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 2101 to 2125 of 3108 results

2101. You Are in Good Hands with God

Isaiah 40:21-31

Sermon

Richard Gribble

The SS seemed more preoccupied and more disturbed than normal. The idea of executing a young boy in front of hundreds of spectators was no light matter. The commandant of the camp read the verdict. All eyes were on the child. He was extremely pale, almost calm, and he bit his lip. The gallows threw its shadow over him. This time, the Lagerkapo refused to be the executioner. Three SS soldiers replaced him. The three victims were seated next to each other on chairs. A single noose was placed around each man' ...

2102. The Many Faces of God

Isaiah 6:1-8

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

Think of all the faces we show the world every day. We scrub up every morning and put our game face on. We never show our real face except to those who know us best, the ones who see through the game face to the real you and me. But with everyone else we change our faces. The doorbell rings. You're working on something, so you grimace over the interruption. Watch the contours of your face change, depending on who's at the door. Perhaps it's a door-to-door salesman and now you're stuck listening to his ...

2103. God Never Gives Up on Us

1 Samuel 8:4-11 (12-15) 16-20, (11:14-15)

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

Have you noticed that no matter how much of a mess we make of our lives, God never gives up on us? We try to do the right thing, but fail over and over again. Paul talks openly about the fact that he knows the right thing to do, but just keeps doing the wrong thing. He can't seem to help himself. I guess it all started with the first Adam who got to work early one morning and parked on the line between two parking places so that everyone who came after him has parked on the line ever since. What a mess we ...

2104. Diagnosis Old Age

Illustration

Staff

Thought I'd let my doctor check me Cause I didn't feel quite right All those aches and pains annoyed me And I couldn't get to sleep at night. He could find no real disorder But he couldn't let me rest What with Medicare and Blue Cross It wouldn't hurt to do some tests. To the hospital he sent me Though I didn't feel that bad He arranged for them to give me Every test that could be had. I was flouroscoped and cystoscoped My aging frame displayed, Stripped upon an ice cold table While my gizzards were X- ...

2105. Preaching on Prayers

Illustration

Staff

How important is faithfulness in prayer? Dr. Wilbur Chapman often told of his experience when, as a young man, he went to become pastor of a church in Philadelphia. After his first sermon, an old gentleman said to him, "You're pretty young to be pastor of this church. But you preach the Gospel, and I'm going to help you all I can." Dr. Chapman thought, "Here's a crank." But the man continued: "I'm going to pray for you that you may have the Holy Spirit's power upon you. Two others have covenanted to join ...

2106. The Four Sacred Chords of Home

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Salmon do it. Hummingbirds do it. Butterflies do it. Turtles do it. All these creatures, and many more: they all . . . go home again. Salmon find their way from the vast ocean back to whatever tiny tributary in which they were hatched. Hummingbirds fly over 6000 miles to find their nesting sites. Butterflies congregate in the same trees, generation after generation. Migrating turtles closed down whole runways this past summer (2011) at JFK Airport as they made their way back to home ground. The instinct to ...

2107. Love Each Other (Mother's Day)

John 15:1-17

Sermon

King Duncan

A little boy watched, fascinated, as his mother gently rubbed cold cream on her face. “Why are you rubbing cold cream on your face, mommy?” he asked. “To make myself beautiful,” said his mother. A few minutes later, she began removing the cream with a tissue. “What’s the matter?” he asked. “Are you giving up?” Welcome on this Mother’s Day. It’s not easy being a Mom. Those of you who have children know it’s not easy, regardless of their age. One Mom says that she’s going to try something different next ...

2108. Zombie Zone or Beulah Land?

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

There is nothing like escaping to a cool movie theater on a hot summer night. If you are a high school or college kid on break from school, there is no better stuffy, hot night escape than a scary movie that makes your blood run cold. Ever since the dawn of movies there have been “fright films.” Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Wolfman were first on the silver screen. Later on mythical monsters were replaced by urban monsters, and the “teenage slasher” movie was born — where lonely baby-sitters and popular ...

2109. Sister Act(s)

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

Today's gospel from Luke 10 follows the parable of the Good Samaritan. Luke positions the Good Samaritan and the Mary-Martha story back to back for good reason. The parable and the story are examples of the Great Commandment "to love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself." The Good Samaritan parable illustrates "love to neighbor," whereas the Mary-Martha story illustrates "love to God." Meet the two M & M sisters — Mary and Martha. They are two peas in the same pod and yet so ...

2110. Lust

Galatians 5:16-26

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Remember the furor that arose a few years ago when Jimmy Carter was interviewed by Playboy magazine and was asked if he had ever had any extramarital affairs? He said that he never had but admitted to lusting "in my heart," which as Jesus made clear, was just as bad as actually committing adultery. Now, whatever one might think about Jimmy Carter's presidency, everyone would agree that he was and is a most committed Christian. If someone like Jimmy Carter would admit to a problem with lust, I suspect that ...

2111. A Road Straight to Your Heart

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

King Duncan

Somewhere I read about a meeting of a group of software designers. They were using typical technical jargon to discuss a data exchange interface with a vendor. One engineer said the programming that had been ordered was delayed because the vendor was suffering from a “severe nonlinear waterfowl issue.” Curious, the team leader raised his eyebrows and asked, “What exactly is a severe nonlinear waterfowl issue?” The engineer replied, “They don’t have all their ducks in a row.” On this second Sunday of Advent ...

2112. Passing the Test

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

"Students, it is time to get out your pencils, close your books and remove any notes from your desks. The test is about to begin." Those are words that make us shudder, our hearts start to pound and the palms of our hands begin to sweat. From our earliest days in school, we all have had to learn to deal with tests. It may begin with a simple first grade spelling test. But it doesn't take too long before it morphs into ISTEP, the SAT, the Bar, the Boards, or a doctoral qualifying exam. Or it might be as ...

2113. The iPod Vs. The Larynx

Revelation 5:11-14

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

The book of Revelation is a vision that occurs on the Lord's day. When you read the book, it feels like a worship service. In fact, in the historic liturgies and worship services of the church (regardless of one's denomination or tradition), more passages from the book of Revelation are used than from any other book in the Bible. The book is filled with hymns, sections of hymns, colorful and vivid images, and metaphors that simply beg to be used in a service of Christian worship. Today's reading is one ...

2114. On Not Giving Up

Galatians 6: 7-16

Sermon

April Yamasaki

A word of encouragement came from an unlikely source the other day in a television interview with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. The former football player, wrestler, and now actor was asked about a low time in his life when he was very discouraged about his career and future. "How did you make your way back from that?" he was asked. The Rock replied, "You have to put yourself out there. You have to get out there and fail, and learn from your failures." What advice would you give to someone who is discouraged ...

2115. When The Fruit Is Spoiled

Amos 8:1-12

Sermon

Stephen P. McCutchan

When we speak of Amos today, we know that he was one of Israel's great prophets. Yet at the time when Amos spoke, he took pains to remind us that he was just an ordinary migrant worker. What he spoke were the words God had shown him. God spoke to him through a series of visions that came to Amos when he was in worship. As he participated in these common rituals of worship, which he and others had seen hundreds of times, this time the ritual had a clarity that it had never had before. It is the fourth ...

2116. Just Checking

Revelation 22:1-6

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The “Circle of Life.” What parent has not listened to Elton John’s heart-tugging theme song for Disney’s “The Lion King” movie (1994)? It is a glorious piece of music, and in the course of the movie the music is wedded to the image of the cute baby lion Simba being celebrated at his birth. It is one of the most powerful “feel good” moments in a “feel good” movie. But as biologists, and pop-song composers, and pastors, and moms and dads everywhere all know, that “circle of life” has always included the ...

2117. Re-thinking Our Mission

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

A science fiction story is told about a planet which earth was attempting to colonize. This was a harsh planet with terrible weather and hostile inhabitants. Earth’s best men and women were gathered into teams and sent to do the job. Expedition after expedition came home broken, each one having failed. Finally a new manager was charged with the responsibility of making the colonization work. But something surprising happened. This new executive did not look for the strongest and most qualified people he ...

2118. The Gift that Matters

Hebrews 2:5-18

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

As we gather on the Sunday after Christmas we do so with a sigh of relief. The gifts have been opened; our family has come and returned home. The past month typically holds the busiest days and weeks of the year for many of us. It is little wonder why we might feel tired today. It has been a hectic couple of weeks but slowly our lives are returning back to normal, as we settle back into our regular routines. We have celebrated Jesus’ birth. We are reminded that Jesus came to bring salvation to all people. ...

2119. Signed, Sealed, and Delivered

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

Praise God for all the wonderful things God has done in our lives and in our world! We continue to be filled with awe and wonder. Our fitting response is to sing praises to our God. Our favorite praise hymns and songs can transport us beyond our present situation into the very presence of God. The early Christians experienced the presence of God through their worship and singing. It is commonly believed that the first chapter of Ephesians contains words and phrases from hymns and liturgy that would have ...

2120. Praise and Blame

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

“Where there is no vision, the people perish,” the writer of the Old Testament book of Proverbs declares (Proverbs 29:18). Without a vision and an understanding of their mission, churches will continue to struggle and falter. Without a clear sense of identity people begin blaming each other over the plight of the church. People will blame their pastor or church leaders for the problems the church is experiencing. The church might even lose members; no one wants to be part of a church where members are in ...

2121. When God Tests Us

Exodus 32:1-33:6

Sermon

Argile Smith

When we get nervous about the unknown, we can make mountains out of mole hills. But we aren’t by ourselves. Loads of people down through history have made the same mistake. Take the Israelites, for example. God had delivered them from Egyptian bondage through a series of mystifying miracles at the hand of Moses. Then Moses led them on a three-month journey to Mount Sinai. There God called Moses to the top of the mountain for a meeting with him. Soon Moses came down from the mountain with the Ten ...

2122. Broadband Discipleship

Luke 17:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Urbanites and suburbanites might have very different definitions of a “neighborhood,” but both daydream about the gladed landscapes and bucolic beauty of a truly rural setting. Who wouldn’t like to “get away from it all” for a while? Who wouldn’t want to experience a refreshing dose of peace and quiet? Who wouldn’t prefer a two lane gravel road instead of an eight lane “freeway” parking lot? Who wouldn’t trade fields of green for acres of asphalt? The only problem with this rural respite is that we really ...

2123. A Faith that Does Not Quit

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

On August 3, 1970, sixty‑two‑year‑old Miriam Hargrave of Yorkshire, England, finally passed her driving test. It was her fortieth attempt. After so much struggle and perseverance, one would assume she started driving right away. But unfortunately, after spending so much money on driving lessons $720 she couldn’t afford to buy a car. (1) Maybe it’s just as well. How comfortable would you be knowing that the driver coming at you had failed the driving test forty times? Another Brit, the Rev. David Guest ...

2124. Praying In Jesus' Name

John 14:5-14

Sermon

David O. Bales

It’s good to be with you in worship. I appreciate the invitation to preach. I especially appreciate having a worship leader directing me around the chancel, because worship is done differently in different denominations — even within denominations. When you visit a different church, you don’t always know what to expect. My wife and I visited here two years ago. I, ever eager to hear the sermon, chose to sit near the front, not realizing that no one would sit in front of us and you all know how you take ...

2125. Jesus and the Man Born Blind

John 9:1-41

Sermon

James W. Moore

I came across a “fascinating list” that carried this intriguing title: “Great Truths About Life That Little Children Have Learned.” Let me share a few of these “great truths” with you. (1) “ No matter how hard you try you cannot baptize a cat.” (2) “When your mom is mad at your dad, don’t let her brush your hair.” (3) “Never ask your 3-year-old brother to hold a tomato… or an egg.” (4) “You can’t trust dogs to watch your food for you.” (5) “Don’t sneeze when somebody is cutting your hair.” (6) “School ...

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