In Sermon Illustrations: "Take Off"

Randy Travis Released Song In 2002 Entitled Pray ...

Contributed by Bobby Mcdaniel on Apr 28, 2010

Randy Travis released song in 2002 entitled Pray for the Fish. Listen to the 2nd verse and the lyrics. Well, the preacher ducked him under that cool clear water, then he did it again. Eddie came up yellin': "Lord in Heaven, hallelujah! I'm a brand new man! Well, the water got to bubblin', sky got ...read more

Tags: Baptism

Heroic Failure

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 14, 2010

HEROIC FAILURE The Book of Heroic Failures, was written by Stephen Pile in 1979. It is a book written in celebration of human inadequacy in all its forms. My favourite story took part in 1978. During the fireman’s strike in England, the British army took over emergency fire-fighting and drove the ...read more

Tags: Mistakes

Denomination: Brethren

Know Where You Stand

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jan 14, 2011

KNOW WHERE YOU STAND The Johnson and Johnson company once had in their mission statement that employees would “operate with honesty and integrity” Several weeks before a major incident involving Tylenol, the president of Johnson and Johnson sent a memo to all the presidents of divisions in the ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Don't Ever Trust Anyone...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 26, 2011

DON'T EVER TRUST ANYONE... "There is an old story of a father who took his young son out and stood him on the railing of the back porch. He then went down, stood on the lawn, and encouraged the little fellow to jump into his arms. 'I'll catch you,' the father said confidently. After a lot of ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1-4

Tags: Father's Day

Harry Potter: Temptation

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Jul 30, 2011

HARRY POTTER: TEMPTATION Every great story has great characters. And in truly great stories, the characters go through significant change. This change is called a character arc. For example, if you’re familiar with the Harry Potter series, you know that Harry starts off in the story as an ...read more

Tags: Temptation General

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Bumps Show Character

Contributed by Ken Pell on Aug 4, 2011

"BUMPS" SHOW CHARACTER The other day I had a very full cup of coffee. VERY full. To top it off I had to walk back to my desk with it and, as fate would have it, I bumped into the desk corner while walking there. The coffee spilled. There's no hiding spilled coffee on a book or paper and, sure ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Nazarene

The Glue Trap Of Lust

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 8, 2011

THE GLUE TRAP OF LUST Adam Hamilton tells the story of moving into his house after it was built only to discover that it was infested with mice. So he got glue traps which have a scent that attracts the mice. They step on it and then are stuck. Then the mice need to be killed and disposed of. He ...read more

Tags: Sin Bondage To

Denomination: Methodist

Walking On Water

Contributed by Greg Carr on Feb 21, 2012

WALKING ON WATER There once was a young man named Jimmy who had heard a family rumor that his father, his grandfather and even his great-grandfather, all "walked on water" on their 21st birthday. When the day of his 21st birthday came, he believed that if they could do it, so could he. So, off he ...read more

Tags: Water, Growth In Christ

Denomination: Pentecostal

Maybe You’ve Heard The Story Of The Sheep ...

Contributed by Perry Greene on Aug 8, 2012

Maybe you’ve heard the story of the sheep in New Zealand named Shrek. He had escaped and evaded capture and shearing for six years. When he was finally discovered in his high mountain cave by Ann Scanlan, he was almost unrecognizable as a sheep. The first thing she did was to pin back his wool so ...read more

Tags: Sin Separates From God

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Who Am I?

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Dec 15, 2012

QUOTE John Newton: • “I am not what I could be, • I am not what 1 should be, • But I am not what I used to be" • How imperfect and deficient I am! • I am not what I wish to be, • Although I abhor that which is evil and would cleave to what is good. • I am not what I hope to be, • But soon ...read more

Tags: Grace

Denomination: Brethren

What Alcoholics Can Teach Us

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 31, 2014

Philip Yancey interviewed a young alcoholic who had formerly been an active church member, but had allowed Alcoholics Anonymous to replace the church. When questioned why, the young man responded, "Mainly I'm trying to survive, and AA helps me in that struggle far better than any church." ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:5

Tags: Accountability, Authenticity, Dependency, Self-Righteousness

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

1990, Shortly After I Graduated From College, ...

Contributed by Sherm Nichols on Dec 31, 2007

1990, Shortly after I graduated from college, someone sent me a copy of an article from Colorado Springs - an AP release about Coronado High School where I went to high school. It was about a transfer student – a 17yr old girl named Storme Aerison. She was singing soprano in the choir, and had ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

We Read About Murder And Our Reaction Is, "Oh, Of ...

Contributed by Todd Pugh on Jan 14, 2008

We read about murder and our reaction is, “Oh, of course murder is bad.” We live in a very civilized nation. We have all kinds of social edicts driving us. We learn not to say certain things. We learn not to do certain things that would offend each. But we are one of the most murderous ...read more

Denomination: Pentecostal

Top 10 Signs You've Hired The Wrong Guy To Mow ...

Contributed by Brian La Croix on Apr 6, 2008

Top 10 Signs You’ve Hired The Wrong Guy To Mow Your Lawn: 10. He shows up with a pair of nail clippers and a Ziploc bag 9. On the side of his mower you notice the stenciled silhouettes of 13 cats 8. Stops frequently to nap inside the grass-catcher 7. Always trying to impress you by stopping the ...read more

Denomination: Wesleyan

Praise And Gratitude

Contributed by Bill Butsko on May 9, 2008

PRAISE AND GRATITUDE After one of the terrible battles of the Civil War, a dying Confederate soldier asked to see the chaplain. When the chaplain arrived, he supposed the young man would wish him to ask God for his recovery; but it was very different. First the soldier asked him to cut off a ...read more

Tags: Gratitude

Denomination: Christian Church

As A Child I Remember Watching A ...

Contributed by Rick Pendleton on May 20, 2008

ILLUSTRATION: AS a child I remember watching a movie about a little boy who got sprayed by a skunk. His parents nearly scrubbed the skin off him but they could not get rid of the odor. So for a couple of days, he had to sleep in the barn and eat his meals outside the house. He could see his family ...read more

Tags: Sin Separates From God

Denomination: Baptist

Works Thy Hands Have Made, Pt. 2

Contributed by Brian Harvison on May 29, 2008

WORKS THY HANDS HAVE MADE, PT. 2 You ever wondered about some of the works His hand have made? Ever seen a picture of a platypus? Strand creature these things are. They live on the east coast of Australia. The bizarre appearance of this mammal baffled European naturalists when they first ...read more

Tags: Creation

Denomination: Baptist

Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman Tells About The Time He Was ...

Contributed by Bill Butsko on Jun 19, 2008

Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman tells about the time he was conducting a prayer meeting when a man gave this testimony: The man said, "I got off at the Pennsylvania depot as a homeless person and for a year I begged on the streets for a living. One day I touched a man on the shoulder and said, 'Mister, ...read more

Tags: Giving Yourself

Denomination: Christian Church

This Is The Kind Of Person Like 5 Year Old ...

Contributed by Jay Winters on Jun 28, 2008

This is the kind of person like 5 year old little Annie Mandelbaum. Little Annie was having dinner with her parents and a guest, a prominent reporter. The reporter noticed that she had some brussel sprouts on her plate, pushed off to the side. “Do you like brussel sprouts?” the reporter asked ...read more

Tags: Religion

Denomination: Lutheran

Even The Toe Is Important

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 8, 2008

EVEN THE TOE IS IMPORTANT How important do you think that your toes are? They are just little calloused, smelly appendages right? Wrong. Dizzy Dean was one of the greatest pitchers of the 1930s and is honored in the Hall of Fame. But in the 1937 All-Star Game, Earl Averill lined a pitch off Dizzy ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ