When describing a fortunate occurrence many people exclaim, "I was lucky!" I did the same thing until a thoughtful Christian finally corrected me. He said, "If you say, 'I was lucky', you credit random fate; but if you say, 'I was blessed', God receives the credit." I have never forgotten that.
The story is told of a town that had a large whiskey distillery. The town also had several churches that were critical of the distillery and its worldly owner. The churches eventually united for a prayer meeting and beseeched God to close the distillery. During the meeting a thunderstorm approached the area, lightning struck the distillery, and it burned to the ground.
Learning about the prayer meeting, the owner of the distillery attempted to sue the churches. He claimed that they had conspired with God to put him out of business. During the trial, representatives from the churches denied any connection with the fire. They attributed the lightning and subsequent fire to "bad luck".
The presiding judge purportedly found the churches innocent of conspiracy to destroy the distillery. However, he concluded the trial with the following remarks. "I find it ironic that the plaintiff, an atheist, professes faith in the power of prayer. Conversely, Christians, who claim faith in God, attribute the lightning and fire to bad luck. It leaves one to wonder who really believes in God."
I'll put my faith in God over "luck" any day.
“Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (Phil. 4:20)
Jesus, always Jesus!
Dennis