Sermon and Worship Resources

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 4426 to 4450 of 5000 results

4426. Yet Alive....Are We?

Romans 12:1-13

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... 't funny. The denomination which transformed the American frontier is dying a slow death and we laugh about it. Maybe the response is even sadder than the news. The old hymn asks the question: "And are we yet alive...?" And the answer is, "Just barely, but not for long, and we seem to be enjoying it." So I'll come back home to a thriving local church and celebrate the promise of new life in this corner of the world. Here at FirstChurch, there really is a lot to be joyful about! Still singing, Jack Harnish

4427. When Seeing is Not Believing

John 20:19-31

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... the promise of power, "Receive the Holy Spirit." He sends them with the words of forgiveness and reconciliation the world so desperately longs to hear. But, John notes, Thomas wasn't there. Now you really have to wonder where he was, don't you? You ... keep it on. I chose to open the door, to unbuckle, to loosen the reins. I felt as if I were a man of snow at long last beginning to melt. The melting was starting in my back—drip-drip and presently trickle-trickle. My Adversary, God, would not argue about it. ...

4428. On the Mountainside

Matthew 6:5-13

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... many words. Pray then like this..." And he gives us a spare, modest 66 words as a pattern for prayer. For those of us who are "Traveling the Prayer Paths of Jesus" this Lent, author John Indermark says: In the face of ageless inclinations toward long-worded, long-winded prayer, Jesus counsels another way. "Pray then like this" is not a decree to memorize the Lord's Prayer so we can have familiar words to close worship; rather it invites us to form our prayer life in simplicity and brevity, cutting to the ...

4429. Thanksgiving and Thanksliving

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... reading of this text does not mean we automatically capture the spirit of it. There is a spirituality at work calling for our entire being to shout into the heavens and also among our fellow women and men. It is getting beyond theory that counts in the long run. Genuine thanksgivings born of a right relationship with God the Father through his Son cannot be faked! Paul understood so well it is in paying the price for us by Jesus of Nazareth that the door opens to an "attitude of gratitude." Rejection and/or ...

4430. Taking a Necessary Step

Acts 19:1-7

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... rejecting it? I humbly pray that will not be the case. 3. So much of life is a rewarding preliminary leading to something or someone better. This concept takes time to ponder. The truth of it is not likely to come quickly. In honesty, perhaps we all need to live long enough to be able to perceive it and the value. Counting our blessings is one way to begin positive pondering on such a matter. Then, we see the connections of how one set of events leads to another and so on. Those who don't have a sense of ...

4431. A Man for All Seasons

1 Corinthians 9:16-23

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... of High and Elm for so many years — rigidly, as the community viewed it — that it had to be torn down before it fell down! It didn't have to be that way. New life seemed to come and go but it could never stay long enough to make the essential changes. So, those longing to have more of the Lord's blessings mostly passed through. It was as though the Holy Spirit kept on grieving until finally it refuses to grieve any longer. It was sad and depressing, but did God take care of those who wanted to grow ...

4432. Gift of Positive Thinking

2 Corinthians 1:18-22

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... any significant attachment to the cause of the Christian religion or the Judeo-Christian ethical system. The harm they may do is found in the reality of their goal, which is solely to produce that kind of a person who can cope in a secularized environment. As long as we live we are coping but how we do this is crucial. The apostle's message is fundamentally for those already in the fold. Yet, we must not deny its appeal to the unconverted. In a way, there is a chasm between using and utilizing. The first ...

4433. Proclaiming Jesus Christ

2 Corinthians 4:3-6

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... and we are grateful for the challenge we have accepted. Friends, if you have delayed in accepting the only mission that ultimately counts, please reconsider. If need be, retrace your steps and try to discover where you refused to accept this awesome adventure. Review, as long as you need to, your life. Then come to terms with the invitation that is still being given. My experience is the dear Lord comes to us with a holy pressure, uncomfortable though it be which is always for our benefit. So, as all ...

4434. Birthpangs of the New Age

Romans 8:22-23

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

4435. Looking to the Unseen

2 Corinthians 4:18

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... was reported on the news that one of our Mariner spacecraft was expected to make a new discovery. Billions of miles away on the borders of our solar system, the Mariner was expected to discover a new planet or star or even a black hole. Astronomers have long speculated about the existence of another planet in our solar system to explain the irregularity of the orbit of planet Uranus. It seems to be lured by the pull of the gravity of another body, the lure of the unseen. In the winter, while walking his dog ...

4436. No-fault Religion

2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (11-13), 14-17

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... in disgust and disbelief, he grumbled about no-fault insurance. "People should be held accountable for their actions," he said. "If they are wrong they should take the blame and pay the consequences." Another friend of mine went through a painful divorce. However, long before the painful divorce, his wife had begun having an affair with another man. The affair became intense, so much so, that my friend's wife actually moved in with the other man. In time, that cooled, and my friend and his wife reconciled ...

4437. The Acceptable Time

2 Corinthians 6:1-2

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... to man. Following his usual custom, Paul made his way to the synagogue and there began his message - the message that the long-awaited New Age had arrived. The Messiah has come, he announced to his skeptical audience. Citing the prophecies of the Old ... daughter to full-time Christian work. Speak of sending the brightest son or daughter into the ministry, and the prospects of long hours, low pay, and exploitation of dedication send many parents into convulsions of apoplexy. Others say, that if their son or ...

4438. Are You a Taker or a Giver?

2 Corinthians 8:7-15

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... old-fashioned to practice in today's world. Half the time the children act like adults and the adults behave like children."3 Are we getting the picture? It starts at birth — cared-for, coddled, diapers-changed, sucking at the breast for as much and as long as we want, continuing to suck, to demand, to exploit, to expect, and to insist we get what we want when we want it well into childhood, then into adolescence and into early, even late adulthood. So many of us become professionals at taking and taking ...

4439. Let God Do the Rest

Ephesians 3:14-21

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... man as well. The boy received much from the man, especially the love and compassion present in his eyes and his heart-felt message, and he longed to be able to give the man something in return, but he had nothing to give. One day the boy met the man's mother. She ... many of them and surely they did not anticipate being in such a deserted place where there was no place to buy food. It was a long way to the closest village. The boy felt badly, but he was only a youth; what could he do? Then one of the man's ...

4440. Jesus Is the Recipe for Eternal Life

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... Spirit; do not try the patience of God as the Jews had done so frequently in the past. Paul closes by encouraging the Ephesians to be kind to one another and forgiving, as Christ has forgiven them. Paul thus presents to the Christian community at Ephesus a long list of ingredients, but in essence he is telling the people that the formula for eternal life is centered in how we treat one another. We are all familiar with recipes of various things we enjoy. Experience in the kitchen tells us that if we follow ...

4441. Make the Most of God’s Gifts

Ephesians 5:15-20

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... had faith in God. He didn't worry about what he couldn't do; he was grateful for what he had. He had decided a long time ago to place his trust in God. The Angels did well that year; in fact they won the league championship. Timmy Noble was ... crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing" (2 Timothy 4:7-8). Timmy Noble also fought the good fight, using the gifts he was given, limited as they were. Yet ...

4442. The Unshakable Foundation

Hebrews 7:23-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... of striking it rich. We consult the so-called experts. We buy videos and listen to audiocassettes from nearly any charismatic person who will promise to make us wealthier, sexier, or more popular at work. We sacrifice our family ties on behalf of the job and labor long hours to please the company, so that we can have health and pension benefits once we've worked ourselves sick and tired. All of this is in hopes of attaining a place and time on Easy Street when we need no longer labor, or suffer, or struggle ...

4443. Grace to You, and Peace

Revelation 1:4b-8

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... ? Over the last few weeks we have been pondering the Jewish experience of the Old Testament tabernacle and its priesthood, as interpreted through the book of Hebrews. The temple, the priests, and the cultic ceremonies embodied the scriptural pathway to God for a people "a long time ago and far, far away." What paths do we modern folk trek to connect with God, given all the stuff that stands between? And once we have arrived, just what pronouncement do we expect to hear from the Almighty? Far too often, we ...

4444. Tending to Spiritual Wounds

Matthew 18:21-35

Illustration

Scott Hoezee

... spiritual wounds: the immediate injuries need to be tended to first. Then, sometime later, you may be in a position to move on toward forgiving the one who inflicted the wounds. And, of course, there are any number of phenomena that can make forgiveness a long, tortured process. It is exceedingly hard to forgive people who refuse to admit they were wrong. It is very difficult to proffer forgiveness to people who slap the gift of grace out of your hand saying, "Keep your forgiveness! I don't want it!" It ...

4445. A Nice Piece of Fish

Luke 24:36b-48

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship (Unison) Answer me when I call, O God of my right! You gave me room when I was in distress. Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer. How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame? How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies? Selah. But know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah. Offer right sacrifices, and ...

4446. The True Gate Of Heaven

Acts 2:1-21

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship Listen: Once long ago, the Tower of Babel reached up to touch heaven, but it all came to nothing but babble. Babylon claimed to be the ... babble, and here to stay is the Spirit and we'll never hold still again. Welcome. This is the gate of heaven, and it's time we know it! Collect I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. Come Holy Spirit, fill our song and our praise with new life. Amen. (based on Psalm 103:33) Prayer Of Confession Lord, we ...

4447. The Harder They Fall

1 Samuel 17:1-58, Psalm 146:1-10

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

... bigger by the second. Here it comes! The proud mocked the Lord, and the Lord is answering. Give in to God or get out of the way! Collect (Unison) Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long. Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish. Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope ...

4448. God Chooses The Poor

James 2:1-13, James 2:14-26, Psalm 146:1-10

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship One: Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! All: I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long. One: Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. All: When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish. One: Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord ...

4449. Perfect Priest

Hebrews 6:13-20, Psalm 146:1-10

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship (Unison) Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long. Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked ...

4450. Wheel Of Fortune

Luke 2:22-40

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

... in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed — and a sword will pierce your own soul too. Collect We have seen your salvation! We rest for this hour secure in the fulfillment of your promise, long ago in your temple, and even today in our hearts. Calm us, cleanse us, then send us forth in the power of your light, that all nations might be drawn to you. Amen. Prayer Of Confession Lord, how we resent the rising and falling in our lives, asking, "Why ...

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