The telephone rang in the rectory of a large suburban parish. The parish secretary answered the call. A man’s voice demanded to speak to the pastor. “I’m sorry, he isn’t in,” the secretary said. The…
Sermon Illustrations
Not long ago, an American businessman — a good, religious man — told of a trip he had just made to India. Like so many others who have travelled from their seats of comfort and…
There is a great little book entitled “Celebrate the Temporary” which deals with the inability to be present to the now because of our anxious worry about this afternoon or tomorrow or next week. Just…
Don’t make tragedies of trifles! Don’t shoot butterflies with rifles! Laugh it off. Anonymous
A consultant answered an ad to work with a businessman. At the interview, the proprietor explained that his business wasn’t going well. He was losing money. He was worried about it but he didn’t have…
“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.…
One man was suffering his little daily deaths in the form of job stress and tension. Finally, after he had been overworked to the point of near total exhaustion, he began to pray. He said…
“Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the Will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect,”—Romans 12:2 A…
Three men were trying to come up with a definition of “success”. Said the first man, “I would consider myself successful if I could have a private, personal conversation with the President of the United…
A Sunday School teacher had been lecturing her class on the virtue of spiritual and mental cleanliness. “You must keep your minds as clean as your bodies,” the teacher said. Then, to emphasize the point,…
“Miss Murphy” was a dedicated young woman who taught the kindergarten Bible class in her church school. She was very much loved by her little students. One morning, while the children were memorizing the Twenty-third…
A father asked his son what he had learned in Sunday School. The boy replied, “We learned about how Moses went behind enemy lines to rescue the Jews from the Egyptians. Moses ordered the engineers…
At an adult Sunday-School class, the teacher asked the students to think about how they could practice their religion in their every day lives. The topic of driving courtesy came up. “How would you respond…
A Sunday-school teacher had a dream about the Lord Jesus. “Where are the souls of My children?” Jesus asked. “Here are their manners,” the teacher replied. “They are well-behaved children; they listen respectfully to everything…
A Sunday School class was concerned about one member’s mother, who was in the hospital. The teacher suggested that each child sign a “get well” card to send the mother and write a Bible verse…
As tens-of-millions of fans anticipate this year’s Super Bowl game, it might be helpful for all of us to keep the following prayer in mind. This prayer was reportedly delivered recently in a locker room…
A larger than average man stepped on a scale not knowing it was out of order. The indicator stopped at 75 pounds. A little boy, standing nearby with his mother, watched the big man intently.…
The English spiritual writer, Caryll Houselander, wrote a letter in 1945 to a young friend who had married and settled abroad: I saw two bent and broken people in Brompton Road years ago, both a…
If it takes a two-hundred-thousand dollar-per-year executive to guide a client, lead an advertising campaign, develop a computer program or help put a corporation back on its feet, then what is the worth of a…
A woman attended her 20-year high school reunion. There she encountered her freshman year art teacher. She told the teacher that she had decided to go to college as a result of his inspiration, and…
