69 Sermon Illustrations on Devotion

Have you ever been down and out and nobody seems to be around for you to talk to… THAT’S GOD… he wants you to talk to him.

Have you ever been just sitting there and all of a sudden you feel like doing something nice for someone you care for… THAT’S GOD… he talks to you through the Holy Spirit.

Have you ever been thinking about somebody that you haven’t seen in a long time and then next thing you know you see them or receive a phone call from them… THAT’S GOD… there is no such thing as “coincidence.”

Have you ever received something wonderful that you didn’t even ask for, like money in the mail, a debt that had mysteriously been cleared, or a coupon to a department store where you had just seen something you wanted, but couldn’t afford… THAT’S GOD… he knows the desires of your heart…

Have you ever been in a situation and you had no clue how it is going to get better, but now you look back on it… THAT’S GOD… he passes us through tribulation to see a brighter day…

On June 7, 1944, Gen. Dwight Eisenhower gave the final order for the allied invasion of Normandy. It was the eve of D-Day. Among the Americans who fought to liberate France in the months ahead was 1st Lt. Billie Harris. He was a fighter pilot and his last mission was July 17, 1944, over Nazi-occupied northern France. He never returned from that mission.

He had married Peggy Harris of Vernon, Texas, just six weeks before being sent overseas. She never got a knock at the door, never got a telegram, never got anything definitive explaining what happened to her husband Billie during World War II. And so, in the absence of answers, she has remained dutiful to this day.

“Billie was married to me all of his life, and I choose to be married to him all of my life,” Harris said.

At first Billie was reported as missing. Then he was reported as alive and coming home. Then Peggy got a letter saying actually he’d been killed and buried at one cemetery -- then another letter saying he was buried at a different cemetery. Then she was told maybe those aren’t his remains at all.

Peggy was very frustrated. She waited. Months turned into years -- “and still no answer.” Years turned to almost seven decades. So she wrote her congressman. His office wrote back to say he was “still listed as ‘missing in action’ in the National Archives.”

Billie’s cousin, Alton Harvey, didn’t feel it was right that he just went off to war and didn’t come back. He wanted the family to know what happened to Billie. So a few years ago, he decided to try and get to the bottom of it for Peggy. He started by requesting Billie’s military records. And that’s all it took.

Few missing soldiers have ever been easier to find than Billie Harris. In Normandy, France -- at the world’s most famous cemetery -- along its most traveled path, the answer has been lying all along -- clear and sobering as a white marble cross.

Since learning her husband was buried here, Peggy has been sending flowers - 10 times a year she sends flowers, making Billie’s, by all accounts, the most decorated grave in all of Normandy. Cemetery officials say she’s also, as far as they know, the last widow who still visits here. After 60 years, she’s clearly got a lot of mourning to make up for.

“When people speak of closure, they are people have never experienced anything like this,” Peggy said.

Peggy says at this point that’s the best she can hope for is the acceptance of reality. And her visits help her get there. Plus she says, after just six weeks together as husband and wife -- and more than six decades apart -- any time together is a treasure.

________

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It is a fact which deserves the attention of all, that many of the most eminent men of the world have left behind them the most decisive testimony to the importance and value of true religion. Sir John Mason, who had been a privy counsellor to four successive monarchs, and was connected with the most important transactions of the state for thirty years. in the evening of his life declared, "Were I to live again, I would exchange the court for retirement, and the whole life I have lived in the palace for one hour's enjoyment of God in my closet. All things cow forsake me, except my God, my duty, and my prayers."

It is said further of this eminent man, that at the close of life he observed, that the result of his observation and experience might be comprised in three short sentences:—Seriousness is the greatest wisdom; temperance the best physic; and a good conscience the best estate."

One of my most meaningful Christmas memories is the prayer, the petition for God's blessing, with which each year our grandfather would conclude the family festivities.

During the years of my childhood, when we lived close to Grandpa's place in Manitoba, my parents and brothers and sisters would meet with the extended family at Grandpa's farm house for Christmas dinner. It was a large family. Besides the many aunts and uncles, there was a host of cousins and, later on, the next generation of great-grandchildren. It was chance to renew acquaintance with cousins we hadn't seen all year, admire the new babies that had arrived during the past year, and listen in on the adults' talk. After our sumptuous dinner, the children recited, everyone sang carols, and then each of us got a small gift from Grandpa. As the winter twilight set in, and the day was drawing to a close, Grandpa would gather us all together and offer a prayer for his family. He can't have prayed for us all by name because, by the time I could remember, there were too many of us. But there was the absent black-sheep uncle, the adolescents who had come to the crossroads of life and were finding the road rough, the family whose father had multiple sclerosis, and all the usual disappointments and difficult times. He had a special burden for us all. We all listened respectfully while his quiet voice spoke in German those caring words of supplication and benediction. Then it was time to get on our wraps, bundle the children in their snowsuits for the ride home, either by car or horse or sleigh.

We all felt secure as he placed us under God's care and keeping for the coming year.

Doreen Goosen

Abbotsford, BC

1. As the deer panteth for the water,

so my soul longeth after Thee.

You alone are my heart's desire,

and I long to worship Thee.

Chorus

You alone are my Strength, my Shield;

To You alone may my spirit yield.

You alone are my heart's desire,

and I long to worship Thee.

2. You're my Friend and You are my Brother

even though You are a King.

I love You more than any other,

So much more than anything.

3. I want You more than gold or silver,

only You can satisfy.

You alone are the real Joy-Giver

and the apple of my eye.

*

”Lovest thou Me?… Feed My sheep… Follow Me:” (John 21:15, 17, 19).

Well, there it is: “Lovest thou Me?.”… “ Feed My sheep”… Follow Me.” But “Lovest thou Me?” comes first, for it determines all else. When our love for Christ is what it should be, everything else falls into just its right place.

This is true in the matter of our separation. When we really love Him, do we allïù worldly pleasures, unworthy practices, social compromises, in our lives? When we really love Him, as the first and dearest love of our hearts, does the renunciation of anything worthy or questionable greatly pain us? However hard any such renunciation may be to the flesh, if our love to Christ is the supreme thing in us, it so overrides the flesh as to make even the hard easy. To have to live the separated life because we must, as a Christian obligation, is always irk-some; but to live the separated life because we may, as an expression of love to our Heavenly Bridegroom, transforms duty into joyous privilege.

The same is true in regards to our consecration. When we really love Him above all else, is there anything we would knowingly keep from Him? Could we ever say, “Lord Jesus, Son of God, Whï loved me, and gave Yourself for me, I love You more than I love any other on earth or in heaven; but I am not pre-pared to give myself completely to You”? No, we want the entire territory of our personality to be under the control of His scepter. He must have the throne, and wear the crown!

The same is also true in regards to our sanctification. Whatever may be our theory of sanctification or holiness, it is entirely false unless it floods and sways the heart with love to Him. On the other hand, even though we knïù nothing of such theories as “eradication” or “counteraction”, if our hearts love Him so dearly as to yield Him everything, then without our struggling and “claiming the blessing”, He fills us with His sanctifying Holy Spirit, for “perfect love casteth out fear” (I John 4:18); we find ourselves singing,

I’ve reached the land of corn and wine.

Its riches all are freely mine.!

Oh yes, love to Him is really the determining thing. Let us pause to hear again His searching question, deep in our consciousness, “Lovest Thou Me?” Then let us linger again over the lovely mystery of His unquenchable, exquisite love for us. Then we can pray with utter meaning,

Break Thou my nature, mighty, heavenly love;

Clear every avenue of thought and brain.

Flood my affections, purify my will;

Let nothing but Thine own pure life remain.

Thus, wholly mastered, and by Thee possessed,

Forth from my life, spontaneous and free,

Shall flow a stream of tenderness and grace,

Loving, because Thy love now lives in me.

The boss wins a much-deserved honor for turning the company around and saving everyone's job. A mother of two accepts congratulations for receiving her law degree. A dark-horse candidate basks in the glow of winning a tough election.

If any of those people are married, I hope they had sense enough to put their mates at the top of the list of those who made it possible. Loyal spouses typically pay a price fully as high -- and often higher -- than the one who gets the applause and fame.

Take the case of Janet Elway as proof. Her husband retired May 2 after sixteen years as a professional football player. John Elway is a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame in five years. He has completed more passes, gained more passing yards, and thrown more touchdown passes than any quarterback already enshrined at Canton. He led his Denver Broncos to Super Bowl championships the last two years.

Elway came into the league as the first choice in the 1983 draft. Billed as the savior of the Denver franchise, he was given a $5-million contract and subjected to merciless scrutiny. The early years were tough. He got off to a shaky start. The fans booed. Know who was taking it as harder than anybody? You guessed it: Janet Elway.

"When I would go into a department store or a grocery store and sign a check, they would say, well, not good things about John," she said. During the 1985 season, she gave birth to their first child. When she was able, she was back in the stands to watch her husband play football. It was a game at Mile High Stadium against Kansas City, and John was intercepted five times.

A man sitting right behind her stood up after the fifth interception and yelled, "You can get your #%*#^* wife pregnant, but you can't do anything else!" Janet turned around and slapped the man square in the face. "It was really embarrassing because the guy didn't know it was me," she said. "He said, 'Out of all these people I have to be sitting by his wife.' He apologized and everything." But the sharper sting that day was still to Janet's heart rather than to some fan's face.

At John's retirement press conference, Janet and their four children were there as a family. The announcement was interrupted by his frequent tears. Janet went to the podium with a box of tissues. She has been there every step of the way.

For all the achievers and doers of this world, a word of counsel: Don't forget the spouse who stayed, was loyal, and bore with the loneliness or neglect. When you're at the top of your game, be sure he or she gets to share the success in full measure.

Congratulations, John. I've enjoyed those fourth-quarter comebacks you could engineer with such skill. And I hope you have planned something special for Janet.

Psalm 42:1–4 — Craving Communion — « Leader information shown in this fashion »

A. 1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, While they continually say to me, “Where is your God?” 4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, With the voice of joy and praise, With a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast.

B. We are spoiled here … there are all sorts of lakes and streams in Ontario; but if you were to live in a dry, arid country, then you would be very appreciative as to how precious water really is. In the land of Palestine, while it is a land full of springs, much of it is parched, and fresh water is very valuable. What an apt picture does human thirst make, then, of a soul’s desire for God’s presence. « This psalm was probably composed by David when his throne had been usurped and he had fled in exile from his son, Absalom. »

1. what does the Psalmist miss in his current state in verse 4?

a. being able « to go to the house of the God »

b. taking part « in praising God, keeping the feasts »

2. what was the significance of the tabernacle? « — it was where God had placed His name, where sacrifice was to be made, both for sins and trespasses as well as worship and fellowship; it was here that three times a year Jews went up to attend the feast and rejoice together in the presence of the Lord »

3. do you think this is a voluntary situation? « — no, every fibre of his being cries out (pours out his soul) that he might be there. This is consistent with David being in exile. »

4. why are people asking him, “where is your God?” « — mocking words, just as people mocked Christ; to see David, a valiant servant of God, unable to worship delighted his opponents — how he handled this is found in the rest of the Psalm 42 & 43.

“I sigh to think of happier days

When thou, O God, wast nigh,

When every heart was tuned to praise;

And none more blest than I.” – Treasury of David, Spurgeon »

Every night, as he was being handcuffed to a tree deep in the Philippine jungle, Martin Burnham would look his armed captors in the eye and say, "Thank you very much."

Then the missionary would wish them good night.

He did this, his wife told friends, because he was determined to stay joyous during the most trying time of his life.

So friends and relatives of the slain native of Rose Hill, Kan., followed Martin Burnham's lead June 14, staying joyous through the tears of a two-hour memorial service that drew an estimated 2,600 people.

Martin Burnham died June 7 during a shoot-out between Filipino troops and his guerrilla kidnappers, who held him and wife Gracia captive for more than a year.

"Why did this happen this way?" asked Clay Bowlin, a college friend of Martin Burnham and a Kansas City pastor. "I gotta tell you, I don't know.

"God knows what he is doing. All we can do is trust him."

Friends and family began lining up outside Central Christian Church before 8:30 a.m. -- at least an hour and a half before the service began.

About 30 employees from Wal-Mart gathered on 29th Street North across from the church. They stood silently, with small flags in hand, holding giant sympathy cards.

As the service began, mourners -- including Philippines Ambassador Albert del Rosario, Sen. Sam Brownback, Rep. Todd Tiahrt and former Sen. Bob Dole -- stood as Martin's widow, Gracia Burnham, and family entered the sanctuary.

In a wheelchair, Gracia Burnham sat in the front row, just feet from her husband's casket.

The service began with a slide show flashing images from Martin Burnham's 42 years of life.

Set to the music of "Amazing Grace," Martin Burnham grew from small smiling child in a bow tie to high school wrestler, and eventually into a pilot, husband and father of three.

One of the last slides showed a healthy man in a blue-green plaid shirt, looking much different from the thin, bearded man he became during more than a year of captivity.

Some of the speakers and music had been chosen by Martin Burnham, who expressed his wishes to his wife in the weeks before he died. He sensed he may not make it out alive.

An uncle, Galen Hinshaw, read letters to Martin Burnham written by his family.

Martin Burnham's oldest son, Jeff, wrote about the dirt bike he and his father shared in the Philippines. And how his dad was going to teach him to fly when he turned 15. Jeff turned 15 while his parents were in captivity.

His 12-year-old daughter, Mindy, recalled her father inserting her name in songs and singing them to her when he returned home from work.

Felicia Reschke, Martin's youngest sister, wrote about wrestling Martin on the living room floor and how he always let her win. He nicknamed her "Pickles" because of the funny faces she made when she ate one.

Another sister, Cheryl Spicer, remembered a time in college when Martin offered to start turning down her unwanted dates for her.

"He took care of me," she wrote.

His mother, Oreta Burnham, remembered her son ending a November interview in the jungle with the words: "Goodbye, Mom. I love you, and I hope to see you soon."

Bowlin, who knew Martin Burnham at Calvary Bible College in Kansas City, Mo., in the early 1980s, said he and Martin were like brothers.

His voice cracked often as he recalled their long talks over cups of coffee and his teasing Martin over his courtship of Gracia.

As their college years ended, most of Bowlin's friends were getting married, including Martin, so he didn't see them much.

Martin, seeing that Bowlin was lonely, approached him one day in the student lounge and promised to ask Gracia if he could start spending some Saturday nights with Bowlin.

Smiling down at Gracia, Bowlin told her he decided not to steal time with her husband but how much he appreciated the offer.

Bowlin described how a hungry Martin and Gracia shared their food during captivity with younger members of Abu Sayyaf -- some of whom were kids with guns, he said -- because they were hungry too.

In recent weeks, he said, Gracia escaped the jungle on a medical helicopter. Martin escaped on the wings of an angel.

Bowlin thanked the city of Rose Hill for lining the streets as buses brought Gracia home.

"There is a golden street in heaven where a couple of weeks ago there was another parade like that," he said.

Mourners once again stood as Martin's casket was carried from the sanctuary, Gracia Burnham following close behind.

The family's poise impressed all those who have tried to imagine themselves in the family's place.

"The family is amazing," Dole said as he left the memorial. "The things that Martin and Gracia went through, you almost wouldn't believe it if you were reading them in a book."

Family members laid Martin Burnham to rest at a private burial at Rose Hill Friends Cemetery. Then hundreds of friends met them for a luncheon at a Rose Hill school.

Gracia Burnham took a break from visiting with friends and family to share a quick story with the media.

Above the roar of a passing train, she spoke of one night in the jungle when her kidnappers allowed her and Martin to listen to a short-wave radio.

Curled up together in a hammock, they tuned into an English station and heard someone saying a prayer for everyone in troubled places, such as Afghanistan or the West Bank.

She and Martin included themselves in that prayer and were comforted, she said.

The funeral service was wonderful, she said. Martin would have loved it.

She wanted everyone to know she's doing well, as is her family and Martin's.

Then she smiled and said: "I asked my kids how I should end my little speech to the press. They said to say: 'God Bless America.'"

--30--

Used by permission of The Wichita Eagle. (BP)

CAIRO, Egypt -- Osama bin Laden's spokesman on Tuesday called for a holy war against U.S. interests everywhere and praised the hijackers who flew planes into the World Trade Center and Pentagon for their "good deed."

"America must know that the storm of airplanes will not stop and there are thousands of young people who look forward to death like the Americans look forward to life," said Sulaiman Abu Ghaith said.

c Copyright 2001 The Associated Press