In Sermon Illustrations: "Problems"

It All Goes Back To The Head

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012

IT ALL GOES BACK TO THE HEAD Mike Slaughter tells the story of his dog Luka, a giant schnauzer. Luka had an infected toe for several months on his back leg and one of the things that he noticed is that Luka will tend to drag that back foot causing him to scrape his toe. Their vet couldn't figure ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Methodist

Just Didn't Work Right  PRO

Contributed by Rick Boyne on Aug 13, 2012

JUST DIDN'T WORK RIGHT My parents bought my 16 year old daughter her first car, a 1970 VW Beetle. While it was cute and a collector car, it wouldn’t run right. Even though it had been a gift from her grandparents, it cost as much in repairs as a new car would have cost in payments. While it had ...read more

Tags: Dealing With Conflicts

Denomination: Baptist

Whitney Houston ...

Contributed by Bret Toman on Dec 10, 2012

Whitney Houston sang "Because the greatest love of all is happening to me I found the greatest love of all inside of me The greatest love of all Is easy to achieve learning to love yourself, it is the greatest love of all" Learning to love yourself, it is the greatest love of all. I’ll admit I’m ...read more

Tags: Love For God, Self Esteem

Denomination: Baptist

Child Of A King

Contributed by Dwight Clough on Dec 29, 2012

Imagine for a moment that you were a child in a super rich family. If you wanted a new car, it’s yours. If you wanted a week in Europe or in the South Pacific, no problem. For you, money is no object. Whatever you want is yours. Most of us will never be in that situation. But, in reality, we are in ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:20

Tags: Identity, Prayer How To

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Bitter & Better - The Two 'b's

Contributed by Paddick Van Zyl on Jul 21, 2014

When the water at Marah was bitter, Moses had to cast a tree into the water stream to sweeten the water or make it drinkable. The words: Bitter and Better both start with a B and end with Tter. The only difference is: the letter I and E. Bitter has the focus on I, me, myself, flesh. Better has ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 15:22-27

Tags: Water, Sweet, Bitter

Denomination: Pentecostal

Dugger's

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 24, 2014

We see something similar when an only child has a new baby brother or sister in the house. Not getting attention sothey cause trouble. Parents try to reassure the child that they love him because the child thinks that the parents will love her less because of the new baby. Think about the ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:1

Tags: God The Father, Heavenly Father

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Coffee Doesn't Trust Me  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 25, 2014

My pet finch Coffee runs into a serious problem once in a while. Her claws grow so long she loses the ability to control them. They get stuck in the nest and she can’t get them out. Once we found her nearly dead, hanging for hours upside down with one claw ensnared in her wicker home. Carol rescued ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:28

Tags: Surrender, Trust In God, Rest In God, Pruning, God's Care  (view more)  (view less)

Man Uses Gun For Backscratcher, Shoots Himself

Contributed by Matt Neace on Jun 19, 2018

Jorge Espinal was drinking beer and playing poker around 3 a.m. on a Sunday morning in his house, when he got up from the table and walked into another room. His poker buddies probably thought, "Oh, well. He has to go to the bathroom or to get something to drink." But while he as in the other ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 38:5-8

Tags: Temptation, Mistakes, Alcohol, Choices

Denomination: Baptist

The Great Need For A Savior

Contributed by Daniel King, D. Min. on Jul 25, 2018

Main Idea: Sin is a big problem and that is why we need a great Savior. Verse: “We all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath…” (Ephesians 2:3 NKJV). Illustration: How often do you sin in your ...read more

Tags: Savior, Sin, Salvation

Denomination: Charismatic

Limited Vision

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Feb 7, 2022

I once read a lesson about this man, Simeon, he was a shepherd that lived in 390 A.D. He saw how corrupt the world had become. So he decided to LIVE ABOVE ALL THE EVIL and CORRUPTION. So he built a 6 feet tall pillar to be above the evil world. He built a little area and he lived on this ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 29:18, Joel 2:28

Tags: Vision, Dream

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Glory To God, My Prayers Have Been Answered!

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 22, 2022

A pastor bought a female parrot that became quite a problem. The only thing the parrot could say was, "Come on baby, let's kiss! Come on baby, let's kiss!" She was quite carnal. The pastor wanted a more spiritually-minded parrot, so he looked around for help. After much ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 33:3

Tags: Spiritual Warfare, Prayer, Intercession, Petition, Humor, Lord's Prayer, Heavenly Father  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Strike While The Iron Is Hot - Engagement

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Mar 1, 2023

There is an old adage ... that you may still hear at times even today: ... Strike while the Iron is hot! The saying is basically telling us .... that when the time is right... you should act... you should seize the moment ... or you will miss out ... on your opportunity. The adage is taken from a ...read more

Scripture: John 5:1-9, Mark 2:1-12

Tags: Seize, Strike

Denomination: Anglican

Mimic The Owner

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Jul 5, 2023

I read of a wealthy woman that owned a very rare and expensive MACAW. It was so beautiful. It was so smart it could talk unbelievable. Over a period of time the MACAW developed an extremely irritating and terrible hacking cough. The lady called the local vet and they discussed the problem and ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:19, Romans 8:28

Tags: Pretender, Wounded

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Stress Management

Contributed by David Parks on Nov 4, 2024

Stress Management A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked, "How heavy is this glass of water?" Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g. The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30

Tags: Stress, Worry

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Are Homemade Cookies Addictive?

Contributed by James Snyder on Aug 8, 2020

Some people say we are living in the "new normal." I'm not sure exactly what they mean, and I don't have the time to ask, nor the desire. If the "new normal" is what I have been experiencing in the parsonage for the last several months, I'm all for it. Let it ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:18

Tags: Humor, Negioating

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Red Isn’t Always The Red I See

Contributed by James Snyder on Jan 2, 2021

It is not that I am colorblind; I just am color indifferent. Red and blue and yellow are all the same to me. This, on many occasions, has challenged the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage, who is very meticulous when it comes to describing anything or anyone. In remodeling my office at the ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 20:12

Tags: Christmas, Humor, Gifts

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

A Shortcut Is Not Always That Short

Contributed by James Snyder on May 1, 2021

I have always appreciated shortcuts in life. If I can find a shortcut, I will take it because time is valuable to me. I take pride in coming up with a shortcut that actually saves me time. However, not all of my shortcuts have really been that short and I have paid the price. Last week, for ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 32:8

Tags: Humor, Shortcut, Wrong Way

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Why Does Monday Have To Follow Sunday?

Contributed by James Snyder on Mar 9, 2024

The older I get, the more I wake up not knowing what day it is. That is particularly true on Mondays. My favorite day of the week is Sunday. I enjoy attending church, fellowshipping with other Christians, and of course, the Sunday worship services. I enjoy Sunday morning and evening like no other ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:6

Tags: Stress, Frustration, Planning

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Unintentionally Humorous Texts: What Are They Doing Here?

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Apr 3, 2024

Introduction: David had fled to Achish, king of Gath, in the land of the Philistines once before to escape Saul, the king of Israel and his own father-in-law (1 Samuel 21)! Now it’s a few years later and, once again, Saul is chasing David and, again, David fled to Gath. This time, David and his ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 29:1-5

Tags: David, Philistines, Achish

Denomination: Baptist

I Thought She Said, "Doughnut”

Contributed by James Snyder on Nov 2, 2024

As hard as I try, and believe me I try, I don’t always hear correctly, especially regarding The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. I don’t always hear every word she says. I know God gave me two ears and only one mouth, but I must confess I use my mouth a lot more than I use my ears, which has ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 6:10

Tags: Humor, Hearing

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance