Devotions from Lisa McMinn’s book, The Contented Soul

You are familiar I am sure of Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity prayer but is good to really “Listen” to the whole thing and not just the first line or two.

“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. Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardship 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.”

If we rely on our circumstances that are likely to change from moment to moment, rather than character qualities that bring a deep sense of well-being, we may be unhappy more often than not.  The author, Lisa, writes of mellowness of heart as a “way of being that is openly receptive to God so that our lives lean toward a posture of grace, thanksgiving, blessing and goodness.”  Let us accept our circumstances, both good and bad, and trust that God is in control of the big picture, and we will find joy! More on this tomorrow.