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Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C

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Emphasis Preaching Journal

It is estimated that each... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C -- 1998
It is estimated that each year Americans gamble more than $330 billion.
Snoopy, of PeanutsI... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C -- 1998
Snoopy, of Peanuts fame, bat clenched between his jaws, readies himself for the pitch.
In February of 1997 the... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C -- 1998
In February of 1997 the Cairo Police arrested a family which had managed to save nearly $300,000 fro
It's not the church that's... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C -- 1998
It's not the church that's always asking for our money; it's the world!
Petitions for kings and all... -- 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C -- 1998
Petitions "for kings and all who are in high positions" became the spiritual agenda for an elder in
It was 2 a.m. when... -- Amos 8:4-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
It was 2 a.m. when the woman strode into the Emergency Room with the feverish child.
Occasionally Carl Sagan, the astronomist... -- Amos 8:4-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Occasionally Carl Sagan, the astronomist and space scientist at Cornell University, writes an articl
While prayer seems often to... -- 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
While prayer seems often to be a difficult task, one easily forgotten or ignored, Luther offers thes
The woman looked lovingly at... -- Proverbs 9:8-12 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
The woman looked lovingly at her granddaughter, Jenny. She enjoyed her visits.
Since the time of Cyrus... -- 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Since the time of Cyrus, the Persian king who freed the Hebrew exiles, the Jewish community had pray
Greg Anderson, author of I... -- Proverbs 9:8-12 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Greg Anderson, author of The Triumphant Patient (Nelson Publishers, 1992), tells the story of
It had begun to snow... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
It had begun to snow early in the morning, and the pastor wondered if anyone would come to the midwe
A minister had been selected... -- Proverbs 9:8-12 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
A minister had been selected to appear on a national television quiz show and for days before his ap
People need to realize that... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
People need to realize that every blessing a person enjoys whether it is material or spiritual, such
It never ceases to amaze... -- Proverbs 9:8-12 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
It never ceases to amaze me when two people listen to the same instructions and hear two completely
An Ethiopian artist, Alemayehu Bizuneh... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
An Ethiopian artist, Alemayehu Bizuneh, was losing his sight and was sent to a specialist in America
Jennifer was tired of saying... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Jennifer was tired of saying no to that which she really wanted to do.
During the decade of the... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
During the decade of the 1930s Winston Churchill was one of the few people in England who saw the gr
One of the most brilliant... -- Luke 16:1-13 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
One of the most brilliant men I've ever met was also the epitome of lost causes and dashed hopes.
In the mid-l9th century... -- Hosea 11:1-11 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
In the mid-l9th century, Rev.
A pastor in a small... -- 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
A pastor in a small town once remarked that people would often stop him in the street or in the stor
The story is told of... -- Hosea 11:1-11 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
The story is told of a man who stole some money from a local variety store, got caught, arrested and
The assignment for the fifth... -- 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
The assignment for the fifth graders was to write an essay about making the world a better place in
Leo Tolstoi, the great Russian... -- Hosea 11:1-11 -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Leo Tolstoi, the great Russian novelist, is celebrated as one of the very best novelists of all time

The Immediate Word

What If God Prayed For Us/u.s.? -- Amos 8:4-7, 1 Timothy 2:1-7 -- Carter Shelley -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - C
Dear Fellow Preachers,

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UPCOMING WEEKS
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Easter 4
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New & Featured This Week

Emphasis Preaching Journal

David Kalas
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.
Mark Ellingsen
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Bill Thomas
Acts 8:26-40
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?

StoryShare

Peter Andrew Smith
“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.

 “I know, but so many of them were battered and broken I figured that it couldn’t recover. Now though it looks just like it did before the storm.” Rolf paused. “Do you think it will bear any fruit this summer?”

CSSPlus

John Jamison
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

Christopher Keating
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Mary Austin
Elena Delhagen
Dean Feldmeyer
Quantisha Mason-Doll
For April 28, 2024:
  • On The Way To Gaza by Chris Keating based on Acts 8:26-40. On the way to Gaza, Philip discovers the startling ways the Spirit of God moves across borders, boundaries, customs, and traditions.
  • Second Thoughts: Abiding by Katy Stenta based on John 15:1-8.
  • Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Tom Willadsen, Elena Delhagen, Dean Feldmeyer.

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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