Serenity Part Two

In the message yesterday, I shared with you the serenity prayer which is attributed to the theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr.

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.

There is a second part to this prayer, and though it is not as widely known, there is much wisdom in it. It is as follows:

Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking, as God did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that God will make all things right if I surrender to his will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with God forever in the next. Amen.

The truth is, we have no guarantees of tomorrow. We have no guarantees of an hour from now. And no matter how faithful we may be, we have no guarantees of a perfect trouble-free existence.

What we do have is the promise that God is able to bring something good and beautiful and strong even out of suffering – even out of our suffering. The cross and empty tomb are our reminders.

We also have the promise that Jesus loves this world as it is, not as it should be. And because of this love, he is at work to mend and redeem, to heal and make whole all that is – even you, even me.

Let us pray: Almighty God, you are the first and the last, the beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega. We praise you for you are ever-present and ever powerful and ever-loving. We surrender our lives again to you this day. Help us to live each moment to the fullest, trusting that you hold the future and that you hold us.

We pray especially today for our sisters and brothers who are struggling with addiction, and for all who carry burdens too heavy and too real to hide. We pray for continued glimpses of your presence – for healing and hope and redemption beyond measure. We ask in Jesus’s name. Amen.