Yes and no. We usually get what we deserve in life based on our actions. Those who study gain knowledge, those who help others are usually loved and respected, those who steal have few friends.
It's not quite as simple and clear cut as cause and effect because we can't see the effects that non-action provides, such as not stealing, or not helping someone, but we know that things would have been different had different choices been made.
Some sacrifices bring rewards, and others don't. Some sacrifices are their own punishment for making the wrong type of sacrifice or decision. The same for things like working hard. A person can work hard and become wealthy, while another can work even harder at the same job and still be poor. Though if you examine their lives more closely, the poor one may have spent his money as he earned raising a family that loved him to his dying days, while the rich one ends up alone.
I don't think there is some cosmic rule that balances things out, but I do think people provide their own rewards and punishments.
