Yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! - Habakkuk 3:18
Many are the stories of Jewish and Christian men and women who were thrown into the horrific conditions of Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Stripped of all other freedoms, they realized there was one freedom that could not be taken—the freedom to choose their attitude. Despite the unspeakable abuse they endured—starvation, torture, sickness, even death—many refused to relinquish their faith and chose instead to respond with hope and even joy in the midst of horrific conditions.
You and I have been given the same personal responsibility. We decide how we respond to all of life’s challenges. We have the freedom to determine the kind of person we want to be, regardless of what’s happening in our lives. Our beliefs, attitudes and perspectives can rise above our situations because we have been given the freedom to choose how to respond to them. Let’s choose hope. Let’s choose joy. The choice is ours.
CLOSING PRAYER
Father, thank you for the freedom to choose my attitude, no matter what situations I encounter. Help me to realize that I can rise above whatever I face with Your help. Give me a perspective that enables me to always choose hope and even when it seems impossible, to choose joy as well. In Jesus’ name. Amen.