Johnny is in the midst of a long dry spell in Las Vegas. Lost all of his money gambling. Eventually he gambles away all his money and has to borrow a quarter from another gambler just to use the men’s toilet. Now you have to understand that using the toilet facilities require putting a quarter into the slot. This is why he borrowed a quarter. Now guess what. Johnny finds a stall that happens to be open and pockets the quarter.
Believing that his luck has finally changed, he puts the quarter in a slot machine and hits the jackpot. He takes his winnings and goes to the blackjack table and turns his modest winnings into a million dollars.
Wealthy beyond his wildest dreams, Johnny goes on the lecture circuit, where he tells his incredible story. He tells his audiences that he will always be eternally grateful to his benefactor, and if he ever finds the man he will share his fortune with him. After months of speaking, a man in the audience jumps up and says, “I’m that man. I was the one who gave you the quarter.”
“Yes, I remember you well,” Johnny said. “But you aren’t the one I’m looking for. I am looking for the guy who left the toilet door open!”
A businessman was asked this question: Do you believe in luck?
The businessman replied: “I certainly do. How else do you explain the success of those you don’t like?”
Now listen to me carefully.
I DO NOT TRUST IN LUCK AND I DO NOT TRUST IN GOOD FORTUNE.
What about those who got lucky?
Well, even a broken clock is accurate at least 2 times in a day.
I believe in Divine Providence.
And so allow me to tell you this story.
Years ago in Scotland, the Clark family had a dream. The Clarks had worked and saved, making plans for their nine children and themselves to travel to the United States. It had taken years, but they had finally saved enough money and had gotten passports and reservations for the whole family on a new liner to the United States. The entire family was filled with anticipation and excitement about their new life. However, seven days before their departure, the youngest son was bitten by a dog. The doctor sewed up the boy but hung a yellow sheet on the Clarks’ front door. Because of the possibility of rabies, they were being quarantined for 14 days. The family’s dreams were dashed. They would not be able to make the trip to America as they had planned. The father, filled with disappointment and anger, stomped to the dock to watch the ship leave. The father shed tears of disappointment and cursed both his son and God for their misfortune.
Happens to the best of us wouldn’t you agree? We make the plans, we prepare for it and then something unforeseen happen. Most people call this bad luck. But let’s take a look at the rest of the story.
Five days later, the tragic news spread throughout Scotland – the mighty Titanic had sunk. The Clark family was to have been on that ship, but because the son had been bitten by a dog, they were left behind in Scotland. When Mr. Clark heard the news, he hugged his son and thanked him for saving the family. He thanked God for saving their lives and turning what he had felt was a tragedy into a blessing.
When you and I face some great disappointment and question God’s love for us, let this scripture become our prayer, “Ps 143:8, Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.”
And if I were Mr. Clark, I would have hugged the dog too.
So you got laid off? Your business has gone south?
Cancellation of orders? Economic meltdown?
Maybe we have not come to the rest of the story yet… meanwhile… what is God teaching me this time?
Hard times like this, we really have to hang on and let God lead our way. Thanks for the reminder…
how many survived the Titanic?
Sir Francis,
Thanks for the reminder. Truly, one must not be so quick to pass judgment on one’s situation. One must trust God in all things and one must pray for God’s plans in his life…there is no other way. People could make plans but it is the Lord that ensures plans are made into reality particularly those plans that are aligned with God’s plans. May the week be full of blessings from our Lord for you and your family Sir.
God bless,
Kenneth
Thanks again ,Sir, this remind me of how I was employed in my job now. God always strengthen us, so its up to us how we do things .
hi sir francis,
I would like to share a story about our barong-barong Old wooden house,
We owned half of the lot of our house and the other half we are renting it. My mom always plans to do some renovation on our house because it is quite old, but the owner of lot wants to buy his land first before we can do some renovation. Then one day MMDA demolition team came and they want the house to be moved backward or step back. later on we found out that the land we are renting is owned by government.
to cut the story short our house was demolish by MMDA but we were able to build a 3 story builiding without buying the lot that was government owned property.
hi sir francis,
i just want to say thank you for the enlightenment… i am 1 of your participants during your seminar atVSU, Visca, Baybay, Leyte
i can and i will win…. its my choice
God bless
Thanks! I liked the story of the family. This is true and really happens in real life. God is good all the time! =)
thanks sir Francis! Its really inspiring.
To paraphrase a saying, when a door closes look for a window. When we are in a tight fix, don’t get fixated on the bad things, look around for something that can alleviate our situation.
Thanks, Sir Francis for reminding us how God loves us.
“It just happens, i don’t think their a logical explanation for it, if i had to take a guess i guess men live shorter then women?”