What we dream of may already be around us

Posted on September 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s a story told about a little girl who lived in a very humble home and used to gaze wonderingly at a house on a far-away hill, whose windows, every morning, would shine with a golden light. Years later, when she got her first bike, she went to see that house, riding up the steep hill on the far side of the valley until she reached it. But by the time she got there it was afternoon, and the morning sun no longer reflected off its windows, which were actually rather plain and dirty, and the house itself was derelict. Disappointed, she looked back across the valley, and saw the light of the setting sun flashing off the golden windows of another house. It was then that she realised that it was her house, and that everything she’d been dreaming of had always been there, all around her.
Maybe that’s true of us too.

Posted in Contentment, Disatisfaction, Dreams | Leave a comment

Sometimes the cure is worse than the complaint

Posted on September 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

While living in a remote part of Australia’s Northern territory I learned that bushmen will only ever eat flying fox in the direst circumstances, because its vile smell permeates the body of the person who eats it. The one good thing, though, is that its repulsive smell keeps the mosquitos away. Someone told me about a boatload of bushmen on the Daly River who, one night, were being eaten alive by mosquitoes. They gave a ride to a boy who had been eating flying fox. The mosquitoes immediately departed and left them in peace. But as soon as they were able they put the boy ashore and thankfully took back the mosquitoes.
Sometimes the cure is worse than the complaint. It reminds me of that old Bible wisdom that says: ‘Be relaxed with what you have’ and ‘Beware, lest a worse thing come upon you.’

Posted in Contentment | Leave a comment

No one laughed at her anymore

Posted on September 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Children can often be cruel to another child who is different, and sometimes they can be wonderful too. A teacher told about having a girl in her class who had special needs. One day she overheard some of the boys telling that girl that there was gold in a puddle of mud at the side of the road. She immediately ran over to it and began splashing in it, looking for the gold. The group of boys thought it was a great joke, until another boy from that class – one they all admired – quietly went over and started playing in the mud too. No one laughed at her anymore.
It reminds me of something Jesus said about how our attitude to people who get laughed at or looked down on actually reflects our attitude to God: ‘What you do to the least of these,’ he said, ‘is what you are doing to me.’

Posted in children, Christlikeness, Compassion, Cruelty | Leave a comment

‘God, who sees in secret will reward you openly.’

Posted on September 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Emil Zatopek, the only man ever to win Olympic gold in the 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres and marathon, had enormous respect for Australia’s Ron Clark who, though he’d broken many of Zatopek’s records, had never won Olympic gold. The two of them met on one occasion, and as they said goodbye, Emil gave Ron a small parcel and told him that he was giving it to him, not because they were friends, but because Ron deserved it. Well, after the plane had taken off, Ron opened the parcel. In it was Zatopek’s 10,000 metre gold medal, but now inscribed with Ron’s name.
Many of us slog our way through life, giving of our best, but seemingly unnoticed and unrewarded. But like Emil Zatopek ‘God, who sees in secret,’ as Jesus said, ‘will reward you openly.’

Posted in Faithfulness, God, Reward | Leave a comment

Belief or unbelief – it’s an act of faith

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

I never cease to be amazed by the arrogance of those who contemptuously dismiss people who believe in God as being intellectually deficient in comparison with their superior intelligence. Whichever way you look at the origin of all that exists you are left with one of two choices: either you accept that there’s an intelligence infinitely greater than our miniscule understanding of all that is, or you accept that once there was absolutely nothing, and nothing happened to the nothing until the nothing suddenly exploded, for no reason, creating everything and everywhere. Then a bunch of the exploding everything somehow rearranged itself, for no reason whatsoever, into self-replicating bits, which then turned into us and everything else.
Either way, believing it is an act of faith

Posted in Agnosticism, Atheism, Believing, creation, Divine intelligence, Faith | Leave a comment

The story may start with prejudice … but

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s a tendency to discount the Bible because of odd verses in the Old Testament that don’t fit modern ideas. But one of the basic rules of understanding is that you have to look at the whole story, not just isolated parts. So, for example, the Moabites were considered the enemies of God, but then comes the story of Ruth, the Moabite, who became a heroine and the grandmother of King David. Likewise, the people of Uz were said to be evil. But then comes the story of Job, from Uz, ‘the most righteous man on earth.’ God’s people were supposed to hate Samaritans, but Jesus told a story about a Good Samaritan whose goodness put everyone else to shame.
The message is clear, the story may start with prejudice and animosity; but the Spirit of Jesus moves us to openness, welcome, and acceptance.

Posted in Acceptance, Bible, Bigotry, Bitterness, Goodness, Gospel, Grace, Jesus | Leave a comment

Nobility of spirit

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

For many people the highest honour in sport is not Olympic gold but the Pierre de Coubertin International Fair Play Trophy, named for the founder of the modern Olympics. It’s awarded to players who demonstrate nobility of spirit. The first award went to Eugenio Monti, an Italian bobsledder at the Innsbruck Olympics. After his final run he led the field, and the only other contender for gold was Britain’s Tony Nash. But as Nash prepared for his final run, a bolt in his bobsled snapped. Monti immediately took the equivalent bolt from his own sled and sent it to him. Nash fixed his sled and went on to win gold. But the name that will be forever remembered is Eugenio Monti.
The Bible reminds us that eventually all our earthly glory will be forgotten and the only thing that will remain will be our character.

Posted in Nobility, Selflessness, True greatness | Tagged | Leave a comment

A fifth-rate planet revolving around a tenth-rate sun

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Earth has been described as ‘a fifth-rate planet revolving around a tenth-rate sun in the forgotten corner of the universe.’ The more we learn about the immensity of Space the tinier and more insignificant our part of the Universe seems – and Earth seems nothing more than a speck of cosmic dust. It’s no wonder that thinking people have questioned the idea that God could have any interest in it, let alone us. Even King David in one of his psalms said: ‘when I consider your heavens…the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him.’
Yet Jesus taught that each of us is not only known to God, but infinitely precious to God. ‘Even the hairs on you head are numbered’ was the way he put it. But it all remains a mystery until we personally reach out to Him, then we just know it.

Posted in creation, God, God with us, God's love, Universe | Leave a comment

No pockets in a dead man’s suit

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Ray Stedman, setting off an extended speaking tour, had the misfortune of having an airline lose his baggage; so he went to an op shop to buy a suit. The salesman led him to a rack of near new suits. ‘They’ve all been cleaned and pressed,’ he said, ‘And they’ve only been used once. We get them from the local mortuary. Not a thing wrong with ’em. Only $25 each.’
Well, Stedman was desperate, so he tried a few on and finally bought two. It was only when he got dressed for his first meeting that he found they had no pockets; just flaps to look like pockets. Then he remembered: dead people don’t carry stuff with them.
It gave a new meaning to the message he preached that night – about how Jesus said: ‘Store your treasure in heaven, where it’s safe; because the only thing you’ll take is what you are.

Posted in Death, Eternity, Life's lessons, Treasure in Heaven | Leave a comment

Focusing the mind on what’s really important

Posted on September 21, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Working in a hospital gives a unique perspective on life. Bronnie Ware, a palliative care nurse, wrote an insightful article about the top five wishes of those who are dying. They are: I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me; I wish I hadn’t worked so hard; I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings; I wish I’d stayed in touch with my friends; and I wish that I’d let myself be happier.
Well, dying isn’t something we like to think about, but it is the one thing in life we can be sure of; and it certainly focuses the mind on what’s really important. Macabre though it may seem, perhaps we’d all be better off if we were to remember each morning that this day could be our last, and to focus on the only things we’ll take with us: faith, hope and love.

Posted in Focusing, Life, Life's journey, Life's lessons | Leave a comment