Thanks for reading "The Overcoming Church!" This is a book on how the early church overcame growth barriers and turned the ancient world upside down. Below you can download a variety of resources connected to the book. MORE RESOURCES COMING SOON ... Most by the end of Sea Breeze Camp. FREE RESOURCES: Small Group Discussion Guide (All Chapters) Pastor's Processing Guide

If you’ve ever tried to move discipleship forward and heard this response, you’re not alone: “We’d be open to discipleship… but only during Sunday School. Weekdays are just too busy.” That question landed in my inbox recently from a pastor who is genuinely trying to lead well. I get it. Sometimes, church leaders are overwhelmed and busy. And after more than 20 years of pastoring—through seasons of tiny budgets, exhausted volunteers, and my own seven-kid household—I can tell y

Discipleship is a central theme in many churches, yet often, it's the area we struggle to demonstrate that we value.  Any church and...

For more than 20 years, I’ve preached multiple times a week as a pastor. Like many of you, I’ve spent hours bent over lexicons,...

If you’ve ever sat down to prep a sermon on marriage and felt the frustration of knowing  your point is solid… but not having the right story to make it land, you’re not alone. After preaching for more than 20 years, I’ve learned that illustrations on marriage are both some of the most powerful tools a pastor can use—and some of the hardest to find. Sure, you can dig up clichés or well-worn anecdotes, but finding fresh, vivid, and emotionally resonant stories that connect wit

Why Forgiveness Illustrations Matter (and Why They’re So Hard to Find) After preaching for more than 20 years, I’ve learned something...

Why is it so hard to find the right  illustration about God’s love? After preaching for over 20 years, I’ve learned this the hard way: God’s love is the most powerful truth in the universe — but it’s also one of the hardest to describe. You can preach on John 3:16, Romans 5:8, or Luke 15, but if your congregation doesn’t feel  it, they might nod… and walk away unchanged. That’s why sermon illustrations matter. The right story, image, or analogy can break down defenses and ope

If you've preached more than a few sermons, you know the challenge: trying to illustrate the power of God’s Word in a way that grips...

I’ve been preaching for over 20 years — long enough to know that being a peacemaker is one of the most desperately needed  topics in any...

Psalm 23 might be the most beloved passage in the entire Bible — but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to preach. If you’ve ever stared at your...

Why Preaching the Inerrancy of Scripture Requires More Than Just Quotes from Spurgeon I’ve been preaching for over 20 years—and I’ve...

Pastor, are your congregation members struggling with consistency in their spiritual walk? If you’re looking for a sermon series on...

Let’s be honest—preaching on joy can feel risky. Not because it’s controversial, but because it’s hard to make real. It’s one thing to...

If you've preached for more than a few Sundays, you already know: preaching on love is both essential and challenging. It's the heartbeat...

Forgiveness is one of the most powerful themes in all of Scripture—so why is it so hard to find fresh, impactful sermon illustrations...

After preaching for more than 20 years, I’ve learned something the hard way: people forget points… but they remember pictures. You can...

Let’s be honest—finding good sermon illustrations about prayer is harder than it should be. Not just any stories, but ones that are...

If you're preaching on faith, here are 34 sermon illustrations about faith from 17 different categories to help you preach more...

After preaching three times a week for over 20 years, I know the struggle of finding fresh, powerful sermon illustrations that actually connect . I’ve spent thousands of hours digging through books, clipping stories, and scanning articles—just to find that one story or metaphor that makes the truth stick . But today’s information overload has made the search even harder. That’s why I created The Sermon Illustrator —an AI-powered tool built specifically for pastors—to help gen

If you're preaching on Grace, here are a few dozen sermon illustrations about grace from 17 different categories to help you preach more...