Contingency Plan

It has occurred to me recently that people are afraid of randomness. Scared that things happen randomly, with no purpose. So we assign guilt and justice to those events that can't possibly be random. That someone has unfortunate circumstances because they deserved it or didn't pray hard enough or gave up, and the other guy must have just been higher up on life's scale of "trying really hard".  We sit around and tell ourselves that someone else failing has caused their circumstances. They just didn't fight hard enough.  Humans seem incapable of believing that rewards and punishments show up randomly and without just cause.

This is not to say that faith is unimportant . What's the difference, you might ask? Are those who follow God's will the same as those who fear the random? I don't think so. A faith in God is what may guide you through the random, through the unknown and the terrifying. A faith in God doesn't necessarily mean someone doesn't believe in random events. I think you are still allowed to believe that you were in a car accident just because you were. It doesn't have mean that you are being punished or that God wanted you hurt. Just one event along a lifetime of service.

Equally disturbing to me are sayings such as "It's for the best", or "It's what was meant to be". These inane comments that are drilled into us serve no purpose but to placate the speaker. Do people ever feel comforted by these phrases? If anything they seem to further repress the ability of the listener to actually listen or feel. These phrases actually assign blame, in a  way.

"It's for the best"= "You weren't doing a good enough job"

"It's what was meant to be"= "Why did you try to screw with the plan?"

I think this comes about because we try to take control for the good things that happen. If we get a promotion, it's because we deserved it, it's because we're a fighter, it's because we bested the other person.  But what if the hiring manager woke up one day and arbitrarily promoted you? On no basis whatsoever? That is a terrifying idea to us because it means that bad things can also happen for unaccountable reasons. How arrogant of anyone to decide that they have achieved something based on their own 'will'.