Chance

I've been thinking about that word a lot. What does that word really mean? Well according to the dictionary:

chance

n.

1. 1. The unknown and unpredictable element in happenings that seems to have no assignable cause.
   2. A force assumed to cause events that cannot be foreseen or controlled; luck: Chance will determine the outcome.
2. The likelihood of something happening; possibility or probability. Often used in the plural: Chances are good that you will win. Is there any chance of rain?
3. An accidental or unpredictable event.
4. A favorable set of circumstances; an opportunity: a chance to escape.
5. A risk or hazard; a gamble: took a chance that the ice would hold me.
6. Games. A raffle or lottery ticket.
7. Baseball. An opportunity to make a putout or an assist that counts as an error if unsuccessful.

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I so often think if I just had a chance (opportunity) or what were the chances of that (unknown and unpredictable).

Where does God fit into chance? Does He fit into it? Or does God and believing in Him and in His plan for me remove all 'chance' from my life? Does His plan dictate my 'chances'?

For example, there is a guy that I would just like a chance to get to know. Will any effort that I make, make a difference or is it already laid out in God's plan what is going to happen? Do I keep taking the opportunities that present themselves and visit with this guy in the hopes that the unexpected will happen? Or do I just stand back, on the sidelines, believing that there is nothing unpredictable and that no matter what I do, it's going to turn out how God has planned...so whether I put myself out there to get to know this guy or I sit back and wait it out - the outcome is going to be the same.

I don't know. I don't like putting myself out there because I've done it to many times and been hurt or disappointed. I don't like having hope because that makes me vulnerable. I don't like taking risks with my heart because that opens the door for failure.

BUT

I don't like being alone. I don't like sitting on the sidelines because that leaves me out of the action. I don't like NOT taking risks because that leaves no chance for success. I don't want to become hopeless because that leaves no room for love.

So, is it possible that chance (both opportunity and unexpected) can and does co-exist with God? Is it possible that God has a plan and part of it is me taking chances? Is it possible that the outcome would be the same no matter what but I will be different for having taken chances and opportunities and opened my heart to the possibility of the unexpected?

I think it just might be....