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 1001 to 1025 of 1858 results

1001. The Lost And Found Collection

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... in the mood, but it was clear that he was doing you a favor. If you sat in his chair he would fix you with such a stare of utter disdain that you would feel ashamed and move. The amazing thing is that this thoroughly domesticated cat had been utterly wild for the first two years of his life. He lived in the woods behind the house of his eventual owners, the Thomas family. He would not let any person get near him. Then one day the family noticed that the elusive cat was hurt. He was sort of dragging his ...

1002. From Selfishness to Servanthood

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... Dr. Bill Bouknight, Christ UMC, 4488 Poplar Ave., Memphis, TN 38117 Copyright in progress. www.cumcmemphis.org (1) Moore, James W., “When All Else Fails…Read the Instructions, (Dimensions for Living: Nashville, 1993), p. 44. (2) Hamilton, J. Wallace, Ride the Wild Horses, (Revell: Westwood, N.J., 1952), p. 26. (3) Warren, Rick, The Purpose Driven Life, (Zondervan: Grand Rapids, 2002), p. 260. (4) Moore, James W., If You’re Going the Wrong Way…Turn Around, (Dimensions for Living: Nashville, 2004), p ...

1003. The Love Triangle: Man-Woman-God

Psalm 127:1-5

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... answered!” (4) In a Christian marriage, even though the partners may have hugged each other a thousand times; each time something within them wants to say, “Glory! My prayers have been answered.” Somehow God maintains good chemistry. No, it’s not the wild emotions we felt when we first fell in love. Perhaps it’s even more wonderful than that, because it’s less volatile, more solid, less fickle, and more dependable. Years ago the singer Paul Simon recorded a song which has this phrase—“still ...

1004. Bountiful Faith: Two All Beef Patties, Special Sauce, Lettuce, Cheese, Pickles...Etc

2 Corinthians 9:6-11

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... ourselves, the plans, the projects we conceive that we become immune to the glory of God's grace all around us. We barely notice the cloud passing over the moon, or the dewdrops clinging to the rose leaves. The ice on the pond comes and goes. The wild blackberries ripen and wither. We buy prepackaged fish and fowl and never think or blink about the bounty of God's creation. We grow complacent and lead practical lives. We must rediscover the gospel of grace and the world of grace. [1] Again, my friend Chuck ...

1005. Looking in All the Wrong Places

Romans 3:19-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... a spiritual quest to the present generation as "finding God" has been to previous ones. Not that men have it any easier. At the same time Helen Reddy was singing "I am woman hear me roar," the guys were watching Easy Rider, lip-synching "Born To Be Wild," and saving their money to buy a chopper. After trying to fulfill the demands of duty to family and community and nation instilled by culture and tradition, many males also experienced a loss of self. In the 1960s many did their civic duty in a place called ...

1006. A New Name, The Right Name

Psalm 103:8-12, Hosea 2:14-20

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship O that we should look past our idols, our distractions, and see God as God! Collect We have pruned our vineyards down to bare branches. Call us to new life. We claim that covenant you made for us with the wild animals, the birds of the air, and the creeping things of the ground. We renounce the bow, the sword, and war in our land, as you have willed, so that all might lie down in safety. May we bear fruit for the kingdom, that your glory should be known now, ...

1007. When Our Only Measure Is Fairness

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

Joel D. Kline

... the mystery in life and need to have things neatly explained, gratitude and graciousness will be edged out of our lives. Writes Robinson: "When our only measure is fairness, when our preoccupation is our just desserts, we lose touch with a sense of grace and graciousness. We forget about the wild zucchinis, the people who love us more than we deserve, and the God who extends generosity and forgiveness to us."

1008. Accepting the Lord Once Again

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... , like a loving vinedresser, did all that was possible for Jerusalem and the people of Judah, yet the yield was poor. We read, "What more was there to do for my vineyard that I have not done in it? When I expected it to yield grapes, why did it yield wild grapes?" God's disappointment is manifest in a prediction of destruction: "And now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will remove its hedge, and it shall be devoured; and I will break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. I will make ...

1009. Dusting Off Our Gratitude

Joel 2:21-27

Sermon

Mary S. Lautensleger

... things are bad now, just you wait till the Day of the Lord comes upon us!" Joel passionately warns. The agricultural destruction in the land of Judah is total, and without food or water, both livestock and people will soon wither away. "... Even the wild animals cry to you because the watercourses are dried up, and fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness" (Joel 1:18, 20). Instead of celebration and revelry at this year's harvest time, there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. With ...

1010. Power Failures and Power Surges

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... over the waters! Yahweh over the multitudinous waters! The voice of Yahweh in power! The voice of Yahweh in splendour! The voice of Yahweh shatters the cedars, Yahweh shatters the cedars of Lebanon, making Lebanon leap like a calf, Sirion like a young wild bull. The voice of Yahweh sharpens lightning shafts! True power is and always has been wireless, held by the invisible hand of God, spoken by the mighty voice of God. God determines WHEN the “bridegroom” will arrive. God determines HOW the world turns ...

1011. Stepping Out on Faith

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... a straight ball nine times out of ten. In fact, in the first 17 holes he played with Schwab, Schwab didn’t bungle a single shot. Forbes could drive a ball 25 to 50 yards further than Schwab could, but quite often Forbes’ shot flew wild. The result was that Schwab licked him decisively. Schwab and Rockefeller didn’t leave their shots to chance. Neither did they trust luck to make them wealthy. They exercised due diligence. They were aggressive, but they were also cautious. There is a time for caution ...

1012. Small Acts of Kindness

Matthew 25:14-30

Illustration

Robert W. Bohl

... handle. She had a bad disposition, a violent temper...stemming in part from eyes that were partially blind due to the disease Trachoma, which left her without reading or writing skills. She had been put in the poorhouse because no one wanted her. She was such a wild one that at times she had to be tied down. But there was another child named Maggie who cared for Annie. Maggie talked to her, fed her, even though Annie would throw her food on the floor, cursing and rebelling with every ounce of her being. But ...

1013. John the Stall Cleaner

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... relocating in the wilderness, God’s favorite “prepping” grounds. *John sheds the accepted stability of food and dress expected of those with priestly religious status by feasting on a diet of locusts (a protein delicacy in the 1st century) and wild honey (the 1st century equivalent of Godiva chocolates) — eating a diet truly fit for the kingdom. *John challenges the moral and spiritual stasis of the people by proclaiming the need for a baptism of “repentance” and “forgiveness of sins.” But ...

1014. Prepare the Way - Sermon Starter

Mark 1:1-8

Illustration

Brett Blair

... same age as Jesus they grow up together, played together, yet as they reached adulthood they were different in so many ways. When John began his ministry he lived in the desert solitude of Judea, a rugged desert wilderness. He fed on honey and wild locust and dressed in garments of camel hair. He constantly brooded over the scriptures, especially the prophetic ministry of Elijah, after whom he modeled his own ministry. Nor was John a respecter of persons or rank. He had an intimidating personality. For that ...

1015. Is Your Christmas Spirit a Controlled Substance?

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... t give sap. The Christmas spirit gives strength. The Christmas spirit does not bind you ever more tightly. The Christmas spirit does not ground you ever more solidly. The Christmas spirit frees you for flight. The Christmas spirit releases you into the wild blue yonder. The Christmas spirit turns you loose to soar in the Spirit. Winter on northern waters is not about sun bathing and surfing. The hit Discovery channel show, “The Deadliest Catch,” documents the day-by-day toils, troubles, and terrors of ...

1016. Five Steps to Takeoff

Mark 1:14-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a grand forward-pointing gesture with his whole arm. The airboss points the pilot off the flight deck, into the direction of the carrier's mission. It is the airboss' sendoff of the pilot out into the world. Can we let go and let God take us into the wild blue yonder? Can we let go and trust God enough to lift us into stratospheres of spirituality and service we never knew even existed? Can we get out of the way and let God be God in our lives? The contemporary gospel group BTR (Big Tent Revival), in their ...

1017. The Gravity of Grace

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and hope. Ephesians 1 reminds us that God has a plan: "to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth" (v.10). God's plan brings all humanity, all creation, under the gravitational pull of Christ's love and grace. Instead of casting about wildly for an anchoring hold, or pretending that living in a moral free fall is the best we can do, we can grasp at the grace we are freely offered, " ... so that we ... might live for the praise of [God's] glory" (v.12). The pleasures of grace are ...

1018. God's in Charge (so shut up!)

Ephesians 5:15-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... 's text counsels "Be careful then how you live ... because the days are evil" (vv.15-16). The Dionysian revelers who were "getting drunk with wine" believed they were opening up their minds and their spirits to messages from their god by drinking themselves into a wild stupor. The "wisdom" of Christ calls us to grow quiet and open our minds up to new possibilities of divine communication, that we might begin to understand "what the will of the Lord is" (v.17). With an open mind, we can embrace ventures and ...

1019. Had-To

James 1:17-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , people are not "shocked" by technological advances as much as they are intrigued by them. People love to "play." Is there anything quite so enchanting as a new electronic "toy"? Ever wonder why "science fiction" stories and movies are so wildly popular? It's not because the alien worlds our imaginations envision are so weirdly different or unexpected. The "Star Trek" genre thrives because they tell tales laced with all the culturally familiar values and notions we can identify with. The difference ...

1020. Get Real

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... over to you, trusting that your plan and purpose for my life is so much greater than anything I can ask or think or even imagine." (NOTE: Don't leave this illustration until you specify that this is not a prosperity gospel sermon.) Our God is a wild and creative God. Our God is an awesome and unpredictable God. "Our God is in the heavens; he does whatever he pleases" (Psalm 115:3). - God breathed on David - and a delicate, ruddy-skinned boy became the new ruler of Israel. - God breathed on Isaiah - and he ...

1021. Self-Fulfillment Through Self-Sacrifice

1 Peter 2:19-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . Patrons at a local pub argue over what sporting event to watch on the bar TV football or golf. The argument is solved when a bottle of their favorite brew, used as "rabbit ears" on the TV, combines those two completely different sports into one wild game of "football-golf." As ridiculous as the image is, it captivates the crowd. They love having two such seeming opposites combined into one. Actually, the idea isn't all that new. In music, the concept of "two choirs" was established long ago. Composers and ...

1022. B.T.D.T.

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... down rugged mountains on mostly airborne bicycles, and rollerblading through complete loop-the-loops. In between each adrenaline-pumping activity, though, the screen quickly shifts to a picture of four bored guys standing around doing nothing. Their response to each of these wild scenes is a monotone "been there" or "done that"..."been there"..."done that..." Only when these seen-it, heard-it, done-it-all kids are offered a Mountain Dew to drink are they finally revved up to rush headlong into new death ...

1023. Ten Commandments of Trust

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... our coins read "In God we trust," trust is a scarce commodity these days. Perhaps we have forgotten the Ten Commandments of Trust. The issue of trust is one of the most crucial question facing postmoderns today. - The catch phrase of the wildly popular "X Files" TV show declares, "Trust no one; fear everything." - The mistrust between Republicans and Democrats has led to multiple forced government shutdowns as the battle over who can be trusted to balance the federal budget rages. - Social "Security" is now ...

1024. Mark 1:4-11

Mark 1:4-11

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... wilderness, preaching baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Mark describes John as pulling in people from all over Jerusalem and Judea with this message. John's peculiarities are many ("clothed in camel's hair," wearing a "leather girdle," eating "locusts and wild honey"). But his manner is demure: "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie" (vs.7). Furthermore, John notes that a crucial difference will attend the ministrations ...

1025. Mark 10:46-52

Mark 10:46-52

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... voice brought before him (vs. 49). The crowd's urging that Bartimaeus "take heart" seems fairly redundant. Bartimaeus' heart has obviously already gone out to meet the one whom he believes will heal him. Little wonder, then, that verse 50 records the wild eagerness Bartimaeus' body displayed as it sought to catch up to his voice and his heart. Piteously portrayed in verse 46 as a desolate blind beggar "sitting by the roadside," the man is now invigorated and animated as he responds to Jesus' call ...

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