I caught a vivid glimpse during a tennis match this weekend into why holding what I call a “lottery mentality,” can be detrimental to health, success and progress.
For years, I’ve believed that buying lottery tickets and gambling as a routine habit is harmful to one’s well being. Aside from the obvious impact of giving away all your money, with little or no return, there is the element of cultivating faith in chance that has a dark downside. But I’ve often been short on examples to prove this.
This weekend, though, while serving in a tie-break for a match, I was taught exactly why strong faith in chance can be dangerous.
My partner and I had split sets with our opponents, and we had gone into a 10 by 2 tie-break for the entire match. The scores were very close the third set, and every point counted.
On a crucial serve, I doubled faulted. If you know tennis, you DO NOT double fault on a crucial serve. You use a second serve that you are confident will absolutely go in.
After I mentally hit myself over the head for making such a dumb mistake, a little voice echoed, “Well, you took a chance and lost.”
“I took a chance!” That was exactly right. I used a serve that might have been a winner if it had gone in, but if I would have stopped long enough to think about it, I knew there was a 20% chance it would go out. I didn’t know that serve to perfection!
“I took a chance. And I lost.”
These words boomed in my metaphysical echo chamber. I searched for the spiritual lesson I needed to learn, and I quickly got it.
You do not take chances on important things in life, especially if you can eliminate the risk and guarantee the outcome.
I took a chance, and failed, and I didn’t have to. I could have acted more intelligently, eliminated the chance, and got my serve in if I had thought more clearly about my actions ahead of time.
Yes, yes, I know many people would argue they “took a chance,” and obtained their goal. I’ve done that too. But I know of a whole lot more that “took a chance,” and failed.
(I learn more about life than I do about tennis during these matches. Perhaps, that’s why I keep playing…)
Why had I taken a chance when I didn’t have too? I quizzed.
I decided it was because my thinking was prone to taking chances to some degree, and that tendency surfaced when I chose my serve. The tendency to “take a chance,” overrode a more sensible decision.
The voice within boomed, “This is why you don’t play the lottery!!!”
“What?” I asked back!
And the voice continued… To play the lottery is to put great faith in chance. A player knows the odds of winning are stacked against him immensely, but he keeps putting out more and more money because he has hope in chance. His faith in chance is greater than his faith in sound intelligent reasoning. And yes, the news media will headline the occasional winner…but it also fails to report the millions and millions of losers.
To cultivate faith in chance can’t help but cultivate faith in chance with all decision-making in one’s life.
For example, the person who has faith in chance might be a good driver for the most part on the highway, taking chances now and then, and surviving. But then he takes the one chance that turns fatal.
And what about prayer? The person who has faith in chance may have a problem and think, “I could pray about this and see what might happen.” It’s probable that his faith in chance would dilute the effectiveness of his prayer. Chance implies risk, success and/or failure. The prayer influenced by faith in chance will be a weak prayer. It will not be an absolute faith in God.
You might have your own examples that illustrate the downside of believing in chance. I’d love to read about them. I’m sure there are hundreds.
Eliminating any acts of chance from one’s life is a long run project. There are probably countless “little chances” we take everyday without even noticing. So, its’ getting a handle on the big stuff that should most concern us. The little stuff will fade along with it.
Life is not a chance. Good is not a chance. Health is not a chance. God is an absolute entity, power and source of supply. The more we build faith in the absolute goodness and nearness of God, the less faith we have in chance. Health will not feel susceptible to loss, and supply will not feel vulnerable to economic swings. God gives us what we need, direct from a spiritual source, and there is no material factor that can aid us or deprive us. Understanding this to be true eliminates suggestions to “take a chance,” when we don’t need to. Understanding the truth about God assures us that we already have whatever chance promises to provide. It comes from God, and it is freely given.
And this includes the intelligence and sound reasoning to choose the correct serve in a crucial tie-break!
I hope this view of Truth helps my tennis game…I’m sure it will…
Smiles…
Isn’t the stock market a “chance”? A little like playing the lottery? In these uncertain times wouldn’t it be better to invest in something that has a guaranteed result, like bonds? Just my thoughts.
My understanding and experience with the stock market is, that those who understand how to make wise investment choices and based upon wise investing principles, do well in the stock market over the long run. Those who are motivated by greed, impatience and a lust for short term gain do poorly over the long run–if they make it that far…
Hi Evan,
All the accumulated wisdom of the thousands of minds working at Bears and Stearns (investment firm that focused on the stock market, not mortgages) was not sufficent to avoid tragic losses. Yes, many were driven by greed… but other than Mind, what human guidance can we rely on for wise investment choices? There are many extremely knowledgable economists (like Craig Roberts, the ‘father of Reganomics’) who will tell you that we are on the brink of an economic disaster worst than the Great Depression. True or not, I think the rules of the past may no longer apply. Please reconsider…
From Wikipedia:
In 2005-2007, Bear Stearns was recognized as the “Most Admired” securities firm in Fortune’s “America’s Most Admired Companies” survey, and second overall in the security firm section. The annual survey is a prestigious ranking of employee talent, quality of management and business innovation. This was the second time in three years that Bear Stearns had achieved this “top” distinction…
Also, correction: the economist’s name is Dr. Paul Craig Roberts.
I am not trying to be argumentative. I am truely concerned about protecting God’s ideas from unneccesary loss. Please understand that my motivation is love.
Oh, I’m with you…I understand what you’re saying. And I agree, these are exceptional times, with exceptional demands in terms of making wise investment decisions. Sometimes the wise decision is to invest differently, or invest in something else…or whatever. In my own prayers, I’m listening for guidance each day and making some significant changes in our family portfolio. I’m striving not to act out of fear, but out of wisdom, asking, What is a wise investment decision to make today? And I listen for an inner voice to guide me. It’s the voice of divine Mind. And I wait until a peace settles in to know whether I’m listening to human fear and worry or the divine leading. If there is no peace, then I have more praying to do. When I find peace, and a spiritual reasoning to back it up, I figure that is a good sign.
Amen. Now is the time to seek divine guidance, and not be comlacent, assuming all will be as it always was. Mind knows the way. We just need to listen and follow. Thanks Evan!