THE HAND OF LOVE Thomas Phillips of St. Albans Episcopal Church in Wilmington, Delaware sent in this story which he found in a sermon by Fred Craddock of the Chandler School of Theology. It was…
Sermon Illustrations
EXCELLENCE / MEDIOCRITY A resident in a seaside-hotel breakfast room called over the headwaiter one morning and said, "I want two boiled eggs, one of them so undercooked it's runny, and the other so overcooked,…
GETTING THE ODDS ON YOUR SIDE Michael Colvin, Pastor of the Church of the Brethren in Woodbridge, Virginia sent in the following, which he gleaned from Dr. Jerome Frank, Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins…
PERSISTING IN UNBELIEF I have a story that came from one of the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts in the Bahamas -- but I have no name attached to it. It's the one about the…
BRILLIANT BOOKS If you're a fan of short, pithy sayings (as I am) you'll find a great resource in Ashleigh Brilliant's book, Appreciate Me Now And Avoid The Rush, a gold mine of succinct and…
TO FLY ON RAINBOW WINGS Guy Robinson, pastor of Plainview Friends Church in Plainview, Nebraska sent in the following story which he found in an Aldersgate Sunday School book. Four additional months will be added…
EASTER'S REAL MESSAGE from Martin Marty's Context and Sources and Resources. Eight-year old Stephen was mentally retarded -- and his problem was worsening and was becoming even more noticeable to his classmates in Sunday School.…
THE MAN WE WANT Since it is now football season (with the coming of the new league when is it not football season?) here's a story that was sent in by Dale Bean, Pastor of…
TAXES Congress is simplifying the return this year - - there are only four lines: 1) What was your income last year? 2) What were your expenses? 3) How much do you have left? 4)…
A DISCIPLINED TEAM Several years ago, in England, Sir John Barbirolli was conducting a great symphony orchestra before a "standing room only" audience. The concert hall was unusual in that it was used for cultural…
YOUR FIXIN' LIMITS A book with a number of thoughtful little items in it is Charlie Shedd's Then God Created Grandparents And It Was Very Good. One of our members, Ken Christiansen, loaned me his…
TRENDS/OPPORTUNITIES One of the books I have most enjoyed in recent days is Megatrends by John Naisbitt (Warner Books, $15.50). The subtitle is "Ten New Directions Transforming Our Lives." John Naisbitt is the chairman of…
FORMIDABLE DILEMMA A man, his wife and mother-in-law went on a safari in Africa. They hired a guide and set out into the jungle. One morning, the married couple awoke to find mother missing. After…
GREENER GRASS Two disillusioned college presidents were discussing what they'd do if they had their lives to live over. One said "I'd like to run an orphanage -- no parents to contend with." The other…
ONE STEP AHEAD I was reminded of one of my favorites the other day about the four high school boys who skipped morning classes. After lunch, when they showed up they reported to the teacher…
THE PRIDE/HUMILITY AMBIGUITY One of my favorite Peanuts cartoons is the one that shows Linus and Charlie Brown talking together and Linus observes: "When I get big I'm going to be a humble little country…
ADOLESCENT WISDOM It never occurs to teenagers that someday they will know as little as their parents. On the Upbeat
FATHER'S ADVICE TO TEEN-AGE SON Maybe you should start shifting for yourself now while you still know everything.
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR MOTHER A small boy went to the lingerie department of a store to purchase a gift for his mother. He bashfully told the clerk that he wanted to buy a slip…
A MOTHER IS WAITING The following story was sent in by Charles J. Youngkin, of the Morgan Hill Bible Church in Morgan Hill, California. 95037 John Todd was born in Rutledge, Vermont into a family…
