“Understanding My Serenity” by Rev. Robin Arnold
The Serenity Prayer
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.
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;
The Serenity Prayer is one of the most widely known prayers in existence. While the actual Serenity Prayer is not found in the Bible, this prayer has many lessons that can be learned and used daily by Christians, and as Christians we should be able to take anything that happens in life and line it up with scriptures in order to witness.
So, let’s look at the Serenity Prayer and apply scriptural and real life understanding.
SERENITY
“God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change”
Serenity means to be in a calm/peaceful state. Whatever it is that we can’t change we must be content and know that God has it under control. Nothing happens without His approval. He is sovereign over all things.
Philippians 4:11 (MEV) says, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.”
BE BOLD
“God grant me…courage to change the things I can.”
We all should be bold and confident when we are able to make a change for the better. God calls us to love, so if you can love others by changing anything at all, do it with courage! God is with you; there is no reason to fear.
“For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and self-control.” ~2 Timothy 1:7 (MEV)
WISDOM
“God grant me…wisdom to know the difference.”
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally and without criticism, and it will be given to him. ” ~ James 1:5 (MEV)
Ask God for wisdom. He will give you the knowledge to know what you can or cannot change.
THE TIME IS NOW
“Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time.”
It is human nature to think ahead and plan, but what about right now? When I think about “now”, the song “The Cat’s in the Cradle” comes to mind. A dad is so involved in what he is doing to secure the future that he misses out on participating in his son’s life. Don’t miss out on now, this very second…cherish the present or you will miss out on life.
Matthew 6:34 (CEB) says, “Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
GOD’S WILL BE DONE
“Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it.”
Philippians 4:7(CEB) tells us, “Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.”
Nothing surprises God. He knows the hardships we face, and He provides a peace that surpasses all understanding; it’s the overwhelming presence of God’s almighty calm. So, embrace this world for what it is, and love through the roughest storms. God has already ordained your situations yesterday, today and tomorrow.
WE TRUST/GOD RESTORES
“Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will.”
God will make things right whether we surrender to Him or not. However, when you surrender to him, He will lead you exactly where He wants you to be.
“We have been made right with God because of our faith. So we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” ~Romans 5:1 (ERV)
HAPPINESS/HOPE
“That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. ~Amen.”
God loves blessing His children. So enjoy those times and look with hope towards heaven where true happiness is at its fullest! Can you imagine how much joy will overflow from you as you walk with Jesus in heaven! It will be so amazing!
AMEN
Amen means, “so be it”
Every time we say “Amen” at the end of our prayers we are saying, “so be it”. So, mean what you say because you are literally asking God to allow things be done that you have prayed for.
“I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.” (Ecclesiastes 3:12)
The Serenity prayer is a wonderful prayer and there is much wisdom to be had from it,
as with all prayers, let us pray it with vigor, understanding and expectation.
It is my prayer that God blesses you as you live a life worthy of the calling!
Written by ~ Rev. Robin Arnold
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