Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 3826 to 3850 of 4963 results

3826. Room When in Distress

Psalm 4:1-8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... advice. We might say to him, “Sir, you were obviously in deep trouble, trouble of mind and spirit, when you prayed to God your prayer that he was pleased to preserve in the Holy Scriptures. Your problems seemed pressing, yet your confidence in God remained strong. You seemed to come through the difficulty with your faith and devotion unscathed. How did you do it? What advice can you give me?” “Well,” the psalmist might reply, “the first thing you must do is face your problem.” In my case, people ...

3827. The Shepherd Lord

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10: 14, 27, 28 RSV.) No language or even music can reveal the full power and tenderness of those words. Yet — the fact remains; they must be appropriated by each on of us. By far, I think, the presence of the delegation from South Africa, flavored the World Methodist Conference more than any other factor. I could talk long about their impact upon my life, and I’ll be sharing about ...

3828. In the House of the Lord

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... in his separate star Shall paint the thing as he sees it For the God of things as they are. I cannot believe that the psalmist is ringing down the curtain in the last verse. I think the final emphasis he would leave on our minds is his determination to remain one of God’s own people. He is not bringing the adventures of the close. He is, rather, saying that he will belong to this shepherd forever.

3829. Design for Discipleship

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... life - pray for one another and return to the world. The secret of the Methodist revival was that John Wesley rediscovered that dynamic. Wesley had an exceedingly strong doctrine of the church. His commitment to the church was unquestioned. The fact that he remained a priest in the Church of England that he resisted the idea of the Methodist movement becoming a church, and that he urged all the members of Methodist Societies to stay in communion with and receive the sacraments of the Anglican Church — all ...

3830. Characteristics of the Church, Part 2

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... very gingerly reached into the soup with his fingers and took the tip of the fly’s wing and shook it over the bowl of soup, and said “Spit it out, spit it out.” Certainly we don’t fit that caricature of stinginess, but the question remains, how generous are we? True generosity has to do with unselfishness. I know people who are extravagant with their own family, but who are very selfish in their hearts. They give to their own, but will not reach out beyond that tight circle of blood. That’s ...

3831. Casting Out Demons

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... of the trial. She is sitting in the balcony that is segregated for blacks. There is no room on the mail floor. The courtroom is packed. The verdict is given. The judge leaves. The white people downstairs all leave the courtroom. The people in the balcony remains. Atticus Finch picks up the papers off his table, puts them in a briefcase, heads for the door. The people in the balcony stand. The man standing next to Atticus Finch’s daughter says to her, “Stand up. Your father is passing by.” Atticus lost ...

3832. The World Is Our Parish

John 3:16-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... it into something that is redemptive for all of humankind. We will take a tragic Tuesday, like that awful Friday, and when we are finished with it, it will become Resurrection Sunday for humanity. God loves the world. That's a fact, but there are questions that remain. Will we? How can we? Dare we love the world? Will we move from self-centeredness to sacrificial service? Will this event that has become a part of our history and a part of our experience transform us and change us and make us different human ...

3833. On Being Faithful and Focused

Hebrews 11:1, 32 – 12:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , in one shining moment, to a life that had been faithful. I watched that movie and wept. It said to me powerfully, that if we keep our promises, if we do our best, if we resist the temptations to sell our self short, if we remain faithful even when it is hard, we will teach our children and our grandchildren tons about self-respect and responsibility. Will those who come behind us find us faithful? That is the question. Being faithful. Being focused. Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore, since we are surrounded ...

3834. Facing Our Fears with Faith

Matthew 10: 27-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... of it all. What is it about humanity that loves to live on that daring edge of life that is just one step beyond absolute and total fright? Isn't it interesting? There is something about fear that energizes. In a well-defined, computer-controlled world, there remains this child-like hunger of living wonderfully dangerous. I think it is inherent in us. I learn most of my lessons from my children and, now, my grandchild. Last month, I took my two year old grandson to the zoo. He was so excited about going ...

3835. Touching Hearts and Transforming Lives

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . The hand of God is upon us. I discovered that in a very personal way about eight years ago. I was wading through one of those dark nights of the soul. I had lived long enough for things to be together, but at the deepest places, the hurts remained. I was seeking the help of a Spiritual Director, who first introduced me to the writings of Henri Nouwen. I will never forget reading that tiny little book of Nouwen's called The Life of the Beloved. My tears still stain the pages. In the second chapter he says ...

3836. You Are Invited

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , I might have said, “Throw your fears to the wind." After all, about 60% of the things you worry about are unfounded, about 20% of your fears are already behind you, about 10% of the things we fear are so petty that they really don't matter anyway. Of the remaining 10%, half of it you can't do anything about. So on a lighter day I might have said to you, along with Bobby McFerrin, “Don't worry, be happy." But I would be talking to the wind to say that today. We are worried, and no amount of positive ...

3837. Doing What Disciples Do

John 15:12-17

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... says Jesus, “Love one another as I have loved you.” What do disciples do? They love one another. Let’s talk some more about this. It is really important. I. AS THE FATHER HAS LOVED ME, SO HAVE I LOVED YOU. ABIDE IN MY LOVE. To abide is to remain, to linger, to tarry. We learn to love one another because we first have been loved by God. Love is an experience before it is an expression. One reason we are such feeble lovers of others is because we have yet to really grasp or experience the depth of God ...

3838. Impossible Possibilities

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... God calling me to ministry, it was hard to believe. With Mary I exclaimed, “How can these things be?" I had never been chosen for anything in my entire life. Yet God honored me with a divine invitation. The wonder of it all through the years has remained a mystery. How odd of God to choose me. Kris Kristofferson wrote some lyrics several years ago that Elvis Presley recorded. In that little song the question is asked, “Why me, Lord? What have I ever done To deserve even one of the pleasures I've known ...

3839. A Very Present Help

Psalm 46:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... hers pushing the door open. P.T. Forsyth once said, “If within us we find nothing over us, we succumb to what is around us.” There is a Hand that is above us. It is a loving Hand. It is pushing open the doors of possibilities that yet remain among us. He is our strength. Dave Dravecky once wrote: “In America, Christians pray for the burden of suffering to be lifted from their backs. In the rest of the world, Christians pray for stronger backs so they can bear the suffering.” It is going to take the ...

3840. Return Home and Tell How Much God Has Done for You

Luke 8:26-39

Illustration

Scott Hozee

... out evil takes time, takes effort, and takes above all sacrifice. This should hardly come as any surprise, however, to people who live their lives in the shadow of a cross. One final point, however: Jesus was chased away by the townsfolk but the healed man remained and according to verse 39, he kept on talking about what Jesus had done. Something about his ongoing witness reminds us that this is also our role: lots of people in this world try to chase Jesus away. Our task is to hang around anyway and ...

3841. The Power to Resist Temptation

I Corinthians 10:13-17

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... encourages us to flee temptation, we make television shows about Temptation Island. While the Bible encourages us to be an example of goodness, we glory in the person who finds a way to slide by. While the Bible encourages us to remember the poor, we remain slaves to our greed for more. Oscar Schindler was a daring German hustler who daily risked his life employing his wealth and wiles to save the lives of 1,200 Polish Jews. After the war, Schindler abandoned his wife, became a womanizer and drunkard and ...

3842. Let Go of the Stone

Mark 16:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... my father. Quite candidly I must admit the grief is greater than I imagined, the sorrow is deeper than I anticipated. Morning after morning I rise from my sleep saying, “Lord, I need to snap out of this," yet the fog is dense, the sadness lingers, and the fact remains, my generation is next in line to leave this world. For a while I thought at fifty-seven, maybe I'm having a mid-life crisis. Then, Sandy shocked me back to reality by asking, “Exactly how many 114 year old men do you know?" What we face ...

3843. What Would Jesus Say About Materialism?

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even much more will be asked” (12:48). It was a vulnerable moment known in the funeral home business as the first viewing. I stood with a widow as she took the first look at the bodily remains of her very successful deceased husband. After several moments of silence she turned to me and said, “He’s smiling. Howard, look, he’s laughing. He always said he was going to leave me with all his business and now he is lying in his casket laughing ...

3844. What Would Jesus Say About Marriage?

Matthew 19:3-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to “live together” instead of leaping into marriage. This “try it and see if you like it” philosophy brings with it some sobering statistics. According to Michael McManus, of one hundred cohabitating couples, forty will break up before marriage and of the remaining sixty who marry, forty-five will end in divorce. Why should a marriage be a life long covenant? I would like to suggest three reasons. First of all, you deserve it. Marriage is a vulnerable estate. In marriage we come to know people ...

3845. What Would Jesus Say About Medical Care?

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... fellow who thinks he can forgive sins? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Technically speaking, they are absolutely right. It was the great preacher, Harry Emerson Fosdick, who used to say, “Either our sins have been forgiven by God or they forever remain in us as sin.” We can medicate ourselves into la-la land, counsel ourselves into boredom, and still not deal with the sins that so easily beset us. In my opinion, the Church has miserably failed to help people openly and effectively confess their ...

3846. What Would Jesus Say About Modern Churches?

Mark 1:4-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

The Church is of God and shall be preserved to the end of time as the visible body of Christ on earth. The local church remains God's best hope for humanity. For a lifetime now, the Church has captured my heart, my mind, and my deepest devotion. After all these years I can still join Timothy Dwight in saying: Beyond my highest joys I prize her heavenly ways. Her sweet communion, solemn vows, her hymns ...

3847. When God Speaks

Psalm 29:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... there you may have experienced it. It was not uncommon at all for the Sea of Galilee to suddenly become turbulent. The waves were rocking the boat so badly that water was already spilling inside it. As the disciples fight for their lives, Jesus remains sound asleep. Finally the disciples shake Him awake saying, “Teacher, don't you even care that we are about to drown?" Awakened, Jesus rebukes the wind and challenges the disciples to have faith! They mumble to one another, “Who is this that even the ...

3848. The Constant God in a Changing World

Psalm 48:1, 9-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Germany, after World War II, there stood a church in the center of the city with nothing left but the Gothic arch which framed the main door. Over the arch were these words from Luke 21: “Heaven and earth will pass away but my words remain forever true." I would like to talk about that today. The author of Psalm 48 was enthralled with the strength and beauty of Jerusalem. Her towers seemed immovable; her citadels appeared immutable; her temple looked like nothing less than something immortal. Yet, in the ...

3849. The Kingdom for Which We Long

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... those who by faith know that it is going to be all right even when it is all wrong. The kingdom of God, said Jesus, is like a dragnet of fish from the lake. Some are fit to eat and others need to be thrown away. But for now they remain mixed—the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, the tasty and the terrible, the helpful and the horrible. Lord, give us faith to know it’s going to be all right even when it feels all wrong. II. THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS ...

3850. We Believe in the Holy Spirit

John 14:15-18, 25-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to my company, but to the world." With that, he grabbed for a parachute and jumped. That's when that pastor turned to the Boy Scout and said, “Son, you are young and I am old. You have your life ahead of you. I've finished mine. Take the remaining parachute and jump." But the Boy Scout said, “Relax Reverend. The smartest man in all the world just took my backpack thinking it was a parachute." When the Holy Spirit comes, he will teach you all things (V. 26). Did you have a favorite teacher? What was he ...

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