Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: captured, trapped, catch, took, arrested, grabbed, taken, seized, stuck, apprehended, picked up, entangled, nabbed, jammed, abducted, acquired, got, bagged, gotten, netted, cornered, appropriated, tangled, snared, ensnared

Antonyms: free, freed, unconfined, loose, unrestrained, set free, uncuffed, emancipated, enfranchised, released, ambiguous, flaccid, let go, discharged, unbound, uncaged, unchained, unfettered, unleashed, unshackled, untied, avoided, discounted, disregarded, missed

Showing 1 to 25 of 196 results

1. Parking Lots and Traffic Jams

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Richard L. Thulin

... . In church such conversation is expected. Indeed that is why we come here, to speak his name and to hear it spoken. In the world of highways and street corners, however, serious talk about Jesus occurs as somewhat of a surprise. In the world of parking lots and traffic jams it is not expected. When I saw that sign on the gate of that truck I felt like honking my horn. I felt like rolling down the window and shouting, "I'm a believer too. Go in peace." The driver of the truck was a woman. From the back ...

2. A Colt Is Not A Horse

Mark 11:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... , there are some people that God will call . . . But God didn't call Ennis. It wasn't his time. The person who murdered Ennis is somewhere out there riding with the devil." (3) Cosby's right. Never blame God for evil. Palm/Passion Sunday is ecstasy and agony jammed up against each other, which is the enigma of life. We go from high to low, and the art in life is to have faith, even when that faith seems illogical. Many choirs across our land today will sing the "SANCTUS" from John Rutter's Requiem. It's the ...

3. Prayer in a Pinch

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

... should not. What this little fellow needs to know is what he's doing right so he can connect with the ball more often. And so with prayer. We need to discover that it's right to pray in all circumstances, even if the beginning point is simply the jam we find ourselves in day by day. Those prayers can be right and good. That's what we need to hear, not some words of guilt that we haven't prayed enough. So, did Jesus "pray in a pinch"? Answering that question in "Minnesotan," the language dialect made famous ...

4. Where The Halls Cross

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

David O. Bales

... Have you thought about teaching the church school class, Mal?" "This is not the best time to request I do something for these boys. See the pennies all over? A gaggle of kids flutter by the door and cover for each other as they stick pennies between the door and jam. With a couple dozen pennies stuck in there you can hardly open the thing. You ought to enter that door sometime. I don't know if I can help these kids. And I think that Lampson boy is the ringleader." "I don't see it that way." "Well, Marian, I ...

5. How's Your Serve?

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... , by the time they both realized, that they couldn't get ahead of the other one, it nearly caused a wreck. You can imagine the rantings of both of those people as they got to work. It probably set the tone for their whole day. None of us like traffic jams. None of us like the idiot drivers. That whole scenario could have been avoided if either one of those had been living the life of a servant. In our passage of scripture for today, we find that James and John are acted just like those drivers. They want to ...

6. The Bread That Endures

Luke 22:7-38

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

... or honey on your toast and spread some cream cheese on your bagel. Around the world, this simple human ritual is repeated in a variety of ways. In Malaysia, that same piece of toast might be smeared with kaya, a thick jam made from coconut milk. In Taiwan or in Beijing, instead of toast, it may be a steamed bun filled with bits of roast pork and vegetables. In India, the morning ritual includes rolling out some simple whole wheat dough into flat round chapatis. In France, those wonderful flaky croissants ...

7. The Interview

Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Larry Goodpaster

... It was that van and its overweight, non-stop-talking driver! Even though it would cost her more, she had already made her mind up that a cab would ferry her back to the airport. Not only was the air conditioner of the van not working, but the traffic jam had forced them to a standstill for nearly an hour. And then, of all things, the van tried to change lanes right into the path of an oncoming small car. Not even this seemed to phase the driver, although she and the other passengers on the back bench caught ...

8. The Call to Obedience

Luke 22:42 · Romans 1:17 · John 15:10

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... you have as parents. Only as we listen to the authority of God can we speak with the authority of truth and life to others. There is a story that Kierkegaard tells of the little clown in the circus. The tent caught on fire when it was packed and jammed with humanity. They sent the clown to warn the people. He cried out again and again, "Run for your lives; the tent is on fire. Run for your lives." They slapped their legs and laughed and laughed. The more he cried out, the more they laughed. Of course, they ...

9. Embalmed Alive

John 14:5-14

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

... of that, certainly lives that never reached the dimensions or the stature that God intended for them. Pinched and cramped and jammed into a little space, they are eked out in an almost kind of solitary confinement. There are those whose lives have ... What a pitiful picture we are, laboring and sweating and striving for things which we think make up our living. We jam ourselves together into little buses, little cars, little airplanes, little elevators. We crawl through dark canyons filled with smoke and soot ...

10. The Forgiveness Factor

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... for church - the church is where Jesus is to be found). The place is packed... every preacher's fondest dream. And packed to such an extent that the people who need to get to Jesus cannot. Too crowded. It is an interesting image of the church: a place so jammed with onlookers that they keep out those who desperately need to be there. But, finally, through the persistence of those who care about their friend, a way is found to bring the man to Jesus. The roof. It was regularly used as a place of rest and of ...

11. Our Damascus Road Experience

Acts 9:1-19a

Sermon

King Duncan

... all valued, all necessary. There is a clever story that helps illustrate these four types of personality. Four of King Arthur's knights were guilty of betraying him. They were sentenced to die on the guillotine. Somehow, though, as the blade was ready to drop, it jammed. King Arthur took this as a sign that he should show mercy and give the knights their freedom. The reaction of the four knights to this good news tells us a lot about their personalities. The knight high in dominance growled, "I told you I ...

12. An Uncomfortable Comforter

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... " and comforter have hopelessly muddled the biblical understanding of offering comfort. Comfort is a big selling point in our consumerist culture. No one wants to be uncomfortable--whether its while jammed into a center seat on the coach section of a 727 or while trapped in your car in some massive, hours-long traffic jam. We happily pay extra for comfort--more leg room, in-flight movies, and better meals to take our minds off our in-flight discomforts; lavish leather seats, surround-sound stereo systems ...

13. Don't Worry, The Light Is Still Burning

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , “You just don’t get it. I make $100,000 a week, and I tithe 10 percent of the $100,000 to the church. I have no worry whatsoever. My pastor will find me!” “One thing anxiety and traffic jams have in common is that both are symptoms. Traffic jams can have various causes – construction, an accident, a sobriety checkpoint, outflow from a sporting event, and so on. Similarly, anxiety has many varied causes.” William L. Benzon, Beethoven’s Anvil: Music in Mind and Culture (New York: Basic Books ...

14. The Forgiveness Factor

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... that, as Mark has it, "Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere" (Mark 1:45b). Wow! Finally, he is back in Capernaum, his adopted hometown. The word is out. People come. They jam the house (which, by the way, is one of those code words in Mark's gospel for church — the church is where Jesus is to be found). The place is packed ... every preacher's fondest dream. And packed to such an extent that the people who need to ...

15. Be Prudent or Productive?

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of them, but they have so little real flavor it is basically like making congealed salmon-colored sugar water. Blackberries, on the other hand, are loaded down with plump, dark purple-black fruit by late summer. The most delicious pies, the most jammin’ jams, and the biggest bowls of berries, are all offered to those who brave picking at the blackberry vine. Landscapers feel no qualms ripping out brambles and salmon berries. But everyone wants to save just enough black berries to guarantee a fall harvest ...

16. You Are Invited to a Banquet

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... the pedal to the metal, as we say, and headed straight to the airport. Before she got there, however, she ran into a traffic jam caused by a minor traffic accident. The best she could do now was to exercise patience. She tried as much as she could ... it was time she did something drastic. Off she drove on the shoulder of the freeway as she made her way around the traffic jam. As soon as she pulled around the obstructed traffic, she saw two officers. One was busy directing traffic and the other was writing an ...

17. It's OK To Stir Up God

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Richard Patt

... sake but for someone else whose needs we have adopted as our own. We should be persistent because when we have banked on God and God's goodness all along in our lives, there is no reason to stop trusting God and believing in God when we are in a jam. In fact, especially then God will be the good Father who knows what gift will be best for us. We live in a time when people seem to have given up such hope and trust. Little in life seems worthwhile; much of life doesn't seem worth the effort. Some ...

18. Why Did Pastor Hypnotize Jenny?

Jeremiah 33:1-26

Sermon

Tony Everett

... on the city walls; if only God would take charge. Perhaps similar thoughts are whirling around in your minds as you begin this season of preparation for the birth of the Christ child. Many people have already begun the countdown to Christmas. Calendars are already jammed with congregation celebrations and social events. It seems as if there aren't enough hours in each day to accomplish the countless tasks that loom ahead during the next few weeks. Our minds spin out of control as we plan for happiness but ...

19. A Parade That Gets Ugly

Luke 19:28-44

Sermon

Glenn E. Ludwig

The city was in the mood for a celebration. Streets jammed with people from all corners of the world. The Holy City was a frenzy of activity; voices pitched a little higher than normal; children scampering about with greater abandon; people talking and greeting and gathering. The crowd had formed, larger than a normal Passover crowd; large enough to worry the ...

20. How to Affair-Proof Your Marriage!

2 Samuel 11:1-27

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... he mentions his wife, how much in love they are, and sings some love song about her. Don realized how he is sending out signals to other women, "I'm spoken for." "No chance with me!" "I've got what I want!" His love for his wife simply jams women's radar. Some experts believe man has a hormonal lack only his wife can provide with respect. And similarly, woman has a hormonal lack only her husband can provide with cherishing. If the spouse does not provide it, a hunger sets in. And according to 1 Corinthians ...

21. Forever Plaid

Isaiah 42:18-25

Sermon

William L. Self

... will not return. It is so sad to see a once vital, vibrant church turn inward and die. When my family and I were in London in 1969, I was determined to worship in Spurgeon's Tabernacle. In the days when Spurgeon was preaching there, the church was alive and jammed with people (more than 6,000) at every service. We got a taxi to take us to the Tabernacle on Sunday morning, and as we walked up the great front steps, we had to dodge the pigeons and walk through a lot of dirt. Inside, there were a few people ...

22. Look, The Morning Star

2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon

Richard Hasler

In the early morning hour Owen Rodericks prepares to take his first ride as a coal miner deep into the dark ground beneath him. The cage suddenly shoots to the surface with a jerk. The gate opens and in seconds he is jammed in with ten other men. A bell rings, and the cage plunges over 300 feet into the mine. Gasping for breath, Owen leaves the cage and staggers along through the darkness. His miner's lamp attached to his cap is the only light penetrating the darkness all around him. In ...

23. Praying To The Congregation

John 17:6-19

Sermon

Thomas Long

... 't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God; it changes me."3 It doesn't change God; it changes me. Prayer is not a message scribbled on a note, jammed into a bottle and tossed into the sea in hopes that it will wash up someday on God's shoreline. Prayer is communion with God. We speak to God, but God touches, embraces, shapes and changes us. Whether we pray for rain or pray for sunshine, our prayer is answered ...

24. A Thanksgiving Checklist

Luke 12:48

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... chapter of that letter, “... by this time you ought to be teachers ...” (Hebrews 5:12) Apparently these folks have been “taking in” for years and years and still are, even though by this time they should be “putting out.” Checklist item #2: Do I realize that Jam never out of debt? That’s not a financial statement, but it is a spiritual and an emotional one. It is the psalmist declaring, “Hear my cry, O Lord; listen to my call for help! If you kept a record of our sins, who could escape being ...

25. Leading as Loving

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... something or say it; the point is to get it said and done. Occasionally producers have given us a movie centering around the theme of a runaway train. Initially, the engine is firmly linked to the cars it is pulling, but something like a jammed throttle enters the picture and the runaway engine is separated from the rest of the train and rushes headlong down the track toward certain disaster. When leadership becomes radically disjointed from the body from which it has emerged, that also can be potentially ...

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