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 801 to 825 of 1069 results

801. Let Go of the Stone

Mark 16:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . I have come to tell you today: Things are not always what they sometimes seem to be. God still moves stones. I. Let go of the stone of HEARTBREAK and embrace a life of HOPE. Never morning wears to evening but some heart breaks, a heart just as sensitive as yours or mine. In the last few months, Sandy and I have buried our grandson and walked through the valley of the shadow of death with my father. Quite candidly I must admit the grief is greater than I imagined, the sorrow is deeper than I anticipated ...

802. Convening A Construction Crew: Nobody Builds Alone

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... us all. Verse 47: “The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” There is a difference between a church and a clique. No church group should ever meet without an open door and an empty chair. Fellowships major on hospitality and sensitivity. Groucho Marx once said, “I wouldn’t want to be part of any church that would have me as a member.” The Church exists for people like Grouch Marx. III. WE CAN CONSTRUCT A COMMUNTIY. The same Spirit that swept over the believers at Pentecost ...

803. What Would Jesus Say About War?

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... for the purposes of morally restraining any resort to war. Introduced by St. Augustine in the 4th century, after Christians had abandoned their pacifist stance, and revised in the Middle Ages by St. Thomas Aquinas, these principles continue to instruct morally sensitive people concerning war. In essence they are contained in these five principles: 1. Is there a Just Cause? A decision for war must vindicate justice itself in response to serious evil, such as an aggressive attack. Remember Pearl Harbor. 2. Is ...

804. What Would Jesus Say About the Marginalized?

Luke 4:14-30

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... us eyes clear enough to see the hurt of the world Ears perceptive enough to hear your call. A brain wise enough to figure a solution. A voice loud enough to tell of the need. Feet determined enough to seek out the alleys of misery and Despair. Hands sensitive enough to hug, mold, and heal. A heart strong enough to endure the struggle. And a spirit thankful enough to ask. What more may I do? “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, said Jesus," for his call to proclaim good news to the poor." Dare we follow ...

805. The Constant God in a Changing World

Psalm 48:1, 9-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is forever? I don't know. It is forever. That's how long. God is our guide forever. God leads his dear children along. To discern is more than to decide. To discern is to discover the will of God and then try to follow it. Those with spiritual sensitivity can discover the will of God through consolations and desolations. Then by the power of the Holy Spirit, they can determine to follow the will of God with confidence each step of the way. Do you seek that kind of direction from God in your life? I keep a ...

806. We Believe in the Holy Spirit

John 14:15-18, 25-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... 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 or she like? Great teachers awaken us to possibilities, enlighten us to truth, sensitize us to others, and give us tools to carry on. The Holy Spirit is like a good teacher. Has your education made you truly wise? Has your education made you a friend of all good causes? Has your education made you a Good Samaritan to the least? Do ...

807. Are You Able?

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to scream to the broadcasters— turn off the lights, put away the mikes—let these people face their loss in peace. Nevertheless, the evening news ought to teach us that— Suffering happens. Never morning wore to evening but some hearts break, a heart just as sensitive as yours or mine. A child is neglected, some teenager is raped, some car wrecks, some disease strikes, some family fights, some friends stop speaking to each other, or some country goes to war. A. Why Are We Surprised When It Happens To Us ...

808. Can the Rich Be Saved?

Mark 10:17-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him. Dear children let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.” What can God do for us? He can get us out of denial. He can keep us sensitive to the hurts and pain of humanity. One of the problems we have is isolation. We get so far removed from the hurt of the world; we pretend that it is not there. What can God do for us? He can save us by His grace. Did you hear about ...

809. The Power of a Vision

2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... somebodies? Isn’t that the challenge of today? The Promise Keeper movement came up with eight biblical principles of reconciliation. I don’t have time to elaborate on them today, but let me name them now: Reconciliation consists of: involvement, commitment, intentionality, sincerity, sensitivity, sacrifice, empowerment, interdependence. He drew a circle that shut me out, Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But love and I had a wit to win, We drew a circle that took him in. You and I live in a world where ...

810. The Power of a Helping Hand

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... where to get help. I don’t have any medical training. I could get sued. “Before I could come to my better senses, other people came to this man’s aid, picked him up and carried him out of the street and I went on to make a speech about sensitivity and caring for the needs of other human beings. I thought when I finished my talk, how hypocritical can you be?” A religion that passes by on the other side is really no religion at all. Who is my neighbor? A robber says nobody, what’s yours is mine and ...

811. How To Handle Criticism? Keep Moving

Luke 9:51-56

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... text. At first Page admits, tongue firmly in cheek, “I can’t see the problem here. You mock someone for baldness, you get eaten by bears. Sounds fine to me.” Then Page confesses that since he too is “follically challenged,” perhaps he is overly-sensitive to the critical cry of “baldy:” “I’m prepared to admit that having a lot of cheeky kids eaten by bears does smack of a little of over-reaction.” As Page examines this “too bad for a bedtime story” text, he finally concludes that ...

812. From Anger to Courage

Mark 11:12-19

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... by helping others, I might find some healing for myself. In those days, we were taught to “let it all hang out." We were encouraged to express ourselves, to sing about the Age of Aquarius and blame our parents for all of our hang-ups. In sensitivity groups, I learned that anger, which was punished in my family, was a God-given emotion that needed to be expressed. So, I went on an expression binge. I vented for twenty years, causing my family, my congregations, my superiors considerable pain. It felt good ...

813. The Road of Peace

Isaiah 9:2-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... ?" Of course, he is right. But I submit to you, that CEOs who cheat retirees out of their life savings, and politicians who lie to their voters, and religious leaders who bounce between piety and depravity, are not people who lack ethical moorings or sensitive consciences. They know right from wrong. They preach about it and teach about it, but they have so compartmentalized their lives that what they believe and how they live remain miles apart. The road to peace is integration of the self, so what I ...

814. What Can Christians Learn from Muslims?

Genesis 21:1-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... was born. His mother died when Mohammed was six. Mohammed went to live with his grandfather who died when Mohammed was eight. Finally, landing with an uncle, Mohammed was forced to work at a very young age. In spite of a horrid childhood, he became a sensitive, honorable, duty-minded young man. At the age of 25, Mohammed went to work for a woman named Khadijah, who owned a caravan business. Although she was fifteen years older than Mohammed, the two of them fell in love, were married, and bore many children ...

815. Ruth: The Problem of Grief

Ruth 1:1-8, 16-18

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Elimelech died. Then the two sons married two Moabite women against their religious heritage, one named Orpah and another named Ruth. Ten years later both Mahlon and Chilion died. Life is full of detours. Never morning wears to evening but some heart breaks, a heart just as sensitive as yours or mine. What does one do with detours ahead? It's not a question of whether or not you have detours, it's what do you do with the detours of your life? Maybe a country song by Carrie Underwood gives us a clue. She ...

816. The Power to Be Saved

Acts 4:5-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

In the church of my childhood, the opportunity to get saved came once a year at the annual Revival Meeting. Skilled evangelists came to the protracted meetings loaded with all kinds of bait to reel in the least and the lost. Being a sensitive teenager, I was always fair game, so I usually got saved about once a year. Over the years I've expressed my share of cynicism about such manipulative evangelism. But I have not come to criticize but to connect. It would be easy to strike up a strong debate right ...

817. Join

Acts 11:19-26

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... than when they stoop to serve. IV. CHURCH IS NOT ABOUT ENTERTAINMENT, IT'S ABOUT ETERNITY Do you ever wonder how people down here who are critical of church plan to enjoy heaven? Don't get me wrong, church needs to be relevant. Pastors need to be sensitive to the struggles of the congregation. Music needs to reflect the triumphant songs of life, but holiness is more than hype. It is something different from a momentary high. Holiness is a way of life, a condition of the heart that can make you laugh and ...

818. In Prayer’s Way

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... be the same prayer you breathe back in. Respiration brings transformation. Maybe the church today needs a conversion . . . a conversion to prayer. Here in the US, we’ve tried to become every other kind of church imaginable — a planning church, a seeker-sensitive church, a purpose-driven church, an organic church, an Emergent church, an National Church Development church, a house church, a missional church. Isn’t it time we got off our feet and back down on our knees and became first and foremost, a ...

819. By Faith

1 Peter 1:3-9

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... ground, the man looked again into the heavens and said, “Is there anybody else up there who could help me?" Suffering happens. Sometimes it is explainable. Most often it is indescribable. Never morning wears to evening but some heart breaks, a heart just as sensitive as yours and mine. The real question of faith is not “Why do people suffer?" The real question is “How do we handle suffering?" And that is what this little letter of I Peter is all about. It was written to encourage Christians to hang ...

820. Choosing to Love

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67

Sermon

Stan Purdum

... we've fallen in love with a phantom, an ideal image that doesn't exist. You discover your wife is neither a goddess nor a vixen, but a human being with both glories and faults. You discover your husband is neither a knight in shining armor nor the most sensitive guy to ever live, but a human being with both glories and faults. That's the point at which lasting love needs to take hold. That's the point at which the scripture places Isaac. After he had married Rebekah, he loved her. That's when he decided to ...

821. No Partiality

Acts 10:34-43

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... (over 20,100 in May 2006 alone) that are victimized by "spoofed" emails that take consumers to counterfeit websites designed to trick them into divulging financial data thinking that they are actually updating their accounts. The Brittains are especially sensitive to identify theft since my wife, Eileen, had hers stolen before the term "identity theft" had even been coined. She was victimized the old-fashioned way when somebody stole her purse, altered her driver's license, opened numerous credit ...

822. Hidden in Plain Sight

1 Corinthians 2:1-12 (13-16)

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... true.) While these congregations may in fact try to reach out, their efforts are often cloaked in theological, liturgical, or traditional garb that render them unintelligible to the outsider. On the other hand, there has been an explosion of seeker-sensitive services, which avoid some of these trappings to more effectively reach the increasing percentage of the population that simply has had little contact with Christianity. The fear is that in stripping away too much, these churches may meet people where ...

823. By Whose Standards?

1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... issues. Today the church has to continually ask the Sesame Street question, "How are they the same and how are they different?" In what ways should the church today be "run like a business"? To what extent should we use tools of advertising and be sensitive to the latest polls? If we are too different, do we simply become irrelevant? If we become too relevant, too much "the same" as the surrounding culture, are we no longer faithful? These are tough questions. They have always been. "Now think about it this ...

824. Boast in Our Suffering

Romans 5:1-8

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... That first touch of water to your lips is amazing. You never thought that a simple taste of water could make such a difference. You haven't had food for a day. You are starved and famished. Your stomach is growling with hunger. Your taste buds are so sensitive that even a smidgen of peanut butter on a piece of stale bread seems like some chef's finest culinary creation. It is one of those desperately hot and humid summer days when even a gentle breeze takes you to a cool mountain meadow. Suffering can focus ...

825. True Blood

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... than report on the series. "True Blood" is an American television drama series. It premiered on HBO exactly two years ago, on September 7, 2008. (please be careful: you must see this magazine cover before mentioning it in the pulpit. Only you know the sensitivities of your people, and while your people will see this magazine cover at the newsstand, they may not want to see it in church. Only you know how best to deal with controversial issues like the growing nudity and violence in our culture) “True ...

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