The man who wins is an average man,
Not built on any particular plan;
Not blessed with any particular luck,
Just steady and earnest and full of pluck.
The man who wins is the man who works,
Who neither labour nor trouble shirks;
Who uses his hands, his head, his eyes.
The man who wins is the man who tries. (Anon)
I remember (a few years ago now!) walking two of my young children to school today and on the way we found a bright new shiny penny on the pavement. My daughter, Kimberley, picked it up and I quoted this old rhyme to her: “See a penny, pick it up, and all day long you’ll have good luck.” She was absolutely thrilled at the thought of further ‘good fortune’ coming her way, and I was simply amazed at how much glee a single penny could bring.
Then I got to thinking about deliberately dropping a penny myself in the hope that some other person would find it and maybe it would bring a happy thought or a smile to their face too. As the idea took hold, I figured what a small price it was to pay – a penny – if it produced a fleeting ray of sunshine or a glimmer of good fortune to another. And so a little later in the day I took the idea one-step further. I went to the bank and changed a £1 coin into 100 bright new shiny pennies. Then I silently blessed my bag of coins and prayed that each one might produce a small blessing to the unknown but fortunate people who found them. The next day, with my children, we travelled around the town accidentally on purpose dropping or planting shiny new pennies wherever we went. I have to tell you, it was wonderful fun and I think that was the best £1 I have ever spent!
R. Ian Seymour
‘Lucky’ coincidences are just God’s way of staying anonymous.
Good Luck is not simply happenchance; good luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.
“Depend on the rabbit’s foot if you will, but remember it didn’t work for the rabbit.”
attributed to R.E. Shay
The race is not to the swift
or the battle to the strong,
nor does food come to the wise
or wealth to the brilliant
or favour to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 NIVUK
May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children. May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Psalm 115:14-15 NIV
Psalm 5:11-12 (NIVUK) says: “But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favour as with a shield.”
…I pray for good fortune in everything you do, and for your good health—that your everyday affairs prosper, as well as your soul!
3 John 1:1 MSG
The people at the top of the mountain didn’t just fall there!
A biologist once observed that the likelihood of the world being produced by chance or ‘good fortune’ is about as great as that of an explosion in a printing shop producing the complete works of William Shakespeare!
Good luck to you, and may the best day of your past be the worst day of your future.
Irish farewell
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-25 NIV
He worked by day and toiled by night,
He gave up play and warm sunlight.
Dry books he read new things to learn,
And forged ahead success to earn.
He plotted on with faith and puck,
And when he won, they called it LUCK! (Anon)
“I find that the harder I work the more luck I seem to have.”
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), 3rd President of United States
As a Bible believer, here are three words that should not be in your vocabulary: luck, coincidence and fate. Replace them instead with the word providence, which means ‘to see in advance and to provide for’. The Westminster Confession of Faith, written in the seventeenth century, states: ‘God the great creator of all things doth uphold, direct, dispose and govern all creatures, actions and things from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence.’ That means God is in charge, not us!
Bob Gass
Source: The UCB The UCB Word For Today, 28/10/19
On NBC’s Tonight Show, Johnny Carson read an item from the lost-and-found column of a Midwestern newspaper: “Lost dog–brown fur, some missing due to mange, blind in one eye, deaf, lame leg due to recent traffic accident, slightly arthritic. Goes by the name of ‘Lucky.’”
L.U.C.K. is an acronym for Labour Under Correct Knowledge.
“Success is a matter of luck. If you want proof, ask any failure.”
Earl Wilson, American baseball star
Wait for luck and it will pass you by because waiting for luck is unlucky.
May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
the rains fall soft upon your fields and,
until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of his hand.
An old Irish blessing