Tag Archives: family

“The Prophets and Your Salvation” (I Peter 1:10-12 sermon)

Posted on 2019/05/19 by Shawn Thomas

Back when I was a young preacher at my first church in Oklahoma City, I got a little book in the mail one day, from Edgar Whisenant: “88 Reasons Why The Rapture Will Be In 1988.” Whisenant was a NASA … Continue reading →

Posted in I Peter sermons, Music, Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized, worship | Tagged "me" generation, Acts 2:39, Bethlehem, blood moons, building, church, contemporary music, contemporary service, Daniel, Edgar Whisenant 88 Reasons Why, end times, eschatology, family, generations, God's plan, hymns, I Peter 1:10-12, I Peter message, imitate, invitation, Isaiah 53, Isaiah 7:14, It's not about you, Jesus, knowing vs. doing, love, marriage, Martin Luther, Message, Messiah, Micah 5:2, Old Testament prophecies, Old Testament prophets, personal application, prophecies, prophets, Psalm 16, Psalm 22:1, rapture, respond, response, sacrifice, salvation, saving faith, second coming, self-centered, self-centeredness, selfishness, selflessness, Suffering Servant, traditional service, witness, witness of the prophets, worship, Zechariah 9:9 | Leave a comment

“Neglecting God” (Zephaniah 1:1-6 sermon)

Posted on 2018/09/10 by Shawn Thomas

You never know what your kids are going to do with the things they hear you say. We had not been at our church in Tulsa Oklahoma very long when we pulled up to a convenience store, and Cheryl saw … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged "The Twelve", Choose whom you will serve, church attendance, compromise, daily Bible reading, decisions, devotional time, evangelism, family, family time, Gibeonites, gratitude, Great Commandment, greatest sin, heaven, idolatry, James 4:17, John 17:3, Joshua 24, Luke 17 ten lepers, marriage, marriage commitment, Minor Prophets, neglecting God, neglecting your family, Old Testament prophets, pray without ceasing, quiet time, relationship with God, Romans 15:13, salvation, seeking God, singing, sins of commission, sins of omission, thanking God, Thanksgiving, time with family, time with God, worship, Zephaniah, Zephaniah 1:1-6, Zephaniah 1:6 | Leave a comment

“When You Follow Jesus” (Mark 10:29-30 sermon)

Posted on 2018/04/23 by Shawn Thomas

I saw an ad the other day which indicated that a subscription I am very interested in was only $2 for two months — which was a very good deal! But when I read the fine print, it said that … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, Sermons | Tagged Am I A Soldier of the Cross?, Andrew Brunson, Beatitudes, blessed are the persecuted, blessings, Chick-Fil-A, Christian family, church family, context, disciple, discipleship, eternal life, family, fellowship, follow Jesus, follow Me, game show, II Timothy 3:12, Islam, John 17:3, leave family, Mark 10, Mark 10:29-30, New Yorker magazine and Chick-Fil-A, Pastor Cao, Paul & Timothy, persecution, priorities, Psalm 16:11, rich young ruler, Rifqa Bary, sermon | 16 Comments

The Search For Delight (Psalm 37:4 sermon)

Posted on 2018/02/26 by Shawn Thomas

“Hedonism” is the belief that pleasure is the most important thing in the world, and that you should live your life, for pleasure. Most Christians would say that hedonism is wrong — but a few years ago pastor John Piper … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermon Illustrations, Sermons | Tagged Alexander Von Humboldt, Amazon jungle, Bible Reading, Brave Companions David McCullough, C.S. Lewis, Christian hedonism, commitment, daily quiet time, delight, delight yourself, Delight yourself in the Lord, desires, devotion time, devotions, Divine Country, Ecclesiastes, effort, family, football, fulfillment, garden of Eden, heaven, hedonism, Hop on Pop, Job, John Piper, joy, Made To Crave, marriage, occupation, personal worship, pleasure, prayer, Psalm 16:11, Psalm 17:17, Psalm 37:4, Psalm 42, Psalm 4:7, quiet time, reading, river of delights, scripture memory, sin, Song This Blood, soul mate, vocation, worship | Leave a comment

“Your Worries & Your Father” (Matthew 6:25-34 sermon)

Posted on 2017/09/11 by Shawn Thomas

The other day I was reading something written by a pastor from generations gone by, and he said of this certain thing: “This is something which is highly dishonoring to God, a sin which we need to make conscience of, … Continue reading →

Posted in Matthew sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged anxiety, C.S. Lewis, faith, family, father, Father in Heaven, God, Hudson Taylor, II Corinthians 10:3-5, love, Matthew 6:25-34 sermon, Philippians 4:6, provision, trust, worry | Leave a comment

The Lord’s Presence in Our Storms

Posted on 2017/09/07 by Shawn Thomas

In Matthew 1 the angel told Joseph that one of Jesus’ “nicknames” would be “Immanuel”, which means, “God With Us.” That is no small thing. In fact, it means everything that God is with us. He created us originally to … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized | Tagged difficulties, family, God with us, Hurricane Harvey, Immanuel, John 16:33, presence of God, problems, Psalm 46 devotion, Psalm 46:1, Psalm 46:10, Psalm 4:6, storms, trials, tribulations, Very present help | Leave a comment

Passing On The Word

Posted on 2017/08/21 by Shawn Thomas

“For the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.” (John 17:8) In His High Priestly prayer here … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Discipleship, Home & Family Life, Uncategorized | Tagged Bible, child rearing, discipleship, family, God's word, home, John 17:8, preaching, scripture, teaching, truth | Leave a comment

The Model Prayer & Praying For Your Child’s Future Spouse

Posted on 2017/06/20 by Shawn Thomas

“Pray then in this way …” (Matthew 6:9) Our son Paul wrote a sweet post on Facebook for Fathers Day, quoting an outline of a prayer I used (and still use) to pray for his future spouse, based on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Home & Family Life, Uncategorized | Tagged family, intercession, Lord's Prayer, marriage, Matthew 6:9-13, model prayer, prayer, prayer requests, praying for your child | 4 Comments

“The King & The Disciples” (Matthew 5:1-2 sermon)

Posted on 2017/06/19 by Shawn Thomas

I have never in my lifetime seen the kind of vindictiveness expressed towards a president as we have seen evidenced towards President Trump: the hatred, lack of submission, people saying “He’s not my President”, etc. I was not a big … Continue reading →

Posted in Matthew sermons, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged 30 minute church service, Beatitudes, Bible, Bible Reading, Bible study, Chuck Quarles, Cliff Jenkins, commitment, consumer church, consumer mentality, convenience, crowds, daily bread, daily walk, Deuteronomy 8:3, devotional time, disciples, discipleship, entertainment, family, follow Me, following Jesus, God's will, God's word as food, Golden Calf, honey, Isaiah 53:6, Jesus, king, King Saul, Matthew 10:37, Matthew 4:4, Matthew 5:1-2, meat, milk, ministry, mission partnership, missions, Moses, Mount of the Beatitudes, Mt. Sinai, Pandering, persecution, Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh mission churches, popularity, prayer, priorities, Psalm 119:103, quiet time, salvation, scripture, SEBTS, Sermon on the Mount, service, solid food, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, success, truth, walk with God | Leave a comment

The War Against Marriage

Posted on 2017/05/16 by Shawn Thomas

In 2014 the Radical Islamic group ISIS made headlines when they captured the historic tomb of the Prophet Jonah in Mosul, Iraq, lined the bottom of it with dynamite, and blew it up, totally destroying the tomb. This was just … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized | Tagged Casablanca, Ephesians 5:31-32, family, ISIS, marriage, Matthew 19, war against marriage | 3 Comments