Monday, December 31, 2012

THE CALL OF THE MUNDANE & YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT


           
These One A Days are added to daily.  There are over 1100 stories and commentaries on this blog began Nov. 24, 2009.  It is added to daily.
        IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEND THIS BLOG TO A FRIEND COPY and paste THE FOLLOWING URL
http://oneadayyourspiritualvitamins.blogspot.com/
              AND THEN PASTE IN AN EMAIL.
              Click on http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com to read selected Sermons from over 50 years of Rev. Wyrick's ministry. (STARTING NOV 1 "HOW MUCH DOES A PRAYER WEIGH)  Below...other recent Sermon Titles
       To view Rev. Wyrick in 4 of his highly acclaimed One Man Dramas  ABRAHAM LINCOLN, BEN FRANKLIN CHARLES WESLEY, MARTIN LUTHER (NBC Special) click on the link below
                   http://www.speakerneil.com/
        Below the thoughts below read a quote from Rev. Wyrick's applauded 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ARAHAM LINCOLN
                +++++++++++

THERE ARE TWO ONE A DAYS TODAY

YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT

May I share the following story and ask you to apply it wherever and however you best feel it should be applied.

       Perhaps in a move toward patience and sanity (on both sides) in Washington.

       An old philosopher let forth a deep sigh and began to relate to his wife what had happened to him at the beginning of his day.

       "These two men had been vehemently arguing and came to me in hopes I could resolve their conflict."

       He paused and then continued, " I listened carefully to the first man as he laid out the reasons why he was certain he had come to the right conclusions."

       His look of anticipation was overwhelming.

       I replied, "You are absolutely right."

       "I then listened to the second man with equal concentration and when he had finished I looked at him and said 'Your are absolutely right.'"

       "But" interrupted his wife, "They can't both be absolutely right."

       The old philosopher smiled and said, "You're absolutely right."


THE CALL OF THE MUNDANE 
Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by what you have to do right now and what you dream of doing in some distant tomorrow.

          The call of the mundane but an important mundane.  The baby to be fed.  The 8:03 to be caught.  The lawn to be mowed.

          And in the process gain a little philosophical truth...if I work other men will have a job...if I feed and take care of my child I make a better world for the child will grow UP to be the better adult...if I make the 8:03 on time I plant a little bit of self discipline. and it affects the world just as much or more as its lack.  The lawn mown means you along with your neighbors do that which keeps your community from becoming a slum.

          So yes...in the completion of the mundane you achieve more than you realize.

          And your faith...never mundane...this spiritual muscle you work mightily to achieve...pursue it...worship at the church of your choice...and that backyard spot that becomes a chapel.

          And that dream...those dreams...you will one day look back and realize how many wonderful things you have accomplished by giving your best to ''THE CALL OF THE MUNDANE."
 



++++++++++++++
TO GO TO COLUMNS WRITTEN ON go60.us  BY NEIL...CLICK ON THE URL BELOW
                                                http://go60.us/
          THEN CLICK ON "VOICE" AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE...THEN CLICK ON "MEET OUR WRITERS."
                   ++++++++++++++
Below is a quote from Rev. Wyrick's 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
      It is little wonder that once the war was over, wretched memories fed anger loud and long.  Neither side could be proud of some things that happened during the war or at their many prison camps.  The meanness in some men had multiplied.  They felt their uniforms allowed it.
Andersonville, or Camp Sumter as it was officially known, in southwest Georgia is remembered as one of the worst. 
By the end of the war, it had held 50,000 prisoners on a piece of land no larger than twenty-six acres. 
Some men had called pits in the ground their home.  During its short fourteen-month existence, 13,000 soldiers who had survived in battle died in captivity under the most terrible conditions. 
When the war was over the superintendent was hanged.
++++++++++++++++++++
      WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE BOOK
       "Positive, powerful utterances...skillfully enhancing our understanding and appreciation of Lincoln while revealing the Divine source of his strength."
       Lt. Colonel C.A. Olsen (Ret.) Asbury College (Professor Ret.)
       "The Spiritual Abraham Lincoln is an extremely well written book that investigates what might be termed the spiritual side of President Lincoln. It's both scholarly and very readable. I came away impressed at Mr. Wyrick's portrayal of the President and with an altered and enlarged vision of the man:'
       William Hoffman, Award winning fiction writer; author of Blood and Guile, and Wild Thorn
       "Wyrick has authored a wonderful examination of the spirituality of one of American history's most devoutly religious leaders...a pleasant and readable book that has a rich depth of information."
              Maynard Pittendreigh Presbyterian minister
        "When it comes to invoking religion in support of any of their decisions, politicians need to sit at the feet of Abraham Lincoln. Reinhold Niebuhr once called him 'America's greatest theologian.' Why so great? Because he invariably distinguished between human works and the works of the Almighty. As Wyrick says, 'He wore the mantle of humility easily: because he was more impressed with what God was doing in the world than with what he, president of the United States in the midst of an awful crisis, was doing. That is why in his last major speech he distinguished between both human causes in the Civil War and the Almighty's 'own purposes.' Lincoln would have agreed that it is better to leave God-talk out of politics than to decorate human proposals with divinity. This is a book for our American time. Through his careful study of Lincoln's career, Wyrick compels us to remember that piety belongs in politics only when piety transcends politics."
       Dr. Donald W. Shriver
       Emeritus professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York. Author of An Ethic for Enemies: Forgiveness in Politics
        "V. Neil Wyrick's fine work allows the reader to appreciate Abraham Lincoln's Christian commitment and his prophetic role in American history. Should have a wide readership."
       James H. Smylie Professor of Church History (Ret.) Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia
       "Neil Wyrick's The Spiritual Abraham Lincoln should be read by anyone attempting to understand the man who was probably the most complex person to ever hold the office of president of the United States. Dr. Wyrick is intent on demonstrating that the spirituality so often expressed in Lincoln's writings and speeches was not merely lip service to a Deity, but rather expressions of a profound faith in a real God. It was this faith that provided the wisdom, compassion, insight and sometimes steel that Lincoln would need in full measure as he led the United States through the Civil War. Dr. Wyrick's clear and unpretentious style of presentation is very much in keeping with the character ofhis subject, and in so doing, Wyrick makes his point very well that Lincoln, his beliefs, and the faith that formed them, are as relevant to a troubled America in 2004 as they were in 1863."
       Daniel Allen Butler, author of "Unsinkable"; The Full Story of the RMS Titanic, The Lusitania and The Age o f Cunard
       
                   ++++++++++++++++++++++
      Neil also writes for go60.us to check out his writings...
            CLICK ON  www.go60.us   IT WILL TAKE YOU A NEW WEBSITE FOR SENIORS....
       click on "Voice" on the home page and then on the list of authors click on Neil Wyrick
Recent articles Rev. Wyrick has written for this web site are:  REFLECTIONS
·         Many Kinds of Slavery - But Are They Not All Very Much The Same? (July 2012)
·         Here Comes Summer (July 2012)
·         Spring (May 2012)
·         Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow (April 2012)
·         Wayward and Windy (April 2012)
.
++++++++++++++++++++++
      Some of the sermon titles posted recently on Wyrick's Writings
+++++++++++++++++++++
 
      ++++++++++++++++++++++
 
BELOW ARE MORE QUOTES FROM NEIL'S RECENTLY POSTED SERMONS on Wyrick's Writings
       ++++++++++++++++++
A QUOTE FROM THOUGHTS POSTED ON MY OTHER BLOG WYRICK'S WRITINGS ON SUNDAY APRIL 15. ENTITILED
 
       Two stores faced each other across a very busy street.  Their owners were in constant competition with each other.  One day, the owner of one store put out a sign that read – If you want it, we have it!
Almost immediately the other owner put out a sign –If we don’t have it, you don’t need it!
 
      
+++++++++++++++++++++++
      Click on the URL below to WATCH NEIL IN HIS WORLD FAMOUS ONE MAN DRAMATIZATIONS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, BEN FRANKLIN, CHARLES WESLEY AND MARTIN LUTHER
      http://www.speakerneil.com/
       To Order and Read Neil's 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN
       GO TO amazon.com
       QUOTES ABOUT THIS WONDERFUL INSPIRING INFORMATIVE book
       STILL RECEIVING RAVE REVIEWS 8 YEARS AFTER IT'S PUBLICATION.
      
++++++++++++++++++
 




Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, December 30, 2012

ARE YOU A "THOSE WHO DO" RATHER THAN A "THOSE WHO DON'T?"


These One A Days are added to daily.  There are over 1100 stories and commentaries on this blog began Nov. 24, 2009.  It is added to daily.

        IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEND THIS BLOG TO A FRIEND COPY and paste THE FOLLOWING URL

http://oneadayyourspiritualvitamins.blogspot.com/

              AND THEN PASTE IN AN EMAIL.

              Click on http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com to read selected Sermons from over 50 years of Rev. Wyrick's ministry. (STARTING NOV 1 "HOW MUCH DOES A PRAYER WEIGH)  Below...other recent Sermon Titles


       To view Rev. Wyrick in 4 of his highly acclaimed One Man Dramas  ABRAHAM LINCOLN, BEN FRANKLIN CHARLES WESLEY, MARTIN LUTHER (NBC Special) click on the link below

                   http://www.speakerneil.com/

        Below the thoughts below read a quote from Rev. Wyrick's applauded 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ARAHAM LINCOLN

                +++++++++++

          People always begin comments on "New Year's Resolutions" by writing about all the people who leave their resolutions shattered at their feet.
       I'm not going to do that.  I'm going to call attention to those who make resolutions and keep them and  are the happier for it...who break off a piece of a resolution but then re-attach it and keep on keeping on.
       Who have learned to make small resolutions on the way to completing a big goal.  Who take baby steps that put together add up to giant steps (the game many of us used to play).
       By way of example...let's look at a beaver...a true story...
       The tree was over 60 feet tall and approximately five in diameter at its base and it wasn't going to be 60 feet tall when the winter was over.
       It was amazing... the persistence of this little fellow...he had already built his dam and that a series of small successes that ended up being a big enough dam to create quite a pond.
       But back to his persistence...
       it wasn't just the business but the consistency of it.
       All winter long despite deep freezes when the temperature dropped below there he was chewing away and blizzard when the wind was so strong it would sometimes blow him off his feet.
       Spring came and the maple tree was merely tottering and not for long.
       His goal was large...his follow through was thousands of little tooth marks...
       ...the results.
       a new food source and new branches for his new dam.
       And the point is obvious...survival...sticking to our guns...going to work every day and doinig our best...and out of that can come accomplishments...going to school one day at a time and with effort earning that diploma...little drops of water making a mighty ocean...little specks of sand making a mighty desert...little deeds that add up to a big accomplishment...surving and even more the challenges of life.
       I have set goals and I will consider to set goals...make resolutions...whatever you wish to call them.
       for when I fail I consider it momentary...not the complete destruction of a goal for the rest of the year.
       When I was on the road traveling all over the world I ran 45 minutes every single day and never missed a day.
       Not true...
       I would sometimes (after many false starts in the early days) go weeks without failing to run (I was tired...I was too busy...I ran out of time) but I didn't then say,  "Well, I might as well quit.  I don't have the proper fortitude for this."
       "No," I said..."this breaking my resolution was just a bump in road not a full fledged ditch"...and I would then start again...so that at the end of the year I always ended up running well past 300 days of the year even if it didn't add up to 365.
       In short it's easier to make a momentary failure and excuse rather than a motivator.
       So here are a few more ideas on how to make your resolutions stay alive and mostly well?
       Be realistic.  Say to yourself that you will never have another brownie or banana split or whatever is a most likely a mission impossible.  Rather make to yourself the promise that you won't give into your sweet tooth for two or three days and then slowly lengthen the period.  Then each victory is a strength waiting to be applied to the next victory.
       Write down the pros and cons concerning your resolution.
       You want to lose weight.  Don't count calories.  Count mouthfuls.  Also eat slower.  Give yourself by applying these ideas that have worked with other people just like you.
       Put up a calendar and count off 21 days.  It takes that long for your resolution to become a habit and six months for it to become a part of your personality.
       Have dual resolutions...I'm not talking about having more than one...I'm talking about a friend...the two of you each others motivators...a talking reminder list...that keeps saying, I did" or "I didn't" "What about you?"
       Be as precise as you can.  Describe in detail what it is you want to do and why?  Tape your voice telling you what it is you are doing and how and why and play back the recording of yourself reminding yourself as often as you can and will.  Remember...we all listen to ourselves better than others.
       Set some short term small goals such as "I'm always late and keeping everyone waiting.  The next time I will set a goal to be on time."
       Set long time goals...a career.
       Write down goals in between...improved health... (you're not getting enough sleep and you know it...pledge to go to sleep 15 minutes earlier...10 minutes...5 minutes...a plus is a plus.
       ...you want to have a baby (start reading some books on how to be a good parent, it's infinitely more than being in love with cute)
       ...what upsets you that you know is way out of line...work on an early cut off switch so that if you start to get all wound up you can slow it down as you work to turn your anger off...if nothing else "be quiet" and seethe inside.  That's a gift in itself.
       And remember...be choosy...a big list may look but it is also overwhelming...and overwhelming is where defeat starts to kick in.
       Giving goals a name and checking the list twice and infinitely more than that is certainly a positive beginning with at least some results.
       Does the Bible say anything about making resolutions.  Yes...in" (Lamentations 3:40). ""Let us examine our ways and test them,
`
          QUOTES ABOUT NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS
          New Year's Day is every man's birthday. ~Charles Lamb


++++++++++++++

TO GO TO COLUMNS WRITTEN ON go60.us  BY NEIL...CLICK ON THE URL BELOW

                                                http://go60.us/

          THEN CLICK ON "VOICE" AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE...THEN CLICK ON "MEET OUR WRITERS."

                   ++++++++++++++

Below is a quote from Rev. Wyrick's 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

      It is little wonder that once the war was over, wretched memories fed anger loud and long.  Neither side could be proud of some things that happened during the war or at their many prison camps.  The meanness in some men had multiplied.  They felt their uniforms allowed it.

Andersonville, or Camp Sumter as it was officially known, in southwest Georgia is remembered as one of the worst. 

By the end of the war, it had held 50,000 prisoners on a piece of land no larger than twenty-six acres. 

Some men had called pits in the ground their home.  During its short fourteen-month existence, 13,000 soldiers who had survived in battle died in captivity under the most terrible conditions. 

When the war was over the superintendent was hanged.

++++++++++++++++++++

      WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE BOOK

       "Positive, powerful utterances...skillfully enhancing our understanding and appreciation of Lincoln while revealing the Divine source of his strength."

       Lt. Colonel C.A. Olsen (Ret.) Asbury College (Professor Ret.)

       "The Spiritual Abraham Lincoln is an extremely well written book that investigates what might be termed the spiritual side of President Lincoln. It's both scholarly and very readable. I came away impressed at Mr. Wyrick's portrayal of the President and with an altered and enlarged vision of the man:'

       William Hoffman, Award winning fiction writer; author of Blood and Guile, and Wild Thorn

       "Wyrick has authored a wonderful examination of the spirituality of one of American history's most devoutly religious leaders...a pleasant and readable book that has a rich depth of information."

              Maynard Pittendreigh Presbyterian minister

        "When it comes to invoking religion in support of any of their decisions, politicians need to sit at the feet of Abraham Lincoln. Reinhold Niebuhr once called him 'America's greatest theologian.' Why so great? Because he invariably distinguished between human works and the works of the Almighty. As Wyrick says, 'He wore the mantle of humility easily: because he was more impressed with what God was doing in the world than with what he, president of the United States in the midst of an awful crisis, was doing. That is why in his last major speech he distinguished between both human causes in the Civil War and the Almighty's 'own purposes.' Lincoln would have agreed that it is better to leave God-talk out of politics than to decorate human proposals with divinity. This is a book for our American time. Through his careful study of Lincoln's career, Wyrick compels us to remember that piety belongs in politics only when piety transcends politics."

       Dr. Donald W. Shriver

       Emeritus professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York. Author of An Ethic for Enemies: Forgiveness in Politics

        "V. Neil Wyrick's fine work allows the reader to appreciate Abraham Lincoln's Christian commitment and his prophetic role in American history. Should have a wide readership."

       James H. Smylie Professor of Church History (Ret.) Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia

       "Neil Wyrick's The Spiritual Abraham Lincoln should be read by anyone attempting to understand the man who was probably the most complex person to ever hold the office of president of the United States. Dr. Wyrick is intent on demonstrating that the spirituality so often expressed in Lincoln's writings and speeches was not merely lip service to a Deity, but rather expressions of a profound faith in a real God. It was this faith that provided the wisdom, compassion, insight and sometimes steel that Lincoln would need in full measure as he led the United States through the Civil War. Dr. Wyrick's clear and unpretentious style of presentation is very much in keeping with the character ofhis subject, and in so doing, Wyrick makes his point very well that Lincoln, his beliefs, and the faith that formed them, are as relevant to a troubled America in 2004 as they were in 1863."

       Daniel Allen Butler, author of "Unsinkable"; The Full Story of the RMS Titanic, The Lusitania and The Age o f Cunard

       

                   ++++++++++++++++++++++

      Neil also writes for go60.us to check out his writings...

            CLICK ON  www.go60.us   IT WILL TAKE YOU A NEW WEBSITE FOR SENIORS....

       click on "Voice" on the home page and then on the list of authors click on Neil Wyrick

Recent articles Rev. Wyrick has written for this web site are:  REFLECTIONS

·         Many Kinds of Slavery - But Are They Not All Very Much The Same? (July 2012)

·         Here Comes Summer (July 2012)

·         Spring (May 2012)

·         Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow (April 2012)

·         Wayward and Windy (April 2012)

.

++++++++++++++++++++++

      Some of the sermon titles posted recently on Wyrick's Writings


+++++++++++++++++++++

 

      ++++++++++++++++++++++

 

BELOW ARE MORE QUOTES FROM NEIL'S RECENTLY POSTED SERMONS on Wyrick's Writings

       ++++++++++++++++++

A QUOTE FROM THOUGHTS POSTED ON MY OTHER BLOG WYRICK'S WRITINGS ON SUNDAY APRIL 15. ENTITILED

 

       Two stores faced each other across a very busy street.  Their owners were in constant competition with each other.  One day, the owner of one store put out a sign that read – If you want it, we have it!

Almost immediately the other owner put out a sign –If we don’t have it, you don’t need it!

 

      

+++++++++++++++++++++++

      Click on the URL below to WATCH NEIL IN HIS WORLD FAMOUS ONE MAN DRAMATIZATIONS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, BEN FRANKLIN, CHARLES WESLEY AND MARTIN LUTHER

      http://www.speakerneil.com/

       To Order and Read Neil's 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN

       GO TO amazon.com

       QUOTES ABOUT THIS WONDERFUL INSPIRING INFORMATIVE book

       STILL RECEIVING RAVE REVIEWS 8 YEARS AFTER IT'S PUBLICATION.

      

++++++++++++++++++
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