It may be a cruel reality for some, but the truth is that we can’t choose the circumstances into which we are born. We have no say over our family, our financial status, the emotional stability of our home, the colour of our skin and the privilege or lack thereof we inherit at birth. These things (and more besides) are out of our control. However, these factors all have a role to play in who we are, how we related to others and how successfully we navigate our way through life.
It could be anyone of us
I recently heard of a young man who has made some bad choices in life. Unfortunately, as a consequence he feels like the world and his family are all against him. The sad truth is that in some ways he was set up to fail. He was born into a largely dysfunctional home where alcohol abuse was the norm. His role models set a poor example and it wasn’t the best start. Now as an adult, his life reflects the conditions of his upbringing. It’s not his fault. He didn’t choose his home or his family. He couldn’t control the example he was given as a child.
Break the cycle
Circumstances of birth or upbringing are often blamed for the problems we face as adults. Sometimes it’s very easy to trace the origin of our issues back to our parents or childhood experiences. However, regardless of whose fault your challenges are, if you are ever going overcome those hurdles you are going to have to take responsibility for your issues.
You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. – Jim Rohn
The choice is yours
Blaming others or life, or anything else for that matter, is easy and feeling sorry for yourself isn’t going to change much. If anything it will only make matters worse. Your life, your happiness and future will be determined by the choices and decisions you make. The Bible talks about the fact that God has given us free-will, the ability to choose our own path in life. It’s an amazing gift and an enormous responsibility. It basically means that we can choose either to be forever defined by our circumstances and our past, or we can rise above the things we can’t control by making better choices and replacing the negative with the positive. It’s really up to us.