In Sermon Illustrations: "Turn To The Lord"

Jack Canfield Tells About A Young High School ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 31, 2008

Jack Canfield tells about a young high school student whose father was a horse trainer. Because the family had to follow the horse-racing season, the young boy had to change schools throughout the year. During his senior year he was asked to write a paper about what his dreams for the future were. ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

Heaven: Titanic

Contributed by Andy Grossman on Jan 29, 2009

HEAVEN: TITANIC Last Sunday, right after church, when I got home tired and emotionally spent, I plopped into my easy chair and turned the TV on. The last few minutes of "Titanic" was on. In the conclusion, Rose (played by Kate Winslet) is an old woman. She lost the love of her life in the sinking ...read more

Tags: Heaven

Denomination: Holiness

Rich So You Can Be Generous

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Mar 4, 2009

RICH SO YOU CAN BE GENEROUS While I’m not a proponent of the health and wealth gospel, I find verses 8-11 of 2 Cor. 9 to be nothing short of amazing in terms of a Biblical promise. How else would you interpret words like these? "You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on ...read more

Tags: Giving General

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Hide And Seek With God  PRO

Contributed by Johnny Wilson on Mar 7, 2009

HIDE AND SEEK WITH GOD This week I have been hammered by the immensity of what it means to "abandon," "forsake," or "leave alone" the omnipresent God, God who is everywhere. How is that possible? It is ONLY possible if God allows us to leave, allows us to turn our back upon God Himself. Yes, it ...read more

Tags: God's Omniscience

Denomination: *other

The Choice: Build Up Or Tear Down  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 11, 2009

THE CHOICE: BUILD UP OR TEAR DOWN Years ago I picked up a poem named "The Choice." I do not know where I got it nor the author, but it illustrates the importance of building others up. This poem raises the question of whether we will "tear down or build up." "I watched some men tearing a building ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:11, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Tags: Encouragement

Don't Tape The Trees

Contributed by Hugh W. Davidson on Mar 13, 2009

DON'T TAPE THE TREES I was talking to a man a few years back, and he told me how he used to have a farm and how he had tried to grow different things to make money. Well, one day he said he hired a young guy to mow his lawn ,but he explained to him that he had just planted about fifty Christmas ...read more

Tags: Lies

Denomination: Baptist

As A Young Teen, I Loved To Read Books From The ...

Contributed by Beth Garrod-Logsdon on Apr 14, 2009

As a young teen, I loved to read books from the “Choose Your Own Adventure” series. In the first couple of pages a story would be set up – for example you are going on a hike with your cousins and it begins to storm. But by the end of page three the reader comes to a critical point in the story ...read more

Tags: Bible, Sharing Your Faith

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Strangers Have Devoured His Strength - From Hosea ...

Contributed by Dwight L. Moody on Jun 11, 2009

Strangers have devoured his strength - from Hosea 7:9 What gives spiritual weakness like allowed sin? It was so with Israel, it will ever be so with us. Yielding to unhallowed association (with) strangers devour our strength. If you ever saw a cake not turned, baked only on one side, ...read more

Scripture: Hosea 7:9

Tags: Sin Bondage To

Denomination: *other

The Value Of Connecting

Contributed by Bret Toman on Jun 15, 2009

THE VALUE OF CONNECTING Larry Crabb tells the story of a man he knew that attempted suicide. His injury was so severe that he should have died, but he recovered and sought out Dr. Crabb for therapy. The two had been meeting together for some time. They covered a lot of ground. Dr. Crabb ...read more

Tags: Church Small Groups

Denomination: Baptist

Intercession: Pyramid Prayer?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 14, 2009

INTERCESSION: PYRAMID PRAYER? Philip Yancey in his book on prayer tells of a young American soldier in Iraq who learns that his wife back home has advanced cervical cancer. Doctors gave a bleak prognosis. In desperation, he sent an urgent email to his church with the request that everyone in turn ...read more

Scripture: 1 Kings 13:6

Tags: Intercession

The Cost Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 16, 2009

The Cost of Salvation Several years ago, there was 14 year-old girl (Laura Montero) whose appendix burst while she and her family vacationed on a cruise ship off the Baja Coast. The ship was hundreds of miles from help, and the crew sent out a distress call looking for the nearest surgical ...read more

Scripture: John 3:16

Tags: Salvation, Gift Of Salvation

Marks Of A Healthy Church  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 19, 2009

Marks of a Healthy Church Walt Disney was a dreamer. His crowning vision was EPCOT; Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. He envisioned the perfect city of 20,000 using all of the most modern advances technology. One problem, Walt Disney died before his cream was ever realized. His dream ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:1-22

Tags: Church Purpose Of

Rare Copy Of Declaration Of Independence ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 28, 2009

Rare Copy of Declaration of Independence Discovered at Garage Sale As Stan Caffy and his fiancé prepared to get married, they cleaned out their respective garages and sold everything to Goodwill. Between the two of them, they sold an assortment of clothes, bicycles, tools, computer parts, and a ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 2:3

Tags: Discovery

Compassion For The Elderly, Post Office ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 5, 2009

Compassion for the Elderly, Post Office Style [FINDING MAMIE IN YOUR CHURCH] Mamie was an elderly woman, plagued with arthritis and a number of other ailments. So people were surprised to see her going regularly to the post office to buy stamps. One Christmas the lines were particularly long, but ...read more

Tags: Compassion

How Not To Get Out Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 11, 2009

How Not To Get Out of Problems When the preacher’s car broke down on a country road, he walked to a nearby roadhouse to use the phone. After calling for a tow truck, he spotted his old friend, Frank, drunk and shabbily dressed at the bar. "What happened to you, Frank?" asked the good reverend. "You ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:24

Tags: Money

March Of The Penguins: Fellowship

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Dec 24, 2009

MARCH OF THE PENGUINS: FELLOWSHIP The documentary The March of the Penguins follows the emperor penguins of Antarctica on their incredible journey through ice and snow to mating grounds up to 70 miles inland. Narrated by Morgan Freeman, this beautiful film captures the drama of these ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

What's Left Of Your Heart

Contributed by Gregg Barbour on Feb 8, 2010

What's Left of Your Heart Anna's wedding day was finally here. She planned for months and months, and in the small church with her family and friends, she was ready to take the vow's with her fiancé, David. He gently took her hand and they turned toward the altar. But, as the minister began to ...read more

Tags: Dating

Denomination: *other

Follow Your Conscience?

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Mar 3, 2010

FOLLOW YOUR CONSCIENCE? The truth is, people who strive for a clear conscience in life do not understand the seriousness of their sin. Most you here in this room, in fact, probably all of you in this room are better drivers than I am. Now I’m not saying that I am not a skilled driver, no, I have ...read more

Tags: Conscience

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Let The Master Play

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Aug 22, 2010

LET THE MASTER PLAY An organist was practicing one day in a great church in Europe. As he was playing, a man came up to the organ and asked if he could play. The organist looked at him and thought to himself. "I shouldn’t let this man play, just look at him, he is unshaven, his clothes are ...read more

Tags: Arrogance

Denomination: Anglican

I Knew My Father Was Pleased

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Jan 6, 2011

I KNEW MY FATHER WAS PLEASED It reminds me of a story that Jonathan Goforth (1859-1936) the great Canadian missionary in China, used to tell. Jonathan’s father put him in charge of one of the family farms at the age of 15. He drew special attention to one very large field, which had become choked ...read more

Tags: Obedience

Denomination: Anglican