Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 3176 to 3200 of 4946 results

3176. A Small Man Who Was Given a Big Heart

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

We are told that being tall gives you an advantage in our culture, particularly if you are a male. For example, taller men earn more money on average than their shorter counterparts. If you’re six-feet-two or taller, you’re likely to start a new job at a salary 12.4 percent higher than someone under six feet. It doesn’t make sense and it’s not fair, but that is the way it is. Each extra inch of height is worth an extra $600 a year on average. In 1987 they did a survey of 1,200 MBAs. Average salary of those ...

3177. Send Her Away!

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

Those of you who are of a certain age might remember a little song from the 1960s. It was a tune by the Kingston Trio with the misleading title, “Merry Minuet.” It was anything but merry, but it was a satirical song that describes some of the turmoil in the world today. It went like this: They’re rioting in Africa. They’re starving in Spain. There’s hurricanes in Florida and Texas needs rain. The whole world is festering with unhappy souls. The French hate the Germans; the Germans hate the Poles. Italians ...

3178. The Forgiveness Factor

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

This is probably one of the best-known vignettes in all of scripture, this wonderfully appealing story about friends who are so anxious to get one of their number who needs healing to Jesus that they will go to incredible lengths to make it happen. Hence, we have history's first recorded elevator ride. By way of background, Mark's gospel lets us know that there have already been a number of healings and exorcisms in Jesus' ministry — the man in the Capernaum synagogue with the unclean spirit, Peter's ...

3179. Look Up and Live

Numbers 21:4-9

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Do you like snakes? Not many do. No other creature on the face of the planet so universally brings forth a sense of revulsion and disgust. True or not, we think of snakes as icky, slimy, nasty, and as our text reminds, dangerous. It seems that the children of Israel, in the midst of their wilderness wandering after the escape from slavery in Egypt, had stumbled on to a location south of the Dead Sea that is infamous for its lethal snakes. "Big deal," they no doubt thought. "Why should we expect anything ...

3180. It’s Anybody’s Guess

Mark 4:30-34

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

Several years ago, it was the week before Father's Day and the children and I were looking for a gift for their dad. As we strolled through the men's section of a department store our eyes spotted the perfect gift at the same moment. It was a bright, splashy Hawaiian style shirt with matching shorts. We giggled as we purchased it because Dan is a pretty conservative dresser. As I was handing the money to the woman at the cash register, I asked our oldest daughter, "But, do you think he will actually wear ...

3181. When God Says, “No”

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Steven Molin

There is a candy shop in the city of Keystone, South Dakota, just a few hundred yards down the mountain from that infamous Mount Rushmore monument. I can't tell you the name of that candy store, but I can certainly recall the sign on the counter that stands at just about eyeball-level for the average seven-year-old. The sign says this: "If Mom says, ‘No,' ask Grandma!" Within the obvious humor of that single sentence, there are two truths revealed. The first, and more obvious of the two, is that all ...

3182. Busy with a Purpose

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Sermon

Scott Suskovic

We are too busy. A recent CNN Poll found out that 59% of the people felt overcommitted, overbusy, overstressed. In the past ten years, we have somehow lost eight-and-a-half hours a week of free time. I know that's true for me. I know I like a full plate. I like a busy schedule. Therefore, it is difficult for me to talk about slowing down. I needed help putting this message together. So I called several people this past week who are busy people and asked them, "How do you know that you are too busy? What ...

3183. Having a Good Name

Proverbs 1:20-33

Sermon

Donna Schaper

Proverbs is right: Having a good name is a terribly important thing. It is important in business, it is important in society, it is important at home, in a family. When we lose our good name, we have lost our trustworthiness. Sometimes it cannot be replaced. How do we know if we have a good name? What is the measurement? Is it the absence of gossip? Or the presence of trust? Is a good name something that we start out with only to find it comes up missing once we have done one or two things wrong? Or does a ...

3184. Kids' Advice On Love

Humor Illustration

Questions concerning love and wisdom were posed to a group of children, ages five to ten. Their answers were remarkably astute and very enlightening, once again proving that all we need to know we probably learned in Kindergarten. WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE? On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date. (Mike, 10) Many daters just eat pork chops and french fries and talk about love. (Craig, 9) Lovers will just be staring at ...

3185. John 15:9-17

John 15:1-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

This week’s gospel text is really the second half of a longer unit (15:1-17). Jesus, the master of metaphor, uses the image of the vine, the branches, and the vine grower to talk about the qualities of a right relationship between God, Jesus, and Jesus’ disciples. As he continues, however, Jesus moves away from the metaphor in order to make explicit that the “fruitfulness” expected by the Father is no less than the love and obedience that Jesus himself has shown to the world. The utter intimacy and ...

3186. A Tale of Two Sisters

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

David E. Leininger

With a title like "A Tale Of Two Sisters," this should open with something like, "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times." But it was neither. It was unusual, to be sure, even a little exciting. After all, these were the days of an itinerant rabbi called Jesus of Nazareth who was attracting quite a bit of attention. At some point previous — we are never told when, where, or how — these two sisters, Mary and Martha, along with their brother, Lazarus, had been introduced to Jesus. They must have ...

3187. Rich Man, Poor Man

James 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

It is said that in Hollywood there is an exclusive school attended by children of movie stars, producers and directors. One day a teacher in that school asked her very privileged pupils to write a composition on the subject of poverty. One little girl started her literary piece like this: “Once there was a poor little girl. Her father was poor, her mother was poor, her nanny was poor, her chauffer was poor, her butler was poor. In fact, everybody in the house was very, very poor.” I don’t think that little ...

3188. Proper 26

Psalm 119:137-144, Isaiah 1:10-18, Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4, Luke 19:1-10, 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

Call To Worship Welcome to this sanctuary! Take a deep breath and bring your whole self — body, mind, and psyche — to this place. Set aside the pain and troubles that you brought with you. Be aware of what gives you pleasure and be grateful. Be aware of how and when you feel God’s presence. Listen to the psalmist: Happy are those whose wrongs are erased; Happy are they who feel at home with God. God is our hiding place and lifts us from trouble. We honor God with our living as expression of our gratitude! ...

3189. Transfiguration

Exodus 34:29-35, Psalm 99:1-9, Luke 9:28-36, 2 Corinthians 3:12--4:2

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

Call To Worship Leader: Greetings, this last Sunday in Epiphany! People: The calendar says we celebrate “transfiguration” today. Leader: “Transfiguration” —what does such an idea mean to you and me? People: Something about “dazzling light” or “brilliant aura”! Leader: The story says that Jesus radiated divine energy and the disciples with him on the mountain were impressed! People: Just as the Hebrews in the wilderness were awed when they saw Moses with the Decalogue! Leader: We, too, want an experience ...

3190. From Self-Help to God-Trust

Hebrews 7:11-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

It is always the longest, most solidly stocked stacks in any bookstore — the “self help” nonfiction section. Maybe it’s a holdover from the old American adage of “pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps.” We’ll use some “self-help” suggestions offered by others only as long as we get to pick and choose what kind of help we’ll consider acceptable, only as long as we are still ultimately in charge of the direction and duration that the “help” we seek takes. “Self help” books, whether they are focused on ...

3191. Obedience: Our Gift to Jesus

Hebrews 10:5-10

Sermon

Richard Gribble

One day a man went to his son's bedroom and found him sitting on his bed with a whole stack of comic books around him. The father said to his son, "Matthew, where did you get the comic books?" Matthew responded, "I took them out of the library." "You took them out of the library? You mean you stole them from the library?" The boy responded, "Yes." The father called the library and said he was going to march his son immediately down with the comic books to apologize and to restore all he had stolen. After ...

3192. Getting the Big Picture

Romans 8:14-17

Sermon

April Yamasaki

A "global positioning system" can tell you the fastest way to drive from Point A to Point B — which streets are one-way only, which streets to avoid due to construction or too much traffic, where to park once you get where you're going. Like a street map, it can show how the roads run north, south, east, and west; which roads are dead ends, or go over a bridge; how they curve and then straighten out again. Like the yellow pages of a telephone book, it can tell you where to find the nearest coffee shop, ...

3193. The Keys to Effective Praying

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

I want to begin with a true but incredible story. Back in September 1996 a man named Edouardo Sierra, a citizen of Spain, was on a business trip to Sweden. He was driving through the Swedish countryside when he came upon a Catholic church. He decided to stop in for a few moments to say a prayer. The church was empty except for a coffin with a body lying at rest inside it. Edouardo decided to take a few moments to stop and pray for the man who lay in the coffin. Then he signed a book of remembrance left by ...

3194. Good News about Sparrows

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

King Duncan

Pastor Don Friesen tells a fascinating story about a sparrow that somehow got into the rafters of St. Helen’s Parish Church in the English town of Brant Broughton. At the time of the intrusion, they were recording a guitar recital for later broadcast on the radio. The chirping bird didn’t exactly chirp with the beat. So the pastor, Rev. Robin Clark (how’s that for the real name of the offending pastor in this story?) The Rev. Robin Clark asked the congregation to leave and then asked a friend to bring his ...

3195. She Had Great Faith

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

A few years ago author Bennett Cerf was addressing an audience of doctors in San Diego. Afterwards one of these doctors told him about an operation he had performed on an ill‑tempered lady of about eighty. The woman came through the surgery with flying colors despite all her dire prognostications. Nevertheless she became quite agitated when the doctor told her that in accordance with the rules of the hospital, she’d have to walk ten minutes the very first day after her surgery and would have to get out ...

3196. Seventy-Seven

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Most adults recognize it is their “job” to teach children right from wrong, good from bad, safe from scary, yes from no. But there are some lessons that children are better at teaching us. Think about celebrations like birthdays (especially Christmas), and Easter, and any other special days that have the possibility of “presents” attached. Kids LOVE them, anticipate and adore them. Children love and accept presents with unabashed enthusiasm. Receiving a gift is “all good.” For adults it is a bit more ...

3197. Leave Your Calculator Home

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

King Duncan

Only two things are inevitable, said a wise person long ago, death and taxes. The Eiffel Tower, someone has said, is the Empire State Building after taxes. Another wit asks if we have heard about the new tax payer’s wrist watch? It doesn’t actually tell the time. It just wrings its hands! A burglar, needing money to pay his income taxes, decided to burgle the safe in a store. On the safe door he was very pleased to find a note reading: “Please don’t use dynamite. The safe is not locked. Just turn the knob ...

3198. Why Matter Matters

2 Peter 3:1-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The 1935 comedy “A Night at the Opera,” starring Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, and Harpo Marx, has been given the honor of being selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. A smash hit at the box office, “A Night at the Opera” was the first film the Marx Brothers made after Zeppo left the act, and the first film they made for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer after leaving Paramount Pictures. There is a moment in the film when Groucho Marx, in the character Driftwood, says, “It’s all ...

3199. Have You Had Your Caffeine Today?

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

Pastor Scott Hippler tells about a day when he was about 7 years old. His grandmother had taken him and his cousin to the grocery store. On the way, his grandmother stopped at another store for a few minutes. Young Scott and his cousin stayed in the car. Scott Hippler blames his grandmother for what happened next. She was gone longer that she had said she would be. Back then, he remembers, they put prizes in laundry detergent boxes as an incentive for people to buy those detergents. His grandmother always ...

3200. It Was a Dark and Stormy Evening! Father's Day

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

King Duncan

Welcome on this Father’s Day 2015. We know that not every Dad is a great Dad. And yet we know that some of the men in this church have committed themselves to being great Dads, and we want to give them the recognition they deserve. According to one expert, children go through 4 stages of dealing with their fathers. In stage one, they call you da-da. In stage 2 they grow and call you Daddy. As they mature and reach stage 3 they call you Dad. Finally in stage 4 they call you collect. A certain mother tells ...

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