What Controls Our Lives?

Sometimes when we are in the midst of a difficulty or a hard situation, we cannot think beyond the immediate circumstances to see how matters could play out. We imagine that our circumstances are unjust and that we do not deserve them.

Case in point: I have always had to work hard to maintain a healthy weight. I was chubby as a child, and I did not think it was fair that this had to happen to me. What did I do to deserve this? Why were both of my sisters thin but I wasn’t? I did not ask for this circumstance, yet here I was having to deal with it.

As I got older, though, through my teens and early 20s, I gradually came to accept that life is not fair and that worrying about my weight and working to keep it under control was my cross to bear.

But as I began to learn more about fitness and nutrition, I wanted to help others with what I had learned, so I became a group fitness instructor and got certified as a personal trainer and as a fitness and nutrition specialist.

My circumstance of having a weight problem was no longer a burden, it was a gift—and the lessons I had learned along the way became a gift I could share with others to help them improve their lives.

This newfound outlook changed everything. What I once considered my worst circumstance became my best opportunity.

Our lives can be controlled by our choices—not our circumstances. But we have to make that decision.

Everyone’s worst circumstance can become their best opportunity.

Only you have your unique circumstances and strength—use it!

It is not the circumstances that control our lives.

It is our choices.