Serinity prayers

God grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change;

courage to change the things I can;

and 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.

Praying is the most effective way to invite God to work miracles in your life. Here are some more of our favorite prayers offering spiritual guidance to help steer you on your path as you grow in your faith.

The Apostles’ Creed

The Lord’s PrayerPrayer of ThanksgivingA Birthday PrayerPrayer For Help With FinancesPrayer for Inner Peace and Calm

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The Serenity Prayer is one of the most famous and powerful prayers in all Christianity. The prayer, also known as God Grant me the serenity, is one of the AA Prayers that is said at every meeting to help recovering alcoholics.

At the bottom of this page you will find a Prayer Request form. We invite you to post your personal prayer for serenity so that we can share in your prayers.

As Christians we yearn to trust in Gods ways, though it is not always easy. This is the ultimate prayer, asking God for a strong faith, understanding and happiness in daily life. Below is the complete, full text of this powerful prayer.

The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and 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.

How to Pray the Serenity Prayer

This is the perfect prayer to add to your Daily Devotions. Set aside a few minutes in the morning or in the evening to pray your devotions to God. Ask God for serenity on a daily basis using this prayer as your guide.

Some additional tips and exercises for praying this prayer:

1. Try to memorize the words to the prayer. Write it out on a post card and each day see how far you get before you need to reference the card.

2. Speak directly to God. Dont just blindly repeat the words youve memorized. You need to speak directly to Him and truly mean the words youre speaking.

3. After praying, write your reflections in a prayer journal. Over time youll be able to track your progress towards serenity and happiness.

AA Prayer History

God grant me the serenity became the default prayer of Alcoholics Anonymous in the early 1940s when a member spotted the prayer in the obituaries section of the newspaper.

The prayers focus on acceptance resonated with the group. Acceptance is central to AAs philosophy. Only once you accept yourself as you are, can you begin to change the things in your life that are within your power to change. Though life can be difficult, it is possible to change ones life for the better, one step at a time.

To read more about AA Prayers and the history of Alcoholics Anonymous, click here.

Variations of The Serenity Prayer

The Serenity Prayer is so popular that many variations of it have been composed. Here are a sampling of these altered versions. The authors of these are unknown.

The Pagan Serenity Prayer

Lord and Lady grant me the power of Water, to accept what I cannot change.
The power of Fire, for energy and courage to change the things that I can.

The power of Air, for the ability to know the difference.

Grant me the power of Earth, for the strength to know and walk my path.

Know Who You Can Change

God grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one I can, and the wisdom to know its me.

The Serenity Prayer in Spanish

Dios, concedeme la serenidad para aceptar las cosas que no puedo combiar, el valor para cambiar las cosas que peudo cambiar y la sabiduria para conocer la diferencia;

Viviendo un dia a la vez, disfrutando un momento a la vez; aceptando las adversidades mundo pecador tal y como es, y no como me gustaria que fuera;

Creyendo qu Tu haras que todas las cosas esten bien si you me entrego a Tu voluntad; de modo qu peuda ser razonablemente feliz en esta vide e increiblemente felize Contigo en la siguiente. Amen.

Do you know another variation? Post it below!

Bible Verses about Addiction

“Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.”

Check out what the bible has to say about peace with this collection of Bible Verses about Addiction.

Looking for a gift? Check out a collection of Serenity Prayer Jewelry.

Prayer Request: Post Your Own “The Serenity Prayer”

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If you’d like, you can post your prayer below so the PrayWithMe community can help pray with you.

Rules for Posting: All prayers are posted publicly through to this site. Don’t use full names or any other identifying information that you wouldn’t want out on the web.

Don’t post with ALL CAPS, and try to use proper spelling and grammar.

If you can, help pray for others and post comments of support.

Recent prayer requests…

Tap below to see prayers from other visitors to this site.

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More prayers posted in: Serenity

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Serenity Prayer: What are the words?
The Serenity Prayer goes like this —
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can; and 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.

Serenity Prayer: What does it mean?
The words have special meaning to those who are often “looking for peace” at a time of turmoil, despair, or uncertainty in their lives. This prayer has become closely associated with 12 Step programs, offering strength and calm in pursuit of a more stable life.

First, through uttering these words, we are acknowledging God’s existence and recognizing that He is truly the only one who can bring us inner peace regardless of chaotic circumstances. His wonderful presence in our lives brings ‘serenity’ that can be found nowhere else. There is a Bible verse that says the peace of God is beyond all human understanding. “His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). Until we allow the ‘peace of God’ to enter into our mind, heart, and soul, we will never experience that ultimate peace that defies the most severe circumstances in life.

The prayer goes on to speak of accepting, courage, and wisdom. It all comes down to asking and allowing God to give us these things. In other words, it is surrendering to Him. The second part reminds us that our trust needs to be in God to work things out and recognizing that we usually don’t have any real control over hardships in this sinful world or the actions of others. Trust Him and live one day at a time, enjoying each moment.

Serenity Prayer: How do I put this into practice?
Perseverance and successes aren’t born out of good times. They are born out of trials. 1 Peter 4:12 says “. . .don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you.” The Bible tells us that we will go through trials and going through them makes us stronger. In our times of weakness, we learn to rely on God’s strength and He takes great delight when we trust in Him. We all desire to be needed and wanted; God wants this from us as well. He wants for us to turn to Him and trust Him.

Be encouraged — Christ Jesus is faithful; we can rest on Him, trusting Him always for the outcome. We don’t always understand the “why” of things that happen and we don’t always need to. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” And in Hebrew 13:5, God says He will never leave us or forsake us. Never is long time. . .He is always there for us if we come to Him.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I carry is light” (Matthew 11:29-30).

In these Scriptures, we can see the relevance of the last phrase in the Serenity Prayer. If we surrender to Him, we can be supremely happy in Him, in this life and forever after.

Learn More About Surrendering to God

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

– We have all

sinned

and deserve God’s judgment.

God

, the Father, sent His only Son to satisfy that judgment for those who believe in Him.

Jesus

, the creator and eternal Son of God, who lived a sinless life, loves us so much that He

died

for our sins, taking the punishment that we deserve, was

buried

, and

rose from the dead

according to the

Bible

. If you truly believe and trust this in your heart, receiving Jesus alone as your

Savior

, declaring, “

Jesus is Lord

,” you will be saved from

judgment

and spend eternity with God in heaven.

What is your response?

Yes, today I am deciding to follow JesusYes, I am already a follower of JesusI still have questions

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One of the most popular prayers today is known as the Serenity Prayer. Written by Reinhold Neibuhr (1892-1971), the prayer was widely used in sermons and Sunday school groups and studies. In the early 40s, the group Alcoholics Anonymous began to use a shortened version of the Serenity Prayer in their twelve step program. 

Serenity Prayer – Full Version (composed in 1940s)

God grant me the serenity 
To accept the things I cannot change; 
Courage to change the things I can; 
And 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; 
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life 
And supremely happy with Him 
Forever and ever in the next. 
Amen.

Shortened Version 

God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change,
the courage to change the things we can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.

3 Biblical Truths We Can Apply to the Serenity Prayer

1. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.”

When life feels out of control, it’s easy to try to work harder at controlling everything and everyone around us! Some of us do the opposite and just throw our hands up and give up on the situation or person. Whichever extreme you go to, peace and serenity continues to move further from your life. 

Accepting and submitting to God’s control and plan for your life is the only way to find peace in situations you cannot control or change. We may not always know God’s plan but we can let go of trying to orchestrate and manipulate events and people and let God work through us. God promises a supernatural peace when we bring our worries and concerns to Him in prayer.

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” – Philippians 4:7

“Be still and know that I am God!” – Psalms 46:10

2. “the courage to change the things I can,”

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, you have received the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is able to supply you with the courage to follow and act upon God’s plan for your life. Instead of fearfully ignoring hard decisions or running from what seems too difficult, we can call upon the power of God for courage to move forward into the full life He has planned for us.

“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” – 2 Timothy 1:7

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. – Proverbs 3:5-6 

3. “and, the wisdom to know the difference.”

Wisdom is a gift that God promises to give to those who ask for it! You can grow in wisdom each day and make better decisions as you spend time reading the Bible and communicating with God through prayer. God will tell you, through his Word or answers in prayer, when to accept things and when to take courage to change them. 

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” – James 1:5

 “and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:15-17

Adapted from: Single Moms & the Serenity Prayer by Donna Stanger

Share how the Serenity Prayer has encouraged you and how our large community can pray for courage for you in the comments below! 

This article is part of our larger Prayers resource meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Visit our most popular prayers if you are wondering how to pray or what to pray. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and God knows your heart even if you can’t find the words to pray.

Prayer for Healing

Prayer for StrengthPrayer for ProtectionMorning PrayersGood Night PrayersThe Prayer of JabezShort PrayersThe Lord’s PrayerThe Prayer of St FrancisA Birthday PrayerSinner’s PrayerPrayer for ForgivenessPrayer for GuidanceIntercessory PrayerIrish Prayers and Blessings  

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