by Wilson Adams
There are more things I can’t control than I can control. We don’t like to think about that, but it’s true. We control very little.
I can’t control the weather. I can complain about it, but I’m powerless to change it. I can’t control the traffic. I can’t control airline schedules that change at a moment’s notice.
I can’t control my health. I can take preventative measures to keep the bugs and viruses away, but we all know they jump up and bite us when least expected. I can do what I can to eat right, exercise, and maintain a life of moderation, but aging eventually takes its toll and disease is not a respecter of persons.
I can’t control my kids (now don’t run off the rails with that). Sure, I can put consequences in place and try various means of instruction that lead to Proverbs 22:6 outcomes, but at the end of the day they (like you) have free will. Their wills can be molded—that’s my job as a parent—but ultimately, their choices will have to come from inside want and not outside force.
I can’t control what others do or say. If someone gossips about you, what can you do? You can’t control that. It’s a hard lesson to learn: you can’t make others do right.
So, what can I control? ME. I may not be able to choose every obstacle that comes my way, but I can decide my response. I can decide how I’m going to think about it. “As a man thinks within himself, so is he” (Prov 23:7). “Take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor 10:5).
I can control my thoughts, my behavior, my responses, and my attitude. At some point, I have to take ownership of my life, hold myself accountable, and stop the excuses. Me: that’s what I can control.