus, Ambition, Determination, Tenacity, Overcoming, Perseverance  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Boxer Illustration For Spiritual Battles

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jul 9, 2024

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:26: “I do not fight like a man beating the air (NIV).The NLT says, “I am not like a boxer who misses his punches.” A boxer can throw a lot of punches, but if none of them hit the opponent, he will lose the fight. This is one reason a boxer trains so that he punches with ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:26, Ephesians 6:10-18

Tags: Devil, Spiritual Warfare, Opposition, Overcoming, Boxing, Battles  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Full Steam Ahead

Contributed by Paul Davidson on Jan 27, 2021

I used to work for a railroad. The engineer on a train has a huge responsibility to safely operate and move that train over sometimes difficult terrain and in all kinds of weather. When you have a train roughly a mile (or more) in length, hauling over 10,000 tons of freight, running in excess of ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 3:5-6

Tags: Fear, Trust, Trains

Denomination: Baptist