Mike Riley Sermon Outlines, Articles, Lessons, etc.

Our Ultimate Source Of Nourishment

Have we ever wondered how bees lead one another to nectar? Scientists say it’s by the “waggle dance.” In the United Kingdom, researchers have used tiny radar transponders

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Finding “A Good Thing”

When folks ask me how long my wife and I have been married (32 years and counting), the pronouncement is frequently met with the sort of goggle-eyed astonishment once reserved for the laser show at the

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“An Everlasting Love”

Several months ago, I read about a bride whose grandfather quoted Paul’s inspiring section of Scripture regarding the relationship of husband and wife (Ephesians 5:22-33 – NKJV).

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Being Stretched Outside Our Comfort Zone

While working for a major gas pipeline company several years ago, I accidentally fell and severely sprained my ankle. Part of my physical therapy routine involved my therapist using weights to

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Looking In All The Wrong Places

Have we ever heard someone say when they finally found an item they lost, “Wouldn’t you know, it was in the last place I looked?” Someone once said that if it had been in the first place they looked, they wouldn’t have looked in any other place, so that every time an item is found […]

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The Painful Process Of Growth

Sometimes when trouble comes into our lives, we feel as if we’ve been hit broadside. We feel desperation and then we think, “Why is this happening to me?”

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Do It When We Don’t Feel Like It

Have we ever faced a chore that we really didn’t want to do such as mowing the lawn, washing clothes, cleaning the house, washing the car, or even preparing a Bible class lesson? An exhausting work week can make us feel like procrastinating.

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Walking Down The Quiet Road

Traveling north from El Paso, Texas to Carlsbad, New Mexico is a highway of approximately 160 miles. Many times, my wife and I have driven that lonely and quiet

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The Bible And Its Amazing Accuracy

What’s so amazing about the Bible, is its accuracy even in the physical realm. In 1860, an oceanographer by the name of Matthew Fontaine Maury, established the fact that the

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Power Under Control

Niagara Falls is one of the most spectacular sights in the world because of the 6 million cubic feet of water it produces each minute.

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Understanding Our Spouse

My wife and I have been married for over 30 years, and in that time we have learned to appreciate each other and enjoy each other’s unique qualities. But even after all these years, she still surprises me from

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The Fruit Of Our Lives — “Fresh And Flourishing”

What do we think of when we hear the word “fresh”? Growing up on a farm as I did, “fresh” means just-harvested fruits and vegetables — not those stale artificial kind found

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Developing A Non-Complaining Attitude

While surfing the Net not long ago, I read about a preacher who gave what seemed to be an impossible challenge to his congregation — to go 21 days without complaining. Special

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God Demands Complete Honesty

In Acts Chapter 4-5, God gives us a sobering example of how He views dishonesty (Acts 4:32-5:11). Some Christians had sold their land and shared all the proceeds with the church. Ananias and Sapphira decided

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“We'll Never Get Growing If We Never Get Going”

A querist asks, “In James 3:1-2, the statement is made that not many members of the church should strive to become teachers. Is James really advocating that being a teacher is a bad idea?”

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Sacrificing All “So Others May Live”

To be a rescue swimmer for the United States Coast Guard, requires weeks of intensive training. The training prepares courageous men and women for the task of jumping from helicopters to rescue those in danger at sea.

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God Stands Ready To Forgive And Forget

The story is told of a little boy who had just been tucked into bed by his mother waiting to hear his prayers. He knew that he had been mischievous that day, and now it was bothering him. So he told his mother, ” I wish you’d go now and leave me alone — I […]

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“Is Anything Too Hard For The Lord?”

When the messengers of God told Sarah and Abraham that they would have a son despite their great age — Abraham being ninety-nine years old and his wife Sarah ninety — Sarah’s reaction was perfectly understandable: “Sarah laughed within herself, saying, ‘After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?’” […]

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True Freedom From Sin

A little over two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops rode into Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865 and read General Order Number 3:

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There's Water In God's Saving Plan

In Genesis Chapters 7 and 8, God chose water as the means of destroying mankind with the exception of Noah and his family (Genesis 8:15-18 NKJV; 1 Peter 3:20 NKJV) Thus water became a

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