In Sermon Illustrations: "Rough"

Chuck Swindoll Tells Of A Mountain Man From West ...

Contributed by Guy Mcgraw on Jan 21, 2008

Chuck Swindoll tells of a mountain man from West Virginia who had never seen a city, or bright lights and modern inventions. He married a girl of the hills and they spent all their married years in the backwoods. Their one son, creatively named “Junior,” reached his sixteenth birthday, [and] his ...read more

God Is Pro - ...

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

God Is Pro - Choice! He really is! Every day of your life, until you draw your final breath, you will stand at the CrossRoads and be asked to make a choice. Which way will you choose? God has set before you two gates, one wide and one narrow. He has set before you two roads, one broad and one ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:13-21

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[201]. A Message From A Poem – Peace In Life’s Storms

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Sep 16, 2025

[201]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – PEACE IN LIFE’S STORMS We may say things and write things, then one day God may put us to the test. Just as I am writing an introduction for this poem – just today in 2025, a problem has arisen for one of my family, and caused by satanic workings of a certain ...read more

Scripture: James 1:2-4, Luke 8:22-25

Tags: Faith, Fear, Afraid, Peace, Trust, Disciples, Trials, Jesus Calms The Sea, Storm On The Sea, Christian Poems  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Helen Rosavere Is An English Woman Who Had ...  PRO

Contributed by Darren Ethier on May 7, 2002

Helen Rosavere is an English woman who had interests in becoming a doctor and serving Do. Upon completion of her medical training at Cambridge University, Helen began to ask God where he would want her to serve. Before long, God directed Helen to an area in the Congo (Africa) which had a population ...read more

Scripture: Acts 3:1-10

Tags: Call Of The Disciples, Discipleship

Denomination: Pentecostal

Aikido For Christ

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Mar 25, 2009

AIKIDO FOR CHRIST The lessons and teaching of the Holy Spirit came each day and through various ways. When we were doing a tent revival on Penn and Plymouth, the Holy Spirit taught me a lesson about dying to myself and letting go of my natural abilities like strength and fighting to resolve ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Spiritual River Rafting  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Jan 5, 2012

SPIRITUAL RIVER RAFTING The necessary safety equipment for river rafting and spiritual river rafting: i. The Helmet – Helmets protect the most vital and vulnerable part on a person their head – their thinking! 1. Spiritually: We need to be wearing the helmet of salvation as we ride the wave of ...read more

Tags: Holy Spirit, Salt, Indwelling, Faith General

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Distractions Along The Way

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Dec 27, 2014

“I live in Charlotte, North Carolina, 200 miles from the coast. And yet our local Wal-Mart has a random smattering of seagulls that soar overhead and eat French fries and other debris from neighboring fast food restaurants. The truth is the seagulls are lost. They’ve taken a wrong turn. And instead ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 27:14

Tags: Lust, Distractions, Self Discipline

Denomination: Charismatic

What A Difference A Change Makes  PRO

Contributed by Bob Soulliere on May 5, 2007

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A CHANGE MAKES Once upon a time there was a prince who fell in love with a fair maiden. But his enemy captured the fair maiden and held her captive in a tower. Now the prince had a plan to rescue her, so he recruited the help of two small animals to send a message to the maiden. ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Cross Bearing  PRO

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

Cross Bearing "The Christian's Passion" There is a powerful question that is too often avoided by preachers and church attendees alike, "Who took the rough edges off the Cross?" Modern day Christianity and the world have generally turned the cross into a nice piece of harmless jewelry, all shiny ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:23

Tags: Easter Good Friday

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Jesus Is Hard To Ignore And Easy To Miss

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 19, 2022

In a Christmas sermon, David Devine relates a story that appeared in the Washington Post last year... “He emerged from the Metro at the Plaza Station and positioned himself against a wall beside a trash basket. By most measures, he was nondescript: a youngish white man in jeans, a long-sleeved ...read more

Tags: Mary, Christmas, Bethlehem, Manger, Angels, Prophecy, Joseph, Birth Of Christ, History, Spiritual Blindness, Shepherds  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Unexpected Journey Thru Cancer

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 12, 2024

The unexpected journey and a second Dove appeared on a difficult day walking thru cancer: I hit another rough day in the journey after my second surgery with Dr. Q – He got back pathology and said it did look good the light showed cancer lining my bladder like a carpet. When the Dr, Q called to ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 46:1-3

Tags: Encouragement, Cancer, Hope

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Shattered Pool Liner – A Story Of Forgiveness And Grace

Contributed by Todd Catteau on Aug 5, 2025

What started out as a boy's reckless defiance became a lesson in the power of forgiveness and grace. Like many young boys, I dreamed of being a professional athlete. I thought my best chance was Major League Baseball, so day after day I would take my wiffle ball and bat to the backyard, throw ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:8

Tags: Grace, Mercy, Father, Forgiveness, Restoration  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

[358]. A Message From A Poem – Zebra Matters

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on May 31, 2026

[358]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – ZEBRA MATTERS This poem is blank verse. True blank verse has no rhyme scheme but does have proper metre. In this poem the metre is 11-8-11-8 right through the poem. Modern poetry is nothing more than narrative broken up into various length lines. What ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:15-16

Tags: Compromise, False Teachers, False Doctrine, Laodicea, Hot, Cold, Confusion, Conformity, Black And White, Christian Poems, Zebras, Blank Verse  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

What I'll Be Doing For Memorial Day  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 19, 2002

WHAT I'LL BE DOING FOR MEMORIAL DAY Memorial Day is a rough day for me. It’s a day of remembering. Remembering can be curse when you’ve spent years trying to forget. It’s even worse when you get mad at yourself for not being able to remember. It’s strange that you forget so many things you want ...read more

Tags: Holidays Civic, Christian Disciplines

Keeping The Last Note

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 21, 2011

KEEPING THE LAST NOTE When little Elena was diagnosed with the rare and terminal form of pediatric brain cancer in 2006, her parents were told she had just 135 days to live. The distraught couple vowed to make each moment special for Elena and her sister Gracie, then four. "We wanted to protect ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-2

Tags: Sacrifices

[209]. A Message From A Poem – Our Pilgrim Journey Home

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Sep 23, 2025

[209]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – OUR PILGRIM JOURNEY HOME Here is an explanation – The title of this poem expresses the walk and life of a Christian who lives for a short time in this world and then is called home. There is a slight touch of Bunyan’s Pilgrim Progress here. The KJV is the only ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 1:20-21, Hebrews 11:13, 1 Peter 2:11

Tags: Light, Journey, Opposition, Crowd, Strangers, Pilgrims, Sojourners, To Live Is Christ, Aliens  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Folks I'd Like To Introduce The Legendary Johnny ...  PRO

Contributed by Don Hawks on Feb 28, 2002

Folks I’d like to introduce the legendary Johnny Cash and his famous song—A Boy Named Sue. (Singer with guitar sings song) My daddy left home when I was three And he didn’t leave much to ma and me Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze. Now, I don’t blame him cause he run and hid But ...read more

Tags: Endurance

Denomination: Methodist

Steve Bouman Tells The Story We Began To Find ...  PRO

Contributed by Charles R. Swindoll on Sep 28, 2004

Steve Bouman tells the story We began to find our power as a congregation in New Jersey as a matter of being a place where you can go when there’s no where else to go. When you invite the poor and the homeless, they do come such as Edgar. He is by anybody’s standards a strange character. He lives ...read more

Tags: Giving, Palm Sunday, Patience, Church Purpose Of

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

John Mccain's Personal Account At The Republican ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 6, 2010

John McCain’s Personal Account at the Republican National Convention of Being a POW in Viet Nam I suggest we can learn something from John McCain’s personal testimony segment of his speech. The Republican nominee said: Long ago, something unusual happened to me that taught me the most valuable ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 15:33

Tags: Patriotism

[031] A Message From A Poem – Before Him Lay The Cross

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Feb 19, 2025

[031] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – BEFORE HIM LAY THE CROSS We have a retrospective view of the cross in a very limited understanding, but the Lord’s view in the Garden of gethsemane was a forward one. The anticipation of that ordeal was a dreadful one. That comes out in the description and this ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:2, John 3:16-17, Psalm 69:1-3, Psalm 22:13-16, Matthew 26:38-39  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Love, The Cross, Anticipation, Endurance, Cross, Suffering, Gethsemane, Endure, Calvary  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational