Tag Archives: relationships

“The Refiner’s Fire” (Malachi 3:1-4 sermon)

Posted on 2020/04/20 by Shawn Thomas

Ruth Bell Graham was the wife of the famous evangelist Billy Graham. Billy had of course garnered so much world-wide attention, having been seen on tv, and having written so many books, and so on — but after some years, … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19 crisis assorted messages, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged Babylonian Captivity, Billy Graham, Bishop Moule no situation so chaotic, Brass Bell Milwaukee, busy-ness, C.S. Lewis, circumstances, coronavirus crisis, COVID-19, daily Bible reading, devotional time, devotions, Ephesians 1:11, finances, financial crisis, fuller's soap, Genesis Joseph, God, God's purpose, growing through trials, Hebrews 13:5, holiness, holy, II Corinthians 12 Apostle Paul, It's My Turn Graham, Italy doctor COVID-19 atheist, Malachi 3:1-4 sermon, money, normal, offerings in righteousness, pandemic, Peter Acts 2 sermon, predestined plan and purpose of God, purification, purpose, refiner's fire, relationships, rest, Romans 8:28, Ruth Bell Graham, sacrifice of praise, sanctification, schedule, sickness, Thanksgiving, thorn in the flesh, time, trials, worship | 1 Comment

“What To Do If The End Is Near” (I Peter 4:7-11 sermon)

Posted on 2019/11/25 by Shawn Thomas

Last Sunday morning I mentioned that there had been a survey in which the American people were asked what they would do if they knew the world would end in a week. Two of the top responses, sadly, were that … Continue reading →

Posted in I Peter sermons, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged Crossway Publishers survey, daily quiet time, devotional time, Elizabeth Leyton, end of world, Ephesians 1:13, evangelism, faithfulness, family in the ark, football, greatest of these is love, horizontal bar, I Corinthians 12:7, I Corinthians 13, I Peter 4:10, I Peter 4:7-11, I Peter 4:7-11 sermon, I Thessalonians 5:17, intercession, love, love covers a multitude of sins, love for others, love in church, love one another, MasterLife, morning prayer, pastors prayer, perseverance, pray without ceasing, prayer, prayer time, praying for family, praying for salvation, praying for the lost, Proverbs 10:12, relationship, relationship with God, relationships, relationships in church, salvation, service, spiritual gifts, spontaneous prayer, survey, time in prayer survey, time spent in prayer, use your gift, Winston Churchill, you've played your part | Leave a comment

“God’s Rules For Christian Conduct” (I Peter 3:8-12 sermon)

Posted on 2019/10/07 by Shawn Thomas

When George Washington was a little boy, he copied out a document with the title: “110 Rules of Civility,” which was a common school assignment in his day. Because we have Washington’s copy in his own hand, it has become … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, I Peter sermons, Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged "Going Deeper With God", answered prayer, attitudes, blessing, brotherly love, C.S. Lewis, Christian home life, church, church family, church family life, church relationships, confession, daily quiet time, deeds, demons, devil, domestic life, George Washington's Rules of Civility, gospel, Greg Frizzell, harmony, hindered prayer, holiness, holy life, home, horizontal relationships, humility, I Peter 3:8-12, I Peter sermon, II Corinthians 2:11, imperative, imperative of holiness, kind-hearted, love, marriage, MasterLife, philadelphia, plan of salvation, prayer, Psalm 34, relationships, relationships church, repentance, revenge, Rules For Christian Conduct, salvation, sanctification, Satan, Satan's schemes, schemes of the enemy, Screwtape, screwtape letters, sin, sumpathos, sympathetic, temptation, thoughts, words, Wormwood | Leave a comment

“Where’s Your Glory?” (Jeremiah 9:23-24 sermon)

Posted on 2018/09/17 by Shawn Thomas

Sunday morning came to our church in Southwest Louisiana, and the crowd was exuberant. Purple and gold clothing was everywhere. People were cheerful and talking in the hallways. A festive air just covered the whole place. LSU had won their … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged church, conversation, crown, daily quiet time, Death, devotional time, discipleship, Ernest Hemingway, eternal life, eternity, exercise, glory, heaven, Houston medical center, Isaiah 55, J.I. Packer, Jeremiah 9:12, Jeremiah 9:23-24, John 17:3, knowing God, Knowing God book, LSU football, materialism, NFL injuries, Pete Rose, Philippians 3:10, prayer time, quiet time, relationships, riches, suicide, temporal values, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Washington Irving, Westminster Abbey, worship | 16 Comments

Are You Shifting The Blame?

Posted on 2018/05/16 by Shawn Thomas

“The people spoke against God and Moses, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food.” (Numbers 21:5) Numbers 21:4 says … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized | Tagged anger, blame, blame game, blame-shifting, blaming God, Book of Numbers, confession, Numbers 21:5, relationships, shifting blame, sin, work relations | Leave a comment

Is Your Christianity Vertical & Horizontal?

Posted on 2017/12/05 by Shawn Thomas

“For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers.” … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged Christianity, Christianity vertical and horizontal, discipleship, Ephesians 1:15, faith, horizontal relationships with others, love, relationships, vertical relationship with God | 1 Comment

Envy In The Church?!

Posted on 2017/11/17 by Shawn Thomas

“Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:26) What’s this, “envying one another” in the church? Surely not! But evidently it WAS happening in the church at Galatia. And it is undoubtedly going on in … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged church, church staff relationships, envy, envying, Galatians 5:26, relationships | Leave a comment

“The Golden Rule” (Matthew 7:12 sermon)

Posted on 2017/10/09 by Shawn Thomas

When our kids were little, I started listening to a CD with the greatest hits of the British comic operas of Gilbert & Sullivan. These operas were written in the late 1800’s, and they poke fun at all kinds of … Continue reading →

Posted in Matthew sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged business, business ethics, Christian ethics, Christianity, context, discipleship, do unto others, driving, ethics, Exodus 22:21, Exodus 23:4, forgiveness, Gilbert & Sullivan, Gilbert & Sullivan golden rule, gospel, Great Commandment, Jesus, Matthew 7:12, perspective, relationships, Romans 12:1, salvation, Swiss Army knife, teaching, Ten Commandments, The Golden Rule, therefore, treat others the way you want to be treaated, understanding | 1 Comment

Your Two Key Relationships (Psalm 16:2-3 sermon)

Posted on 2016/07/10 by Shawn Thomas

One of the things that makes getting around relatively easy in Oklahoma is that the whole state is basically divided into 4 quadrants by I-35 which runs north & south, and I-40, which runs east & west. These 2 great … Continue reading →

Posted in Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged "The Weight of Glory", all lives matter, black lives matter, blue lives matter, C.S. Lewis quote, gospel, Mere Christianity, Psalm 16 sermon, Psalm 16:2-3, relationship with God, relationship with man, relationships, salvation, white lives matter | Leave a comment

It’s A Lot About Relationships

Posted on 2016/07/06 by Shawn Thomas

“Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother” (Matthew 10:2) Among the items of note in the list of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized | Tagged brother, circles of relationships, evangelism, friendship evangelism, John 1:41, Matthew 10:2, networks, relationships, web of relationships, witness, witnessing to relatives | Leave a comment