Most of you are probably familiar with the Serenity Prayer. This prayer has become a source of consolation and strength to Christians and non-Christians alike for the simple reason that it gives voice to our human experience and it resonates deeply in our hearts: God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.
Can’t we all relate to these words? How true that we need God’s help to accept so many of the things we cannot change and courage to change so many of the things we can; and we certainly need His wisdom to know the difference so that we don’t spend our days in constant frustration. But did you know that there is a second part to this beautiful prayer that is essential to living the first part?
“Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next.”
This seldom-quoted second part really contains the ingredients to living the first part well. For we are more serene when we live one day at a time and enjoy one moment at a time; we are more serene when we calmly accept things as they are, not as we would have them; we are more serene when we trust that He will make all things right if we surrender to His will; and we are more serene when we realize that our ultimate happiness is not to be found in this world but in Heaven.
Serenity. Peace. Each of us longs for these gifts. The wisdom of the Serenity Prayer is that it puts our longing into words and shows us a way to Serenity: living, enjoying, accepting, trusting, surrendering.
Do you desire serenity? Then
- Live today mindful of His loving presence and the many gifts He will give you. Yesterday is gone; tomorrow is not here;
- Enjoy each moment today, realizing that the Lord will use every experience—good and bad—to teach you how to live more abundantly;
- Accept inevitable hardships, not as something to make you bitter, but as a pathway to peace. See hardships as the sandpaper that smoothens the roughness of your life;
- Accept this world as it is. No, not as an excuse to forget working for change in your life or in the world, but as a starting point for change;
- Trust that “all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28);
- Surrender to His loving care for you.
So now you know the whole Serenity Prayer, and now the challenge is to live it.
I love the second part to the serenity prayer. I had never heard it before. It is good to reflect on when our lives are in so much turmoil.
God bless.
Norma,
I’m glad that I was able to introduce you to the second part of this prayer! Thanks for reading!
Peace!
Ah, I didn’t know there was more to this prayer. And I can see why it’s often left off, it’s so much harder to do than the first part. Your post makes it easier to digest. Maybe this prayer should be re-printed in its entirety with your bullet points on the back?
Thanks Belinda! I’ll let you take care of reprinting the prayer with my bullet points!
Peace!
Thank you Father for the reminder that every moment given to us by God is so precious and that if we leave all of our problems at the foot of the cross He will carry them for us. Thank you for this spiritual direction.
Jane,
And thanks for reading and leaving your feedback.
Peace!
Thanks for posting this entire prayer. I have read this post now three times. This most recent is in response to a friend quoting the beginning of the prayer to me as I needed to hear it from someone about some hardships I am going through. Coming back and re-reading the remainder and your bullet points is making this all so much easier to give to God and not worry over too much.
In God’s world, trust and love are synonyms. Another great post for me to reflect on Fr Michael. Thanks!
@Nikki – Sometimes we need to read things more than once to let them sink in. We can read the Serenity Prayer a thousand times and we can learn something new each time. Keep praying…and keep running…both will help you through hard times.
@Michelle – Thanks for reading. How true that trust and love are synonyms!
Peace!
Fr. Michael, beautiful! As much as I love that prayer (as you know… it was in part the inspiration for the title of my blog), I’ve never heard the second half… and it’s wonderful. Thanks for sharing it.
Surrendering is really such a serene experience… and each day is a gift. That’s one of the things I focus on every day when I wake up… Before I say the serenity prayer I focus on the fact that this new day is a miracle, another gift given to me… Now… Here… Not yesterday and not tomorrow. But THIS day.
Who wouldn’t want to wake up to a gift everyday? And all of us do, but since we’re accustomed to it, we often take it for granted.
Why fight to try to change that gift? Again, as humans, that’s our inclination, to bend things according to OUR will, but when I look at the miracle of life itself, and the wisdom and power behind it all, it’s easy to realize that God’s will is infinitely wiser than mine could ever be.
And I’m reminded of that every morning when I open my eyes, and here I am, breathing and feeling and seeing, and there’s the sun, warm and bright, and the birds are flying and chirping, and there’s the sky, beautiful and immense, and there’s the earth and all the human beings that are here right now… And it’s all there… without my having done a single thing to make it so.
Cheers,
Miche
Beautiful reflection Miche. How true: each day is a gift. If we learned to live in the moment life would be much more peaceful.
Peace!
One step at atime, That’s been my philosophy for some times, but you know what, when hard time comes I sometimes forget to surrender. that is a great reminder father, thank you so much!
God bless!
I think we all forget, and we all need to be reminded! We’re all in this together.
Thanks for reading.
Peace!