The Serenity Prayer With Commentary

The Serenity Prayer By Reinhold Niebuhr

God, give me grace to accept with serenity

the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the Wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

Commentary:  

When we are unwilling to accept what is we end up adding to the non peace of the situation. In this part of the prayer we are asking God to give us the power to accept with peace what we cannot change while also having the courage to change the things we know in our heart that we can make better. The wisdom in knowing allows us greater peace because we can now let go of what is outside our control yet still maintain our courage. Accepting the reality of what is does not make us weaker but stronger because accepting the truth that something is out of our hands is far better than us blaming ourselves for what we cannot control. If we focus our energy on what is not possible we are stripping ourselves of our ability to do what is possible. Life can be very challenging but it is important that we do not create even more difficulty for ourselves.

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time,

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it,

Trusting that You will make all things right,

If I surrender to Your will,

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

Commentary:

This present moment we are experiencing is all we really have. It is important to be happy in this moment and do the best we can in every present moment because what we do in this moment will shape and determine our past and future. We can be happy in this moment by being grateful that we are alive to experience it and grateful for all that we take for granted. Accepting our hardships is the only way to peace because as Dr. Carl Jung said "what we resist persist." All of our adversities or hardships must be accepted because what is reality is reality unless we have the power to make the situation better and take action to create a new reality. In no way does accepting what is outside control or surrendering to it mean that we agree with any given situation but we must understand what is Gods business and what is our business. When we place our trust in God, accept reality, take courageous action when possible,  seek peace, and are grateful then all of us can find reasonable happiness. Through our faith we know that by becoming the best we can be that we will be granted eternal happiness in heaven. Remember to ask yourself  WWJD or What Would Jesus Do- "Taking, as Jesus did, This sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it."