​God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
A deep part of what it means to be human is to live with limits. I cannot fly. You cannot change your height. You cannot change the direction of the wind. This prayer is not a self-help way to talk ourselves into trying harder or being better; it asks God to give the gift of being able to live with what is beyond our control. It is thus a prayer that starts with humility, as all praying must.

the courage to change the things I can,
Sometimes it is hard to believe we can make a difference for good in this world. By God’s grace we can. Love and work require courage — doing the right thing, the loving thing, the unselfish thing — so ask!

and the wisdom to know the difference.
Frustrated? You may be trying to change things or people that cannot be changed. Unhappy? You might be wrongly assuming that there is nothing you can do about your situation.  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)

So talk to God, and then take another look at your day.

The problem with prayer is that it is too easy. And too hard.

Too easy: 
God is great. God is good. 
Let us thank him for our food. 
By his hands we all are fed. 
Give us, Lord, our daily bread.

Too easy because any adult can say it and have his mind wander to think only of his childhood when he learned the prayer, or the plate in front of him getting cold. Is this prayer?

Too hard: 
Almighty Father, who hast given thine only Son to die for our 
sins and to rise again for our justification: Grant us so to put 
away the leaven of malice and wickedness, that we may always
serve thee in pureness of living and truth; through the same
thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with 
thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
— Book of Common Prayer, Friday in Easter Week

Too hard because “hast” and “thine” don’t roll off the tongue, and who uses the word “leaven”? And we hardly ever think of malice or justification except to justify our own malice. “She was hateful to me. I thought you ought to know.” This prayer is too hard for most of us because the language is not contemporary, but even more so because the compactness of its thought is more work than we expect to have to do when we pray.

But the hardest thing about praying may be the waiting. We pray. We wait. We pray. We wait.
They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. (Acts 1:14)

Jesus had told his disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the gift promised from the Father. Jesus ascended and disappeared from their sight, so they gathered and began to pray. We know what they did not: that they would be gathered, praying for 10 days. 

Is 10 days a long time? What were you doing 10 days ago? Where will you be in 10 days?

What if the gift that came after 10 days made the waiting seem like nothing at all? What if the answer to your praying made the work of praying inconsequential?

Do you need the answer before you begin praying?
​

    Wait for the LORD;
        be strong and take heart 
        and wait for the LORD. (Psalms 27:14)

Waiting is difficult! We wait for water to boil, for the traffic light to turn green, for the line at the Drive Up window to clear out so we can get our fries. All those are easy, however, compared to the long “wait" involved in developing any aspect of Christian character. 

That water takes a certain amount of time to boil is a matter the physical properties of the universe. That patience (a virtue) takes time to learn is a matter of the properties of the nonphysical universe. More intense heat boils the water faster, but intensity does not produce patience. Patience comes through applying our effort in a more effective way.  

Our primary task in learning patience is not in gritting our teeth, but in shaping our emotions. Our emotions are dependent on what and how we think. Over time we can change our emotions by changing what we are thinking about. If we are impatient as a listener, it may be because we do not respect the person speaking, or think that what we have to do is more important than this particular conversation. Patience in this instance comes from changing how we think about this person or situation — for example, by deciding to treat them with respect, not waiting for them to earn your respect.

There’s another level to patience deeper than our current conversation or circumstance: our part in The Story. It makes all the difference if we understand and put our hope in what God says he is doing with this world. 

The Story? God began the world by creating a garden in which he could be with Adam and Eve; Jesus lived among us full of grace and truth; God sent the Spirit to be in us and among us; and, God will one day remake the world so that those who trust him can be with him in a beautiful New Heaven and New Earth. That’s The Story God is writing, the story into which he has written us. 

Having The Story as the context for our conversations changes how we think about other players in The Story. We must assume that there are no bit players, even and including the slightly irritating person you are valiantly trying to listen to. Valuing the person allows better listening, and better listening means better loving. The second commandment from Jesus is, of course, "love your neighbor as yourself”.

But all this takes time — this developing character and becoming mature. Again, no one becomes a saint overnight. 

There are many things that have not yet been put right by our Lord, and so we must wait on his timing, trusting he will not only improve you and me, but one day make all things right.

    Wait for the LORD;
        be strong and take heart 
        and wait for the LORD. (Psalms 27:14)

It will be worth it!