Do we actually believe that God is in control all the time, or do we fall victim to slight dis-belief looking for insurance? Maybe we just accidentally fall into common traditions not realizing we are calling on other forces.
Here are some items I found on the all knowing internet for us to ponder.
Luck
chance considered as a force that causes good or bad things to happen.
Knock on Wood
It derives from the pagan belief that malevolent spirits inhabited wood, and that if you expressed a hope for the future you should touch, or knock on, wood to prevent the spirits from hearing and presumably preventing your hopes from coming true. This phrase is almost like a verbal talisman, designed to ward off bad luck after tempting fate: "Breaking that mirror didn't bring me any trouble, knock on wood."
The fixation on wood may come from old myths about good spirits in trees or from an association with the Christian cross. Similar phrases abound in multiple languages, suggesting that the desire not to upset a spiteful universe is very common.
Bad Luck
A superstition says spilling salt will bring you bad fortune. As legend has it, you should take a pinch of the spilled salt and throw it over your left shoulder to cancel the bad luck. The left shoulder was where the devil was supposed to be sitting and tossing salt in the devil's eyes kept the devil away.
Your response to a sneeze
For many years in the Middle Ages, people believed that when you sneezed, your spirit left your body for a second. So, the thought went, to say "bless you" could bring you back to life and also keep evil spirits from entering you in the instant or two that you were believed to have been gone. I think some people would consider it rude that you don't say something. If not rude, it certainly makes it seem like you don't give a rip about the person who sneezed. If that's really the case, then don't worry about it. But if you do care about them, maybe you should say something — even if it isn't "Bless you.
Black Cats
So why keep a black cat out of your path? Most likely, this superstition arises from old beliefs in witches and their animal familiars, which were often said to take the form of domestic animals like cats
A Rabbits Foot
Talismans and amulets are a time-honored way of fending off evil; consider the crosses and garlic that are supposed to keep vampires at bay. Rabbit feet as talismans may hark back to early Celtic tribes in Britain. They may also arise from hoodoo, a form of African-American folk magic and superstition that blends Native American, European and African tradition
One Wrong Brings Another
The belief that bad luck comes in threes is a classic example. A couple of things go wrong, and believers may start to look for the next bit of bad luck. A lost shoe might be forgotten one day, but seen as the third in a series of bad breaks the next.
Mirrors
According to folklore, breaking a mirror is a surefire way to doom yourself to seven years of bad luck. The superstition seems to arise from the belief that mirrors don't just reflect your image; they hold bits of your soul. That belief led people in the old days of the American South to cover mirrors in a house when someone died, lest their soul be trapped inside.
Like the number three, the number seven is often associated with luck. Seven years is a long time to be unlucky, which may be why people have come up with counter-measures to free themselves after breaking a mirror. These include touching a piece of the broken mirror to a tombstone or grinding the mirror shards into powder.
Cross Your Fingers
Those wishing for luck will often cross one finger over another, a gesture that's said to date back to early Christianity. The story goes that two people used to cross index fingers when making a wish, a symbol of support from a friend to the person making the wish. (Anything associated with the shape of the Christian cross was thought to be good luck.) The tradition gradually became something people could do on their own; these days, just saying "fingers crossed" is enough to get the message, well, across.
Friday the 13th
For a superstition, the fear of Friday the 13th seems fairly new, dating back to the late 1800's. Friday has long been considered an unlucky day (according to Christian tradition, Jesus died on a Friday), and 13 has a long history as an unlucky number.
According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in North Carolina, about 17 million people fear Friday the 13th. Many may fall prey to the human mind's desire to associate thoughts and symbols with events.
Karma
Hinduism identifies karma as the relationship between a person's mental or physical action and the consequences following that action. It also signifies the consequences of all the actions of a person in their current and previous lives and the chain of cause and effect in morality.
Here are the top 10 most widely believed superstitions, per an independent survey:
Knocking on wood.
Wishing on a star.
Breaking a mirror.
Four-leaf clover.
Bad news comes in threes.
Don't open an umbrella inside.
Lucky penny.
Beginner's luck.
God's Word
Proverbs 3:5-6
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
Jeremiah 29:11
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.