Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on
Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation
Showing 4201 to 4225 of 4962 results
4201. Submission
Matthew 3:13-17
Sermon
Pete Maravich and Lily Laskin had something in common aside from the fact that they both died one day apart. They both gave themselves to that which they considered important. People who keep up with harps and harpists say that Lily Laskin, the French harpist, took the harp out of the living room and made it a featured solo instrument on concert stages all over the world. She died on January 4, 1988, at the age of ninety-four. Upon her death, she was credited with popularizing the harp and reviving many ...
4202. Proper 12 & Pentecost 10
1 Kings 3:1-15, Exodus 3:1-22, Romans 8:18-27, Romans 8:28-39, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52
Sermon Aid
THEOLOGICAL CLUE Once more the eschatological framework of the church year is reinforced by the day's readings, especially the lesson from Romans 8 and verses 47-50 of the Gospel of the Day, which speak specifically of the "end of the age" and the judgment that will come with it. Matthew's Gospel also spells out the nature of realized and present eschatology in the two little parables of the treasure and the precious pearl. Without the readings, the eschatological motif of Pentecost would be virtually ...
4203. Pentecost 7
Matthew 18:21-35, Romans 14:1--15:13, Exodus 20:1-21, Psalm 19:1-14, Psalm 103:1-22, Genesis 50:15-21
Sermon Aid
THEOLOGICAL CLUE September 29th marks the celebration of another minor festival, St. Michael and All Angels. The last line of the second reading, Revelation 12: 12, supports the eschatological perspective of Pentecost, because it announces that he (Satan) "knows that his time is short." Without the theological input of the readings for St. Michael and All Angels Day to supplement the readings of the Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, the eschatological framework of the church year would be almost ...
Sermon
Robert G. Tuttle
Today we have a power problem. Before Pentecost the disciples had a power problem; they were helpless. There’s all the difference in the world when the power is turned on. Jesus said to his ineffective disciples: "Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you." Then it happened. The air was charged with change. Against their souls in strain A furious wind was hurled. Down some invisible wire, Exploding into fire, God’s lightning came; And their night Was burned away. (a parody on ...
Sermon
Louis H. Valbracht
The phrase "while it was still dark," is greatly suggestive. The darkness was not only a description of the earliness of the morning, but it was a description of all people without firm belief in the Resurrection of Christ. Without that knowledge, as St. Paul has said, "we are a bunch of miserable human beings," because we have no understanding of the eternal and sacred character of human life, and for anyone trying to live it, it is a process of stumbling along in the darkness. At the earlier Family ...
Sermon
Louis H. Valbracht
Have you ever noticed? It seems that there is always one at every party. No matter how carefully you select the guests, there is always one - the wet blanket, the killjoy, the party pooper, the spoilsport, the kind of person to whom you’d like to say: "I never forget a face, but in your case, I’m going to make an exception." I am reminded of the mother whom I was visiting in a home and, as we visited, the sounds of the children’s hilarity was coming up from the family room below. Finally, the mother got up ...
Sermon
Jon L. Joyce
"HE HAS RISEN" It was a solid, staid, old parish to which I was called just after the war, one that needed a bit of waking up here and there, and on our first Easter, we arranged to have the Sunrise Service begin with a fanfare by a quartet of trumpets sounding forth from the balcony. Well, the trumpeters were quite enthusiastic, and I must admit, quite loud; and, quite frankly, the innovation was not received with unanimous approval. In fact, one elderly lady in the congregation was quite vocal about it. ...
Sermon
Bill Bouknight
When I was a youngster of seven or eight years of age, our neighborhood grocery store was owned by a Mr. Strout. He knew our family well. One day when I was in the store I saw a customer walk up to the counter with an armful of groceries and say, "Charge it, Mr. Strout." No money was exchanged. He just said "charge it" and walked out. I was amazed by this mysterious transaction. I said to myself, "How foolish I have been, believing that money was required for needed items, when all I had to do was to say ...
Sermon
Harry N. Huxhold
Benjamin Britten’s cantata “St. Nicholas” is based on the legendary figure of Nicolas, Bishop of Myra. If Nicolas was truly an historical figure and the Bishop of Myra in Asia Minor, he would have been bishop in the latter part of the fourth century or the early part of the fifth century. Traditionally, Nicolas is the patron saint of sailors and children. The legends built around him are especially attentive to his care for the poor and helpless. He is noted for having spent his fortune on the poor and ...
Sermon
David E. Leininger
The family. "The basic building block of society," they call it. We are born into families, cared for by family until we can begin to take care of ourselves. We share the same roof, the same table, even the same faith. Nothing unusual there. It is expected...despite the differences of individual personalities, interests and abilities that are gathered into the family unit, it is a unit. The basic building block of society. The joy I have in living with my wife and children I would not have were it not for ...
Sermon
King Duncan
When some future scholar tries to understand the spirit of our times, he or she might run across a collection of the many derivatives of Murphy’s Law and declare that they constitute our national spirit. We have become such a pessimistic people. Murphy’s Law, of course, goes like this: “If anything can go wrong it will. If nothing can go wrong, it will anyway.” But there were many derivatives of that Law . . . Like “The other line always moves faster.” Or “When one wishes to unlock a door but has only has ...
Sermon
King Duncan
Writer Adele Hooker remembers a point when she and her family were going through some rough times. They had very little to eat, but one day her husband unexpectedly asked some friends over for dinner. Adele was dumbfounded: there was no food in the house! How could she possibly feed guests? So she went into her bedroom, knelt down and asked God what she could do. As she prayed she seemed to hear a voice telling her, "You have meat in the freezer." Right. Half a pound of hamburger. That wouldn't go very far ...
Sermon
King Duncan
There was once a young businessman in Germany named Neckerman who had a burning ambition to build his small retail store into a large chain of department stores. His problem was that no one knew his name. He couldn't attract customers. He had only limited capital. This was shortly after World War II. As you might imagine there were shortages in Germany of almost everything. Thus, the existing big department stores saw no reason to cut prices. They sold whatever they could get at healthy margins. Neckerman ...
4214. Why the Church?
Matthew 16:21-28
Sermon
Donald B. Strobe
Our daughter Carole made her decision to become a minister while she was studying in England in the early 1970s. When she told some of her fellow students about her decision to enter the ministry, they were incredulous...not that a woman would decide for the ministry, but that anybody would want to be a minister. That means being part of the Church, doesn’t it? they said. Why the Church? That’s the question with which I begin this morning. Why the Church? George Arthur Buttrick in his book So We Believe, ...
4215. Sweet-Smelling Fragrance
Ephesians 4:17--5:21
Sermon
Harold Warlick
Realtors tell us that an empty house is difficult to sell. Regardless of its physical beauty, a home "shows" better when it is furnished. Sellers are advised to have the home cleaned, have a fire going in the fireplace, turn on lamps, have soft music playing in the background, and place fresh flowers on tables and cabinets. The aura and smells that are presented to the customer are important. In major shopping malls the smells of baked cookies are sometimes injected into the ventilation system to lure ...
Sermon
Maxie Dunnam
Sometime ago Sydney Harris, the syndicated columnist, wrote a "fascinating piece about Anita Bryant that I would like to read to you this morning. As you know, Anita Bryant was a self-appointed crusader against gay rights a few years ago. Then she went through a divorce, and acquired a drug habit, and was hospitalized for a long time. And today, she's not the same person she was back then. This is what Sydney Harris wrote: He said, "Now that her world has come unstuck, and she is beginning to reglue it, I ...
Sermon
Maxie Dunnam
There is an old story about Noah Webster, who wrote the famous dictionary that bears his name. As you can imagine, he was a stickler for the precise use of language. He was also something of a womanizer. One day he was in the pantry kissing the maid when Mrs. Webster walked in on them. Mrs. Webster said, "Why, Noah, I'm surprised." Noah said, "No, my dear. We're surprised. You're amazed." (Mark Trotter, "Do You Amaze Anybody?", May 22, 1988) Noah was trying to divert attention from himself with an esoteric ...
Sermon
Maxie Dunnam
Sometime ago Sydney Harris, the syndicated columnist, wrote a "fascinating piece about Anita Bryant that I would like to read to you this morning. As you know, Anita Bryant was a self-appointed crusader against gay rights a few years ago. Then she went through a divorce, and acquired a drug habit, and was hospitalized for a long time. And today, she's not the same person she was back then. This is what Sydney Harris wrote: He said, "Now that her world has come unstuck, and she is beginning to reglue it, I ...
Sermon
Michael Milton
It was the ancient custom to anoint the feet of the honored rabbi. Jesus was likely anointed on many occasions, but two stand out. One is recorded in Luke 7:36-50 in the house of Simon the Pharisee. There, in a scene filled with pathos, a woman tenderly wipes Jesus’ feet with her tears. The other is our text for today. As we come to Mark 14, we come to plotting and betrayal. But sandwiched between this evil is the second story of anointing. It is the story of a broken vessel by a broken woman. It just may ...
Sermon
Mark Trotter
The sermon for this Sunday is taken from the Book of II Samuel. If you want to look it up, it's right after I Samuel. The two together comprise one of the first histories ever written, written around 1000 years before Christ, so this is important historical stuff. It is political history, written by someone to record the reign of David. It is thought to have been written by Abiathar, who was David's companion during the wars, and when David was made king he made Abiathar his high priest. That would be ...
4221. Fear Factor
Psalm 25:1-22
Sermon
Leonard Sweet
So . . . when did throwing up become the newest spectator sport? The hottest TV trend in pop culture? The red-hot reality show fear factor is supposed to highlight people facing up to and facing down their greatest fears. Whenever I've tuned in, the only thing I've seen is people hurling. They have good reason. The most crowd-pleasing, Nielsen-boosting activity seems to be when the "everyman" and "everywoman" participants are forced to consume large quantities of such disgusting delicacies as horse rectum ...
Sermon
James W. Moore
Have you heard the story about a little girl named Mikki who was walking down the sidewalk with her mother one day? They were walking together, (mom and daughter) holding hands. As they walk along, little Mikki asks: “Mommy, what is God?” Her mother answers: “Well, Mikki, God is the creative force, the first cause, the unmoved mover, the unseen primal producer of existence, the binding, sentient energy which underpins all physical manifestation, the…” At this point, the little girl interrupts. “Mommy, ...
Sermon
James W. Moore
Someone once said: “You can call me anything, if you let me define the terms.” This morning, I want us to define the term “Magnanimity”…because it was such an important word to the Apostle Paul… and such a key characteristic in the life of Jesus. Writing a long time ago to the Philippian Christians, Paul called the spirit of magnanimity the essential spirit of the Christian. He told the Philippians that a Christian should be characterized by his or her magnanimity… and that the spirit of magnanimity should ...
Sermon
James Merritt
My sermon is not going to be anything like the movie with the same title. It is different in two very distinct ways. I am not going to be talking about Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Yoda, nor R2D2. Rather, I am going to be speaking about a real empire, the Kingdom of God, and the real Emperor, whose name is Jesus. Furthermore, in the movie “The Empire Strikes Back” the hero, Han Solo, is left carbon-frozen in need of being rescued. But when this empire strikes back, the ...
4225. Finishing Strong
Nehemiah 9:38--10:39
Sermon
James Merritt
The Constitution of the United States had just been signed and America was officially a nation. Benjamin Franklin walked out of the meeting room where many people were anxiously awaiting the news. One lady by the name of Mrs. Powel walked up to Benjamin Franklin and said, "So Mr. Franklin what type of government have your delegates given us?" Benjamin Franklin gave this famous reply - "A republic madam, if you can keep it." What Ben Franklin meant by that was, the Constitution had laid the foundation for ...
Showing results