In Sermon Illustrations: "Young"

Behind The Scenes Of An Arizona Circus, Bobb ...

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Mar 20, 2007

Behind the scenes of an Arizona circus, Bobb Biehl started chatting with a man who trains animals for Hollywood movies: " ’How is it that you can stake down a ten-ton elephant with the same size stake that you use for this little fellow?’ I asked, pointing to a baby elephant who weighed three ...read more

Denomination: Pentecostal

Did You Know That The Idea For Mother's Day Was ...  PRO

Contributed by Tony Abram on Mar 23, 2007

Did you know that the idea for Mother’s Day was born in a small Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia? It was 1876 and the nation still mourned the Civil War dead. While teaching a Memorial Day lesson, Mrs. Anna Reeves Jarvis thought of mothers who had lost their sons. She prayed that one ...read more

In 1920 An English Preacher Named Frank W. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

In 1920 an English preacher named Frank W. Boreham published a book of sermons on great Bible texts. In each case, he linked a Bible text to the history of a great Christian man or woman. He called his book Texts That Made History. An example of a text that made history is David Livingstone’s ...read more

Tags: Bible Study

My Dad Used To Tell A Story About A Guy Who Went ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

My dad used to tell a story about a guy who went into the ministry, but his preaching wasn’t very good and his ministry wasn’t very successful. He finally was called on the carpet to examine the "fruits of his ministry" (as John Wesley would have called it). They pastoral review committee inquired ...read more

Tags: Doing God's Will

Robert Robinson Had Been Saved Out Of A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Robert Robinson had been saved out of a tempestuous life of sin through George Whitfield’s ministry in England. Shortly after that, at the age of twenty-three, Robinson wrote the hymn Come, Thou Fount. Come, Thou Fount of ev’ry blessing, Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for songs of loudest ...read more

Tags: Stubbornness, Parable Prodigal Son

Henry Blackaby, The Author Of Experiencing God, ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Henry Blackaby, the author of Experiencing God, tells this heart wrenching story about a situation he encountered early in his ministry. He writes, “The first funeral I ever conducted was for a beautiful three-year-old. She was the first child born to a couple in our church, and the first ...read more

Tags: Doing God's Will

Have You Seen Those New Gps Guidance Systems ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Have you seen those new GPS guidance systems that you can get for your car? Some are built in (for several thousand dollars) and some are portable. You can plug them into your lighter or cell phone connection in your car. Then you can touch the screen and tell it where you would like to go and it ...read more

Tags: Faith General

Behind The Scenes Of An Arizona Circus, Bobb ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Behind the scenes of an Arizona circus, Bobb Biehl started chatting with a man who trains animals for Hollywood movies: " ’How is it that you can stake down a ten-ton elephant with the same size stake that you use for this little fellow?’ I asked, pointing to a baby elephant who weighed three ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Here's A Great Example. I Remember Reading A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Here’s a great example. I remember reading a letter to Ann Landers by a lady named Rosie. She wrote, “A young couple in Missouri got married in 1937. ‘Mike’ worked the third shift for the railroad. He’d come home about 7 a.m. and do odd jobs around the house: fix the old car, do everything but go ...read more

Tags: Unity

Donald Gray Barnhouse Was The Pastor Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

DONALD GRAY BARNHOUSE was the pastor of Philadelphia’s Tenth Presbyterian Church, when his wife died and left him with young daughters to raise alone. He did something hardly anyone else could do--he conducted his own wife’s funeral. It was while driving to that funeral that he realized he had to ...read more

Tags: Easter Resurrection

If We Want The Respect Of Others, We Must Also ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

If we want the respect of others, we must also give them the respect they deserve. This is a lesson that Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa learned at a very young age. When he was a child growing up in South Africa, Racism was still a big problem. If a black person and a white person met while ...read more

Tags: Friendship General

I Heard A Story One Time About A New, Cocky ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

I heard a story one time about a new, cocky young preacher, straight out of seminary. He was going to preach his very first sermon in a big, old Presbyterian church. The church had an elevated pulpit with a long flight of stairs leading up to it. This kid was about as prideful as he could be. All ...read more

Tags: Faith General

Song - Jesus Loves Me, Senior Version *author ...  PRO

Contributed by William Akehurst on Jun 28, 2007

SONG - JESUS LOVES ME, Senior Version *Author Unknown* Jesus loves me, this I know, Though my hair is white as snow. Though my sight is growing dim, Still He bids me trust in Him. (CHORUS) YES, JESUS LOVES ME... YES, JESUS LOVES ME... YES, JESUS LOVES ME FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO. ...read more

Scripture: John 3:16

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

I Actually Typed Into Google The ...

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Nov 1, 2007

Illustration: I actually typed into Google the words “I hate my life!” 1. I was shocked how many I hate my life websites came up! 2. Here is the opening page of one website: You’re having a bad day. We want to know about it. Maybe your agony exceeds ours. That could be interesting. Because ...read more

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

When Shane Claiborne Was In Baghdad During The ...

Contributed by Mark Eberly on Jan 14, 2008

When Shane Claiborne was in Baghdad during the initial stages of the Iraqi war as a civilian and peacemaker, he attended a birthday party for a girl whose family he had become friends with. She was turning 13. (I told the story last week of Shane’s harrowing escape from Baghdad in the midst of ...read more

Denomination: Church Of God

How Does Adoption Change Things? ...  PRO

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Mar 1, 2008

Illustration: How does adoption change things? Here’s a secular example: In 1952 a probation officer in New York City tried to find an organization that would assist in the adoption of a twelve-year-old boy. Although the child had a religious background, none of the major denominations would assist ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 2:15-17, 1 John 2:25-26

Denomination: Other

Pickup In The Rain

Contributed by Bill Butsko on Aug 16, 2008

PICKUP IN THE RAIN One night in the 1960s, at 11:30 p.m., an older African-American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a windy rain storm which was accompanied by lightning. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to ...read more

Tags: Christian Love

Denomination: Christian Church

For My Next Point, I Need A Volunteer. I Need A ...

Contributed by Robbie Parsons on Sep 14, 2008

For my next point, I need a volunteer. I need a young person who really likes bubble gum. (Get the volunteer and talk with him or her up front for a minute.) So you like chewing gum? What is your favorite kind? Really, that is nice. I’m sorry that I don’t have any of that king of bubble gum, ...read more

Denomination: United Methodist

Let's Talk About The Differences Inherent In ...

Contributed by Clark Tanner on Nov 1, 2008

Let’s talk about the differences inherent in being son or servant in any household. Now it may seem more than a stretch to draw from a modern fantasy tale for my illustration, but the story line of Batman offers very good examples of our point. In that story, the boy who will eventually ...read more

Tags: Servanthood

Denomination: Orthodox

Albert Einstein - Ticket For The Journey

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Dec 22, 2008

Albert Einstein, the great physicist, was once travelling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of each passenger. When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn’t find his ticket, so he reached in his other pocket. It ...read more

Scripture: John 14:3

Tags: Heaven, Salvation, Destination

Denomination: Independent/Bible