In Sermon Illustrations: "Useful To The Lord"

Messy Spirituality, Mike Yaconelli

Contributed by David Selleck on Oct 26, 2006

Messy Spirituality, Mike Yaconelli Mike tells of sitting in a hotel ballroom with fifteen hundred college students participating in a weekend faith conference. On the last day of the conference, with school starting the following Monday, the students made it clear they wanted to prolong the ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

The Day You Enlisted

Contributed by Andy Grossman on Jun 7, 2011

THE DAY YOU ENLISTED I remember when I enlisted in the U.S. Army. It was at the height of the Viet Nam War. The year was 1967. I had a draft number and was probably going to be drafted – so I went down to the army recruiter and enlisted for three years. I signed on the dotted line, and before ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Holiness

Don't Quit

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jul 18, 2017

Ignace Jan Paderewski, the famous pianist, was scheduled to perform at a great concert hall in America. It was a high-society extravaganza. Present in the audience that evening was a mother and her fidgety nine-year old. She had brought him in the hopes that when he heard the great composer play, ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 18:9-15, 1 Peter 4:12, Hebrews 11:11

Tags: Discouragement, Disappointment, Perseverance

Denomination: Charismatic

Guidelines For Praying Succesfully

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 31, 2021

GUIDELINES FOR PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY Devotional by Larry Petton Text: John chapter 15 Our devotional time with the Lord must be a balanced blend of the Word and prayer, truth and Spirit touching the head and heart. If you only focus on Bible study, you will dry up. If you only focus on prayer ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:7

Tags: Prayer, Will Of God, Seeking God, Answers To Prayer

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Out Of The Shade And Into The Light

Contributed by Todd Catteau on Feb 6, 2025

It’s been cold outside! Last week I walked into the office and commented that it's not fair that we have to suffer through the hot Texas summers AND these sub-freezing temperatures. But here in Texas the snow and ice quickly melt away—except not in some places. On my commute to church there ...read more

Scripture: Numbers 6:25

Tags: Worship, Revival, Melt, Revive, Sunlight, Thaw, Light  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Dale Jarrett

Contributed by Paul Wallace on Sep 20, 2006

Dale Jarrett I grew up in a Christian home, my parents made sure that we were in church, but as I grew up I got side tracked and didn’t live my life as I should. But things changed when I started driving for Joe Gibbs, here was and is a man that is very strong in the Lord and his influence on me ...read more

Denomination: Wesleyan

He Slipped Away Into Eternity Peacefully The ...

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Jul 9, 2010

"He slipped away into eternity peacefully the other day as we stood by his bed. The family and I held hands and prayed as an old man who loved the Lord and loved his family was in that moment absent from the body and present with the Lord. Peace and tears filled the room and I noticed one young ...read more

Tags: Death

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Help Of The Body, Citation: Watchman Nee, ...  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Sep 21, 2001

[The Help of the Body, Citation: Watchman Nee, Leadership, Vol. 9, no. 3.] Alone I cannot serve the Lord effectively, and he will spare no pains to teach me this. He will bring things to an end, allowing doors to close and leaving me ineffectively knocking my ...read more

Tags: Friendship General, Church Small Groups, Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

F.b. Myer Once Said That Three Lights Must Line ...

Contributed by Richard Tow on Nov 24, 2003

F.B. Myer once said that three lights must line up before God’s will is clear. (1) The inward impulse—what we call the subjective leading of the Lord—the voice of the Lord. (2) The word of God—as revealed in scripture. (3) The trend of the circumstances. Encyclopedia of ...read more

Tags: Knowing God's Will, Doing God's Will

Denomination: Charismatic

I Received This Dvd A Few Weeks Ago About The ...  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Feb 5, 2004

I received this DVD a few weeks ago about the movie “The Passion of the Christ” and it spoke to me that Mel Gibson had the Lord speak to him about the need to complete an unfinished task for him and that was this movie. So lets see what the Lord laid on Mel’s ...read more

Tags: Jesus Christ

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Four Words

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 7, 2011

FOUR WORDS The great English statement and man of God William Wilberforce once wrote that "Christianity can be condensed into four words: admit, [Christ as Lord] submit, [To Christ as Lord] commit, [Our lives to doing His will] and transmit [The Love of God to a dying ...read more

Scripture: Romans 10:5-13

Tags: Lordship Of Christ

Today I Am A Horse, Dear God, Did You Have To ...  PRO

Contributed by Tim Zingale on Dec 11, 2000

"Today I am a horse, Dear God, did you have to make my poor old horse lose his shoe just before the Sabbath? That wasn't nice. It's enough you pick on me, Tevye, bless me with 5 daughters, a life of poverty. What have You got against my horse? Sometimes I think when things are too quiet up there, ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 5:19

Tags: Finding Fulfillment, Human Body, Peace

Denomination: Lutheran

Bruce Wilkinson Has Written An Excellent Little ...  PRO

Contributed by Tony Miano on Mar 10, 2001

Bruce Wilkinson has written an excellent little book called The Prayer of Jabez. In the book, Wilkinson explains the reluctance believers have toward having a greater influence for Christ in their world. He explains this reluctance by using two mathematic equations. The first equation ...read more

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Tags: Evangelism Fear Of, Prayer How To, God's Omnipotence, Tongue

Denomination: *other

A Young Couple Began Attending A Midwest Church. ...  PRO

Contributed by Doug Johnston on Apr 23, 2001

A young couple began attending a midwest church. They had been saved ony about 8 months when they announced that they needed prayer; they had experienced several miscarriages and had just discovered they were with child again. The congregation responded; they had the most prayed for baby in the ...read more

Tags: God In The Hardships, God Brings Hope, Death

Denomination: Baptist

I Met A Young Man Not Long Ago Who Dives For ...  PRO

Contributed by Guy Glass on May 9, 2003

I met a young man not long ago who dives for exotic fish for aquariums. He told me that one of the most popular aquarium fish is the shark. He explained that if you catch a small shark and confine it, it will stay a size proportionate to the aquarium you put it in. Sharks can be six inches long yet ...read more

Tags: Faith, Christian Values

Denomination: Baptist

Moving To Sydney From The Whitsunday's In ...

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Apr 2, 2010

Moving to Sydney from the Whitsunday's in Australia is like moving to a new country - it has a culture of it's own which is vastly different. Moving into a new ministry also has it's challenges and so I can identify with Abram as God brought him out of his comfort zone in Ur of the Chaldeans to the ...read more

Tags: Promises Of God

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Finishing ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 31, 2008

FINISHING WELL In his book, "The Mantle of a Mentor", Dr. Robert Clinton tells us that the Bible mentions over 1,000 leaders. In a 13 year study, he developed case studies on over 900 of these. Later, he reduced that number to 100 and called these "prominent leaders." Digging further, he realized ...read more

Tags: Leadership General

We Need More Training  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

WE NEED MORE TRAINING I have decided to join the US Army. Depending on whether or not I could pass the physical.... Well, let's assume I did. In that case, I figure it should only take me about one week of training and I'll be ready to go to Iraq or Afghanistan. OH COME ON NOW! We all know better ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:24-27

Tags: Attendance, Church Body Of Christ

Swimming With The Sharks

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 4, 2024

A millionaire decides to throw a massive party for his fiftieth birthday. During the party he grabs the mic and he announces to his guests that down in the garden of his mansion he has a swimming pool with two great white sharks in it. “The man who dares to swim across that pool gets 1 MILLION ...read more

Scripture: James 1:1-8

Tags: Spiritual Battles, Abraham, Spiritual Maturity, Trials, Problems, Temptations, Tests Of Faith, Faith, Discipleship  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Silent Night (Stille Nacht)

Contributed by David Dunn on Nov 3, 2025

It’s Christmas Eve in 1818, in the little village of Oberndorf near Salzburg. St. Nicholas Church will soon be full. Father Joseph Mohr has words for a new carol—but no melody. He walks through the snow to the nearby village of Arnsdorf and asks his friend, schoolteacher Franz Gruber, “Could you ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:10-14, Isaiah 9:6, Micah 5:2

Tags: Worship, Peace, Incarnation

Denomination: Seventh-Day Adventist