Monthly Archives: March 2014

What’s in the bag?

Posted on March 26, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s an old legend about three men each carrying two sacks, one on their back and one on their front.. When asked what was in the sacks, the first said, “On my back are all the good things that have … Continue reading →

Posted in Appreciation, Attitude, Bitterness, Blessings, Contentment, Encouragement, Futility, Hope, Inspiration, Life's journey, Living Life, Making the most of what you've got, Seeing the possibilities, Spiritual blindness, Spiritual discernment, thankfulness, Troubles, Trust in God, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Contradictions that are true

Posted on March 26, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

Movie mogul Sam Goldwyn used to mangle the English language so badly that his mixed metaphors came to be known as Goldwynisms. Some of his classics are: ‘A verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on,’ ‘Every Tom, Dick, … Continue reading →

Posted in Contradictions, Discernment, Faith, Happiness, Inspirational, Jesus, Life's journey, Living Life, Seeing the possibilities, Spiritual discernment, Spiritual Insight, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

No ‘Ifs’ about it.

Posted on March 26, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

The great pianist Artur Rubinstein said: “As long as we have what we have inside, the capacity to love, to work, to hear music, to see a flower… nothing can stop us from being happy…but we must get rid of … Continue reading →

Posted in angry with God, Artur Rubinstein, Attitude, Contentment, Discernment, If, Life's journey, Living Life, Making the most of what you've got, Regret, Seeing the possibilities, Spiritual Insight, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Pain – ‘God’s Megaphone’

Posted on March 26, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s nothing that challenges faith in a loving God more than the problem of pain. C.S. Lewis said that of all the things that come to us in life, pain is the one thing guaranteed to get our attention. Joys … Continue reading →

Posted in angry with God, Discernment, Encouragement, Faith, God, Grace, Hope, Life's journey, Living Life, Pain, pilgrimage, Religion, Spiritual Insight, Trials and testings, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Creating things that devour us

Posted on March 26, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s an ancient legend from India about four princes who went off to develop special powers and then met to reveal what they had learned. The first said, “I have learned how to take a creature’s bone and create flesh … Continue reading →

Posted in Foolishness, Life's journey, Self Deception, Self Destruction, Spiritual blindness, Spiritual Darkness | Tagged , | 3 Comments

When your morning seems to be going bad

Posted on March 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

Following the September Eleven tragedy, a group of workers who should have been in the Twin Towers, but weren’t, met together to share their stories. One was late for work because his son started kindergarten. Another was late because her … Continue reading →

Posted in angry with God, Attitude, God, Inspiration, Life's journey, Living Life, Making the most of what you've got, Seeing the possibilities, Spiritual Insight, Spirituality, Terror, Terrorists, Trials and testings, Trust in God, Uncertainty of Life, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Dollar isn’t God

Posted on March 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

On the anniversary of nine/eleven, the boys choir of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London visited the trading floor of the British arm of Cantor Fitzgerald, a stock broking company whose six hundred and fifty eight American employees all perished in … Continue reading →

Posted in Awareness, Discernment, God, inner peace, Inspirational, Law of Jungle, Money, Remembrance, Self Deception, Spiritual blindness, Spiritual Insight, Terror, Terrorists, Trust in God, Uncertainty of Life, War, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

When the Path is a Person

Posted on March 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

I remember a missionary telling how he got lost in the African bush. Fortunately some villagers found him and sent one of their young men to guide him to where he was supposed to be. The two of them set … Continue reading →

Posted in direction, Faith, God, Guidance, Jesus, Journey, Life's journey, Living Life, pilgrimage, Seeing Jesus, Spiritual discernment, Spirituality, Trust in God, Uncertainty of Life | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

A Virus Called Peace

Posted on March 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

I once received an email warning me of the spread of a virus called “Inner Peace.” It told me to be alert for symptoms that could pose a serious threat to my usual stable condition of conflict. These symptoms include: … Continue reading →

Posted in Acts of Kindness, Appreciation, Attitude, Awareness, Compassion, Contentment, Faith, Forgiveness, Generous spirit, Grace, Happiness, Healing, hope and love, inner peace, Inspirational, Jesus, Joy, Knowing God, love, Mercy, Personal Growth, Seeing Jesus, Spirituality, thankfulness, Transformation, Unselfishness | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Religion and War

Posted on March 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

It’s often claimed that if we could rid the world of religion we’d rid the world of war. Well, the past century has certainly demonstrated the naivety of that idea. The Twentieth Century produced something totally new in human history … Continue reading →

Posted in Atheism, Discernment, Hatred, Injustice, Power over People, Religion, Self Deception, Spiritual discernment, True and False Religion, War, Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment