FREE TO BE ME In our attempts to organize and categorize others we often overlook the uniqueness of individuals. Dr. G. H. Reavis, a school administrator, illustrated this fact with his "Animal Story." Once upon…
Sermon Illustrations
FREE TO GROW Once upon a time, long ago and far away, there was a gardener. She was a very good gardener who paid special attention to every one of her plants, and her garden…
FREEDOM FOR ALL Liberty is the one thing you can't have unless you give it to others. By William A. White, from 4800 Wise-cracks, Witty Remarks and Epigrams for All Occasions, Edited by Edmund Fuller,…
THE VALUE OF LIBERTY Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take;…
THE MILITARY'S NEW IMAGE Last week's television footage of Iraqi soldiers falling on their knees to kiss the hands of their U.S. Marine captors could be the defining visual of the war in the Persian…
SUDDAM HUSSEIN: "A REAL ZERO" "Saddam was my classmate. He was not good in his studies. In fact, he was an imbecile. A real zero, especially in English. I tried to help him. I can't…
VULTURES WILL WIN One hot day in the middle of summer a lion and a boar went to a spring to drink. "Step aside," the boar said, "I was here first." "I showed you where…
LEAST SUCCESSFUL AWARD CEREMONY The American Institute of Architects held their 1979 annual conference in Kansas City so as to be near the Kemper Arena, to which they had awarded their prize as 'one of…
POOF GOES THE FRIENDSHIP One day, as the rancher walked along the beach with the others, he discovered an ancient lamp. And when he rubbed it, a genie sprang forth. "For freeing me from my…
SERMON COUNT My young son asked what was the highest number I had ever counted to. I didn't know but asked about his highest number. It was "537". "Oh," I said. "Why did you stop…
NIXON LOOKING UP Richard Nixon's latest installment of his memoirs is now being sold in the book stores. Some people hate the former president, a few love him and others regard him as a tragic…
LIFE ISN'T FAIR One of the things I try to teach my preschool students is the name of each day of the week. Every morning I ask them what day it is. The children respond…
KEEP MOVING A college class was graduating on a hot and humid day. As the graduates walked across the platform and received their diplomas from the president, he smiled, shook their hands and said loudly…
FORGIVENESS PERFECTED Prayer written on an inner wall of a Nazi concentration camp: "O Lord, when I shall come with glory in your kingdom, do not remember only the men of good will; remember also…
CHURCH OR AUDIENCE Quoting Charles E. Jefferson in his Yale lectures of 1910: "A sharp distinction ought to be made between a church and an audience. It is to be regretted that we have come…
OCEAN OF DIFFERENCE I crossed the Atlantic on a troop ship in the late sixties. It was the first time in my life I had ever been aboard an ocean liner. When it was docked…
PUTTING THE LIGHT TOGETHER Imagine that you are lost and alone in the woods. The sun has been down for several hours, you are cold and have no sense of direction. You settle down beside…
LEFT HUNGRY Abigail, age 3 and I are at a church one Sunday - not ours - or a special service. It's been a long service and she's looking forward to communion (to get up…
TOO OLD TO FLY? This story is of my father and the years immediately following my mother's death. My dad, alone in a small town he had never liked, made the usual mistakes: sold the…
QUALITY IS A CHOICE Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.
