Sweet Serenity

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!" Galatians 5:22-23

When I was a little girl, there was a needlepoint hanging in our kitchen on the pantry door displaying the Serenity Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr, an American theologian, originally published in 1951.  

Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change;

Courage to change the things I can;

And the wisdom to know the difference.

As I grew older, my mother had occasion to lovingly remind me of the prayer time and again, and of its Biblical wisdom.  Each time it was recalled, the words were apples of gold in settings of silver to my soul.

There are so many things in life that remain outside of our control, and strangely, those are the things we try to control the most, don't we?  It is the things we can change that we seldom do, though the opportunities park right in front of us.

What about you?  Are you able to let go of the things outside of your control?  Do you have the courage necessary to change the things you can, like sharing Christ in the elevator, the fast food restaurant, your own home, and everywhere in between?  Do you have the wisdom to know the difference between the things you can and can't control?

You can ask God for the wisdom to know the difference, and He won't rebuke you.  He will give to you freely, simply for the asking (James 1:5).

May you act in accordance with God's good, pleasing, and perfect will.  And, may He grant you sweet serenity--today and every day.