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 4726 to 4750 of 5000 results

4726. Is There Room For Shepherds?

Luke 2:8-14

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... winter and early spring. It seems the ewes would take their lambs out to graze, and late in the day it would start to snow. The temperature would drop, and the ewes would continue grazing. The lambs would lie down on the frozen ground and before long would freeze to death. The shepherds got together to discuss the problem. They determined that the ewes, covered with wool, didn't feel the temperature change. The shepherds came up with a rather unique solution. They took shears and sheared just the top of the ...

4727. A Stone’s Throw From: The Harvest

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

A long time ago, I remember hearing a story about a young boy who was helping his grandfather dig potatoes. After a while, the little boy ... we are called to plant seeds of encouragement. We are living in a pretty discouraging time. Yes, Wall Street has rebounded a little, which gives us a little encouragement, we still have a long way to go and people need to hear more than a single word of encouragement. We need to be sowers of encouragement. The animated movie Robots is family adventure about Rodney the ...

4728. A Stone’s Throw From: New Life

John 8:3-12

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... soul on this earth ain't got a burden to he don't understand. You ain't alone in that. But you been carryin' this one long enough. Time to go on. Lay it down." Junuh says, "I don't know how." Bagger says, "You've got a choice. You can stop. Or ... you can start. Walkin right back to where you always been. And then stand there. Still. Real still. And remember." Junuh says, "It's too long ago." Bagger says, "Oh, no sir. It was just a moment ago. Time for you to come on out the shadows, Junuh. Time for you to ...

4729. A Stone’s Throw From: The Rolled Stone

Luke 24:1-12

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... of the daughter, I'd been visiting one of the members who was in the VA Hospital, dying. I hadn't been at the church very long so I really only knew the family from the few visits I'd made to the hospital. But in those visits, Charles and I had become ... praying and every head was lifted than Charles opened his eyes. He was looking up. It looked like he was looking at something a long distance away. His eyes were clear and bright and a beautiful radiant smile filled his face. He took a deep breath and said, "Oh ...

4730. Same Table, Different Chairs

John 15:11-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... . My little brother Scott always opted for the ride, while my brother Glen always bought baseball cards, which meant he had something to take home with him after the trip to the grocery store. Scott would get mad when the ride was over. No matter how long it was it was never long enough. My Dad would always tell him the same thing, "Well, looks like your nickel is all used up." We've had a wonderful ride together. And while it seems like our nickel is about used up, it doesn't mean the ride is over; because ...

4731. Flying First Class

Ephesians 1:3-13

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... you and I and all of society are quick to throw away those things, especially those people, who are damaged or no longer meet our standards and expectations. Thanks be to God that Jesus is different or most of us would have found ourselves on the trash heap a long time ago. Jesus came to reach out to the least, the lost, the lonely. Jesus came to Redeem and Upgrade those of us who are "banged up a little." Jesus came for the damaged and the disenfranchised. He came to lift up the weak and the outcasts. He ...

4732. Settling In Celebration

Romans 12:1-2

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... him that day, something that we had all taken for granted. Conclusion I read a story from another UM Pastor who tells about the Sunday he and his daughter Abigail, age 3 were at a church one Sunday, not their own - for a special service. It was a long service and Abigail was looking forward to communion (to be able get up and move around). They went forward for communion, and he was served but the tradition of that church was that all Abigail got because she was three was a hands-on-the-head blessing which ...

4733. Altar Your Presence

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... the love of God as expressed in Christ in our lives. When that happens, within that family of faith we are supported and strengthened and sometimes even rescued. Some of you may have seen this clip from KruegerNational Park on You Tube. The full length version is over 8 minutes long and parts of it might be a little scary for the little ones, so I've tried to edit it so it still makes its point. And please don't worry, it does have an amazing ending. I loved how the entire herd came back to rescue that calf ...

4734. LOST? Finding Forgiveness

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... 's currently working as a waiter but the boy dreams of being a great matador some day. Although their relationship was strained, the father can't stand the thought of not knowing where his son is or how he is. Worries fill his mind. And so the father begins a long search for the boy. He searches in town after town. And finally his searching leads him to Madrid. But Madrid is so big he can't figure out where to being. And then it hits him. In one last desperate attempt to find the boy, the father put an ad ...

4735. LOST? Pursuing Purpose

1 Peter 2:9-10

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... we are pursuing something or someone else? And sometimes we don't even know why? Some of us are chasing a dream we've had for a long time. Some of us are pursuing a calling we've felt. Some of us are running a dream or a calling that's chasing us. We're ... us. We can begin to get rid of the bologna in our lives that keeps us weighed down and separated from God. It's a long process for most of us, not a one time fix. But experiencing forgiveness and forgiving others helps us as we Pursue the Purpose for our ...

4736. Saturday: The Week Of The Cross: Lazarus, Come Forth

John 11:1-7, 17-44

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... at him that week, it just sort of fell that way with all the stuff he was trying to get across. Not only that but as long as he was preaching in Galilee, he wasn't too much of a threat to the establishment. But the last week he sort of invaded ... ministerial student stood and said, "Hear these words of comfort from the scriptures..." And then he went absolutely blank. There was a long pause, and then he blurted out the only verse he could think of at the moment: "Jesus wept." Later this ministerial student ...

4737. Monday: The Way Of The Cross: Figs & Fig Trees

Matthew 21:18-22

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... country, faced the same challenge. When they came to the mountain they decided it was too far to go around and their best option was to dig a tunnel. The tunnel was dug, the tracks were laid and the train began to run. But not for very long. Shortly after the tunnel was completed, the railway turned out to be a commercial failure and it was abandoned. But that family's prayers were answered because every Sunday they could walk through their mountain to church. God DID move that mountain. Not all of it, but ...

4738. The Smell Of Smoke Still Lingers

John 21:1-19

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... was just around the corner and the whole place was covered in snow. We like it snow on Christmas morning or Christmas Eve, just as long as it's all gone by the time we get on the road to go to visit our families, right Well anyway, this woman said ... eating. Of course, it all depends on how it's cooked. You know you're in for some bad barbecue when everything on the grill has a long thin tail. There's an old saying about barbecue that goes like this: "Give a man some barbecue and you'll feed him for a day. ...

4739. Close Enough For Comfort

Psalm 23:4, John 14:15-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

A little girl asked her father if he was afraid of the dark. He told her no. She asked if he was afraid of snakes. He said "No." The little girl asked if he was afraid of long, slimy worms. Her father again told her he wasn't afraid, not even of long, slimy worms. The girl thought for a moment and then concluded, "So, then, the only thing you're afraid of is Mom!" (1) We laugh but there are certain instances when we would all probably act the same because we all have fears. And that's where the 23rd Psalm ...

4740. Shadrach, Meschach, Abeddnego: Unexpected

Daniel 3:1-30

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... Doumak, discovered a revolutionary process called the "extrusion process". The "extrusion Process" involves pumping the marshmallow mixture through long pipes and cutting it into the shape we are familiar with today. In the early 1950's the "jet ... a hair on their head was singed. They didn't even smell like smoke. And any good Texan who likes to Barbecue knows it doesn't take long to smell like wood smoke. They didn't bow, they didn't bend, they didn't burn. And when asked how, they gave testimony to God. ...

4741. Nehemiah: The Fix

Nehemiah 1:1-11

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... with it, he didn't!" Well that thoroughly frustrated the pastor who brought the matter up at his first board meeting. There was long uneasy silence afterwards until the Chair of the Trustees finally said, "Look Pastor, that boy and his parents are all good people. If ... since we don't know which way it's going to go, even if we try to direct it, it's going to take a very long time, with lots of twists and turns, before it gets to the door. But when we focus our lives on God, our faith and our relationship ...

4742. A Chance To Be Made Whole

Matthew 9:18-26

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... the passage felt. I. The Woman A. Let's look at the woman first. This Woman with the Hemorrhage comes in desperation for herself. She was one of the walking dead. You know those people who feel so alienated from society that they are just plain dead inside. For a long time they struggle to be normal. They struggle to be whole and a part of the community or family. But there is something in their character or in ours, I don't know which, but it doesn't let them be connected or bonded with us and others. You ...

4743. Celebrating Generosity

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... 38-44 (NRSV) [38] As he taught, he said, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, [39] and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! [40 ... ] They devour widows' houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation." [41] He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the ...

4744. Generous Hearts

1 Timothy 6:11-19

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... rest of the world, even the poorest of us have more then the average person. We are rich. As a result, we're called to "set our hopes on God." We're called to do good, to be rich in good works, generous and ready to share. This congregation, as long as I've been here, has never had a problem being generous. Or having Generous Hearts. I. A Generous Heart A. Rather than giving you lots of definitions about having, growing or developing a Generous Heart, I simply want to tell you about a man I knew. I want to ...

4745. This Is Where We Come In

John 2:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . There is only one way to bring health and wholeness back into our broken lives. As Jesus showed so clearly at his first hour and in his final hour—our lives must be poured out for others. You know what happens to wine when it sits around too long. Even the best wine will eventually turn to vinegar — sour and worthless, completely unpalatable. A life that is not poured out for others, A life that is not given in service and love to others, A life lived for self alone, That life sours. Life cannot be ...

4746. Overcoming Obstacles - Together

Luke 2:1-7, Psalm 107:1-9

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... her hands and knees. Yeah, she poked me with the broom and said, "Billy, you come out from under that bed and fight like a man!" (2) After years of study, researchers have determined that there are two primary reasons for marital conflict: husbands and wives. (3) All month long we've been look at "The INS and OUTS of Families." We've looked at one of the IN families, Abraham and Sarah. And we’ve looked at a couple of the families who were sort of on the OUTS with God. Even though God was faithful to God ...

4747. Changing Dysfunction Into Function: Isaac, Jacob and Esau

Genesis 27:15-24, 30-34

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... turns her attention to Jim, "It's from the butcher's and he won't say a word about it, will you Jay? Will you, Jay?!" Jim takes a long look at his son, who won't meet his eyes, "Okay, pick it up and let's go." When his son doesn't move, Jim's voice takes on ... 's opinion, her guardian angel. She took special interest in Kathy, often inviting her into her home where the two of them had long talks. She told Kathy that God loved her. She said that Jesus' death on the cross shows how much God cares. Mrs. Parsons ...

4748. The Adventure Begins

Ephesians 1:15-23, Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... on the last page. Sure, some of it is boring lists of genealogies. Some of it is rituals of sacrifice that ended 2000 years ago. But those parts are all part of the Book. Most of us get bogged down because of those bits. I've thought for a long time, that the Bible was printed backwards. The New Testament is our story, I think it should come first. When we understand the New Testament and thoroughly ensconced in the Grace of God through Christ, then we can delve into the Old Testament and find out how we ...

4749. Cross Eyed: Focus

Mark 1:9-15

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... hard to see. And you know if you turn on the wipers all you're going to do is smear all the dirt around. Well, I waited for a little bit for the rain to pick up and turned on my wipers. But it had been so long since we'd had rain and so long since I'd used my wipers that I wasn't sure they were still any good. I got distract checking whether my windshield wipers were doing their job or not that I almost ran into the truck in front of me. I lost my focus. And ...

4750. Amazing Authority

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... the roost. C. Then There's Boot Camp Authority: The Drill Instructor or Company Commander weren't just in charge, they were God. You didn't do anything without their permission. You ate, slept, walked, talked, went to the bathroom when they told you to. They even told you how long of a shower to take, when to brush and how much toilet paper you could use. They were in charge. They might not have been God but they sure acted like they had God on the phone and had put Him on hold to deal with you. That's the ...

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