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There are over 900
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Life without
God is like an unsharpened pencil, it has no point. (ANONYMOUS)
Click on the URL below
and it will take you to this Wyrick's Writings blog.
Who
are you? The Bible says you were made in
the image of God.
The
Psalmist says you are made a "little less than the divine."
From
this and other such Biblical quotes we can deduce that you and I are more than
a godly afterthought.
"Greater
than astronomy is the astronomer" is the way one man put it."
And
to put proper and magnificent emphasis to all of this...to emphasize with humility about this God who sent His son to live
in our jungle civilization for thirty plus years. To teach us and love and die for us.
Of this we all should do...and often...and with joy in the doing...teach these wonderful truths.
Of this we all should do...and often...and with joy in the doing...teach these wonderful truths.
An ancient legend describes how
God decided on the making of man.
In heaven, when there was not yet time nor
earthly creation, all the seeds of life came before Almighty God and He let
them choose what they might be.
Some chose to be animals so they could roam
the earth. Others asked to be fish that
they might swim the seas.
Still others asked for wings to fly. When all the multitude of requests had been
made, one quiet little seed of life remained.
So God looked down and said, "And what
of you, what do wish to be?"
"Just make me in your image," was the reply. "Just make me in Your image and that will
be enough."
And
what of how some live? I believe that
God's presence and power and influence is the silver lining on some of the
dirty pages of history.
I know that people can live like
beast. It has been proved often
enough. But I also know that there are
those who live above such evil, tall and sun crowned above the crowd...that has
been proven too.
And
what will you be? You have your
choice. You can believe that there is
"a maggot in every human brain" and no spiritual exterminator capable
of its destruction.
You can point a finger at the
hypocrites. You can believe in a great
plan, which, once given to man, was wrecked beyond recall.
Or you can believe and practice with these
thoughts by Edwin Markham that "For all your days
be prepared, and meet them ever alike. When you are the anvil, bear - when you
are the hammer, strike."
The woman in the
beautiful house on the hill pulled out a massive piece of tarnished silver from
a cabinet and spoke to herself. "I
can't keep it from tarnishing unless I use it."
And so it is if we are
to respect our relationship with a heavenly who made us in His image. Use it...utilize it...let it govern our
thinking and our deeds...less tarnish become a part of our daily lives.
Massage that faith with
prayer...massage that faith with faith driven kindness and love...work on a
distribution system that keeps our faith alive and well and moving and going
and doing.
Or be like the woman who one day said " I need no foolish godly commandments to guide
my days. I want to be in charge of my
life with no heavenly influence or interference" and then ...to celebrate
her freedom from restraints..
sat
a rose to blossom in her hair
on
this the day she let her faith wither and die
and
cried out, "I am free to go and life is now wide."
But
then through endless nights that came she stared into the dark
and
knew she died. (anonymous)
Ah, to live an evil life is to live a
sheltered life...it shelters one from good.
And for the atheist, there's a lost
cause. There is no place for them in
this natural universe."
Actually...this is how an atheist Joseph Wood Krutch described himself.
Schopenhauer, an
atheist of a number of years ago provides an insight when he tells this story
on himself.
How he was walking down a
street and not looking where he was going bumped into a man so hard he almost
knocked him down.
"Who do you think you
are?" shouted the stranger."
And Schopenhauer replied,
"How I wish I knew."
I will tell you who we are. We
are more than earthworms groveling in the dust.
We are
creatures of an understanding Father who gives us the promises of His heaven.
...who formed our
frame
and made us a perfect
whole
and made the body's
health
depend upon the soul. (anonymous,
slight rewrite)
Father in Heaven! When the thought of thee wakes in our
hearts let it not awaken like a frightened bird that flies about in dismay, but
like a child waking from its sleep with a heavenly smile. –Kierkegaard
"To be with God is really to be
involved in some enormous, overwhelming desire, and joy, and power which you
cannot control, which controls you." James Baldwin,
Nobody Knows my Name
Nobody Knows my Name
"Where can I go from your Spirit? Where
can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I
make my bed in the depth, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if
I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me. Your
right had will hold me fast" (Psalm 139:7-10).
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BELOW ARE QUOTES FROM POSTINGS ON WYRICK'S
WRITINGS DURING THE LAST FEW MONTHS...
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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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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 ENTITLED
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 ENTITLED
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 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 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 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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