Synonyms: renounce, relinquish, dispense with, forswear, disclaim, disown, disavow, discard, wash one's hands of, give up, stop, cease, drop, forgo, desist from, have done with, abjure, abstain from, discontinue, break off, refrain from, set/lay aside, desert, leave, leave high and dry, turn one's back on, cast aside, break (up) with, vacate, quit, evacuate, withdraw from, surrender, cede, yield, indulge in, give way to, give oneself up to, yield to, lose oneself to/in, uninhibitedness, recklessness, lack of restraint, lack of inhibition, unruliness, wildness, impulsiveness, impetuosity, immoderation, wantonness
Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on
Showing 3976 to 4000 of 4939 results
Sermon
John R. Brokhoff
"Ho, every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Hearken diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in fatness. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. Behold, I made him a ...
Sermon
George Bass
Half a century ago, an adventurous youth was brutally attacked by the brakeman on a freight train. He realized that the trainman was attempting to kill him and, despite a sudden realization that he was stronger than the brakeman and a consuming rage to retaliate, he jumped off the train at the first opportunity to do so. He made his way to a hobo jungle where a tough-looking man asked, "Who slugged you, kid?" They talked until the man fell asleep. Someone whispered in the youth’s ear, "Careful, fella ... ...
Sermon
Robert G. Tuttle
"(Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith ... and therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness" (Romans 4:20, 22). Faith was the only thing that made Abraham different from the other inhabitants of Ur of the Chaldees. They continued in their blindness and unreality. Abraham left home because he was sure there was a real God somewhere, not one of wood and stone. Believing, Abraham left all, determined to find this God who was real. You and I, also, stand ...
Sermon
Leonard Mann
Anyone who has browsed through a gift shop sooner or later has come to a polite but insistent sign, "Please Do Not Touch." It was refreshing, therefore, to come recently upon a sign of different tone. In the gift shop at O’Hare Airport the word above some African wood carvings said, "Please touch. You can’t appreciate these until you do." There are many evidences that this in fact was the mood in which the New Testament writings first came into being. Those writers were sure they had come upon something ...
3980. Hindering Riches
Matthew 19:16-30
Sermon
Herchel H. Sheets
Shortly after the opening of the popular off-Broadway show, Godspell, in the summer of 1971, Cheryl A. Forbes made an interesting observation about it. She said that the show was for the young, in conception and spirit. It was written, acted, and sung by young people to give young people an answer to their despair. But she pointed out that not many youth were there to get the message; the audiences were mainly adult. "The probable reason," she said, "is that the kids can’t afford to come, since ticket ...
Drama
Curt M. Joseph
Judas: So this is it. (The three look around the room. Judas continues in a sarcastic voice.) Yes, first class all the way. Matthew: Yes, it is a bit musty in here. It kind of reminds me of an old storeroom or attic. It will take quite a bit of cleaning to get this place in shape. Judas: (He throws his money bag on the table and a cloud of dust goes into the air.) That’s an understatement! I thought Peter and John were supposed to get everything ready. Where are they? Andrew: Peter told me that he, James, ...
Sermon
Leonard H. Budd
The afternoon sun was waning as the shepherd boy, David, led his sheep down the well-worn path that led from the green pastures to the pool of still water where his flock would quench their thirst before heading back to the fold. He glanced back at the flock following him; then stopped and looked more closely. Where was Ayin, his big ram? One of the lambs was gone, too. The shepherd boy shaded his eyes against the late afternoon sun. In the distance he saw the big ram lumbering down the hill along a ...
Sermon
David E. Leininger
Thanksgiving coming up. One of my friends posted the following on PresbyNet:(1) I am thankful for... • the mess to clean up after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends. • the taxes I pay because it means that I'm employed. • the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat. • my shadow who watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine. • a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means that I have ...
3984. Following Orders
Matthew 28:16-20
Sermon
David E. Leininger
These are special days around St. Paul Presbyterian. Our 40th Birthday celebration continues. We had that delightful HOMELAND concert last night; we look forward to the BBQ/Talent Show on the 21st, then Jerry McCann's return to this pulpit on the 22nd. Good times. Times such as these provide an opportunity for celebration but they offer a good incentive for reflection, for creative dreaming as well, days that the church needs every so often if we understand ourselves as people with a mission. To my mind, ...
Sermon
King Duncan
When Helen Hayes cooked her first turkey for Thanksgiving, she called her husband and son together and said, "Now I know this is the first turkey I've ever cooked. It if isn't right, I don't want anybody to say a word. We'll just get up from the table without comment, put on our hats and coats, and go down to the hotel for Thanksgiving dinner." She then went into the kitchen to get the turkey. When she returned to the table, her husband and her son were standing there with their hats, gloves, and coats ...
Sermon
King Duncan
Doctors are so busy nowadays. More and more of them are running their practices like an assembly line. Doc Blakely tells about a fellow who walked into a doctor’s office and the receptionist asked him what he had. He said, "Shingles." So she took down his name, address, medical insurance number and told him to have a seat. Fifteen minutes later a nurse’s aide came out and asked him what he had. He said, "Shingles." So she took down his height, weight, a complete medical history and told him to wait in an ...
Sermon
King Duncan
Frank S. Mead once wrote a story titled, "The V.I.P." In his story the small town of Mayfair is excited over the anticipated arrival of a rich and important stranger, Henry Bascom, who is coming to spend Christmas in their town. The whole town turns out to meet him at the airport, but he's nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, a quiet man slips by the people at the airport and heads into town. This quiet man does not appear to be a man of means. He is ignored and mistreated by the insensitive people of Mayfair. ...
3988. One Came Back
Luke 17:11-19
Sermon
King Duncan
Gert Behanna was fifty-three years old when she discovered God. The shock and wonder of that discovery haven't worn off after twenty years. Gert had another shock the very next Sunday when she went to church. She says, "I'd never been to church in my life and I remember how eagerly I awaited that first Sunday. I'd just had a glimpse of God Almighty - me, an alcoholic, a drug addict, rich, lonely, and miserable - already I was beginning to know what joy really was." Gert was a new Christian. She was eager ...
Sermon
Donald B. Strobe
We might consider Jesus’ words to His students (disciples) in the Upper Room as sort of a “Last Will and Testament,” a final summing up of all that He had taught them during His brief ministry among them. He begins to speak of His coming death not as a probability but as a certainty, and He begins to talk with new urgency as though the passing moments are infinitely precious and as though he wants to etch every word indelibly on the minds of each of them. And what does He say to them? “I give you a new ...
Sermon
Eric Ritz
I believe we would all agree that Christianity is about the gift of God''s love and of God''s expectation of us to be loving. The key word in Christianity is love. Christianity is founded on the interconnectedness of God''s love and our response to the gift of God''s love, and how we then share what we have experienced with others. Perhaps some of us remember the scene in the marvelous movie, "Alice in Wonderland," when Alice states, "A word means what I want it to mean." This is exactly the great ...
3991. Get a Charge
Matthew 21:28-32
Sermon
Mark Trotter
The news media is turning its attention now to the 2000 elections, which means that for the next year we are going to be preoccupied with politics. I think if you asked someone in our society what they expect of a politician, they would say leadership. If you asked them to define that, I think they would say it means selflessness, giving oneself to the common good of the nation, standing for what is right, and not only for what is expedient, representing everyone, the common folk as well as those in power ...
3992. Lent 2
Psalm 121:1-8, Genesis 12:1-8, Romans 4:1-25, John 3:1-21
Sermon Aid
Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe
OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS The themes of sin and death, which have been central to the Lenten Old Testament lessons up to this point, give way to divine promise of life and blessing in Genesis 12:1-4a . Psalm 122 takes the divine promise of life and blessing into the setting of worship, where it functions both as a song of praise to God for the gift of peace and salvation, and as encouragement to the worshiper to seek the security of God's grace. Genesis 12:1-4a - "The Working Out of God's Blessing" Setting. ...
Sermon
James W. Moore
Have you heard the story about the young police officer who was on the witness stand testifying in the trial of a man he had arrested for robbery? The defendant was being represented by a hard-nosed attorney who was known far and wide for being tough on police officers. In cross-examination, the tough lawyer was trying to undermine the policeman’s credibility and the exchange between the fiery lawyer and the young policemen went like this. The lawyer speaks first. “Officer… did you see (with your own eyes ...
Sermon
James Merritt
All of us learned in school about the legendary Spanish explorer, Ponce de León. In fact, to travel from where we live to downtown Atlanta, you can go down Ponce de León Avenue. Ponce de León discovered the State of Florida because he was looking for the legendary fountain of youth. There are still many today on the quest for that fountain of youth, but they never have found it and they never will find it. For there is no such fountain. But even though there is no fountain of youth, there is a fountain of ...
Sermon
James Merritt
Seven centuries ago a Christmas carol, often sung today, was written in Latin, with a Latin title that meant "With Sweet Shouting." The great composer, Johann Sabastian Bach, liked it so much he arranged it for the organ, and John Mason Neale later standardized the hymn in English. In English the title was changed to "Good Christian Men Rejoice." The first stanza tells us what every Christian understands about the season called Christmas. Good Christian men, rejoice, With heart and soul and voice; Give ye ...
Sermon
James Merritt
From the time you get up in the morning until you go to sleep at night you see many things. You see computer graphics, sunrises and sunsets, a blue sky with white clouds, sparkling stars, maybe even a rainbow or two. You look into the mirror to make sure you are presentable. You see a beautiful diamond ring on the finger of some lady. But did you ever stop to think that when you look at any of those things what you are really seeing is light. Light that somehow has left those objects and reached your eye. ...
Sermon
Bill Bouknight
A few years ago in the Rose Bowl parade in Pasadena, a float stalled. Frustrations increased quickly because other floats could not move, and this event was televised around the world. Mechanics quickly descended upon the stalled float, searching all over for the problem. Finally, someone had the presence of mind to check on the fuel level of the vehicle. It was empty, out of gas. This became even more embarrassing when the crowd realized that the float’s sponsor was one of the major oil companies. (1) Did ...
Sermon
Ron Lavin
A pastor in Indiana went to visit an 87-year-old man named Ermil, who was a hospital patient. A member of his church told the pastor about this old man who was an acquaintance. "He's not a believer, but he is really in need," the church member said. "I met him at the county home for the elderly. He's a lonely old man with no family and no money." The pastor was busy taking care of his large congregation, but decided to see the old man. On the third visit, Ermil said, "I'm not very religious, and I don't ...
Sermon
Billy D. Strayhorn
I don't think there is anyone alive who likes job performance reviews except maybe the HR people. Even if you are doing a great job, review and evaluation are stressful. A few years ago Preaching Magazine ran a list of some quotes from actual Job Performance Reviews. I thought I'd share a few: "I wouldn't allow this employee to reproduce, he must have gotten into the gene pool when the lifeguard wasn't looking." "This associate is really not so much of a has-been but a won't be." "Works well under constant ...
Sermon
King Duncan
Greetings on this Mother’s Day. Someone has made a list of nine things a Mother would never say. See if your Mom would ever say these things: 1. “How on earth can you see the TV sitting so far back?” Anybody? 2. “Yeah, I used to skip school a lot, too.” 3. “Just leave all the lights on . . . it makes the house look more cheery.” 4. “Let me smell that shirt Yeah, it’s good for another week.” 5. “Go ahead and keep that stray dog, honey. I’ll be glad to feed and walk him every day.” 6. “Well, if Timmy’s mom ...
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