WHAT IS BEING RELIGIOUS AND ARE YOU?

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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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"I'm not very religious"

      And what does that mean. 

      It usually doesn't mean the person doesn't believe in God.

      It may mean "I don't think about God very much one way or the other."

      It probably means, "Let's change the subject before we go any further." or "I don't want to be bothered by all those commandments and things."    

      It can mean a lot of things.

      So then...what ought being religious mean?

      To earn the tag should you be able to sing half a dozen hymns without opening the hymn book?

      Does it mean you can find three obscure books of the Bible without having to check out the table of contents.

      Does it mean you can quote some of the prophets and Jesus himself?

      If so, a lot of people who have a very close relationship with God but can't do any of those things are in trouble.

      All of the above are noble and helpful and certainly an outgrowth of an above average interest in matters of faith...but where do they fit into the question "Are you religious?"

      “Be doers of the word and not merely hearers.."  There's the crux of the matter.  Read all about it in James (James 1:22)

      ACTION!

            “Therefore get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent.” (James 1:21)

      ATTITUDE!

      Don't just be an apple that looks good because apples can have worms in them and not be good at all.

      If you were at a get together of everyday folk and someone came up to you and in the process of the  conversation asked "Are you religious?" (It happens) 

      How would you reply?

      Well, you might say... "If you meant 'Do I believe a connection with God is important"' I would say 'Yes, I'm religious." 

Or respond...Do you mean that do I believe that after I die I will have a heavenly address?  Then 'Yes, I'm religious."  So might well be your reply.

      A question...Does a religious person read more religious books than say prayers or is it the other way around?  Or is it both and the percentages about the two are not a make or break process. 

      Spirituality cannot be measured.  At least certainly not by one man or woman of another man or woman.

      When it comes to being religious is it possible to be so pious, obedient and sincere you are absolutely unbearable?

      Or as one writer writer, Fritz Ridenour, entitled his book "How to be a Christian Without Being Religious."  It sold over 100,000 copies.

      In short, man too often looks at the outward actions while God sees into the center of the soul,

      In one of his sermons George Whitefield, preacher in the time of John and Charles Wesley, tells of a strange and terrifying dream in which an angel transported him to the gates of hell.

      When he arrived, he cried out to the gatekeeper, “Have you any Methodists in hell?” “Oh yes, we have plenty of Methodists down here.”

      “Have you any Lutherans in hell?” “Plenty of Lutherans, too.”

      “What about Catholics?”

      “Hell is filled with Catholics.”

       “Have you any Baptists in hell?” “More than we can count.”

      “Have you any Presbyterians?” “By the hundreds.”

      With that, Whitefield sadly took his leave of hell.

      Suddenly he found himself transported to the gates of heaven where he met St. Peter.

      “St. Peter, have you any Methodists in heaven?”

      “No Methodists up here.”

      “Have you any Catholics in heaven?” “I’m sorry to say, no Catholics have ever come this way.”

      “What about Presbyterians?”

      “No Presbyterians either.”

      “What about Baptists?”

      “Not a one in all the years I’ve been here.”

       “Any Lutherans?”

      “We have no one that answers to that name.”

       Finally in desperation Whitefield cried out, “Who have you in heaven then?”    And the answer came back, “Christians, only Christians.”

      If I wear a baseball cap does that mean I am a baseball player?

      If I wear a football helmet does that mean I am a football player?

      If I wear a ..."

      Just asking.

      Imagine, if you will, that you are on an island and you are surrounded by the deepest darkness you have ever seen.

      And suppose that there is a footbridge that stretches across a chasm that is a thousand feet deep.

      Now just imagine that everyone when they reach this island is given a tiny penlight, a penlight so small it can spread its light forward in any direction...no more than twelve inches.

      Now imagine that some are also given a powerful searchlight, so powerful it can cut away the darkness for a distance of almost a mile.

      And because of this it makes traversing the footbridge so much more easy...or it would be easier except that some point in other directions...in search of needles and haystacks.     

      That is what some religious people who have missed the Christian message do.

      Instead of using this powerful force of light to move forward on the footbridge of life...coming daily closer to the Lord...they shine on the lives of other Christians and ferret out their mistakes and their imperfections...and contemplate and condemn...and judge their Christianosity...ignoring the mote in their own eye...but miss the Christian point.

      What is being a Christian as against being religious?

      It is not living by a long list of "Cant's."  It is being devoted to all the "Cans" offered from the throne of grace.  Indeed filling one's life with so many Christian "Can's" there is not as much room or need for the list of "Cant's."

            It does not mean that you are required to be perfect.  It does mean that you aim at the center of the target even while you are missing it...and keep on prayerfully trying to improve your aim and your follow through...and thanking your God for his eternal forgiving heart.
 And there is the difference.

      It means what John 20.31 says it means “but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”

      Believe with confidence but not with arrogance.

      It means more than just admiring Christ.  It means following him...and you follow someone only by staying close to them.  And as you read this perhaps you are beginning to hum "What a friend I have in Jesus."

      It means reaching that point where you have surrendered and thereby taken to heart the words, "Thy will be done."

      Another way of putting it...It means being under "God control."

      There was a lady who at the turn of the century lived in a small house on the seashore of Ireland.

      She was a woman of some wealth but also quite frugal.

      The people were therefore quite surprised when she made the decision to be among the first to have electricity in her home.

      But several weeks after its installation, a meter reader appeared at her front door.

      He asked her if her electricity was working well and she assured him that indeed it was.

      He then continued, “I'm asking the question because I wonder if you can explain something to me, “ he said. “Your meter shows scarcely any usage. Are you using your power?
      “Certainly,” she answered. “Each evening when the sun sets, I turn on my lights just long enough to light my candles; then I turn them off.”

      Being a Christian means not just being tapped into the power but using it...otherwise there is no alteration of what was before...
            Being a Christian means being "born again" which means exactly what it says. 

 

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      "The Christian Life is about relationships, not performance."

Neil Franks, Paster, First Baptist Church, Branson, MO

      With God, all things are POSSIBLE.

The Bible, gospel of Mark 10:27

      Charles F Banning
Too many of us have a Christian vocabulary rather than a Christian experience.

      Spurgeon
I have a great need for Christ; I have a great Christ for my need.

      God may thunder His commands from Mount Sinai and men may fear, yet remain at heart exactly as they were before. But let a man once see his God down in the arena as a Man, - suffering, tempted, sweating, and agonized, finally dying a criminal's death - and he is a hard man indeed who is untouched.

... J. B. Phillips, Your God is Too Small [1953]

      Taking [a] "servant" attitude of thankfulness in all of life's circumstances will help you react as old Matthew Henry did when he was mugged. He wrote in his diary, "Let me be thankful first because I was never robbed before; second, although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed."

I wonder if I could be that thankful. Could you?
... Billy Graham in "Unto the Hills"

      The church that marries the spirit of an age becomes a widow in the next generation.
... Dean William Inge, quoted in "Context" (March 15, 1997)

"Sometimes when I'm faced with an unbeliever, an atheist, I am tempted to invite him to the greatest gourmet dinner that one could ever serve, and when we finished eating that magnificent dinner, to ask him if he believes there's a cook."
Ronald Reagan

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            QUOTES BELOW ARE FROM WYRICK'S WRITINGS...CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING TO TAKE YOU THERE... http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com

(These are selected sermons from over 50 years of ministry)

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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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        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

• CHRISTIAN CHARACTER OR CARACTITURE
• HOW TO LESSEN ANXIETY
• ACCOUNTABILITY
• SPIRITUAL SHRINKAGE OR GROWTH
• WHO ARE YOU?...NO...WHOSE ARE YOU?
• IS YOUR LIFE WISE AND SENSIBLE?
• WHAT WERE THE BEST DAYS IN YOUR LIFE AND WHY?
• WHEN A NATION STRAYS TOO FAR FROM BEING MORAL IT I...

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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

http://wyrickswritings.blogspot.com

          Yes, God loves you the way you are but he loves you too much to let you stay that way.

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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

      http://www.speakerneil.com/

       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