Spiritual Choices
Choices. Choices make the difference. Two people are in the same accident and severely wounded. They did not choose to be in the accident. It happened to them.
But one of them chose to live the experience in bitterness, the other in gratitude. These choices radically influenced their lives and the lives of their families and friends.
We have very little control over what happens in our lives, but we have a lot of control over how we integrate and remember what happens. It is precisely these spiritual choices that determine whether we live our lives with dignity.
—Henri J M Nouwen, Bread for the Journey
We often can’t choose what happens to us—but we can always choose how we respond within us. Henri Nouwen reminds us that it’s our spiritual choices—not our circumstances—that shape our dignity and direction. Two people may face the same tragedy, but what marks the difference is not what happened, but how they chose to live with it: bitterness or gratitude.
It’s easy to feel powerless in the face of suffering, but this insight re-centers our agency. We may not control the pain, but we can choose whether it hardens us or humbles us. Whether it makes us bitter or better. Those interior choices ripple outward, affecting not only our lives but those we love. The path to healing always begins with a choice. —DH
—David Hoskins, Founder & Care Guide, Sanctuary Clinics