I

What occupation one chooses, how one makes a living: do people have any control over these things? Do these things accord with people's desires and decisions? Though one can make bold plans for one's future and though one may harbor audacious fantasies, no one has the ability or the power to realize their own dreams, and no one is in a position to control their own future.

II

There will always be some distance between one's dreams and the realities that one must confront; things are never as one would like them to be. Some people will put forth great efforts and make great sacrifices in an attempt to change their own fate. But in the end, even if they can realize their dreams and desires by means of their own hard work, they can never change their fates, and no matter how doggedly they try, they can never exceed what destiny has allotted them.

III

Regardless of differences in ability, intelligence, and willpower, people are all equal before fate, which does not distinguish between the great and the small, the high and the low, the exalted and the mean. What occupation one pursues, what one does for a living, and how much wealth one amasses in life are not decided by one's parents, not decided by one's talents, one's efforts or one's ambitions, but are predetermined by the Creator.

from The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique III