Oh No Friday The 13th!

Are you superstitious? Some people can really get hung up on things like black cats and broken mirrors. It is amazing how much faith we put in what man has to say and how little we rely upon what God says. Paul had an occasion to spend some time in Athens and as he was there, at a place called Mars Hill, he noticed all of the idols to the false gods of man's making. His comment was that they were "too superstitious" . (Acts 17:22) I would not have thought of them as being superstitious, but rather idolaters. But, I guess Paul had some insight that helps us see their real problem, which was that they listened to man rather than God. I remember when I was in high school and we were given an assignment to talk with our family and gather as many superstitions as possible. When I asked my uncle, I knew I had uncovered a gold mine. I got writers cramp. I didn't think of it at the time, but since then I have come to realize that all of these fateful superstitions had a beginning. Somewhere along the way a person decided that it was bad luck to open an umbrella in the house. Maybe it was because he knocked over a lamp when he did so? Why is it that people go to a Chinese restaurant, then by lottery tickets based upon their "lucky numbers" in the fortune cookie? Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived says in Prov 3:5 "trust in the Lord with all of thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding". Now there are some words to live by.