"For we walk by
faith, not by sight." (2 Cor. 5:7 NKJV)
She entered the gate, but never made it beyond the
bingo tent.
My maternal grandmother rarely ventured far beyond
her homestead in Vance, SC, but the Orangeburg County Fair was one place she
never missed. My grandfather entered the gate, visited the livestock barn
(He was a farmer.), and then meandered to the Pavilion building where he
sat, watched people, and waited on my grandmother--who was next door playing
bingo.
What the chances were of having a winning card,
I'm not sure, but my grandmother counted on the fact she might have it. For
hours, she listened as the announcer called out numbers, hoping she could
shout, "Bingo." I'm sure she won a prize occasionally, but bingo wasn't the
only way she lived by luck. Superstitions and old wives' tales peppered her
life's beliefs. Although she was a woman of faith, she made many a decision
based on superstition--what she considered luck. How she reconciled the two
in her mind, I never understood.
Fortunately, Mom didn't adopt her style of living,
so the things my grandmother believed became humorous to me and my family.
Mom and Dad taught us to live by faith, not superstition or luck.
According to Paul, living by faith is the correct
way. Since meeting the risen Christ on the Damascus Road, he lived by faith.
Prior to that time, he depended on ceremonies and laws to gain God's
approval--which never worked. Now, he relied on faith.
Luck has no part in the believer's life. I may
say, "I'm feeling lucky," when I play a game, but deep inside I don't
believe in luck. Luck relates to chance, and the Bible doesn't teach that
things happen by chance.
God controls everyone's life whether they
acknowledge or believe it or not. I choose to believe it. Everything
entering my life comes from God directly or is filtered through His
permissive will. Whether or not I understand the events is immaterial.
God promises to bring good out of all things for
those who follow Him. Through the periods of faith stretching He sends--and
through the trials He permits--good erupts. Luck, or chance, doesn't enter
the picture. Rather, He guides events by His loving hand.
Don't try to live life by something that doesn't
exist. Live by faith in a loving God.
Martin Wiles
Managing Editor, Christian Devotions
Proof Editor, Courier Publishing
Author, Grits, Gumbo, and Going to Church and
Grits & Grace & God,
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