Saturday, December 8, 2012

SOME WANDERING THOUGHTS ON CRITICISM

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.

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              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

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SOME WANDERING THOUGHTS ON CRITICISM

       If you have not been criticized in the last 30 days you have been the recipient of a miracle.  Because we all are criticized for what we do or leave undone.

       And so what have you recently been criticized for?

       Have you been criticized for being too ethical?  You know the moral points I could name...what is right is right...what is wrong is wrong?

       Have  you been called the equivalent of "goody two shoes?" and when and why did being good deserve to be called bad.

       There are and beware of the professional criticizers.

       Such as one day in the life of John Wesley when as he preached from a pulpit he noticed a lady in his congregation staring at his tie.

       Her reputation preceded her so after the service he was not surprised to see her approaching wearing a stern reproving countenance.

       "It's your bow tie, Mr. Wesley," she began "the strings are much too long.  It is an offense to me."

       He immediately called to several members of the congregation and asked if anyone of them had access to a pair of scissors.

       Someone soon handed him a pair, he handed them to his critic and she began to snip with great enthusiasm.

       When she had finished nipping them just short of his collar he asked, "Are they the proper length now?"

       "Yes, "she replied, "that's much better."

       "Then let me have the shears," responded Wesley.

       And looking her in the face he continued, "I'm sure you won't mind me giving you a bit of correction.  I don't mean to be cruel, but I must tell you madam, that your tongue is an offense to me...it is too long.  Stick it out, I'd like to trim some off."

       Of course, Wesley did not follow through but the point was made

       Which is to ask...not are you weary with being criticized...but are people weary of your own criticizing?

       Like all the sins we embrace...the sin of mean and thoughtless criticism being a two way street.

       Colonel George Washington Goethals was the primary supervisor in charge of constructing the Panama Canal.

       He was constantly besieged by critics and naysayers claiming he was a fool trying to complete an impossible task.

       He remained silent of any replies.  Anyone who answered why he didn't answer his critics received the following answer, "Oh, I will answer them one day.  I will answer them."

       "How?"

       "When they sail from either oceans to the other ocean."

       The date of his answer to the critics.

         August 15, 1914 when the Panama Canal opened to traffic for the first time.

       Sometimes the best answer to a critic is no answer at all...except success where they predicted failure.

       The last time someone gave you a hard time did you want to tell them off...put them in their place...try putting them in a place closer to the Lord's way of thinking by praying for them...don't join their pettiness...

              But oh yes... a reminder "Do take a good look at any criticism.  There is always the chance you deserve it."

       . “If you listen to constructive criticism,you will be at home among the wise.” Proverb 15:31

       Refuse to accept valid complaints and you can shut out the world...become rigid and hard in your opinions...become a slave to your over sensitivity.

       One morning a mother asked her children if they would like to pray.

       Promptly her little 3 year old son began, “Dear Jesus, please help Sissy to stop sucking her thumb. Amen.”

       Immediately, Sissy began to pray. “And Dear Lord, help my brother to stop reminding me.”

       Proverbs 13, verse 18 “If you ignore criticism, you will end up in poverty and disgrace; if you accept criticism, you will be honored.”

       I would imagine you never thought of it that way.

       There is an ancient story told 'round many a campfire.  It tells of a father and son walking a dusty road with their donkey trailing behind them.

       Then...advice freely given but not necessarily asked for was given them by a passing stranger.  "You are two foolish people. What is a donkey for except for riding."

       So they took the advice and mounted the donkey and continued on their journey.

       In almost no time another man met them with copious advice.  "You are too heavy.  You are donkey is too small.  Shame on you for both riding him."

       The son got off and now only the father was riding.

       The road was long.  The advice was often.

       "You are an inconsiderate father who proves my point while lazily riding while your poor tired son walks.".

      Now they switched places and the son was riding.

      Yet another criticism was almost a shout "You are a disrespectful son....making your poor father walk."

      They last time they were seen, the father and son were carrying the donkey.

      When criticism comes it must meld with common sense response.

       Criticism happens.  Sometimes we are the victims.  Sometimes we are the aggressors...which behooves all of us to think twice and then some before we speak or how we respond if we are the target.

       Just remember that wise old Solomon said it well, in Proverbs 30:33. “Churning the milk produces butter, twisting the nose produces blood, and stirring up anger produces strife.”

       QUOTES ON CRITICISM

          Criticism, like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man’s growth without destroying his roots.
Frank A. Clark

       Before you go and criticize the younger generation, just remember who raised them.
Unknown

       A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him.

       Sidney Greenberg

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                                                                   A new quote  (posted Dec 3) below from Rev. Wyrick's 9th book THE SPIRITUAL ABRAHAM LINCOLN (read the rave reviews below the quote)

To be a black after the war was to wed frustration and constant peril. 

An ex-slave could be arrested and fined for the crime of not having a job. 

Then to help pay off the fine they would be hired at ridiculously low wages. 

Buy land? 

Even if somehow enough money could be saved, the laws prevented a former slave from purchasing property.

       They were called black codes and they were as dark as their name.

 No work or travel without a permit.  Separate legal systems.  

It was 1865, and Jim Crow laws were already in place.  Every single public building had separate facilities.

       William Lloyd Garrison, in a burst of optimism and perhaps also fatigue called for disorganizing the Anti-Slavery Society. 

       Black activist, 47-year-old Frederick Douglas, pointed out such action was premature.  “Slavery is not abolished until the black man has the ballot.”

 

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       "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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QUOTE BELOW IS FROM WYRICK'S WRITINGS

          There is no other organization in the world like the church.  It is a breed unto itself.  It is a congregation of sinners, not a country club for saints.  To become a member you have to profess your unworthiness. 

CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING TO TAKE YOU THERE


      (These are selected sermons from over 50 years of ministry and as a worldwide evangelist Rev. Wyrick preached them all the United States and all over the world)

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            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.”

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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.

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Anxiety out of proportion makes us become like a centipede trying to put his best foot forward.

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        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.”

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        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.”

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        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.

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          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

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      Some of the sermon titles posted recently


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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/

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BELOW ARE MORE QUOTES FROM NEIL'S RECENTLY POSTED SERMONS

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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. 

 

      

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      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.

      

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