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Ellis Dillard Thompson

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Inspirational

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You can't take it with you -- 1 Timothy 6:7 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: You can't take it with youLocation: 1 Timothy 6:7 (NRSV)
Keep the faith -- 2 Timothy 4:7 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Keep the faithLocation: 2 Timothy 4:7
Strain at a gnat and swallow a camel -- Matthew 23:24 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Strain at a gnat and swallow a camel
The fear of the Lord -- Job 28:28 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: The fear of the LordLocation: Job 28:28
No one can serve two masters -- Matthew 6:24 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: No one can serve two mastersLocation: Matthew 6:24
As white as snow -- Isaiah 1:18 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: As white as snowLocation: Isaiah 1:18
You will have to give account for every idle word you speak -- Matthew 12:36 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: You will have to give account for every idle word you speak
Kill the fatted calf -- Luke 15:22-23 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Kill the fatted calfLocation: Luke 15:22-23
A stumbling block -- Ezekiel 3:20 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: A stumbling blockLocation: Ezekiel 3:20
The kiss of death -- Mark 14:45 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: The kiss of deathLocation: Mark 14:45
Sweeter than honey -- Psalm 19:10 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Sweeter than honeyLocation: Psalm 19:10
Feet of clay -- Daniel 2:34 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Feet of clayLocation: Daniel 2:34 (NIV)
No place to lay one's head -- Matthew 8:20 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: No place to lay one's headLocation: Matthew 8:20
Ask and you shall receive -- John 16:24 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Ask and you shall receiveLocation: John 16:24
Your labor is not in vain -- 1 Corinthians 15:58 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Your labor is not in vainLocation: 1 Corinthians 15:58
Land o' Goshen -- Genesis 46:28 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Land o' GoshenLocation: Genesis 46:28
Take it to heart -- Isaiah 57:1 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Take it to heartLocation: Isaiah 57:1 (NRSV)
Fight the good fight -- 1 Timothy 6:12 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Fight the good fightLocation: 1 Timothy 6:12
No room in the inn -- Luke 2:7 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: No room in the innLocation: Luke 2:7
A babel -- Genesis 11:9 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: A babelLocation: Genesis 11:9
The land of milk and honey -- Deuteronomy 6:3 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: The land of milk and honeyLocation: Deuteronomy 6:3
Take under one's wing -- Luke 13:34 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: Take under one's wingLocation: Luke 13:34
A fool is right in one's own eyes -- Proverbs 12:15 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: A fool is right in one's own eyes
O death, where is thy sting? -- 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: O death, where is thy sting?
A backslider -- Hosea 14:4 -- Ellis Dillard Thompson -- 1998
Expression: A backsliderLocation: Hosea 14:4
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In the sometimes-tiresome debate over science and scripture with respect to creation, it’s easy to become distracted. While the argument typically requires a focus on the how, we may lose sight of the what. And so, for just a moment, let me invite us to think for a moment about what God created.
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As a local church pastor, I was often asked if I would baptize a child whose family were not members of the church. Some churches rebelled against this, but I remember this scripture — the hunger for understanding and inclusion of the Eunuch and Philp’s response — to teach and share and baptize in the name of our God. How could we turn anyone away from the rite of baptism?

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“Dad, I think you worked a miracle.” Rolf slowly walked around the tree. “After that windstorm, I assumed this tree was as good as gone.”

“We just needed to give the branches time to heal and come back,” Michael replied.

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Object: A live plant that produces fruit, and a broken branch from that plant. I used a tomato plant from a local greenhouse. Ideally, find a plant with blossoms or small fruit already growing. If you use a different kind of fruit-producing plant, just change the script to fit.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Excellent!

The Immediate Word

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For April 28, 2024:
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The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Call to Worship:

Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. In our service today, let us absorb from the vine all the nourishment we need.

Invitation to Confession:

Jesus, sometimes our branches become cut off from the vine.
Lord, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes our branches are withered.
Christ, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes we fail to produce good fruit.
Lord, have mercy.

SermonStudio

Stan Purdum
We will meet Psalm 22 in its entirety on Good Friday, but here the lectionary designates just verses 23-31. The lectionary psalms generally illuminate the week's First Lesson, which in this case is about the covenant initiated by God with Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 17. The nine verses from this psalm, while not inappropriate, nonetheless leave us looking for an obvious connection with the First Lesson.

John S. Smylie
I think some people are natural-born gardeners. Our Lord grew up in a society that was familiar with agriculture. The images that he used to explain the ways of his Father in heaven are familiar to his audience. Growing up, my closest experience to agriculture was living in, "the Garden State." Most people, when they pass through New Jersey, are surprised to see that expression on the license plates of vehicles registered in New Jersey. Most folks traveling through New Jersey experience the megalopolis, the corridor between New York City and Washington DC.
Ron Lavin
A pastor in Indiana went to visit an 87-year-old man named Ermil, who was a hospital patient. A member of his church told the pastor about this old man who was an acquaintance. "He's not a believer, but he is really in need," the church member said. "I met him at the county home for the elderly. He's a lonely old man with no family and no money."

Paul E. Robinson
"Love is a many splendored thing...." Or so we heard Don Cornwall and the Four Aces sing time and again. Of course you or I might have other words to describe love, depending on our situation.

Love. "I love you." "I love to play golf." "I just love pistachio lush!" "It's tough to love some people." "Jesus loves me, this I know."

Love.

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