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IT IS ALWAYS EASIER to get people to put a man on a cross than to take him down.
We chastise, condemn, castigate and gossip much easier than we show com
passion, give understanding, seek truth or forgive.
Men sign treaties easier than they forget wars. When the grass had long since grown green at Appomattox, men still hated as if the war were only yesterday. "I can't forget. I won't forgive." "Don't put me in the same Circle with her." "We've got to move to a new neighborhood." "1 can't work in the same store with him." Man's animosity toward man dcscrates the cross and all it stands for.
There
is a story of how Andrew Fuller went into his native town, seeking gift
for the cause of missions. One of his old friends said, "Well, Andrew,
seeing as it's you, I'll give five pounds." "No," said Fuller, "I can't
take anything for the cause, seeing it is for me," and handed back the
money. Shamed, his friend, now offered ten pounds and said. "For
Christ's sake, then Andrew, for Christ's sake.' Love, not because some
preacher shamed your conscience, but because to one Christ you give your heart.
YOU
OWE Christ everything. Can you pay back your debt with anything less
than "love"? Will you stand at the foot of the cross and shout your
prejudice? Could you look up at Christ and say, "Let me explain how my
kind of love allows me to feel that way about other human beings?
Can
you cut another human being up in little pieces by word and deed and at
the same time remember the Cross? What does the Cross say to you? Does
not it constantly echo---love -love--Iove' ?
Can
the church afford less ? In the world is war. hould not the church be
at least the one place man c n find peace ? In the world is hate. Should
not the church be a haven for understanding? In the world is anger,
bitterness. foul mouths and thoughtlessness .
When
a stranger, a friend, or a member walks through the churche's
doors-should not he walk into a garden of patience, joy and
strength-should he not find and feel the wealth of Christian
brotherhood? If it cannot be found in the church, then where?
1f it cannot be found through you, then how? Your hands; they
are growing older every day. Do they practice generosity? Do they reach
out to heal, to help, to clasp another hand in quiet welcome? Your tongue how many words and what kind; prayers, curses, praise, lies, Christlike words, or words that deserve no better home than hell?
Your feet; to
where, and when, and why? Have they walked on holy ground or made some
spot briefly better by how they walked? "Look out for that man," someone
said of Robespierre. "He's dangerous. He believes what he says."
Look. out for any man who says "1ove" and means it. He'll transform the world. Men who love move mountains.
PERHAPS
it would be good for you to have to hear each caustic word you have
ever said, and see in print each miserable thought you have ever had.
Perhaps this recital needs for its exposure the foot of the Cross, and
after all of this, your looking up and saying, "Can you ever forgive me,
Lord?" and his answering with limitless compassion, "Always, my child,
always."
All roads lead to Gethsemane. Genesis., with its "In the Beginning"; Bethlehem with its angels proclaiming, "Good news for all people"; for Gethsemane is the climax of creation, the ultimate in God's respect for man, the epitome of love.
POSTED ON WYRICK'S WRITING THOUGHTS ENTITLED "Are You A Peacemaker or Peacebreaker?"
If only we could always remember Gandhi's words, "An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind."
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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