The Commons

I collect mountain stories. Here is one of my favorites. A preaching went calling high up in the Appalachian Mountains, looking for new members for a church plant he was doing. One day, after hours of climbing, he spotted a little house he had not seen before. Out of breath…

In the light of the capture of David Sweat this week, you might want to tell a break-out story that has a theological punch. Here it is: Some years ago, a desperate prisoner in Australia found a way to escape from the county jail. He crawled under a delivery truck…

God called Noah in to build an ark so that he, his family, and all the species of the earth could survive the impending flood God would let loose in two weeks. Noah was shocked and said, “Two weeks! God, are you kidding? Do you know how long it takes…

When I was in London, I heard this story. It’s a great way to introduce someone as “the one and only,” but you need to be careful and know your crowd. It would not work for everyone. But it would make a great introduction for someone in Rotary, or in…

After a rough trip I stopped at a drugstore to get some aspirin before returning home. While I was waiting in line to check out, a duck comes into the shop and says to the pharmacist: “Could I have a tube of chapstick, please.” The pharmacist, without missing a beat,…

Disney is know for “Imagineering,” the blurring of the boundaries between fantasy and reality. There is a Disney legend that circulates among the executives that one day while they were preparing for their parade, which is as close to a 19th century Fourth of July parade as anyone today will…

“St. Gregory wrote that every time the sacred text describes a fact, it reveals a mystery.” Flannery O’Connor. Preachers, are you listening? We have for too long ruptured people’s minds with facts rather than raptured their souls with mystery.s  

There is an  old Jewish story of the island castaway who, when he was discovered, had built two synagogues. The original story is of a Jewish Robinson Crusoe, but you could adopt and adapt for any tribe or tradition. When his rescuers asked why he had built two synagogues, he…

“Get practical.” Well, just because something is practical doesn’t make it desirable. The Sermon on the Mount is the ultimate in impracticality. A great sermon series could be based on them called The Impractical Imperatives.  

If you want to end your sermon with a great Father’s Day “story,” try using this Orgami  video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZu5l3PCCHs