The Serenity Prayer for Election Season 2016–
Posted by Rev Roger
Posted on October 25, 2016
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.
Give me the grace to stop obsessing about Hillary, Donald, and the overlooked alternative candidates. Or at least limit my fretting to 15 minutes a day. Grant me the will to stop reading every on-line headline, every tweet or Facebook post, and every e-mail about this election. I cannot stop the craziness by obsessing about it. Give me the grace to let others lose sleep about what I cannot change.
Grant me the courage to help where I could make the biggest impact. Stir in my soul the urge to give donations to local campaigns, to sign up for a phone bank shift or walk door to door. Help us all to remember the elected officials who serve our neighborhoods, counties, cities, and state. Help me to make up my mind about our 17 California propositions…affecting the death penalty, marijuana, taxes, ammunition, plastic bags, prison sentences, etc. Then grant me the courage to do what I can for my favorite propositions.
Give me the wisdom to discern when I am not merely concerned or full of passion, but really going off the deep end! Help me to focus on other things.
When I’m ranting at endless commentary on NPR in the car, prod my fingers to change the station to classical music. When it’s time to go to bed, lead me not to the laptop for one more peek, but to the teapot for one more cup (herbal, please) and then to a good book. When I’m online, remind me to look up a Poem a Day to restore my soul and give me hope. When I’m worried, send me out for a walk or a swim, or a look at the stars.
Restore my sense of humor with a bit of satire or a funny stand-up comic. Guide me to the Sunday worship service and Theater One’s play and the wondrous pages of www.uuss.org. Help me remember that I am embraced by a generous community of all ages, blessed with open minds, open hearts, and helping hands.
Grant me the wisdom to count all my blessings and speak my thanks.
Amen and blessed be,
Roger
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2 Responses to “The Serenity Prayer for Election Season 2016–”
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Thanks, Roger – I really needed to read this….while watching the debate Monday night I threw my remote control at the TV after a particularly egregious Donald Trumpism. Fortunately I’m a bad aim and I am not really all that prone to physical demonstrations of anger, but it just popped out of my hand almost without conscious thought of what I was doing.
I’ve gotten a lot of miles out of that story, but I must admit it shocked me about how deep I’ve gotten into this whole thing. I definitely needed to rein myself in and your Unigram Serenity Prayer message was just what I needed to hear. I’ve printed it out and have it next to the chairs I sit in upstairs and down.
Thank you for caring for us all!
I just read Reverend Roger’s article in the Unigram. It really hit home to me. I think this election has brought out some of the worst in all of us and a lot of anxiety, I’m no exception. Thank you Roger for giving me words of wisdom and how to help me get some perspective. Bless you!