Have you ever noticed how life is not very random?  That is, certain things seem to happen over and over with greater frequency than other things.

For me it is often red lights at intersections.  More often than not, it seems, a traffic light will turn red, stopping me as I approach the intersection.  How random is that?  Mathematicians argue that it might be perfectly random.  They say that randomness does not rule out repeating patterns.

Of course, in the case of a traffic light, there are several factors at work that do not promote randomness anyway.  One is the speed that I tend to drive.  If I tend to drive just above the posted limit, that could result in me getting more red lights than green, if the lights are set up to facilitate traffic flow at a certain speed.

Those are two very big factors.  Even if the lights are not specifically set to keep traffic flowing at a given speed, they would be set to change at a certain time.  There may be a default factory setting, for example, to change every 30 seconds or every minute.  My speed, which often hovers just below 40 in a 35 mph zone, would tend to bring me to the same intersections at very nearly the same time.

In other words, there are certain patterns built into my environment, and certain patterns at work in my behavior.  Neither of these patterns are created for the purpose of producing random results.

Engineers, either at the factory or employed by the city, are not setting timers on lights to produce random results in traffic. Hopefully, the intent is to assist the smooth flow of traffic. And my driving speed is governed by my habit of trying to get from point A to point B as fast as possible.  My habit of pushing the speed limit is not rooted in a desire to experience random results at every intersection.

With these two things in mind, I should not be surprised if I tend to reach intersections just as the light is changing to red.  I should actually expect the results to be much the same every time.

The only way to change the results is for one or both of the factors to change.  I have no direct influence over the timing of traffic lights in any city.  The only part of the equation I can change is my own behavior.  I can alter my driving speed.

Red lights at intersections are not the only things that can seem to be set against us.  We may notice repeating patterns in relationships, in our work performance, in our personal or business money flow.  If these other patterns seem to be set against us, then we might want to consider our own contributions to the patterns and their undesirable results.

The Bible is valuable because it reveals human patterns of behavior over many generations, and many centuries.  It also shows the results of that behavior.  The patterns of human behavior in any generation are all too predictable.  Likewise, the results are also predictable.

It was the great physicist, Albert Einstein, who said, “God does not play dice with the universe.”  In other words, we do not live in a universe where things simply happen at random, with no reason or cause.

God has designed the entire universe (including the apparent chaos observed in storms and earthquakes, etc.) to function in a meaningful or reasonable manner.  The universe behaves in observable and predictable ways.  What may seem, at first, to be beyond all explanation eventually proves to be rooted in rational causes after all.

The same holds true with human life.  Disease and economic ruin, broken relationships and unhappy lives are not random events but predictable results.  Certain kinds of human behavior tend to result in better living and greater peace and happiness, while other patterns of behavior produces more undesirable results.

The Ten Commandments, for example, act as a red light to certain human actions and attitudes which have been proven to nearly always produce negative results.  Murder leads to more murder, and even war.  Adultery leads to shattered lives and great sorrow for everyone concerned.  Stealing results in conflict, violence and even death.  And so on, down the line.

Even the command to have no other gods is central to human happiness.  Only the true and living God is truly God.  He alone can give us the “outside” help we often need to get through confusing circumstances.  He created the universe, the earth itself and the living creatures that live here.  He knows what will lead to happiness and peace of mind, and he knows what leads to ruin and sorrow for generations.

We cannot change God.  We are not able to truly change the universe, or even the planet we live on indefinitely.  But we can change our own way of approaching life.  Maybe not overnight.  But we can choose a better path, and start walking down that path.  We can choose wisdom over chaos and continued confusion.  We can choose peace over war and conflict.  We can choose honesty and genuine effort over stupidity and repeated failure and loss.

God not only created the universe in which we live, but He has revealed eternal and proven truths to us, giving us insight into the rules that make for a better life.  We have no excuse when we choose to reject God’s counsel and help.  We would be wise to choose the better path: the path to life and light and joy.

Jim