Wise sages throughout history have reminded us of a tremendous power each of us possesses. It is described in many ways; determination, attitude, desire, focus, effort, empowerment to name a few, but this week, as I pondered about this power that shapes us and ultimately becomes us, I decided to narrow it down to one word: will. The importance of our will and how it determines what happens in every aspect of our lives cannot be understated. Our circumstance is not determinative of our outcome. We are what we will ourselves to be.
One of those sages of the ages, whose name I cannot recall, but whose words are scribbled on a piece of paper that I have kept for years inside my desk drawer, said, “The best day of your life is the one on which you decide your life is your own. No apologies or excuses. No one to lean on, rely on, or blame. The gift is yours – it is an amazing journey – and you alone are responsible for the quality of it. This is the day your life really begins.”
Our willpower is an awesome power. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale described by using this analogy: “The cyclone derives its power from a calm center. So does a person.”
It is the secret weapon we can deploy to successfully overcome any challenge we face in life. It can also help us to secure anything we seek to achieve, both good and bad. It is not a lack of willpower that leads us to evil, sin and self-destruction. Rather, it is a perverse self-will. As Augustus Hare succinctly put it, “I bid you conquer in your warfare against your four great enemies, the world, the devil, the flesh, and above all, that obstinate and perverse self-will, unaided by which the other three would be comparatively powerless.”
Whether we utilize our God-given willpower in a positive or negative manner is ultimately the determiner of our happiness here on earth and in the hereafter. How should we channel it to insure our path is one of happiness, accomplishment, success and is pleasing to God? I think Helen Keller gave good advice on this question when she said, “I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker.”
Lastly, St. Paul in Hebrews 10:36, says “You (We) need endurance to do the will of God and receive what He has promised…” That is, if we adjust our will such that its aim is toward God’s will, the result will be that “we will not be among those that draw back and perish, but among those who have faith and will possess life.”
Your will will shape your future. Whether you fail or succeed is no one’s doing but your own. You are the force; you can clear any obstacle before you or you can be lost in the maze. Your choice; Your responsibility; win or lose, only you hold the key to your destiny. You are powerful, if you will it so.
Have an AWE-full weekend!
Bill