I’ve often struggled with the serenity prayer as it’s written and recently have had to slightly remix it in a way that makes far more sense to me on my spiritual journey. For those who don’t know this prayer, it’s written as follows:
“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.”
While this prayer is said throughout the vast majority of 12 Step addiction recovery meetings around the globe and one frequently utilized in many individual prayers as well, it’s a prayer I’ve struggled with, mostly due to the way my mind keeps interpreting the middle statement within it.
You see, I’ve not had an issue throughout the majority of my adult life, which now encompasses over 27 years of continuous sobriety from alcohol and drugs, finding the courage to change something. In fact, I walk through numerous avenues of fear every single day looking to change anything my ego doesn’t like, especially in recent years when it comes to all my health issues. I’m the type of guy who’s very willing to take up any challenge that will help to overcome any obstacle on my spiritual journey. Take for example the fear of spiders I have at times in life. I often utilize my courage when I see one, to actually touch it, just to prove to my ego that the fear of it won’t control me. How this relates to my struggle with the serenity prayer as it’s written is this.
While the intention of the serenity prayer is truly at its core seeking wisdom as to whether to accept something or change it, my ego interprets it differently. It sees it more so as a decision between accepting things I don’t have the courage to face and changing the things I do have the courage to face. Because of this, I often find myself trying to change one thing after another, even when God may not want me to, because I typically don’t struggle with finding courage for anything, it’s just always there.
This is why I’ve recently begun working on saying the serenity prayer in a slightly different way, one that makes far more sense to me and one my ego can’t misinterpret for it’s own benefit. Because the biggest battle I face in life presently isn’t in finding the courage to change something, it’s in knowing whether God actually wants me to change it in the first place. Said in a slightly different way, my struggle on plenty of days is whether God wants me to work on changing some aspect of my life or whether God wants me to be still and accept it.
So, this is the serenity prayer I’ve slightly remixed to aid my spiritual journey in a way I understand far better and one I hope will help others who have had similar struggles with it as well…
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the knowledge to change the things I’m meant to, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
