It's not luck

Proverbs 16:33 (NLT)
33 We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.

While things may seem to us as casual or out of sheer luck divine providence directs and orders what is to occur. Nothing is left to chance nor is an event determined by the draw of the straw. God’s hand is upon our life directing, guiding and leading.



Great leaders are sure what they should do next. On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson became pro baseball’s first black player when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Branch Rickey was the Dodger’s baseball executive who eventually signed Jackie Robinson. Rickey’s pastor was Wendell Fifield, from the Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims in Brooklyn. (This church, at one time pastored by Henry Ward Beecher, had a history of working with the “underground railroad” to help free slaves.) While Rickey was trying to decide if he should sign Jackie Robinson, he paid a visit to Rev. Fifield. He barged into the pastor’s study and told Fifield, “Don’t let me interrupt. I just want to be here. Do you mind? According to Fifield’s wife June, the two men passed the time without words. The pastor continued his work and Rickey energetically paced the floor, stopping occasionally to look at the pastor’s window. For forty-five minutes he continued pacing, pausing, pacing, and then pausing. Finally, Rickey broke the silence by pounding his fist on the pastor’s desk as he shouted, “I’ve got it!” “Got what, Branch?” the minister asked. Rickey finally relaxed on a chair and told his pastor, “This was so complex, fraught with so many pitfalls but filled with so much good, if it was right, that I just had to work it out in this room with you. I had to talk to God about it and be sure what he wanted me to do. I hope you don’t mind.” “Wendell,” he said, “I’ve decided to sign Jackie Robinson.” Then Rickey straightened his bow tie, donned his hat, and left the room as he said, “Bless you, Wendell.” When a well-known journalist told Rickey that “all hell would break loose” when Jackson took the field, Rickey quietly countered, “I believe all heaven will rejoice.” [Jamie Crawford, "How church helped sign Jackie Robinson to Brooklyn Dodgers," CNN (4-14-11)]

Jackie Robinson didn’t make the Brooklyn Dodgers by luck. Jackie had worked hard to get where he was and Jackie made the team because the Dodger’s baseball executive took time to pray about what was then considered a tough decision. Are you attributing your life to luck or do you see where God is watching after you and answering prayer?