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<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">What Christians
Are Really Made Of</SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">This text from
Matthew makes me recall the words of C.S. Lewis, "Surely what a man does when he
is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is. If there
are rats in a cellar, you are most likely to see them if you go in very
suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats; it only prevents them
from hiding. In the same way, the suddenness of the provocation does not make me
ill-tempered; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am." </SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Think about the
reaction that Christ calls us to have if someone strikes us on the
cheek.<SPAN> </SPAN>What kind of a person would that make us?<SPAN>
</SPAN>To turn the other cheek and refuse to react with similar anger or malice
shows the world we are Christian.<SPAN> </SPAN>So if what we do when we
are taken off guard is the best evidence of what sort of person we are, let us
pray our reactions show that we are good Christians!
<SPAN> </SPAN></SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Adapted from
C.S. Lewis <SPAN> </SPAN></SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">_____________________</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Practice What
You Admire</SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Once upon a
time a prince was born physically deformed. He was known as the hunchback
prince. His physical posture troubled him, because he knew a prince should stand
tall and straight. One day he commissioned a sculptor to make a statue of him,
not as he was but as he wanted to be. When the statue was completed, the prince
had it placed in his private garden. Every day thereafter, he would stand before
his statue and try to pull back his shoulders and stand tall. After some years,
his physique matched the statue!<BR><BR>It is obvious, is it not, that the
principle involved in this story is that what we admire, adore, greatly respect,
and worship, we eventually become.<BR><BR>John Brokhoff, Old Truths for New
Times, CSS Publishing Company
<BR><SPAN> </SPAN>____________________________________<BR><BR>Going Beyond
Duty: The Second Mile</SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Shortly after
the battles ended the American Revolution, but before the peace had been
negotiated, George Washington was with his troops in Newburgh, New York. But
they began to grow very restless because they hadn't been paid. Washington had
begged the Continental Congress to do what they said they would do and pay the
soldiers, but they refused.<BR><BR>Well, some of the officers began to organize
a rebellion. They talked about marching on Philadelphia, which was at that time
the seat of the reigning national government, and overthrowing that government
and letting the army rule the nation.<BR><BR>With the fate of America in the
balance, George Washington made a surprise appearance before these officers.
After praising them for their service and thanking them for their sacrifice, he
pulled from his pocket a copy of a speech that he wished to read. But then he
fumbled with a paper and finally reached for a set of reading glasses-glasses
those men had never seen him wear before. Washington made this simple statement:
"I have already grown grey in the service of my country, and now I am going
blind."<BR><BR>Historian Richard Norton Smith wrote: "Instantly rebellion melted
into tears. It was a galvanizing moment, and the rebellion..." and the rebellion
was put down because they had seen before them a second miler. Becoming a
Christian is one thing; being a Christian is another one. Every chance you get
for the glory of Jesus, for the goodness of others, and because of the grace of
God, go the second mile.<BR><BR>James Merritt, Collected Sermons, <A shape=rect
target=_blank
__removedLink__368618624__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=aelnpceab&et=1104526813704&s=45429&e=001w5ARnhls0phVH1BzgTnXhDaKUZvsXmDdqrPkpFTog8jDB-3-jpxpkLXrdPyXqPj-Rpt-GFnVcFxDd5tEalxtOi56tvx84B1YLnZPPoltDNfW1dEAoP_qXw==">www.Sermons.com</A></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><BR>____________________________________<BR><BR> </SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Reconciliation:
Refusing to Retaliate</SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">It's a story
that is repeated on every elementary school playground, nearly every day in our
country. Two fourth-graders get into it during recess; something about "he did
this, so I did that" and it kind of goes south from there. When they get back to
class, Billy trips Joey. After lunch, Joey breaks Billy's pencil on purpose.
When nobody is looking, Billy writes on Joey's desk, and later, Joey steals
Billy's folder. After school, Billy and his friends face Joey and his friends,
and they call each other names. Somebody gets hurt. Somebody else gets hurt
worse. And then there is no telling when or if these conflicts will ever
end.<BR><BR>Sound familiar? We have all experienced this sort of escalating
pettiness and we readily admit that it is silly. But I would suggest to you that
we can remove the names "Billy" and "Joey" and insert the words "husband" and
"wife" and the story is much the same. Or we could insert the names of two rival
high schools, or two rival companies, or "The Hatfields" and "The McCoys." Or
Republicans and Democrats, or "pro-life" and "pro-choice," or Israel and
Palestine, or America and almost any Arab nation you care to name. Conflict at
any level is conflict. And if not preventable, most conflict is at least
resolvable...but not until one side refuses to retaliate and instead decides to
reconcile.<BR><BR>Steve Molin, He Hit Me First! </SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">_______________________<BR><BR> </SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">A Christian
Conception of Justice</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><A
style="COLOR: windowtext; TEXT-DECORATION: none" shape=rect target=_blank
__removedLink__368618624__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=aelnpceab&et=1104526813704&s=45429&e=001w5ARnhls0pja0XUaokdsWu15f2Q313AEAlqd3B1LpKMB0Fganv7br9oGgHg1oQPvFMIvDry18TkJWt7IgcVo0007K5Qc9l_kBo3Aovn0hnuisw1EyDBb2_5vyk2wl0oVGf5Vx2O0FstSVN2TPvLRRscWqxLKwTETbHHSPpA9-8RRXHKoHK6wTA==">The
nature of men and of organized society dictates the maintenance in every field
of action of the highest and purest standards of justice and of right
dealing.... By justice the lawyer generally means the prompt, fair, and open
application of impartial rules; but we call ours a Christian civilization, and a
Christian conception of justice must be much higher. It must include sympathy
and helpfulness and a willingness to forego self-interest in order to promote
the welfare, happiness, and contentment of others and of the community as a
whole.</A></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Woodrow
Wilson</SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">_____________________________</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Forgiveness Is
a New Life</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Immaculee
Ilibagiza was a 22-year-old university student in the 1990s when terrible
violence broke out in her home country of Rwanda. Hutus killed her parents, her
brothers, and hundreds of her Tutsi friends. A Hutu pastor, who risked his life
to save her, hid her and six other women. They lived in a small bathroom, a
wooden wardrobe covering the door. For three months, they endured hunger, fear,
and the sounds of soldiers in the house unsuccessfully searching for Tutsis.
</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">In those
cramped quarters, she began to pray the Rosary. Always she stumbled over the
Lord's Prayer: "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass
against us." She knew that the prayer called her to forgive those who had killed
her family and endangered her. She didn't think she could do it, but she
realized she was consumed by hate. She was afraid she would become like the
people who had killed her family. Nevertheless, in her mind, forgiving her
family's killers was like forgiving the devil. Finally, afraid that her hate
would crush her heart, she asked God to forgive those who had done her so much
harm. Slowly, with God's help, she was able to let go and forgive her family's
killers. Eventually, she even visited one of her brother's killers in prison,
taking his hand and offering forgiveness. She says that forgiveness saved her
life. "It's a new life, almost like a resurrection."<BR><BR>Charles L. Aaron,
Jr., Becoming The Salt and The Light, CSS Publishing Company, Inc.
<BR>____________________________________<BR><BR> </SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Love Your
Enemies</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Former Boston
Red Sox Hall-of-Fame third baseman Wade Boggs hated Yankee Stadium. Not because
of the Yankees; they never gave him that much trouble but because of a fan.
That's right: one fan.<BR><BR>The guy had a box seat close to the field, and
when the Red Sox were in town he would torment Boggs by shouting obscenities and
insults. It's hard to imagine one fan getting under a player's skin, but this
guy had the recipe.<BR><BR>One day as Boggs was warming up, the fan began his
routine, yelling, 'Boggs, you stink' and variations on that theme. Boggs had
enough. He walked directly over to the man, who was sitting in the stands...and
said, 'Hey fella, are you the guy who's always yelling at me?<BR><BR>The man
said, 'Yeah, it's me. What are you going to do about it?...</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN> </P>
<P style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px">The conclusion to this
illustration and for many additional illustrations and sermons for the Epiphany
7 can be accessed at <A style="COLOR: purple" href="http://www.Sermons.com"
shape=rect target=_blank
__removedLink__368618624__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=aelnpceab&et=1104526813704&s=45429&e=001w5ARnhls0phVH1BzgTnXhDaKUZvsXmDdqrPkpFTog8jDB-3-jpxpkLXrdPyXqPj-Rpt-GFnVcFxDd5tEalxtOi56tvx84B1YLnZPPoltDNfW1dEAoP_qXw==">www.Sermons.com</A>.</P>
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