Luck You !

When things go well, some call it luck - especially younger or lazier people. Some call it being in the right place at the right time, which I think is still considered luck. Some think someone is smiling down from heaven, or it's the luck of the Irish or a good luck charm. It could be any or all of these things, but I believe in a good solid plan and hard work. Being industrious is what achieves goals. It sort of pisses me off when people just throw around the "luck" word.

It's easy to say it was luck, or fate. I know putting myself in a certain room was the free will and choice of no one but myself. Looking backward usually always puts things in proper perspective. In hindsight, if I would have postponed or canceled the doctor's appointment on the day he found my cancer, I would have had to hold onto some of the blame. I think everything is based on our free will, our choice to choose in any situation. With our freedoms comes responsibility to our own lives.

Here is one of my favorite stories I used to tell to a classroom full of eighth graders, while being a volunteer religious education teacher. I would begin by asking them if they could pray for an "A" on their next test in school. Some said yes; some of them said no. I told them they could, as long as they studied for the test and knew the material. They were, of course, disgruntled with my answer. I believe God watches over people who consistently do the right thing, so praying for the "A" would be alright, if you studied.

My example for this was an old man who would come into our Church and pray every week, "Please, God. I am on my knees begging - let me win the lottery. It's the only thing I want and the only thing I need." Each and every week, the old man was back at Church and on his knees with his prayer to God. After several months, God got impatient with the old man. One day, the roof opened up and a lightning bolt hit his pew. God answered the old man. "First, you gotta buy a ticket!!!"

We can ask and beg for others to help stop pollution, but first we should be recycling and being cost efficient in our own homes. We can ask our friends to help feed the poor, but only after our tithe is in the till. We can pray for many different horrific things to be different in this world, in our lives, but first we should take every action to back it up. If we don't take the initial step for the many things we want in this life, we are being hypocritical.

The best way to share a cause with me is to let me know how much you're in it for. What have you done to work toward the goal? I have a dear friend, for reasons I will not ask her about, who supports the MS Society. She believes in it with her whole heart. Her annual email asks for a contribution and I always give to it. To collect it, she rides 60+ miles on her bicycle to collect my donation. She believes in her cause enough to push her body to the limit. Being the same age, I know how hard she works to complete this race for her cause.

There are quite a few celebrities who support causes. Some are for good reasons and other are not. I don't bother with most of them, but a few I contribute to because they have put their money or talents where their mouth is. They support their charities enough to give of themselves or some of their proceeds go to their charity. It is much more believable when they "buy the ticket".

I am knee deep in the cause for the Haitian people. I will probably remain in support of them, down to my last dollar and prayer. The Medical Mission people are returning this evening, and I have thought about them all week. We have received short updates throughout the week, but only a minute of the events are retold. The few small tidbits of news we heard were terrible and some were hopeless. I know these people come back scarred with grace. They leave a chunk of them in Haiti, as I did, and there is no retrieving it or being the same person when you return. You are forever changed and because of these volunteers' actions, they are better people - more humbled and wanting to do more. Whatever they ask me for, I do everything I can to help them.

So call it luck, if you want. Call it opportunity. Call it anything you want to call it. But the ripple begins with one small stone. Success, world peace, a clean earth, and everything else in your heart can be hoped for in prayer. The first action toward the goals must begin with our action, even if it is a tiny step toward what we want to see happen. If we're not making life changes towards our prayer, the prayer alone will probably not work. We have to buy the ticket first.