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There are over 900
stories and commentaries on this blog that began Nov 24, 2009. It is added to
daily.
Click on http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com
to read selected Sermons from
over 50 years of Rev. Wyrick's ministry.
++++++++++thursday
july 19
(Please share the
brother Bryan story below...just the telling of his story has changed so many
lives)
Every aspiring Christian would like to be
a cedar of Lebanon, but the fact is the world is full of weeping willows. The church is full of God. The world is full of the Godless. And we spend more time in the world than we
do in church
And to the comments above we have the
words of the Psalmist..."Be like a tree planted by the rivers of water
({Psalm 133) And later the Psalmist
wrote, "Grow like a cedar of Lebanon." (Psalm 92:12)
The trees of Lebanon became giants that
held up the roof of Solomon's temple.
They grew slowly but they grew strong.
And planted by rivers of water they had
great chance to reach their potential.
It doesn't
take an expository genius to see that what all this is saying is that if you
have a good root system and a great source of living water what grows is a
spiritual giant or at the least certainly not a spiritual midget.
Or as a very
fundamental truth expounds, "What does not grow...dies."
So feed...on
what? And Jesus quoting Moses said,
"Man does not live by bread alone."
And how and why? It's called "hungering and thirsting for
righteousness."
It's called growing
up...or Christian maturity...or whatever other term best suits your way of
thinking but it all means the same thing...
A constant ongoing
question to begin each day with, "What would Christ do?"
Which is really a
question concerning a self improvement program undergirded by the creator who
made you...
and making certain
statements to yourself.
Such as..
Until
you can make of yourself a person you can live with, you will not have a self
that others will want to live with.
And...if you do not live in a manner you can love
yourself you will find it difficult to love others.
Nor to be
ignored...beware of a person who lives like an oven...always heating but never
cooking anything.
It was back in the
beginning of my ministry that I wrote the following words and it had taken
quite awhile to put them together following way, "I pray not to believe in
God as gentlemen believe.'
And
not long thereafter I learned of a man named James Alexander Bryan.
In Birmingham they
called him "Brother Bryan."
And I now share with
you a story about "Brother Bryan" that defines the man.
In the slums of the great
city, with its shadowy back-alleys and foreboding air, a gentle knock filtered
through the door to the figure outside,
"Gwan an' open the
door, Sally, see who it is."
Sally, a raged little
red-headed urchin, pulled up the few remnants of her tattered stockings,
smoother her well washed, well worn dress and opened the door.
Seeing who stood there
she cried out, "Mom, it's religion come to see us."
Brother Bryan began his
life on God's green earth, in the midst of the rending of it. In the year 1863, just 50 miles north of Fort
Sumter, where 2 years before shells had fallen to begin the Civil War.
He early learned of want
and suffering, and pain, and death.
No other state suffered
from the war as did the state of South Carolina.
But in the midst of it
all Christ was the center of the home where this little boy grew toward
manhood.
Religion
in his home was as natural as the rising or the setting of the sun.
It
was considered as necessary as food and raiment and sometimes indeed there was
more of it than the latter.
His early schooling was
of meager variety.
But...at the age of
14...by the grace of God, he was sent to live with his father's sister in
Raleigh. There at Lovejoy Academy he
spent three fruitful years filling his eager mind.
Here, also, he publicly
accepter his Lord.
From Lovejoy, a
scholarship, made possible further study at the University of North Carolina.
He began to develop his
talent for public speaking.
While in college his
father died. At the same time he was
debating between the ministry and law.
Teaching for a time to
help his widowed mother he then accepted a scholarship to Princeton Theological
Seminary.
With
$1.85 in his pocket he arrived at the Seminary to prepare himself for the
ministry. Early on it was obvious to all
who knew him that there was something special in this young man.
Writing 45 years later, one of his Seminary friends
wrote of him, "I always felt that he was a modern St. Francis of
Assissi. His Christ like spirit and is
untiring devotion to his Master have been an inspiration to me always."
He spent his first
summer's work while in Seminary at a small Presbyterian church in
Hendersonville, North Carolina.
But the second summer, he
served, where after he finished Seminary he was to serve for the remainder of
his life.
The church was not
large. It sat on the corner of Avenue G
and 23rd. Street....Birmingham, Alabama.
Located in Jones Valley,
stretching 65 mountain guarded miles, this little town, still in the embryonic
state, was to grow and grow and grow and with it Brother Bryan.
The
young man began his ministry with a funeral.
He was to have some 8000 more.
Marry some 5000
couples, preach some 50,000 times, and lead some 8000 to a profession of faith
in Jesus Christ.
But this is not
all...
for it was here that he
began to be called not Rev. Bryan...but brother Bryan.
It was appropriate for
this is what he called everyone he met, black or white, rich or poor...so that
the term became synonymous with him.
In the first years of his
ministry, brother Bryan tried to be minister, Sunday School Superintendent,
soloist in the choir, and preacher all combined.
For this reason, three
years after he begun there, he became seriously ill. They told him he needed six months rest.
But all he said was,
"If I am that sick, I had better get to work." From that day on he never spent as much as a
week of illness in bed.
His early ministry was
marked by an evangelistic urge which led him to the Cumberland mountain
section, a section by-crossed by civilization.
Once during a service
there, word spread round, that on either side of the aisle sat two feuding
mountaineers, each with a gun in his shirt and hate in his heart.
Young Bryan preached
God;s love in Christ with all his heart.
When the invitation came, one of the pistol toting giant mountaineers
came down the aisle not to shoot, but to give his heart to Christ.
"Breck, if you're a
saved man, you'll lay the pistol in your shirt on this table."
He did.
Then turned, walked to
the other man, and challenged him to do the same. Both men found Christ on the same day. (available
on amazon.com
Religion in Shoes:Brother Bryan of Birmingham)
His life is a series of
such stories of compassion. When he read
Jesus words "Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these my
brethren, yet did unto me," he took them to heart and echoed them in every
action every day.
He
knew that bread for some was as difficult to acquire almost as diamonds from a
diamond mine. He watched so many on the
edge of starvation and he did more than just shake his head in regret.
If
you had asked him during his days of earthly living how many people he helped
he would most likely have answered, "I don't know. I am too busy to keep records. I leave that to the angels."
And where did the money
come from for such benevolence?
From his lips poured
prayer and from God's mercy, people seemed to sense his need.
It
was said he was the only man in Birmingham who could enter a pool hall or a bar
and pray, and have not a snicker burst the stillness of the air, but rather
every head bowed reverently before the sincerity of this man's prayer.
He
said this about prayer, "The pastor must live on his knees. He must advance on his knees. He must visit on his knees. He must prepare to preach on his knees. When we pray and our prayers do not go any
higher than our hands or the roof of our room, we are not to blame God. The prayers are unanswered because we have
not met some condition. The conditions
of unanswered prayers are faith, a life with the sins forgiven, the
unselfishness which would not use the gift of prayer to satisfy an unworthy
desire."
As to race...the only
race that counted was the Christian race. He ministered to Hungarians, Slavs,
Germans,Bohemians, Chinese, Japansese, Frency, Armenians, Sicilians, Italians,
Greeks, Irish, Scots, Africans, English, East Indians, etc...
He ministered to them
spiritually,, physically and even mentally.
On Sunday afternoons he
taught them English.
Ah,
what a world this would be if there had been and were today more Brother
Bryans.
++++++++++++++++
Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be
one.
++++++++++++++++
QUOTES BELOW ARE
FROM WYRICK'S WRITINGS...CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING TO TAKE YOU THERE... http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com
(These
are selected sermons from over 50 years of ministry)
+++++++++++++++++++
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
·
Here Comes Summer (July 2012)
·
Spring
(May 2012)
·
Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow (April 2012)
·
Wayward and Windy (April 2012)
Just
remember that “the pain of discipline will cost you pennies, whereas the pain
of regret will cost you millions.”
++++++++++++++++++
How can we keep our faith from being a weak and
fruitless thing? How can we not be
foolish little men and women groveling in the dark shadows of overeager egos.
Well, first we must do more than just pray. We must believe in our own prayers.
+++++++++++++++++++
Anxiety
out of proportion makes us become like a centipede trying to put his best foot
forward.
++++++++++++++++++
It's
an old joke, I went to the doctor and I said, “Doc, when I do this, it hurts.”
And the doctor said, “Then don't do that.”
++++++++++++++++++
How many things have you been anxious
about that were things which you knew before you got into them were probably
going to create some problems for you?
And if you asked your doctor, or your minister, or common sense and your
God, all of them would have said, “Don’t do that.”
++++++++++++++++++++
To buy into the
community of accountability we have to realize that like bikers we are divided
into two categories. Those who have fallen and those who will fall for anything. None of us are perfect.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Think
on it this way, some philosopher of old wrote it and it endures because there
is so much truth in it… every right implies
a responsibility; every opportunity, an obligation; every possession, a duty
++++++++++++++++++++++
Some
of the sermon titles posted recently
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Before you decide
to purchase or not purchase his book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN.... view his Award Winning One Man
Dramatization of Lincoln (since he wrote the script
for this drama it will give you an insight into what you will find in the book
itself)
Available on
Amazon.com in printed form and on Amazon Kindle Books. and at
many other sites
TO VIEW THE LINCOLN
One Man DRAMA and 3 other dramas; Ben Franklin, Martin Luther & Charles
Wesley
click on the
following URL
http://www.speakerneil.com/
++++++++++++++++++++++
BELOW
ARE MORE QUOTES FROM NEIL'S RECENTLY POSTED SERMONS
++++++++++++++++++
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!
A QUOTE FROM THOUGHTS POSTED ON MY
OTHER BLOG WYRICK'S WRITINGS ON THURSDAY APRIL 13TH. ENTITILED
WHO ARE
YOU?
NO…WHOSE ARE YOU?
Who are you? Whose are
you?
You influence and are influenced
according to the answer you give.
Are you are the flavor of the month because
you are determined to be like everyone else no matter what? If so, consider being more independent in our
thinking and actions...because God wants you to grow up.
It may be easier being someone's shadow but
wouldn't you really rather be a sun.
QUOTE FROM THOUGHTS POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITINGS THURSDAY APRIL 5 FROM THOUGHT ENTITLED "Who
Are You? Whose Are You?"
This is an old quote, and a romantic one
as well but, nevertheless, can anyone say of you, “I love you not because of who you are,
but because of who I am when I am with you.”
QUOTE FROM THOUGHT PIECE POSTED
ON WYRICK'S WRITINGS TUESDAY APRIL 3 FROM THOUGHT ENTITLED
" WHEN A NATION STRAYS TOO FAR FROM BEING MORAL IT IS WELL ON IT'S WAY
TO BECOMING A MESS
James 4:17
To him therefore who knows to do good, and doesn’t do it,
to him it is sin.
Someone once said: “A
belief is what you hold, a conviction is what holds you!”
So what holds you,
constructs you, leads you with a push when needed?
Quotes
POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THURSDAY MARCH 29th THOUGHTS ENTITLED WHO
ARE YOU?
NO…WHOSE ARE YOU?
In a Peanuts
cartoon strip Peppermint Patty is shown talking to Charlie Brown.
“Guess what, Chuck? It’s the first day
of school and I got sent to the principal’s office.
And it’s your fault!”
Charlie Brown responds, “My fault? How
could it be my fault? Why do you say everything is my fault?”
To which she declares, “You’re my
friend, aren’t you, Chuck? You should have been a better influence on me.”
In the comics, it’s funny… but in real life it’s much more
complicated.
Would you like to read the entire thought
piece? Then... TO TAKE YOU TO THE WYRICK'S WRITING'S
SITE
click on
the following
Yes, God loves you the way you
are but he loves you too much to let you stay that way.
+++++++++++++++++++++++
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
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.
"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
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