Giving Credit Where Its Due

Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity (Seneca)

You learn something new every day.

I love that statement.  I wish I took it more seriously, especially as a tutor you’d have thought it would be a maxim that I applied with the vigour of a man most vigorous.  Honesty says that I get caught up in things and miss some useful nuggets that God leaves for me to enjoy.  Thankfully today was not one of these days.

The session was cooking on gas, my one-liners were flowing like the sweet tropical Lucozade for which I am known for consuming on special occasions.  To say I was on form was to state the obvious as much as saying that day follows night. For these to work obviously the learners have to kind of be into it.  They were. Not necessarily hanging on every word I said, but keeping awake long enough to laugh at the second joke! After the session I had an opportunity to talk to one of the learners and we conversed on things that covered a wide gamut of issues from music to faith to education and that kind of stuff.  I had watched Law & Order: Criminal Intent the night before and some quotes from there had been embedded in me head.  One of them spoke about something I have a huge issue with.

What lead to that reference was understanding that this learner was an agnostic – the issue of spirituality was important to him and he accepted the reality of spirituality, but he did not want to be tied to the claims and baggage of religion.  As a result he didn’t have a problem believing that in some situations he was just plain lucky or unlucky.  That is when I shared the quote at the top.  When I shared it, I had no idea that it was from the guy Seneca – that’s what I learnt today you see.

Looking at that quote got me to consider once again my problem with luck.  When I hear people talk of luck they use it to describe circumstances for which no other explanation can be given.  The striker hits the ball superbly well it is heading for the net with the goalie well and truly beaten and yet it hits the crossbar.  People moan at how unlucky the striker was.  Nothing can explain that, apparently, and so because that ‘little bit of luck’ is needed to succeed, we are happy to give credit to the great unknown – forces beyond our control that we are happy to just call ‘luck’.

It’s no surprise if you’ve checked this blog out for a bit, my trust is in God.  I don’t believe anything happens on His watch that He is not aware of.  When stuff happens He has obviously prepared for the opportunity to exist for this great ‘unknown’ happening to take place.  Now with Seneca’s quote you might get the impression that it’s a bit like the Arnold Palmer quote where he says the harder he practises, the luckier he gets, as though it is within our control to ‘make our own luck’.  This again, however, misses the point.  Even that which we have to prepare with and grow in is a gift from God – it is an opportunity God has presented, it is a gift God has presented, it is to Him that glory belongs for all that is good comes from Him.

So it makes no sense to give credit to any other source known or unknown.

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

dmcd