Barnyard Bible Stories

08/25/2026

Sam was watching Farmer Smith get home after being gone most of the day.

“What was Farmer Smith doing?” Sam asked Horace.

“He was doing church work. They are having a Gospel Meeting the next few days and Farmer Smith was putting flyers out door to door,” said Horace.

“He was gone a long time. I bet they will have a lot of people at the Gospel Meeting,” said Sam.

“Well, the truth is Sam that most people won’t come. All we can do is plant the seeds in their hearts. We can’t make them follow Jesus. Farmer Smith just wants to make sure that they have been invited,” said Horace.

“I wonder why everyone doesn’t follow Jesus,” asked Sam.

“Jesus told a story about why everyone doesn’t follow. He told a story about planting seeds. He said some seeds fell along the road. Some of the seeds he said fell on rocks and other fell by the thorns. But some seeds fell on good ground. Jesus’ students
didn’t know what He meant by the story, so Jesus explained it to them. Jesus said, ‘So listen to the meaning of that story about the farmer. What is the seed that fell by the path? That seed is like
the person that hears the teaching about the kingdom but does not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away the things that were planted in that person’s heart. And what is the seed that fell on rocky ground? That seed is like the person that
hears the teaching and quickly accepts that teaching with joy. But that person does not let the teaching go deep into his life. He keeps that teaching only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching he accepted, then he quickly quits. And what is the seed that fell among the thorny
weeds? That seed is like the person that hears the teaching but lets worries about this life and love for money stop that teaching from growing. So the teaching does not make fruit in that person’ life. But what is the seed that fell on good ground? That
seed is like the person that hears the teaching and understands it. That person grows and makes fruit, sometimes 100 times more, sometimes 60 times more and sometimes 30 times more.’ (Matthew 30:18-23) Sam don’t get discouraged when
you tell people about Jesus. Most people will not listen,” said Horace.

Song: The Lord’s Army
Scripture Reading: Matthew 30:23
Question: What is the seed on good ground? (The one that grows and makes fruit.)

08/25/2026

Conquer

It is sometimes difficult to grasp the scope of evil in our world. It is impossible to look at the atrocities going on in our society and not see invisible forces of evil around us. Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”. (John 10:10) Murders, abuse, exploitation and neglect are all residue of Satan the thief and his influence. There is a war that reaches every neighborhood, every family and every demographic. You are part of this war and there is no avoiding its onslaught. Choosing to be oblivious to this war does not insulate you from its wreckage. You must fight on one side or the other. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”. (Matthew 12:30) Through Jesus we can overcome the evil around us. Paul wrote, “But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”. (Romans 8:37-39) Choose sides. Take up the fight that is all around you. In this world of uncertainty there is security in being part of the army of light. Paul wrote, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ…”. (II Corinthians 10:3-5) You have wounds from the evil one. Take up the battle against him.

By Douglas Graham

08/24/2026

Sermon, "Ambassadors".

08/24/2026

Song, "Hosanna".

08/24/2026

Story 383. Oliver was getting a drink at the water trough when he noticed Grandpa walking over. Grandpa was getting older and walked slowly. His back bent down and about every third step you could tell that it was painful for Grandpa to walk.

“Does getting older hurt Grandpa?” asked Oliver.

“Yes, it sure does!” answered Grandpa.

“Do you think you will hurt in heaven?” asked Oliver.

“No, Jesus can take the pain away. In heaven there will be no more sickness and no more pain. Jesus helped a woman in the Bible that had back pain. The Bible says, ‘In the synagogue there was a woman that had a spirit from the devil inside her. This spirit had made the woman crippled for 18 years. Her back was always bent; she could not stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called to her, Woman, your sickness has gone away from you!. Jesus put his
hands on her. Then she was able to stand up straight. She praised God’. (Luke 13:10-13) One day Oliver, Jesus will take all of the pain away just like He healed the woman in Luke chapter 13,” said Grandpa.

Song: The Wise Man
Scripture Reading: Luke 13:13
Question: What part of the woman did Jesus heal? (Her back)

08/24/2026

Stuff

It is interesting the role stuff plays in our society. If you got rid of all the stuff that you haven’t touched in a year, would it effect your quality of life? Would it have a positive effect? We often see something and contemplate buying it. We think it will add value to our life but often it just ends up in storage. Garage sales are interesting. Tables of things that once were thoughtfully purchased are sold for pennies on the dollar. A man asked Jesus to settle a financial dispute that he had with his brother. Jesus refused and said, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one is affluent does his life consist of his possessions.”. (Luke 12:15) At this moment, somewhere in our world is a child smiling from ear to ear while playing with a gourd and a stick. During this same moment there is a child surrounded by hundreds of dollars’ worth of electronics who is complaining about boredom. Adults aren’t as different as we would like to think. Happiness is out there but often people look in the wrong spots. Faith and family are a good place to start looking.

By Douglas Graham

08/23/2026

Sunday Morning Service 08/23/2026

08/23/2026

08/23/2026

Story 382. Mary and Horace were walking by some trees and Mary asked,

“Dad, what kind of tree is that?”

“That is a pecan tree Mary,” answered Horace.

“How come it never has pecans on it?” asked
Mary.

“Farmer Smith has tried and tried to get that
tree to make pecans but it just doesn’t do it,” said Horace.

“I wonder why Farmer Smith keeps it?” asked Mary.

“There may be a day where He gives up on it. Jesus told a story about a tree. Jesus said, ‘A man had a fig tree. He planted the tree in his garden. The man came looking for some fruit on the tree, but he found none. The man had a servant that took care of his garden. So the man said to his servant, ‘I have been looking for fruit on this tree for three years, but I never find any. Cut it down! Why should it waste the ground? But the servant answered, Master, let
the tree have one more year to make fruit. Let me dig up the dirt around it and put on some plant food. Maybe the tree will make fruit next year. If the tree still does not make fruit, then you can cut it down.’ (Luke 13:6-9) Jesus wants us to know that we also must bear fruit. We need to share His word with others so they can follow Jesus too,” said Horace.

“I sure want to bear fruit for Jesus Grandpa,” said Mary.

Song: Jesus Loves The Little Children
Scripture Reading: Luke 13:9
Question: What does Jesus want us to bear? (Fruit)

08/23/2026

Our Wake

Summertime is also a time when we spend more time by water. Boats leave a wake behind them. Wakes are the waves caused by the boat passing through the water. Certain parts of lakes and ports are declared “No Wake Zones”. The question is when you look behind at the wake you personally leave, what does it look like? Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.”. (Matthew 7:16-18) So what lays behind in the wake of your life? Is there destruction and chaos or have you left the world more peaceful than you found it? Sometimes it is difficult to accept responsibility but if there is a debris field of shattered lives in your wake, you make bear some responsibility. Usually a life of destruction is caused by a life of selfishness. It is also important to understand if you live a life of selfishness, you end up with very little. Paul wrote, “ Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:3-4) Selflessness makes the world better. It calms the storms and makes our life’s impact more positive. Paul continued and said, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross.”. (Philippians 2:5-8) Let’s be dedicated to being selfless and leaving our world better. By Douglas Graham