Discussing
The Chicago Cubs: Suffering to be Good

In baseball as in the Christian life, there is no goodness without struggle. Just look at the Chicago Cubs.

I have to say this was a poignant little article and I couldn't agree more. However, you must never say things like "might lead them to the joy of a World Series banner", that just lends itself to a jinx. Please, anyone who reads this say a quick prayer for the Cubs that at the very least we see them win the NL pennant. Just the pennant. Joshua, It seems we both have suffered long with our teams, but thank the Lord we weren't raised Cardinals fans. I've watch this team for over forty years now and it does make me think of God's timing in life. Go Cubs!

P.S. If you comment please nothing about the Cubs making or winning the World Series to avoid any kind of jinx. No negative comments about the Cubs would also be appreciated.

In Reply to The Elk (comment #29308)
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Amen!

Sorry I have to just comment on the jinx thing. I do not believe in jinxes nor do I believe in luck. With both of these things I know not where they come from or where they originate. Is God our Father not the giver of blessings and the determiner of our lives and future? He gives us what we need when we need it. Our needs do not come suddenly out of the air, or fall from the sky, or from rubbing a lamp. They ALL come from God. Everything is in His control and there is nothing that does not happen without His approval. It seems that many sports fans have a belief in "jinxes". Do we really think that anything "we do" or "do not do" will cause a different outcome? God has the last say on "all" outcomes. We are powerless without Him in our lives. We cannot do anything to change even one hair of our head let alone the outcome of a baseball teams' season. Besides if jinxes could change the outcome of sports games and seasons, would there not be thousands of specialized professional "jinxers" hired by these teams to constantly work at jinxing the opposing teams? It would no longer have anything to do with skill and ability at playing baseball, it would be how good of a "jinx team" you have on your side! Just had to have my say. God bless all of you and may He be the determiner of the end result of our lives and may it not just be left to some kind of fate, luck, or any other haphazard method of determining our "forever". I would so much the more rather put my life in His hands than any other thing in the universe.

Excellent article... I don't believe in "jinxes". They are silly. You make your own "luck" with hard work and good management and planning. A few years ago I met Terry Pluto the sports writer from the Cleveland Plain Dealer who the book, "The Curse of Rocky Colavito" about the woes of the Cleveland Indians that almost match those of the Cubs. I asked him in person, "Do you really believe in curses?" He said, "No. The Cleveland team made bad personnel and management decisions in the 1960s and that affected the team for a long time. MLB is a business that does not exist for the welfare of the fans or the community. We should not define our worth based upon the fortunes of our hometown teams. Now imagine the apocalyptic comparisons that might occur if somehow these two long-suffering teams, the Cubs and the Indians, were to meet in the World Series?

Looks like ThinkChrstian didn't jinx the Cubs after all ... :-)

From the Merriam Webster Dictionary
jinx
noun \ˈjiŋ(k)s\
: someone or something that causes bad luck; also : a state or period of bad luck caused by a jinx

When I think of God I know who He is, where He is, and what He is. When I think of luck, or jinxes, I have no idea of where they come from. Do they come from the sky or from the ground or just appear at random somewhere sometime for no real or apparent reason or... do they really only originate in our minds?

If we truly believe in God we will know that He "IS" in control of everything! I can't believe that He plays around with us by allowing an uncontrolled phenomenon like jinxes or luck to randomly occur in our lives. When things happen to us it is not luck or jinxes that are occurring, these are blessings given or blessings removed according to our relationship with God, our needs, and/or according to God's will.

If people's words and thoughts really had an influence on the outcome of something then we would certainly be just like God! But... we are not, so therefore in reality we actually cannot influence "anything" with our words or thoughts.

Jinxes and luck fall into the realm of black cats, breaking mirrors, walking under ladders etc., superstitions to be exact. Things we "believe" occur from some unseen force/s that negatively influence our lives, except in the case of good luck which I still cannot understand where in the universe is comes from.

To believe these types of things brings us into the realm of witchcraft and basically this is what witchcraft tries to do. Influence positively or negatively someone or something by the use of chants, words, actions, and such.

You cannot serve God and mammon - you must serve one or the other. God will answer our prayers one way or the other but I am not so sure that we can answer our own but what we think, do or say.

In this case I would choose to believe and trust in the Creator of all, Who has the power and control over everything, Who is the "ONLY" force that has the ability to influence anything and everything, to bless the Cubs this year with His Grace. And that His blessing them would ultimately bring glory to God Himself first and foremost, and for His purposes and furtherance of His kingdom, and not just for the Cubs glory or for our own desires or wants!

Yes God works in His time but it is often according to how we are in relationship to Him. What are our priorities and where do our desires truly reside is the question. The answer is simple really and there is no need to look anywhere else than to God for the answer.

2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Joshua your article did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So from this day forward if you could write an article about the Cubs on 10/10 around the same time of day it would be greatly appreciated.