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 1301 to 1325 of 4977 results
Sermon
William G. Carter
... close group of friends was to invite an outsider to join them for supper. Yet he kept inviting. He realized the fastest way to divide a house was to treat everybody fairly, to consider everybody equally, to forgive everybody without any desire to get even or to keep score. Yet that was the cross he chose to carry. And this is the cross he hands over to us. He taught them, saying, “Love your neighbor. Do not judge. Go an extra mile. Make peace with your accuser.” In response, a large crowd of thugs came ...
1302. The Paradox of the Yoke
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
Sermon
Lori Wagner
... baggage” that accompanies us on our way. Worry, stress, challenges, difficult goals, needs, desires, responsibilities, and purpose. Our yoke keeps us focused and driven, but it can also weigh us down, make us feel tired, and cause us ... in the direction that God means your life to go. Forward you go into the future together. He helps you move on when you get tired and keeps your burdens off of your back. He stays beside you every step and lets you know each day that you are not walking alone this way alone ...
Sermon
Will Willimon
... your efforts a paper filled with blood-red marks, to look like a fool in front of the whole class, to find your name on the professor's door at the very bottom of the grade list. Exams. And sometimes I wonder if that's the purpose of exams, to keep you vulnerable, small, threatened. Oh, we say it's to measure how much history or chemistry you have inhaled, but I wonder if some exams have as their purpose to convince you that you did not learn all that much in the course, that though you thought you mastered ...
1304. One Tough Master?
Matthew 25:14-28
Sermon
Will Willimon
... not five or two; still, as we said, one talent is a lot of money. So he digs a hole, buries it, stands guard over it, keeps it safe and sound. He doesn't go out and risk his master's money like servants one and two. He buries it. Burying was the ... for them. They took the master's money, invested it and got great results. The master is thrilled, so thrilled that he lets them keep all the money. "Enter into the joy of your master," he tells them. Servant number three also has great results. "Here master, you ...
Sermon
King Duncan & Angela Akers
... night to find the lost sheep. Finding the lamb, he lifted it onto his shoulders and brought it back to the fold. As the young boy drew near, he was humming a tune that he had learned from his father who said that he had heard it one night while keeping watch over his flocks by night. It was the tune to the song that the angels had sung on that first Christmas night. They suddenly were reminded of that angelic song of “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests ...
1306. Spirit Soaked
Matthew 25:1-13
Sermon
Lori Wagner
... forget that Jesus has the power to lift us, salve us, heal us, and comfort us. He has the power to provide us with guidance and direction and to re-instill us with a sense of peace and security, even when things feel chaotic around us. We need to keep our spiritual tanks full of faith, trust, and love for Jesus. We need to stay Spirit soaked and “stoked for the party” that God will provide in our lives and future. Jesus knew how hard it would be for his disciples to go on without him physically present ...
Teach the Text
C. Hassell Bullock
... and deceive (12:3–4). Then comes the Lord’s answer in 12:5, which is the theological center of the psalm, followed by a momentary reflection on the Lord’s “flawless” words (12:6). Another prayer in 12:7 pleads divine protection for David and his community (“keep” and “protect us”) and is followed by what seems to be another moment of reflection on the problem (12:8). So the pattern is 1. Prayer (12:1–2) 2. Reflection (12:3–4) 3. The Lord’s answer (12:5) 4. Reflection (12:6) 5. Prayer ...
1308. Zion's New Name
Isaiah 62:1-12
Understanding Series
John Goldingay
... (vv. 6–7). Perhaps the claim even relates to a commissioning of supernatural figures of the kind who belonged to Yahweh’s cabinet. Either way, they are like lookouts who have a special responsibility for the city’s welfare (see 21:11–12). They are committed to keeping alert and active on its behalf, day and night. They are to give themselves no rest. But they also give Yahweh no rest. They are like secretaries of state whose task is to remind the king or other people in power about what needs to be ...
1309. Bold Faith
Mark 10:46-52
Sermon
Lori Wagner
... world today? “Be bold” and “speak boldly” the scriptures tell us –nearly as many times as “fear not!” For God’s outstretched hand will lead you –into a place of healing, restoration, potential, growth, and a different kind of future. So what will it be? Keep quiet? Or, “speak up!” Jesus says “speak!” Do it! I dare you.[1] [1] Note that in Exodus 6:6, Deut 4:34, and Deut 5:15, God’s outstretched “arm” or zero’a, comes from the root word “zera” or seed implying that God ...
Sermon
Lori Wagner
... how to undo this “demon” of a lock, which now threatened to derail my entire day. For all the good I suspected this little lock would do, it had now caused me far more harm. Now, locks have a time and place. We have reasons for locks. Keeping my items safe temporarily was not a terrible decision or a bad idea. But when our entire “life” becomes all locked up, and we can’t proceed with our purpose, mission, or livelihood, we’ve now reached a royal snafu. When Jesus appeared that evening after his ...
1311. God Is Like...a Friend
2 Corinthians 5:16-20
Sermon
Kenneth L. Gibble
... the tension between immanence and transcendence. That is, on the one hand, we can describe God as being very close to us, even within us; on the other hand, God can be described as being apart from us, above us, beyond us. Our relationship with God keeps moving back and forth between intimacy and distance. For example, if you think of God as fire, you may remember how Moses saw a burning bush and how awestruck Moses was by the wondrous power of God. But you may also remember how the disciples met their ...
1312. God Is Like...
Isaiah 40:18-31 · John 1:1-14
Sermon
Kenneth L. Gibble
... faith that is yet to be born. Instead of an ending, we may think of it as a new beginning, a challenge for all of us to keep growing in our understanding of what and who God is, of what and who God calls us to become. As I contemplated an appropriate way to ... thing we simply cannot do is control God. No less than the people of ancient Israel, you and I are tempted to keep God confined to convenient, controllable categories. God can be this, we think, but God couldn’t possibly be that. God is masculine ...
Sermon
Will Willimon
... being born, a world yet to be finished. The picture is painted poetically, but it is still realistic. Here is the reality of a world we do not yet know in its fullness. But having a glimpse, a foretaste, a peek into the future, is enough to keep us going. When Martin Luther King spoke before the Lincoln Memorial and gave his immortal, “I Have a Dream,” speech, it was a rather dark, perilous time for the Civil Rights Movement in America. Things were not going well. The march was meant to infuse new life ...
Sermon
Douglas J. Deuel
... making its way on the airplane. Then the father made an attempt to end the discussion so that it wouldn't drag on with endless questions. He said, "When all of these people have gotten on the plane and are sitting down, we will take off. So, don't keep asking!" The boy looked at the steady flow of people crowding onto the airplane. He thought for a few moments and then he asked, "Dad, are all of these people going to my grandma's house?" We live in an age of immediate gratification. We are conditioned to be ...
Drama
Robert F. Crowley
... is invited to run -- many may choose not to. So with that background, Rahab, could you tell us how you train? RAHAB: Oh, of course, Priscilla, Much of my training is difficult. I have to lay aside every encumbrance ... PRISCILLA: By that you mean...? RAHAB: Oh, anything that keeps me from doing my best. For me it was my business. I had to put God first in my life. PRISCILLA: I see. RAHAB: And then I always have to be careful not to sin. PRISCILLA: But, don't we all sin? RAHAB: Of course. We all do. But ...
Drama
Robert F. Crowley
... these little bricks together? How will you build with these? They fall apart. INDIVIDUALS: They fall, fall, fall, fall -- they fall apart. ALL: STOP! We will solve anything. We created bricks. We will create something to keep them together. MALE 4: We will use -- asphalt. That will keep them together. They will not fall. They will stand tall. FEMALES: Stand tall. MALES: Stand tall. ALL: Stand tall. We will build buildings that stand tall -- to reach the sky -- to reach the sky -- to reach the sky. To reach ...
1317. The Open Hand
Mark 2:23-3:6
Sermon
Ron Lavin
... to us or said to us -- unable to worship, unable to pray, unable to be who we were intended to be, children of God. Clenched fists full of false treasures which buy us nothing but misery inhibit our corporate worship and our private prayer lives. Clenched fists keep us from the experience of God. We are afraid to let these false treasures go, for fear of what will happen if we really open up our hands to God. We hear Jesus say, "Stretch out your hand," and we panic. We will do anything but that. Stretching ...
1318. The Parables About Response
Mark 4:30-34, Mark 4:26-29
Sermon
Ron Lavin
... or their own ideas, or too hurt by suffering to accept the word of God. In other words, some people will reject the truth, even though it is for their own good. Activism, materialism, stubborn resistance to something new and hard-heartedness due to hurt all keep people out of the kingdom of God. Some seed fell on rocky ground. There are people who, like rocky ground, at first seem to receive the seeds of the kingdom, but soon the plants wither because the upper layer of soil is shallow. Hidden from sight ...
Sermon
William G. Carter
... purge us of all our possessiveness. Or is that bad news? Each of us must decide. One thing is for sure. If we want to follow Jesus, we had better brace ourselves. He calls us to serve a God who loves us, a God who will keep disturbing us until we finally relinquish our grip on money and possessions. Once we say yes to God, we can expect holy disruptions in our lives until the day when God alone shall purge and possess our hearts. 1. Stanley Hauerwas, Center for Continuing Education, Princeton Theological ...
1320. Prepare The Way
Malachi 2:17--3:5
Sermon
Robert A. Hausman
... hopes for a better day; but it was a struggle. They offered their sacrifices, but it did not seem to pay off. The wicked still prospered. The people decided that God did not pay off. They said: It is vain to serve God. What do we profit by keeping his command or by going about as mourners before the Lord of hosts? Now we count the arrogant happy; evildoers not only prosper, but when they put God to the test they escape (Malachi 3:14-15). When they practiced their religion, they said "What a weariness this ...
Sermon
Richard A. Wing
... God's house means living by the calendar instead of the clock. The life of Jesus would invite us to live our lives by keeping our eyes firmly fixed on ultimate concerns rather than passing fancy. He calls us to live by the calendar of faith rather than the ... the face of one born in a manger, born to set us free! May God give us courage to remove anything from our lives that will keep us from seeing the face of the child of Bethlehem who leads us to live by the big picture instead of the small obstacles in life ...
1322. Echoes
Luke 3:21-38
Sermon
Richard A. Wing
... John to "reveal" himself more pointedly in what we call the transfiguration, suddenly we hear the words of his baptism echo from heaven again: "This is my son, the beloved. Listen to him." The echoes that reverberate from baptismal waters and off the mountain of bright light keep echoing across the ages. That echo is a gift. Knowing what we are made of, we often can't hear the first time what we need to hear, and hence the word needs to pass by us over and over again. This word from baptism to mountaintop ...
Sermon
Richard A. Wing
... brothers. You are very wise. You are wise because you know the difference between right and wrong. You may go somewhere else to study if you wish, but this poor brother does not even know right from wrong. Who will teach him if I do not? I am going to keep him here even if all the rest of you leave." The story goes that a torrent of tears cleansed the face of that boy who had stolen, and the desire to steal was banished from him forever in that decisive moment. I know a very sharp person in southern ...
1324. In Times Of Need
1 Kings 17:7-24
Sermon
Carlyle Fielding Stewart
... of faith after his hard trials and struggles. The truth is that whatever our condition, God meets us along the way to give us consolation, prosperity, hope, and faith amid our numerous concerns and struggles. Even when all seems lost, we must keep the faith, look up, and keep our eyes open for God's miraculous intervention. When all seems hopeless, that is when God shows up to restore hope and confidence. Whether it is Elijah for the widow or the widow for Elijah, God sends someone to us in times of ...
1325. Extreme Measures
1 Kings 21:1-29
Sermon
Carlyle Fielding Stewart
... falsely charged, Naboth was senselessly murdered. Slaughter of the innocent is not only a stigma of our modern times, but it also occurred in ancient history. Naboth was simply a citizen enjoying his rights. He wanted to keep his land because it meant something to him. He had inherited the land from his family, and since that land was a valuable commodity, he wanted to keep it, till its soil, and then pass it down to his children. His refusal of the king's offer was honest. He loved the land and wanted to ...
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