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.
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.

This prayer has been stuck as a magnet on my fridge for years, but I never really took notice of it till now. Perhaps I never saw suffering or hardships the way I see it now- an essential part of a Christian walk- thus, the prayer did not seem as real and meaningful to me like now.

Indeed Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. I want to be able to live one day at a time, enjoying each moment. After all, you know what’s best for me. So, do tune my heart that I may willingly and thankfully receive whatever you give me in life. Wherever you place me, every moment & every condition, may I learn to view things from your perspective and depend on your instructions & teachings; counsel & guidance.

Grant me too, dear Lord, the courage to take the necessary actions that can strengthen my walk with you. Even though these actions may sometimes seem unpleasant to me, I pray for your strength to enable me to do them. Last but not least, I pray for your wisdom, so that I may know the difference between Your truths about life and illusions of the Evil one.

In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.

Conflicting natures

It’s truly not easy to want to do what is right. Like Paul, we can will it, but we can't do it. We decide to do good, but we don't really do it. We decide not to do bad, but then we do it anyway. Our good intentions usually don't result in actions. Such is the conflict between grace and corruption in the heart of a renewed sanctified soul. ~Romans 7:17-25

Perhaps like me, you have been struggling with an attitude or a habit that you know is wrong, and you decided that you want to change. Yet after a while, you find yourself right back where you first started. Then, you start feeling frustrated and angry at yourself for not trying harder, especially when your actions unintentionally hurt the people whom you love dearly.

However, it is in those times that I am reminded that I need something more than just my own effort and strength. I need to rely on Jesus’ promises and have faith in them so that I can find strength to fight against life-destructive thoughts and habits. We will always be in a battle against temptations and negative thoughts, but we need not give in to them. There is so much better things which we can consciously focus on in their place - thoughts that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable; anything that is excellent or praiseworthy ~Phil. 4:8-9.

In God, there is always hope to change even if the struggle have been the same issue for a long time. Nonetheless, we are reminded too, that a changed life does not come instantaneously, for recovery is a step-by-step process. I only pray that in the process of recovery, I will not lose fixing my eyes on Jesus.

God's comforting peace

I thank God that He promises to keep in perfect peace, him whose mind is stayed on Him, because he trusts in Him~ Isaiah 26:3

Even at times, when reaching out for His peace seem quite impossible in such a crazy, chaotic world, I thank Him that that the peace that He gives isn’t like the peace the world gives~ John 14:27. The peace that He promises does not come in the absence of danger, but in His presence. And, it is in His very presence that my heart has often found comfort and assurance.

Nonetheless, it is only as we keep our minds and thoughts centered on Him that we are able to summon peace for every situation. Perhaps that’s why it is important and essential read the Word daily; rejoice always, pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks, for these disciplines help us grow in our consciousness of Him, our connection with Him, & our confidence in Him.

Dear Lord,
I thank you for your faithfulness to me and your everlasting promises. I thank you that you provide peace that transcends all understanding. Help me to daily learn how to commit my works to you so that my thoughts can be established by you.
In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

Hope is...

“In your hearts, set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have…” ~1 Pet 3:15

So, what do you think hope is, little ones?
· “It is looking forward to something with a feeling of expectation or confidence”. ~Will, 10
· “Hope is practical. It means talking to God every day expecting an answer. It means having Jesus to talk to. It means being satisfied with what God has given you”. ~Justin, 10
· “It is like the feeling of Christmas. It makes you feel kind of good inside, sort of like you’re going to get a gift”. ~David, 9

There is so much I want to learn from these children. Their answers are simple, yet profound. Indeed, every day can be like Christmas morning for us, but only if our hopes are driven and controlled by God. Why? Because it is possible for the Evil one to control our hopes- making us excited and eager for new things- except he directs our hopes towards worthless and sinful things.

Hope is also more than keeping a positive mental attitude in the midst of negative situations, for genuine hope is based on the Bible. Real hope, true assurance, comes from knowing God’s promises for us both to this life and that which is to come. Additionally, hope comes through faith, believing that He is faithful to keep all His promises. On the other hand, a mere positive mental attitude, which is usually characterized by repeated positive confessions, may only lead us to believe in our self, rather than in God’s ability to work all things out for the good of those who love him.

“Hope is God's gift to us," says Amal, 10. Yes, God’s gift of hope to us came in the form of a person, Jesus Christ. He is the sum and substance of it. I don’t know how this works, but you just have to believe it- that in as much as Jesus is the ground & foundation of the eternal hope that we can have, He is also the end result of that glorious hope.

A simple response

In times of storm, I believe that Jesus is calling me to step out of the boat and not look at the wind & the waves, but to just keep my focus on Him because only He can enable me to walk on water. In any case, His dominion and sovereignty surpass all other things. As such, it relates to a freeing and humble attitude that willingly leaves the results in God's hands while waiting, yielded and still.

But then again, most of the times, my surrendering to God comes at a snail’s pace. More often than not, it happens after I’m tired of groaning and moaning or, after I’ve spent much time outlining a problem and then, realize “Hmmph, I really can’t figure this out myself”.

I want that gradual & eventual surrender to turn into an immediate & spontaneous surrender. I want to be able to trust God to take care of my daily concerns. If I can trust Him with eternal issues- knowing for sure that my inheritance is secured in heaven, then I want to be able to trust in Him with earthly, everyday issues too.

As difficult as that can be, I pray that God will help me do so.

The gift of sleep

“It is useless to rise up early and go to bed late, and work your worried fingers to the bone. Don't you know he enjoys giving rest to those he loves?” ~Psalm 127:2

Yes, I do know. I know that God enjoys giving rest to those he loves, but somehow, I’d lost my grip on that true meaning of rest. Countless nights, I lie awake on my bed with to-do list for the next day replaying itself over and over again in my mind. Before I realize it, fear starts filling the gaps of uncertainties. Eventually, I will fall asleep, but it is not as comfortable as I hope it would be. My body doesn’t even seem fully refreshed the next morning.

For a while now, I’ve struggled with getting a good rest at night. I tend to sleep late and wake up early. For many, this is diligence- stretch yourself, work hard & long if you want to succeed. I was starting to think that way too, until few mornings ago, God gave me a wake-up call through the verse above.

It is vain, totally worthless, for me to rise up early and sit up late, and so deny myself of the bodily refreshment that I need. No doubt, hard work pleases the Lord; however, my working to the restriction of rest will be nothing more than just a cover-up for my inability to trust Him to provide for my needs.

Sleep, even bodily sleep, is God's gift to his beloved. Yet, we often times lose this precious gift to the devil- in fears, worries & anxieties. It is more than just a physical act of lying down on the bed and cuddling our favourite blanket since our spiritual body is attached to our physical one. Our spiritual body needs to find rest & contentment in the Sovereignty of God first, believing by faith that what the Bible says is true regardless of our present circumstances; before we can find the physical rest our body yearns for.

Jesus slept in the middle of the hurly-burly storm at sea. He let the waves rock him to sleep. He shows us what it really means to sleep long & soundly; and that is to place our trust not in our own strength and hard work, but in Him without whom we labor in vain.

Thank you, dear Lord, for showing me this precious truth.

His faithfulness endures forever

You know, in times of difficulties, when my faith seem to be at the weakest point, I am so, so glad that He doesn’t just brush me aside and make me go through them alone. He patiently waits for me to come back to Him; to recognize His awesome and powerful presence in my life again. No matter how long or where I am, He unwearyingly waits for me to wake up to the fact that He is with me and have a refreshing conversation with Him.

God said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." ~Hebrews 13:5

I believe Him.
I believe that until the very end of my days,
He will have me and hold me;
Encourage me, support me;
Counsel me, advise me;
Guide me, direct me;
Protect me, defend me;
Prosper me, succeed me.
Whether in good times or bad times,
In sickness or in health,
In laugher or in tears,
I believe that He will be by my side…always.