Read: Matthew 16: 24-27 “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” - Isaiah 41:10
Surrender is the hardest action for human beings to take. I fought it for years, because life scared me. I constantly used all of my human effort to attempt to ward off as many negative circumstances as I possibly could. It was only after I learned the Serenity Prayer that I realized how easy it really is to surrender everything to God.
Life hurts. All of us experience trauma, neglect and suffering. Therefore, we prefer to exert control over our life in order to maintain an emotionally, mentally and physically safe environment. We use our will power and a variety of negative emotions to keep ourselves safe, secure and centered in the illusion of a peaceful existence.
If we think realistically, however, what human being can actually prevent the inevitable by the sheer power of their self-will? (Matthew 6:27) Can we avert a disaster merely by human effort? We must answer these questions with an honest “No.” Since learning the Serenity Prayer, I started questioning why I ever tried so hard to procure this safe haven for my life, because it was all in vane anyway.
The Serenity Prayer states: “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.”
Reinhold Niebuhr, author of the Serenity Prayer, beautifully elaborates on this concept: “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 all things right if I surrender to His Will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen.”
In order to surrender every area of my life, I started to live by Niebuhr’s Serenity Principle. This concept helps us when circumstances come that tax our mental, emotional or physical energy and affect us in a negative way. It prevents us from getting sick or depressed, which often occurs when we constantly obssess over the negative issues in our life, about which we can do nothing. In order to avoid these negative reactions, we can look at our circumstances through the microscope of the words of his now famous prayer.
The Serenity Prayer gives us our guideline. It teaches us that we can hear God’s desire for every situation in our life. Once He reveals His will, we can then deal with the circumstance if we are able, or we can put it in God’s capable hands before we go on to the next moment. This prevents the negative circumstances from coloring our future, our attitude and our behavior. It also allows us to experience each moment fully and deliberately with thought, prayer and purpose. It is all a matter of what we choose to focus on in our life.
So, commit with me to pray that God will give you the courage to change the situations you can change, the serenity to accept the things which you cannot change, and the wisdom to know the difference. Ask Him for the strength to deal with the issues that He reveals are your responsibility. Then turn the rest over to God and ask Him to help you to develop an attitude of acceptance about them. If you cannot change them, then praise God for them, in them, and through them, even for the negative things. By doing this, you will end up walking in complete serenity (Romans 8:35-39) and in the dynamic power of the Spirit of God.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, life does not come with a guarantee. Help me to dwell in the shadow of Your wings and to trust in Almighty God to make a difference in my life, rather than to stand on a soapbox and rail against people and circumstances that I cannot change.
Thought for the Day:
Do I live according to my agenda or God’s will?
