I am focusing once again on the subject of “accepting the things you cannot change.” This time it is because a business situation is requiring quite a bit of my time and energy and I am not happy about it. To be honest, I am extremely upset about it. So how am I responding? I am taking care of it, but I am also nursing my anger and resentment, complaining, wrestling, and fighting because I don’t like it.

I am unhappy about how this problem is taking too much of my time, emotions, and energy. I am letting it upset me even when I am not actually working on the business issues. I am allowing it to rob my joy and make me feel negatively about my life. Is it justified? Yes. Anyone that knows the situation agrees that it is stressful and unfortunate. It is nice to be validated, but it doesn’t change anything.

Is my refusal to accept the things I cannot change about this situation helping me deal with it? No! It is actually making it worse. It is time for me to deal with this situation a different way. Much of my discontent and inner turmoil comes from fighting the reality. I don’t want this. I didn’t ask for this. I don’t need this. I don’t like this. I would like to roll back the clock and have made a different decision so that I wouldn’t be in this situation.

Get the point? Yet, God has allowed this situation to come up and it is mine to deal with responsibly for now. Once I quit fighting it and accept it as something I cannot change, I will be free to choose how to respond to it.

I need to figure out how to deal with this in a way that doesn’t affect my life more than is absolutely necessary. Here are some questions I need to answer:

• What can I change to make this different, better, or easier?
• How can I change my attitude to make my life better?
• How can I change my perspective to align with God’s?

The Serenity Prayer reminds us that when we accept the things we cannot change, we can then move on to change the things we can. In the process, we get something called “serenity” which is a place of calmness and tranquility. It is from there that we can find solutions because we are at a place of peace and surrender.

By Karla Downing

Relationship Devotional Prayer

 
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 hardships as the pathway to peace. Taking, as He (Jesus) did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it. Trusting 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.

Relationship Devotional Challenge

• What do you need to accept?
• What can you change to make it different, better, or easier?
• How can you change your attitude to make your life better?
• How can you change your perspective to align with God’s?

Scripture Meditation

 
Philippians 4:8

“Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise” (NLT).

John 16:33

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (NLT).