There's
a poem that says essentially, "It's not the direction of the wind that
blows, but how we set our sails that makes all the difference."
The suffering we experience,
whether caused by our own poor choices, or by the choices of others, are these
'storms' of life. Often we have no control over these 'winds.' We can't change
our past decision, and when our suffering is caused by others we have no
control over that either.
So how do some people thrive
in the midst of adversity? How can a woman like Corrie Ten Boom face years of
torture and humiliation in a concentration camp and come out the other side
smiling, and kindly ministering to others?
Or how can Tenzin Choedrak
(the personal physician to the Dalai Lama), who was one of five out of one
hundred prisoners who survived nearly twenty years of torture, starvation, and
forced labor, display no sign of anger or bitterness at his circumstances or
his torturers?
I'm sure you can think of many
examples, perhaps even of someone you know, who survived terrible circumstances
and came out the other side 'smiling.' The key in every instance is the
person's chosen response to the hardships of their life. It's how they 'set
their sails' when faced with stormy winds.
Choosing to think differently
is not easy or natural. We all want to wallow in our own self-pity, and
sometimes we might even be justified in doing so. But by choosing to
purposefully think differently about our suffering, we can go from being
buffeted and blown about aimlessly, to sailing at high speed to a life of
contentment and happiness.
Thinking differently is
defined in different ways depending on what your particular suffering is.
For me, I refuse to let prison
make me angry and bitter. Instead, I set my sails in a direction that will make
me a better man. This means a daily 'tacking' of my sails to keep me in the
right direction.
So, how do you set your sails?
Or are you being driven aimlessly by the winds of your life?