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There are over 900
stories and commentaries on this blog. It is added to
daily.
Click on http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com
to read selected Sermons from
over 50 years of Rev. Wyrick's ministry.
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Matthew 6:13
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
I would far rather feel remorse than know how to define it.--Thomas A’Kempis
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
These closing words in The Lord’s Prayer
are a cry for the best in us to prosper and the worst in us not to survive at
all, for we Christians do abhor sin.
We see it for
what it is, a disease, a cancer of the soul.
Pure and simple, when, like the prodigal son we say, “I have sinned,” it
hurts.
Or does it…. always?
Unfortunately we do not always hate
sin. While we Christians do not embrace
it with as much fervor as do many, neither do we always really want it to
completely go away.
Why then do we so fervently pray, “Lead us
not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”?
We do so because we all know from personal experience that sin does have
its allurement. There is nothing like a good old
attack of greed to improve a bank account.
A little lust gotten out of hand to enliven a life. An aggressive assault of prejudice to bolster
an inferiority complex. The ad-vantages
of sin are well known, otherwise we would be sinless.
Oh, we are not all tempted the same way,
but we are all tempted. And whatever
sins they are or were, we have all given in.
The question has often been
asked, “Why did Adam put himself in such a position he was forced to leave the
Garden of Eden?” A question of equal
pertinence is also worthy of being asked in our time, “Why do we put ourselves
in such a position that we cannot make life more of an Eden?”
It is called heavenly decision and earthly
decision. Everyone makes earthly
decisions. Everyone does not make the
ultimate heavenly decision that Christ is King...and that His commandments have
the majesty of eternity behind them.
The beginning
of improvement after our Lord’s forgiveness is to ask ourselves, “How much do I
really hate my sins? Am I asking to be
delivered from sins I actually don’t want to be delivered from? Or am I just pretending?”
“I really want to stop,” said the man
seated in front of me, and he gave a name to his sin. “I really do.” And then he sheepishly looked at me and said
with great honesty, “No, pastor, to be perfectly honest, I really don’t.”
We seldom sin
because we do not know better. We sin
because, at that moment, we simply choose not to do better.
Forgive
us…. Deliver us….
Some sins have
been around a long time, and sometimes God’s children have ambivalent feelings
toward them. Play put and take with them. Have
great difficulty in praying and meaning, “Deliver me from this evil.”
Have you ever stopped to think that the
best way to be good is to realize and admit how good you are not?
That the best
way to know God is to not just study Him, but to worship Him?
To make Him number one in your life. That the best way to be a Christian is not to
sit on your high horse but to fall to your knees?
Every time
someone at your church gets upset, but then shuts their mouth and opens their
soul to God’s love, your church becomes a little more an Eden.
You
see, repentance is not just to save us from wrong doing, it is to lead us by
redemption to more right doing.
It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the
sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
--Jesus Christ
--Jesus Christ
I would far rather feel remorse than know how to define it.--Thomas A’Kempis
+++++++++++++++++++
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.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 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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