Lord of the Rings exemplifies how we all struggle with choosing good or evil and the temptation for shortcuts to what we want in life. The ring represents those shortcuts that we are so often are tempted to take in life; it causes us to compromise who we are to achieve what we’ve been working toward in an instant. But the problem is we will no longer be who we are if we choose to compromise to get the power or control or upper hand that we so desperately think we need.
Gandalf, Galadriel and Aragorn all knew this and refused to compromise who they are in exchange. There may be options or opportunities that we are presented with in life that could skyrocket us to what we want out of life. But at what cost? Is it really worth throwing away the journey you’ve taken so far, be it a day, an hour, a week, or years for the moment or that instant gratification that will sullen who you’ve worked to become.
If any of these characters had taken the short cut to increase their power or position they would have ceased being who they were and become something they never wanted or intended.
We have to realize that the quick fix is never the answer.
God made each and everyone of us and he loves us all. He knows who he made us to be and the journey to become that person is how we become who he made us to be. It’s the journey that makes us who we are.
