Author Archives: vincentsmithauthor

Faith is not mindless belief

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

We often talk about blind faith. I don’t really like that term because I don’t think real faith is mindless belief – that’s more likely to be gullibility. Faith is facing our doubts and digging deep beyond our conflicting emotions … Continue reading →

Posted in Faith, God, God in us, Half heartedness, Spiritual Insight | Leave a comment

I wonder why we don’t wonder?

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

One of humankind’s greatest technological achievements happened in nineteen sixty nine when Neil Armstrong took his first steps onto the Moon’s surface. Millions of people around the world stayed home to watch it happen live on TV. The second time … Continue reading →

Posted in Distraction, Foolishness, God, Wonder | Leave a comment

Success is what you are

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s never been a time in history when so called ‘successful’ people have been so idolised and admired. For most of us success is judged by the accumulation of wealth, prestige and power. But when judged by their level of … Continue reading →

Posted in Character, fame, Success | 1 Comment

Only worry on Wednesday

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

J. Arthur Rank, the English movie mogul, made a decision to do his worrying only on Wednesdays. He would write down his worries, put them in his worry box and forget about them until the following Wednesday. What he found … Continue reading →

Posted in Anxiety, Faith, Overcoming, Positive Thoughts, Worry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Wealth is in the mind

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

According to the LA Times you need a net worth of ten million dollars to be able to call yourself rich; that’s how much you’d need today to match the lifestyle of the average nineteen twenty five millionaire. Paradoxically, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Blessings, Contentment, Riches, Taking stock, thankfulness, wealth | Leave a comment

Toxic assets

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

The world economic crisis intoduced us to a new type of asset. It’s called a toxic asset. Toxic assets are loans where the value of the security is now less than the amount of the loan. It’s not really an … Continue reading →

Posted in Spiritual blindness, Toxic assets | Leave a comment

‘Just stay in the race’

Posted on September 22, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

When Cecil B. DeMille was making the movie Ben Hur, he decided that Charlton Heston should drive the chariot himself in that great chariot race scene, rather than just using a stunt man double. However, learning to drive a four … Continue reading →

Posted in Living Life, Perseverance, Persistence, Positive Thoughts, Victory, Winning | Leave a comment

‘But the work shall not be wholly lost’

Posted on September 7, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

I like reading the inscriptions on tombstones. Often they speak of sadness, sometimes of futility, and sometimes of hope for something better. Some people even compose their own. Benjamin Franklin was one. The epitaph he wrote for himself says: ‘The … Continue reading →

Posted in Death, Epitaphs, Hope, Hope of Glory, Life, Life's journey | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Tread softly

Posted on September 7, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s a wonderful line in one of Yeats’ poems that says: ‘Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.’ I used to remind myself of these words when my daughters were in their teens and were full of wonderful ideas … Continue reading →

Posted in Dreams, Hope, inner yearning, Kingdom of God, Living Life, Spirituality | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The two adventures

Posted on September 7, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

Dr Paul Tournier says that within each of us is an instinct for adventure. It takes different forms in different people, but it’s the thing that makes life worth living. However, he also says that ultimately there are only two … Continue reading →

Posted in Accomplishments, Achievement, Adventure, Life, Life's journey, Living Life | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment