Tides of Luck

My sunday school teacher is always saying that her life is not run by tides of luck. Luck is such a natural human inclination, isn't it? We believe that someone is lucky if they live in a big house or drive a fancy car or basically, have anything we would like to have but don't.

But luck is really not a reality, is it? No one is born lucky. Most people born with wealth will have to do some amount of work (or at least some financial planning) in order to keep that wealth. Most people born without those advantages have opportunities along the way to acquire such things (to some extent).

The sunday school teacher mentions this when she talks about God's providence. Sometimes, I'm not even so sure we can trust that. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying I don't trust God. But I do have a lot of questions. The Bible says that God is working out his plan for good for those that love him. I've seen a lot of people who love the Lord have to go through some very tough things. How can God be working for good for everyone who loves him? Good for some is bad for others. We believe in fairness. But God is not fair. In the afterlife, we all have the same shot, but in this one there is no fairness.

And that's where our logic sometimes fails. My children are not even three years old yet and they believe in fairness. I cannot give something to one of them that I don't give to the other. I can't punish one for something and let the same thing slide with the other. They won't accept that. That's why I feel that I can question God a little bit on this one. He has made us to expect fairness, but He doesn't give it to us.

I have two beautiful children. I love them unconditionally. I want the very best for them. I can't afford to provide that all the time. My boss has two children that have never had to wait for anything. They will have all of the advantages that children with money have. They will go to college. They will have a car when they are sixteen. They will always have anything they want.
And as hard as I try, my children will likely not have all those comforts. That's not fair.

However, my having two children is not fair either. Recently, a couple at the church where I work had twins that were born extremely premature--a boy and a girl. They had tried for years to have children with no success. The boy will likely live, but with cerebal palsey. The girl died night before last. That's not fair. These are good people. At least as nice as I am. They are faithful to their church, hard workers and able to provide a home beyond anything I can ever give my children. But here they are, not only unable to have a normal child, but steeped in all this PAIN of losing one and raising a diabled one. It's just not fair. And they have a right to be mad about it. Don't you think?

No, it's not wise to trust tides of luck. And what God promises us is this--He will be with us what ever happens and it will all turn out right in the end. Beyond that, we're on our own.