Photo and verse by James Milsted

This evening I came upon the above quote and image and it was perfect for where my heart and soul are right now. After today’s occurrences and emotions, early evening serenity is most welcomed and soothing.

It made me think about The Serenity Prayer, the first prayer I uttered in the Twelve Step rooms, when I starting coming to believe.

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.

This often-recited prayer in the rooms is an excerpt from a longer prayer commonly attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr. It is considered a Christian prayer, and although its origins are a bit unclear, its impacts are not. The Serenity Prayer serves as a focal point for the very spirit of the Twelve Step program. You can see that even more so in the longer version, which speaks of living “one day at a time,” a hugely powerful slogan heard regularly, even said by folks not in the Twelve Step program.

There are numerous variations of the long version; here’s one:

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;
Trusting that He will make things right
If I surrender to His Will;
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life
And supremely happy with Him
Forever and ever in the next.
Amen.

I am grateful for this prayer to help me with my evening serenity.