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 2201 to 2225 of 3128 results

2201. Convening A Construction Crew: Nobody Builds Alone

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Howard, the last of life is the best of life.” He had discovered at the end of life the real meaning of life. He found community. That made all the difference. “They devoted themselves” (Acts 2:42). It doesn’t take second-hand emotion, but first-hand devotion to be a community Christian. Are you willing to make the commitment? Verse 43: “Everyone was filled with awe and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.” The word most characteristic of the early Christian community ...

2202. Engaging the Master Designer

Psalm 139: 1-18

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... others freely, enjoy God eternally. God has a plan for you—plans to give you hope and a future. III. WE ARE GOD-DEVELOPED. In a couple of weeks, my health permitting, I plan to attend my 40th high school reunion. To be honest, I have some mixed emotions about going. I’d like to go strong, healthy, and happy. Instead, I’ll limp in sickly, struggling, and weak. As a couple of us were planning this little get together, I pulled my yearbook off the shelf and read again something I had written as a life ...

2203. How Can This Be?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... great here. That night Albert Schweitzer said, “My search for purpose has ended. I have found my place to be." Songs, good feelings, beautiful liturgies, nice presents, big dinners, sweet words do not make Christmas. Christmas is saying, “Yes" to something beyond all our emotions and feelings. Christmas is saying, “Yes" to a hope based on God's initiative which has nothing to do with what I think and feel. Christmas is believing that the salvation of the world is God's work, not mine. If he can use ...

2204. About Whose Business Was He?

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... in the middle. Children played back and forth, as children do, so nobody really noticed that Jesus was not with them until an entire day had passed. It is just one of those things. They went a whole day without realizing he was left behind. We can only imagine the emotions Joseph and Mary experienced. Panic! Is he all right? What if he were kidnapped? Maybe he was hurt and we didn't know. Panic turns to anger. Why did he do this to us? Wait till I get my hands on him; I'll teach him a thing or two ...

2205. What Would Jesus Say About Medical Care?

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , called on future physicians to be servants of the vulnerable, the injured, the impaired, the lonely. We serve those who most need service and that is the noble part of our profession. “Yes,” continued Dr. Fitzgerald, “Being a physician is intellectually gratifying, emotionally enriching, mechanically exciting and financially rewarding, but medicine is not about you. We will not be judged by what we get, but by what we give to those who put themselves and their loved ones in our hands.” Maybe it is ...

2206. Are You Able?

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... you Rev. Olds but ministers are not supposed to get sick." Since when? One of Steven Spielberg's best movies is Saving Private Ryan. Like the passion of Christ, the horrors of war some of you fought, is more pain than my mind can comprehend or my emotions can bear. A private bounces off the boat for the invasion of Normandy kissing his cross. He survives by the philosophy of “Praise God and Pass the Ammunition." He quotes Psalms as he guns down the enemy. The Lord is my strength and my salvation, he says ...

2207. Finding the Courage to Believe

John 20:24-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and unedited prayer, admitting and turning from all my wrong doing, and receiving the free gift of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus. I told him that with his help I wanted to follow him and his ways as best I could. Some people feel a rush of emotion. For me it was a rush of reason. My character, values, attitude, priorities, world view, philosophy and relationships began to change. So much so that my five-year old daughter Alison said to her mother, “Mommy I want God to do for me what he's done ...

2208. Lost and Found

Luke 15:1-10

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... where the spiritual food is served. Temptations attract us. Grass looks greener on the other side. The late Johnny Cash said of his early life, “I used drugs to escape and they worked pretty well when I was younger, but they devastated me physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I couldn’t communicate with God. There is no place more lonely on earth that one could be.” People nibble their way lost. Busyness binds us; we are busy people. We wear our busyness as a badge of importance. We have things ...

2209. The Greatest Story Ever Told

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... describe this homecoming of a lost boy. Listen to it carefully. In Verse 20 we read, “While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son and embraced him and kissed him.” Do you catch the emotion that is going on in this powerful scene? And while he was a long way off, his father saw him. The eyes of mercy are quicker than the eyes of repentance. Even the eye of faith is dim compared to the eye of God’s love. The father saw him ...

2210. Come to the Party

Luke 14:15-23

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... didn’t notice. Things were running pretty smoothly. Then you had a hill to climb. It took more energy than you had in reserve. I have never felt so empty as I have felt these last few months. Illness takes from us every ounce of physical, spiritual, and emotional strength we possess. Empty is a frightening word. It is a hunger that gnaws at the soul. It is an estrangement that leaves us far from home. It is a tiredness that leaves us lifeless. When I have felt most lifeless, I have rolled up in blankets ...

2211. What is the Connection Between Church and State?

Mark 12: 14-17

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... people. Ninety percent of us believe in God. Eight-five percent of us are Christian. Sixty-five percent of us consider religion to be important in daily life. Forty percent of us attend a religious service weekly. Can we transform that emotion into daily devotion and authentic faithful living? II. IT’S TIME TO MOVE FROM INSTITUTIONAL SURVIVAL TO PROPHETIC SERVICE. Twenty-five years ago, Marlene Wilson wrote an article entitled “Religion, the Sleeping Giant.” In it she defined the enormous potential of ...

2212. The Dynamics of Being a Dad

Ephesians 6:1-4, Ephesians 6:10-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and ask for mercy when we fail to act that way. The question I would raise on Father’s Day is this. Have we made it difficult for our children to honor us? Has anger kept them at a distance? Has low self-esteem ignored their attempts? Have frozen emotions made us unresponsive? Has our behavior betrayed their trust? A letter to Billy Graham one day went something like this. “Dear Dr. Graham, I know the Bible says we ought to honor our parents, but how can I honor my father who has disgraced our family by ...

2213. Amos: The Problem of Justice

Amos 5:18-24

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... us not succumb to a new wave of prejudice. To be righteous is to love one another, especially our enemies. Wesley challenged his followers to pray for the Holy Spirit to perfect us in love. The real fruit of the Spirit-filled church is not emotion packed services where people speak in tongues, but a community of believers where outsiders are shocked at the depth and sincerity of their service to others. I John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love, for perfect love drives out fear." Love ends competition ...

2214. Jonah: The Problem of Mercy

Jonah 4:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . This slender, small-boned woman with light brown hair simply strolled into the afternoon sun, and into a strange new way of life. I guess there is more than one way to run away. Some run with their feet. Others run with their feelings. They shut down emotionally. Some run with their work. Others run with their pleasure. Some don't run at all, they are just no longer there. Looking them in the eye is like staring into a blank wall. Francis Thompson reminds us in that great work The Hound of Heaven, it ...

2215. David: The Problem of Family

2 Samuel 18:28-33

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , is off to war. So in a cover up that makes Bill Clinton look saintly by comparison, David has Uriah killed in battle. Many of David's problems were his own darn fault. Robert Burney says dysfunctional families are the product of an emotionally dishonest, shame-based patriarchal society based on beliefs that do not support loving yourself and others. Whatever the diagnosis, David had problems with his kids. His son, Amnon, rapes his half-sister, Tamar. Absalom leads a civil war against his father. That's ...

2216. Reaching Up—Reaching Out

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is, there your heart will be also." That's what I'd like us to think about today. I. HOW IS YOUR HEART? Is it warm or cold, tough or tender, touchable or troubled? The Bible is as concerned about the condition of your heart-the seat of your emotions, the center of your being- as your cardiologist is concerned about the heart muscle in your body. So the Bible says: 1. "Love God with all your heart." 2. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart." 3. "Set your heart on things above." Prayer is one exercise that ...

2217. Love

John 15:9-17

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is his bitterness. Do you want to live a life of hate? Then learn to forgive. To love is to become compassionate. Jesus said, “Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate" (Luke 6:36). On the surface compassion seems easy. Who is not touched with emotion to see people running from burning buildings, sitting on roof tops, pleading for help, or clinging to trees in some far away tsunami? It is easy to be touched with such trauma and grief. Is this compassion? Compassion comes from two words com meaning ...

2218. The Joyful Provider

John 2:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... anxious to get involved. In spite of the host's miscalculations, and regardless of Jesus’ reluctance, the wine jugs are empty and the guests are getting restless. Empty — does that word have a familiar ring? Have you ever felt empty? Have you ever felt spiritually, emotionally, physically empty? You know what I'm talking about. Some of you have been there. We don't talk much about our discontentment with life, but it shows. We grumble, we get angry at small things, we eat too much, we drink too much, we ...

2219. Honoring God in a Pluralistic Society

Matthew 22:37-40

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... or religious monarchy? At the table of wisdom we need to hammer some things out. If I think my small mind has comprehended all the ways of God, I need to be the first to repent because God is so much more than my small mind can imagine or my emotions can grasp, or I will ever be able to reason. Love God with all your soul. God is the spark of the Divine within. Love God with all your soul, your psyche, your spirit, your real self. Genesis 1:26 says, “Then God said, let us make humans in our ...

2220. By Humbly Doing Good

1 Peter 5:6-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to deal with the stress in their lives. What can we do? A. WE CAN RUN — get away, take a break, take a pill, get drunk, do drugs, divorce, quit work. B. WE CAN REPRESS IT — suck it up, push it down, deny its existence, freeze our feelings, isolate our emotions, bottle it up, bury it deep and it will come back to haunt us. C. WE CAN RELEASE IT TO THE LORD — I think one of the great texts in all the Bible is what Jesus said in Matthew 11:28. Come to me all you who are weary and ...

2221. Hot Air or the Holy Spirit?

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... that we belong to one another. Those of us in the Church have been wondering ever since. What happened? You can go back and look at the blip in attendance at every church across America but we quickly got back to normal. Was this devotion a wave of emotion or did the Church fail in its responsibility to meet people at their point of need? Competition has no place in the church or among churches. We are not out to be better than, bigger than, purer than, nor superior to, any other community of faith. One of ...

2222. Living in Gratitude

Philippians 4:4-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... mention our self-esteem, our hope for tomorrow, our confidence for today. Can you rejoice in the Lord anyway? Is there a song in your heart that the world never gave? Is there a peace the world cannot take away? Gratefulness is more than a momentary emotion. It is a profoundly spiritual and powerfully healing state of being that abides through the tides of time. Do you have a grateful heart? III. GRATITUDE IS A WAY OF LIVING So Paul says, “Keep on doing the things you have learned and received." Gratitude ...

2223. Fanning the Flames of Family

Ephesians 5:8-10

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... loves the Church." That is a wise instruction for husbands, for wives, for children, for parents, for grandparents, and even aunts and uncles and anyone who claims any kin to one another. Love one another as Christ loves the Church. Love is more than a second-hand emotion; love is first-hand devotion. Love is more than an act of passion; love is an act of the will that leads to service. Love is grounded in mutual respect. Comedian Rodney Dangerfield who died last year at the age of 82, made a living joking ...

2224. Neighborly Prayer

Luke 10:25-37

Illustration

King Duncan

... with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy did not affect this young man's mind, but it affected his motor skills and his ability to speak. The boy could only communicate through typing on his computer. In addition to his physical disabilities, the boy suffered emotional problems after some of his care givers callously abused him. Overwhelmed with self-hatred, the boy often hit himself. Using his computer, he wrote to his mother that he wished he could die. There was one thing that seemed to bring the boy ...

2225. Three Basic Attitudes about Life

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... . This caused Dr. Magee and his wife to found an organization called Operation Smile. Operation Smile sends volunteer doctors to perform reconstructive facial surgery for children worldwide. “It wasn’t a strategic plan,” said Magee. “It was just a matter of emotion and passion to make sure children didn’t have to live this way.” The group, which already has treated 50,000 children worldwide, also trains doctors in other nations to perform the procedure. Magee hopes to use satellite technology in ...

Showing results