You can’t turn the clock back

Posted on September 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

Police in Idaho a few years ago received a number of calls from residents of a certain neighbourhood about a car that was being driven round their streets in reverse. They went to investigate and found the car just as they’d been told. The driver turned out to be a teenage girl. When the cops asked her what on earth she was doing, she explained that her parents had gone away for a few days and had left her the car keys just in case she had to use it. Well, temptation had got the better of her and she’d used it a great deal. Then she realised she’d be in trouble when her father noticed how many extra miles were now on the odometer, so she’d been driving backwards hoping to wind the clock back.
But one of the essential truths of life is that you can’t turn the clock back, only admit what you’ve done and seek forgiveness.

Posted in Forgiveness, Futility, Guilt, Judgement | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Second Chance

Posted on September 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

We talk rather glibly about forgiving and forgetting, but Thomas Edison, having come up with a plan to create the world’s first light bulb, worked for twenty four hours straight with a team of men to get the first one ready for testing. When he finally had it ready to go, he gave it to a young boy helper, who nervously carried it up the stairs, step by step, watching his hands, scared lest he should drop this priceless piece of work. Well, you’ve probably guessed what happened – he got to the top of the stairs and then dropped it. It took Edison and his entire team another twenty-four hours to make another bulb. Finally, exhausted and ready for a break, Edison had his bulb carried up the stairs again. And do you know what he did? He gave it to the same boy who dropped the first one. That’s true forgiveness – giving an offender another chance. It’s the way God forgives us.

Posted in Forgiveness, Generous spirit, God, Grace, Second chance | Tagged | Leave a comment

Oysters and eagles

Posted on September 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

Morris Mandel, commenting on our very human desire for security, said: ‘When God made the oyster, he guaranteed his absolute economic and social security. He built the oyster a house, his shell, to shelter and protect him from his enemies. When hungry, the oyster simply opens his shell and food rushes in for him. He has freedom from want.
But when God made the eagle he declared: “The blue sky is the limit – build your own house!” So the eagle built on the highest mountain. Storms threaten him every day. For food he flies through miles of rain and snow and wind…’
The question is: which would you sooner have as the symbol of your life: an oyster or an eagle? No wonder the Bible says : ‘Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.’

Posted in Aspiration, Comfort Zone, Life's journey, Living Life, Love of the easy way, Purpose in life, Self Image, Trials and testings | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Not perfect; just forgiven.

Posted on September 24, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

Watchman Nee, one of the best known leaders of the secret underground church in China during the great persecutions of Mao Tse Tung, told about a new convert who came in deep distress to see him. ‘No matter how much I pray,’ he said; ‘no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot seem to be faithful to my Lord. I think I’m losing my salvation.’
Nee said, ‘Do you see this dog here? He is my dog. He is house-trained; he never makes a mess; he is obedient; he is a pure delight to me. Out in the kitchen I have a baby son. He makes a mess, he throws his food around, he fouls his clothes, he is a total mess. But who is going to inherit my kingdom? Not my dog; my son is my heir. You are Jesus Christ’s heir because it is for you that He died.’ So let’s remember that we are Christ’s heirs, not through our perfection but because of His love.

Posted in Childlike faith, Children of God, Doubt, Forgiveness, Grace, Heirs of God, Kingdom of God | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Today, if you hear His voice

Posted on September 17, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s an old legend about a holy man doing his morning meditation under a tree, whose roots stretched out over the riverbank. He noticed that the river was rising and a scorpion caught in the roots was about to drown. So he crawled out and reached down to free the scorpion, but every time he did so, the scorpion struck back at him. A man who was watching said, ‘Don’t you know that’s a scorpion, and it’s in his nature to want to sting?’ To which the holy man replied, ‘That may well be, but it is my nature to save, and must I change my nature because the scorpion does not change his?’
That story is also a commentary on what the Bible says about God. No matter how much we try to ensure He keeps his distance, it is in His nature to want to save us from all those things that threaten to destroy us. That’s why the Bible says, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”

Posted in God's nature, Hardened heart, Healing, Righteousness, Salvation, Self Destruction | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How do you know it’s a good thing?

Posted on September 17, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s an old Chinese legend of a farmer whose horse escaped. But he just shrugged and said “How do you know this is a bad thing?” Later his horse returned with a herd of wild horses, and the old man said, “How do you know this is a good thing?” Then, while riding one of the wild horses, his son was thrown and broke his leg. But the old man just said, “How do you know this is a bad thing?” Soon after, a warlord arrived to conscript young men for his army, and the farmer’s son escaped because of his broken leg. The farmer’s response again was: How do you know it’s a good thing?”
The story, of course, can go on forever. The meaning is that good fortune can quickly turn bad and bad fortune may be a blessing in disguise. But for people of faith, the Bible reminds us that “God is at work in all things for our good.”

Posted in Accepting, Attitude, Faith, God, God with us, Life's journey, Luck, Positive Thoughts | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Think yourself to happiness

Posted on September 17, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

“Most people,” said Abraham Lincoln, “Are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Well, that may be an oversimplification, but there is still great truth in it. A positive mental attitude does have a powerful effect on our feeling of wellbeing. I remember a wise old minister from Asia advising me to read the fourth chapter of the book of Philippians in the Bible twice a day for six months, so that its message would permeate my mind and change my way of thinking. “Then,” he said, “You will learn that happiness is not in what you have, but in how you think.
And in the midst of that chapter are these wonderful words; “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, think about such things…and the God of peace will be with you.”

Posted in Faith, God, God with us, Happiness, Living Life, Peace, Personal Growth, Positive Thoughts, thankfulness | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The price of a miracle

Posted on September 17, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

A little girl named Tess once took her money box to her local pharmacy, where the pharmacist was busy talking to a well dressed man. She said she wanted to buy a miracle. He asked her why, and she told him that her little brother was very sick with something growing in his head, and her father had said that only a miracle would save him. The pharmacist was about to tell her he didn’t sell miracles when the well dressed man asked how much money she had. She showed him her handful of coins and he told her that was just enough for a miracle. That man was Dr.Carlton Armstrong, a famous neuro-surgeon, and he operated on the little boy for free and saved his life.
How much does a miracle cost? That one cost one dollar and eleven cents – plus a child’s faith. And it’s childlike faith that is the prerequisite for every miracle.

Posted in Childlike faith, Faith, Good deeds, Mercy, Miracles | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Give me back my songs

Posted on September 11, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

The French have a story about a wealthy man who spent his days counting his gold. Next door was a poor cobbler who spent his days singing as he repaired shoes. The joyful singing irritated the rich man, so he decided to give some gold coins to the cobbler to shut him up. The cobbler was overjoyed. He took the coins and hid them. But then he started to worry, and would keep going back to check if they were still there. But that made him worry even more in case someone had seen him, and so he kept moving them to safer places. Then one day he realized that there was no longer any music in his life. So he went back to the rich man and said, “take back your coins and give me back my songs.”
It’s what Jesus meant when he said, ‘Watch out…your life does not consist in the abundance of your possessions.’

Posted in Joy, Life, Life's journey, Materialism, Misery, Money, Music of life, Possessions, Sleeplessness, wealth, Worry | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Gambling for big stakes

Posted on September 11, 2014 by vincentsmithauthor

A group of atheists have been paying for ads on buses telling people that there might not be a God so stop worrying. Well, believing there is a God who cares for me is the very thing that keeps me from worrying. If I was them I’d worry about the possibility I might be wrong. After all, if they are right then I’ve lost nothing and they gained nothing. But if they are wrong then I’ve gained everything and they may have lost everything. It reminds me of how, on his death bed, Philip Brookes, who wrote the carol O Little Town of Bethlehem, asked his friend Robert Ingersoll – a noted unbeliever – to visit him. When Ingersoll asked the old bishop why he’d only invited him, Brookes replied: ‘You are the only one of my friends I won’t get to see again.’
When you gamble for big stakes it’s smart to keep your options open.

Posted in Atheism, Eternity, Faith, God, Seeking and Finding, Spiritual blindness, Spiritual Insight, Superficial judgements, The God Delusion, Trust in God | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment