In Sermons: showing 31-45 of 68

Why Give Thanks?

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Nov 24, 2008

With so much going on in our world, what reason do we have to give thanks this Thanksgiving

Samuel Scull farms in the Arizona desert with his wife and children. One night a fierce desert storm struck with rain, hail, and high wind. At daybreak, feeling sick and fearing what he might find, Samuel went out to look things over and survey the loss. The hail had beaten the garden into the ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 92:1

Denomination: Methodist

Blinded By The Dark

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

Jesus comes to us, and anoints us, Christ opens the eyes of our hearts, our eyes are opened. With our eyes opened, we are no longer blinded by the dark.

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to what the fairly new movie Ray, staring Jamie Foxx. It is the life story of the soul and jazz musician, Ray Charles. The movie touched on Ray Charles’ life growing up and losing his younger brother in a tragic accident, an event that he blamed ...read more

Scripture: John 9:1-41

Denomination: Methodist

Betrayal And Denial

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

All too often we deny Christ, we betray Christ in the things we say and do. But, there is Good News.

For many people the lesson we have read tonight is something that they find troublesome. At Elwood, my first appointment, we had a Bible study that had been a part of that congregation’s Christian education program for many years. They had begun reading in the first chapter of Genesis and would ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

Be Careful What You Ask For

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

We need to be careful of what we ask for. When we ask for things of this world we just might get them. But, if we place God first we will have live that are truly touched and blessed.

I remember one Sunday several years ago, just a couple of years after I went into the ministry. It had been raining non-stop for a couple of days. I was appointed, at that time, in farm country. Those folks are always praying for rain. My phone had rung all morning with people calling to tell ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 8:4-22, 1 Samuel 8:4-34

Denomination: Methodist

Are You Coming To Dinner?

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

Even when our plates seem empty our cups run over with the love of God.

**** Author’s Note: This sermon was done as a "Chalk Talk" a picture was drawn in pastels as the sermon was preached. **** Denise blew her nose and wiped her eyes on the hem of her apron. It was silly for her to be crying over a turkey even if it was the day before Thanksgiving. She filled the ...read more

Scripture: John 6:1-15

Denomination: Methodist

99 And 44/100% Pure

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

None of us are perfect, but maybe with the help of God we can get to be 99 and 44/100% pure.

One of the real catchwords that advertisers love to use these days is pure. I guess the thinking goes that if the company can convince us, the consumers, that the product is pure, we will buy it. If we really stop, and we listen to what people are saying, we can hear them using the word “pure” ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:1-10

Denomination: Methodist

A Little Shady Accounting

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

As long as there have been people in the world some have tried to cheat others. In the Parable of the Vineyard, that is exactly what happened.

Having served most of my ministry in rural east Texas, several of my church members have done some farming. And over those years I became at least somewhat familiar with sharecropping, particularly a form of it that they called farming on the halves. At first thought, I would never have imagined ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 21:33-46

Denomination: Methodist

Fish Stories

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 4, 2007

We’ve all heard stories about the one that got away and other kinds of fish stories. God wants us to tell our fish stories, our fishing for people stories, not the exaggerated ones but the ones that show God at work in our lives.

I love fish stories. I have always thought it fun to hear folk talk about the fish they have caught or the one who got away. Most all of us have heard fish stories of some kind or another during our lifetime. Some of them are very believable and others, well let’s just say that the exaggeration ...read more

Scripture: Luke 5:1-11

Denomination: Methodist

Who Killed Jesus?

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 3, 2007

I Last year, at the beginning of Lent, the movie that everyone was talking about was the movie you watched here last night, Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. As a Christian it was rather heartwarming to me that there was so much interest in a movie

I Last year, at the beginning of Lent, the movie that everyone was talking about was the movie you watched here last night, Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. As a Christian it was rather heartwarming to me that there was so much interest in a movie that obviously was religious. I don’t ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:13-49

Denomination: Methodist

Meeting The Need Series

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Dec 3, 2007

As we begin Advent we need to be aware of the needs of those around us. It will only be when Christ is born in their lives (as God uses the Body of Christ) that they might find a faith like ours.

When I was in seminary there was a man in Dallas who got his “Fifteen Minutes of Fame” over the period of a couple of weeks. He was on the Dallas news almost every night. Why? Well he said that he had uncovered a message from space aliens through the static on his television. The aliens, on a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:32-44

Denomination: Methodist

Payment Due!

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Nov 12, 2007

Respect and honor that is due our military is not about supporting the war, it is about showing the love of God.

Not this past week, but the week before I was sitting in my study one morning and as is normally my habit, I was reading the news on the Internet. As I scanned the headlines CNN had one that caught my attention. It said, “Church ordered to pay $10.9 million.” That is enough to catch any ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:7-10

Denomination: Methodist

Getting Big

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Nov 5, 2007

How big are we? This doesn’t mean how big are we in a physical way. How big are we spiritually? Are we big enough to be a person that God can use?

In 1988 Tom Hanks stared in a wonderful movie titled Big, though Hanks is not the main character, Josh, at the beginning or the end of the movie, he is for most of the picture. David Moscow plays Josh at the beginning and end and wants more than anything to be “big.” The boy is at a fair ...read more

Scripture: Luke 19:1-10

Denomination: Methodist

Hurricanes, Heart Aches, And Helping Hands

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Oct 10, 2007

The church must be the church. We are the people who right now know where God is. We are the people who know what God’s love is. We are the people who know that where God is there is hope. Through the hurricanes and heart aches of life, we as the chur

At certain time in the past I have become a news junkie. When I am at home I am watching television flipping the channel between different networks or scouring the Internet looking for more information about what is going on in the world around me. I was that way with the Columbia tragedy a ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 130:1-8

Denomination: Methodist

Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Oct 10, 2007

We all need to have vision in our lives. We need to have vision for ourselves personally. But, just as importantly, we need to have vision for ourselves collectively as a congregation.

History books often refer to World War I as “The war to end all wars.” We all know how untrue that is. There was of course World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq twice plus numerous other skirmishes that our troops have been involved in. That doesn’t even begin to mention the ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:1-21

Denomination: Methodist

Thank God That's Not Me Series

Contributed by Keith Broyles on Oct 10, 2007

We can’t go around saying, “Thank God that’s not me” because in truth it is us. Just like us, the people who are out there, people who perhaps make us uncomfortable are sinners who need to know the grace of God through Jesus Christ in their lives. The o

A Preacher dies and is standing in line, waiting outside the Pearly Gates. He is standing there patiently, wearing his best suit and tie, dressed like he is ready to preach his Sunday morning sermon. In line just ahead of him is a guy wearing sunglasses, a loud shirt, leather jacket, and blue ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:9-14

Denomination: Methodist