Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 326 to 350 of 480 results

326. A Disconcerting Sight

1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." (Genesis 4:6-7 NIV) Whatever else is in this story, two things are clear: the active presence of evil in the world, colorfully crouching, like some fanciful gargoyle from a medieval cathedral, ready to spring and trip us up and the notion that what we do matters. We are called to master the evil that lies in wait and that implies development. There is a popular brand of theology that assures us that "God has ...

327. Righting Wrong

Romans 9:1-5

Sermon

Larry Lange

... congregation he had joined, he began to discover it languished from a festering tumor lodged deep within it. The previous two pastors, over their fifty-plus-year tenure, had never made much headway trying to move people from merely being members of the big fancy downtown church to being disciples, to committing their lives and loyalty fully to mission and ministry. The last pastor had, in fact, resorted to begging for big gifts from wealthy members and even non-members to make it all work out by the year ...

328. A Winning Life

Hebrews 13:1-25

Sermon

King Duncan

... of Abraham’s tent were lifted on all four sides so that he might discern the approach of any stranger and hasten to meet him. On this particular day he saw three men apparently needing help. This was not unusual. There were no motels, no fancy restaurants, no places for weary travelers to turn for hospitality. So people in the Middle East often prided themselves on their hospitality. Abraham did not turn away those in need of help. So, at the appearance of these three strangers, he sprang to his feet ...

329. Can I Give Enough?

Mark 12:41-44

Children's Sermon

Marti Kramer Suddarth

... it wouldn’t be good enough? Sometimes, we worry that the person receiving our gift won’t like it or maybe other people who see the gift won’t think that it was good enough. And sometimes, we judge the gifts we receive by how big or how fancy or how expensive we think they are. In the Bible, Jesus told a story that shows how he judges gifts. (Show the card stock with the scripture reference and read the verses.) “He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury ...

330. What'll You Have?

Mark 8:27-38

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... ? [38] Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." The cartoon, "Frank and Ernest," showed a man in a fancy restaurant looking at the menu while the waiter stood with pencil and order pad in hand. The customer says, "I'll have a plate of Escargots and a blindfold." (3) We know how he felt don't we. You might be one of those who could only eat escargot with ...

331. Adopted! Thank God!

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... chose it to be a blessing to others. That is why God chose us as well. God has blessed us; we are to be a blessing to others. Pastor Hugh Cox tells the story of a couple named Bob and Mary. Bob was a successful entrepreneur in his thirties who fancied himself a self‑made man. He lived in a large house in the country and had a beautiful wife and thought he had his whole world put together. One day his wife Mary came home and announced that she had found the answer to the nagging emptiness in her life ...

332. The Five-a-Day Rule

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... suddenly makes you invested in your world. Praying communally grows your spirit beyond your own needs, beyond your own self. Praying communally saves us from the grinches’ curse of living with a spirit “three sizes too small.” Praxis: Praxis is a fancy word for “practice what you preach.” Praxis is exercising your faith in everydayness. Praxis can be offered on your most “Doubting Thomas Days.” Sometimes you have to go through the motions, even when you doubt. Sometimes the only thing that you ...

333. Family Resemblance

John 14:5-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... wealthy lawyer,” said one. “For my birthday he gave me this fur coat.” Said the second: “My son is a medical doctor and last winter he gave me a vacation in Miami Beach.” The third thought for a moment then blurted out, “My son sees a fancy psychiatrist each week. He pays the psychiatrist $100 an hour. And guess who he spends his time talking about ME!” She did not realize that the fact that her son was talking to a psychiatrist about her was not a compliment. All of us reflect our upbringing ...

334. Humor: Hot Potato

John 17:1-11

Illustration

Maxie Dunnam

In one of his writings, Thomas Carlyle told of a country boy who went to a fancy dinner. In the midst of the meal, he got a piece of hot potato in his mouth. Much to the embarrassment of all those dignified ladies and gentlemen there at the table, he spit the piece of potato out and put it back on his plate. Then he looked around at the shocked faces of all those sophisticated people and said, "You know, there's many a fool that would have tried to swallow that!"

335. Thanks for the Memory, Bob

John 6:24-35

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... . It became a challenge to him, and for the rest of his life, he made the effort to live up to that glowing obituary he had written. It worked. He did become involved in his church and community more than ever before, and the result finally was that the fanciful obituary he had written on one slow day proved to become a road map for his life. What kind of obituary would you like to have written about you? Thanks for the memory, David ... or Bill or Bob or Jean or Jane. Suddenly, we find ourselves in church ...

336. Destruction Instruction

Mark 13:1-8

Sermon

... warning of Jesus is not that we should figure out when to be ready; it is that we should always be ready. I am old enough to have played youth hockey in Minnesota outdoors! That is to say, I played in an age before heated ice arenas, Zambonis, and fancy electronic scoreboards. The fact is, our dads shoveled the rink between periods, and we stood in snow banks, waiting for our turn to play, and the game clock was kept on the referee's wristwatch. We didn't know when there was one minute left to play; the ...

337. The Wisdom of The Cross

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

Sermon

Nancy Kraft

... it. Paul picked up on this double meaning saying that Jesus is both the precious cornerstone of Zion and the stumbling block for those who need a sign. Paul's proclamation is that the cross of Christ may be foolishness to the Gentiles who expect to be persuaded by fancy speech, but it is the wisdom of God. It may be a stumbling block to the Jews who were looking for a powerful Messiah to defeat their oppressors, but it a sign of the power of God. What does Paul's proclamation have to say to us who are ...

338. Eyes on the Prize

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Sermon

Gibson “Nibs” Stroupe

... For several centuries now, we have allowed ourselves to become captives of a materialistic, scientific, and modern age that denies the efficacy or even the existence of the realm of the spiritual dimension. The idea of an "inner nature" or the spiritual dimension seems fanciful at the most and dangerous at the least. Paul asks us to reconsider our cultural captivity, to consider that life - and our lives - are much deeper than our materialistic age has led us to believe. To say this is not to attack science ...

339. Dividing Walls

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

Gibson “Nibs” Stroupe

... tour several years ago when my son, David, was a freshman in high school. I didn't use a time machine similar to H. G. Wells in The Time Machine, or a hyperspace trip in a souped-up car like Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future, or a fancy laser beam. I did use an automobile, though, as I drove David to play a high school tennis match with a team on the north side of Atlanta. Suddenly, as we were driving along, I was back in medieval Europe — it was astounding! There were all these castles and walls ...

340. Prepare: An Advent Play

Matthew 24:36-51

Drama

Arley K. Fadness

... John B., I believe I’m beginning to catch on. There’s more to this celebration than what we’re getting ready for in my workshop at the North Pole with all my elves, my reindeer, and sleigh — I know that I am really mythical and fanciful ... you know ... mmm ... and what you speak of rings true — amazing but true ... God coming to earth in Jesus. Oh, my! Oh, my goodness! John: That’s right, Santa. Now you’re getting it. I love your spirit and enthusiasm, though, Santa. Giving and generosity is ...

341. Your God Shall Be My God

Ruth 1:1-18

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... bring your children to baptism, you give them to the church. You give them away to Christ and to the body of Christ — so the church shares responsibility for them. The church must be honest with them. The church will say to them, "We don't live by fad and fancy, for we are a different people." This is our story, not that; this is our standard, not that. Jesus comes to give us a story we can live and die by. That is what we celebrate today — the story of the gospel! You can't teach doubt and disbelief to ...

342. Jesus Prepared the Way

Illustration

Staff

George McDonald wrote to his sorrowing wife when their daughter died. He began by telling her that she wouldn't find consolation in lovely but empty sentiments that he called "pleasant fancies of a half-held creed." He then pointed out that the Great Shepherd had gone before and prepared the way for their daughter. McDonald reminded her that they were both moving along day by day toward that same destination. In closing, he said, "We seek not death, but still we ...

343. The Measure of Success

Illustration

Martin Buxbaum

You can use most any measure when you're speaking of success. You can measure it in fancy home, expensive car or dress. But the measure of your real success is one you cannot spend. It's the way your son describes you when he's talking to a friend.

344. It's Not Fair!

Humor Illustration

Lucy, in the PEANUTS comic strip, is furious because her misbehavior has caused her to lose the privilege of having a fancy birthday party. "You promised me a birthday party," she whines, "and now you say I can't have one. It's not fair!" Linus attempts to help her. "You're not using the right strategy," he tells her. "Why not go up to Mom and say to her, 'I'm ...

345. A Woman's Guide to Men's Gifts

Humor Illustration

... to replace the ones they have worn out. If you have a lot of money, buy your man a big-screen TV with the little picture in the corner. Watch him go wild as he flips, and flips, and flips. Rule #6: Do not buy a man any of those fancy liqueurs. If you do, it will sit in a cupboard for 23 years. Real men drink whiskey or beer. Rule #7: Do not buy any man industrial-sized canisters of after shave or deodorant. I'm told they do not stink - they are earthy. Rule #8: Buy men label makers ...

346. Handwritten Character

Humor Illustration

It is said that the famous French author Balzac fancied himself to be an expert at interpreting handwriting. He believed that he could determine the character of a person by analyzing their script. One day an old lady brought him a little boy's homework book and asked this great writer and expert on handwriting to give an opinion of ...

347. Two-Stroke Penalty

Humor Illustration

There is a story about professional golfer Gary Player that sounds like it could have happened to you or to me. Once in a major tournament Player tried to ricochet a ball off a stone wall. "I tried to be fancy," admitted Player. The ball hit the wall where it was intended, but instead of finishing on the green, it ricocheted back and hit Player on the cheek. The force of the blow actually knocked him out cold. "Finally, I regained my senses," says Player, "at least a portion of them. ...

348. Be Careful What You Wish For

Humor Illustration

A fellow had been suffering from a string of bad luck when he stumbled upon a magic lamp. A genie sprung from the lamp and promised to grant the man three wishes. First, he wished for a big fancy sports car. Second, he wished for $20 million. Then, he wanted to think about his third wish for a while. As he drove along in his new sports car, he began to sing along with a radio commercial, "Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Meyer wiener...."

349. Acting on Faith

Genesis 17:1-27

Sermon

King Duncan

You’ve probably heard the ridiculous story about the man who was refused entry into a fancy dinner club because he wasn’t wearing a tie. The doorman sent him away with instructions to return if, and only if, he had a tie wrapped around his neck. The fellow rummaged through his car, but couldn’t find a necktie. However, he did find a pair of jumper ...

350. A Seed for the Whole World

Mark 4:1-20, 26-34

Illustration

Staff

... Golden Bantam' started out as a personal variety of one man. The story of its origins was described in the 1903 W. A. Burpee Farm Annual as follows: There was "an old gentleman,"[1] a farmer in Greenfield, Massachusetts named William Chambers, ". . . who had a fancy for furnishing his friends with some choice early corn long before they had thought of having any ripe enough for the table,— but he would never let any of them have any to plant."[1] After Mr. Chambers passed away in about 1891, the variety ...

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