Thoughts on free will

One dark and stormy evening a ship with a proud captain was heading directly into an oncoming ship. The other ship signaled, "Turn around," but the proud captain refused. He signaled the other ship to get out of his way; after all, he was a famous captain piloting an important ship. The other ship signaled again, "Turn around now!" Again, the captain refused, signaling "No, you must turn. This ship is the SS Poseidon, and I am Captain Franklin Moran!" Finally the other "ship" signaled: "Turn now-this is the lighthouse, and you are about to hit the rocks." Certainly we are free to live our own way. So is a captain free to deny the light from the lighthouse and do what he wants. He is not free, however, from the rocks. Reality is what we smack into when we are wrong. 
The Good and Beautiful Life, James Bryan Smith