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Dear Abraham:
Today in Jerusalem they crucified the man named Jesus, the one our heard preach that afternoon on the side of a mountain. Pilate said "I see no wrong in this just man," but the crowd seemed intent on only one decision It was obvious some had been paid to shout, "Let him be crucified," but we both know how this is. Life is cheap in our day and love a commodity not easily found.
You said you had never met anyone like this man, and I agree. He had more dignity carrying the cross than some men can muster sitting on a throne. And when he reached the cross, he proved his mettle. It was not that he spoke often, but what he had to say. I have will never forget, "Father, forgive them, for the know not what they do." How he could say that at such a time, escapes me. that love he has been preaching for three years, he meant it.
"Today thou shalt be with me in paradise." He said it to one of the thieves, yet, for some strange reason, it seemed he said it to me and that he had the right to say it.
I do not make a habit of attending crucifixions. I have never before stayed through till the bitter, painful end. Which is why i heard him say, "It is finished." And let me say this, strange as it may sound, at that moment it seemed more like a beginning than an end. Even I am not sure what I mean by this statement, I only know what I felt, and I share it with you as a friend.
One day they will outlaw this way of execution. There is no point to such agony. It proves no deterrent to either murderer or thief. It certainly is no way for a God to die.
There...I've written it. "The
thought has been quietly stirring in my mind, and now it is almost a
reality. The implications behind such a possibility stagger my
imagination, but when I heard him say, "Father, into thy hands I command
my spirit, " I know that when he said, "Father" it was not the same as I if I said it. He was calm when he spoke. There was almost a smile on his face, like someone going back home One of the soldiers cried out, "Surely this man was the so of 'God." The sky took on a darkness such as I have never seen before.
"The Son of God - the phrase seems to echo over and over in my mind. Why should the Son of God come to live among men only to die on a cross? I think I have some answers. I dare not share them with you, Abraham, my friend of many years. I wonder if God wanted us to know he cared. Perhaps there was a special meaning in this death, and the world has not heard the last of it...Caiaphas walked away in triumph. Could it be his victory will be brief?
I am no prophet. "For all my schooling I am not that wise. You were always the better student. But I know what I feel, and what I feel is God.
I shall be leaving here in the next several days and traveling by way of the road to Emmaus. May God bless you and yours.
Your friend,
David
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POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED "Are You a Peacemaker or Peacebreaker?" (Continuation of Series)
Proverbs 14:17 gives a pretty good reason to be a Peacemaker rather than Peacebreaker … "A quick-tempered man does foolish things." And who wants to be called an angry fool?
With such careless ease we say, “I lost my temper.” But have you ever stopped to think of the implications behind that phrase. Lose
it often enough and the results can be disastrous; for that is the way
people lose their spouses and jobs and health and opportunities
and...the list is long.
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POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED "Arrogance and Humility' (Series Continued)
If you were asked, "What is the most important discovery or accomplishment in your life? " how would you answer the question?
POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED "What Do You Want from Jesus?"
Do you want from Jesus all the joy that can be gained from fully accepting the fact that you are truly the child of a King? So that when you die you will not have to ask that someone write on your tombstone, “Born a human being, died a question mark.”
POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED "Are you a Peacemaker or a Peacebreaker?"
Someone has said that peace is merely that brief, glorious, moment in history when everyone stops to reload their weapons.
POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED ""Arrogance and Humility
When a company takes over another company, there is often a sign placed outside the premises announcing, UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT.
Such a sign accurately summarizes what takes place in Christian conversions. When Christ takes over a life, that life is literally under new management.
So consider, is God now managing your pride? Or is your pride still managing you?
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Yes, God loves you the way you are but he loves you too much to let you stay that way.
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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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