Luck or grace?

[ArmsMerchant]

This issue has been debated before, but it is such a key issue, I think it merits more discussion. Here's my position.

In my book, there is no such thing as luck. There are no coincidences, no accidents--everything happens for a reason. Even events which seem painful at the time work out in the long run to be in our own best interests. To put it theistically, God does not make mistakes. Some people dismiss this as wishy-washy, airy-fairy New Age bullshit.

I think it is what Jesus was talking about when he said "Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven--all else will be added unto thee." In other words, pay attention to your piriutal side and the material stuff will take care of itself.

Deepak Chopra said much the same thing in his book Power, Freedom, and Grace. I think he said something like, when you are in touch with your inner self (which is just another word for God, or the kingdom of God), the universe itself conspires to give you what you desire. (NOT, however, what you want. We push away what we want, and atteract what we fear.)

My wife calls this "living in the flow," but I don't think she originated the phrase. But as she puts it "I have a deal with the universe. I do my best, and in return, I get everyting I need."

In toher threads, I have listed dozenas of things that just seemed to fall into my lap, and some people dismiss them all as coincidence. But these sorts of things have happened so often that the odds by now are way past astronomical.

The latest was this morning. lately, it has been too cold to drive, and when it warmed up yesterday, my car broke down. My car is now in the shop, so I hitch hiked to the library. I stood by the highway for less than a minute before I got picked up, and the guy drove almost ten miles out of his way to take me straight to the library.