A new year upon us, with hopefully more opportunities to 'find the strength to accept what we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to tell the difference'. I've modified the Serenity prayer written by Reinhold Niebuhr, which is a powerful little prayer. It is finding the wisdom to 'see' the difference that is the most difficult. Often we bang our heads against the wall of a problem that can never be resolved and waste precious years doing so. Other times we don't see the golden opportunities staring us right in the face for how to solve a problem that
can be solved. Often the changes that most need to be made are within ourselves. We cannot change others. It's been said countless numbers of times, but it's true. Change starts with you. I've been thinking about change as it pertains to my own life, and have made some changes that I'll share with you as 2015 progresses. I've realized that taking calculated risks is what makes life interesting, likewise having a sense of adventure. And sometimes opportunities appear for helping you to change your life that can only be divinely-inspired. So here's to the new year, to positive change, to having faith, to serenity and to real peace. I wish that for everyone I know and love, and for the world too.
And for those of you who would like to read Niebuhr's prayer
in its entirety, here it is:
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.
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.
