The Serenity Prayer

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference".
I've prayed this prayer often in my life, searching for that elusive "serenity" (peace) in times when my life seemed backed into a corner with no escape...the "Let go and let God" admonition that we so often are instructed to practice. Also praying for the courage to change the things I have the ability to change. Often this is in the area of "making amends", trying to right a wrong from the past. It definitely takes courage to reach back into our past and ask forgiveness from another human being...and, sometimes... having to repay a monetary debt. It's a humbling, yet liberating experience.
The prayer for "wisdom" is also vitally important, especially in the pursuit of making amends. As it says in the Big Book Of A.A., "Making amends to people wherever possible, "except" when to do so whould injure them or others."... Most people do this with the help of a sponsor, or mentor, someone who has already been there, done that, and knows which situations to tackle and which to simply "let be". One can make amends in ways other than digging up the past.
The author of the Serenity Prayer was 20th Century theologian, Reinhold Neibuhr. Born in Missouri in 1882, he died in 1971. During his lifetime Reinhold Neibuhr was the best-known Christian intellectual in the United States. His writings influenced such luminaries as Martin Luther King and John F. Kennedy. Professor Neihbur was an advocate for social justice and used his personal faith in Jesus Christ to try and advance humane working conditions in the booming industrial age, particularly in the automotive manufacturing industry. A man of great faith, he was also keenly aware of the sinfulness of man and the need for a spiritual, supernatural change in the human heart. His total surrender to his God was the impetus for writing the inspiring Serenity Prayer. The prayer has become a standard in opening and closing A.A. and other various meetings for years. Most people think that the prayer consists simply of the lines mentioned in my opening. Actually, the prayer is somewhat lengthier and I would like to present it to you in it's original form...
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the 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 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"