Circumstances

Viktor Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist. He also was a Holocaust survivor.

Frankl wrote a book about his experiences as a concentration camp inmate. It was entitled "Man's Search for Meaning."

In the book, Frankl observed, "Everything can be taken from a man or a woman but one thing: the last of human freedoms to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."

Remember: Frankl wrote these words as a concentration camp inmate. His wife, his parents, and several other family members were all killed in the Holocaust. Only he and his sister survived.

Frankl's impactful words remind me somewhat of those of Paul in Philippians 4:11-12 (NIV), when he states, "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances ... I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation ...."

Frankl may or may not have been content in his concentration camp situation, but he guarded his attitude, even in such a horrific set of circumstances. That much he was able to choose.

How's your attitude these days?

It's unlikely that you are reading this post from inside a concentration camp but, even so, you may be struggling with your circumstances and your attitude.

Draw stength from the words of Paul and Viktor Frankl. Both men found themselves witnesses to some of the most vile examples of evil in the history of mankind, yet both men wrote about how they were able to rise above their horrifying situations.

You must similarly choose your own way.

This is one choice that is yours, and yours alone, to make.

It is the one freedom that can never be taken away from you.

Treat it as such.