God grant me the serenityI think we can safely say that The Serenity Prayer is one we can all relate to. It seems to me especially appropriate for Advent when we look forward to the birth of our savior as well as his second coming. Trying to balance the preparations of the season with an attitude of patience and reflection is no easy thing.
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.
Reinhold Niebuhr
With all that in mind, I was definitely interested when The Catholic Company very kindly offered a Serenity Prayer mug giveaway for y'all!
Here's all you have to do ... make a comment in the comments box. If you want to include a favorite quote that you'd like to see posted for all to enjoy, I'd be very happy to take it, even if I've used it many a time before. But I don't want to exclude people who don't think that way, so a comment alone will suffice.
You must include a valid email and live in the continental United States or Canada.
I'll run this through Sunday, with the winner announced on Monday ... who will be chosen at random, from a hat by Tom or Hannah (whoever is nearest at the time).
Of course, if you'd like to see what else The Catholic Company has in the way of Serenity Prayer gifts like plaques, votive holders, etc., then just go take a look. They've got you covered in that area for sure!
UPDATE
Shipping will be to the continental United States or Canada. (I fixed it in the post above, but for those who are coming back and don't read the revision, I wanted it to be clear.)
I love that prayer. What a neat giveaway!
ReplyDeleteI am a sucker for giveaways!
ReplyDeleteNow, for a quote: I am way too risk-averse, so when I heard this I really paid attention:
Risk is the price you pay for opportunity ---Tom Selleck's character on Blue Bloods
What a great giveaway! And for a quote to share:
ReplyDelete"Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to that arrogant oligarchy who merely happen to be walking around." -- G. K. Chesterton
I love giveaways too. :-)
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine posted this as her FB status the other day: "The best food is made with love...and butter."
Which is certainly true in my home.
I can no longer see that prayer without amending it in my head to something a friend told me:
ReplyDeleteGod grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know where to hide the bodies afterward.
I'm not typically a violent person but it makes me giggle.
Oh, but you wanted an inspirational quote. How about, "It is a better work to feed the hungry than to raise the dead." -Saint John Chrysostom
What a great mug! That reflection speaks to me this week in such a profound way!
ReplyDeleteA man who was entirely careless of spiritual things died and went to hell. And he was much missed on earth by his old friends. His business agent went down to the gates of hell to see if there was any chance of bringing him back. But, though he pleaded for the gates to be opened, the iron bars never yielded.
His priest went also and argued: “He was not really a bad fellow, let him out, please!” The gates remained stubbornly shut against all their voices.
Finally his mother came, she did not beg for his release. Quietly, and with a strange catch in her voice, she said to Satan, “Let me in.” Immediately the great doors swung open upon their hinges. For love goes down through the gates of hell and there redeems the damned.
(Based on thoughts by G.K. Chesterton)
Chapter 7 – Forgotten Among the Lilies, by Ron Rolheiser.
As Henri Nouwen said concerning compassion, "to not reach down from our high postion to pull up those less fortunate but to go and make our home with them. For we have a God who did not pull us up but came and made His home with us."
These are all great quotes ... and I did mention only a FAVORITE quote, which in my mind may be inspirational or not! So quote away in either way. I am loving this! :-)
ReplyDeleteGreat mugs! My current favorite quote:
ReplyDelete"If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough." Meister Eckhart
BTW, Julie, I should thank you for your prayers starting a couple of years ago when I requested them for joining the Catholic Church. My husband and I are in RCIA and will join the Church at Easter Vigil 2011. Thanks be to God!
Sandy
WOOHOO! Sandy that is BETTER than a quote ... though that quote is a very good 'un! :-)
ReplyDeleteJulie, thanks for "Happy Catholic," my healthy addiction.
ReplyDeleteHere's one of my faves from Mother Angelica:
“The apostles were dodos, dummies. But all the smart people in the world at the time wouldn't take chances. That is the same problem we have today. The world is looking for intellectuals and the Lord is looking for dummies. That's why I'm here."
"Success in life has nothing to do with what you gain in life or accomplish for yourself. It's what you do for others."
ReplyDeleteDanny Thomas
American actor(father of Marlo Thomas)1914-1991
I'm partial to "No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it for anyone else." Charles Dickens said that.
ReplyDelete“We forgive them. We’re not afraid. They gave us blood and we give them forgiveness.”
ReplyDeleteOur Lady Of Salvation parishioner after the massacre of priests and catholics in Baghdad. November 2010
Anonymous, please at least give me a unique "anonymous" nom de internet so that if you win, I'll be able to ask you to email me with contact info. Thanks! :-)
ReplyDeleteThe quotes are all wonderful ...
Fun! I, too, love giveaways -- especially when I win! Here's my quote:
ReplyDeleteA thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all the other virtues. ~Cicero
Julie
ReplyDeletenom de internet is Fuquay Steve. Thanks
Love that cup. Here is my quote:
ReplyDelete"Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise."
thanks for the giveaway contest
ReplyDeleteMy fave quote is from Bl. Mother Teresa:
"God doesn't require us to succeed; he only requires that you try."
One of my favs:
ReplyDeleteWhen all is said and done,
A lot more is said
than done.
So hard to pick just one! From Divine Intimacy, by Fr. Gabriel of Mary Madgelen:
ReplyDeleteWhen a soul allows itself, with childlike docility, to be led by the Holy Spirit, He takes complete possession of it, filling it entirely with Himself and from this plenitude, the spirit of prayer, virtue, humble submission and fraternal love spontaneously blossoms forth. To follow God’s will under the direction of the Holy Spirit is the quickest and safest way of reaching our heavenly home.
A snippet from the Fellowship of the unashamed:
ReplyDeleteMy past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is in GodÃs hands. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, the bare minimum, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, frivolous living, selfish giving, and dwarfed goals.
Fuquay Steve
"Our entry into the Church is settled,which gives me not so much exhilaration as a deep peace;to quote my own words:A sense of homecoming,of picking up threads of a lost life,of responding to a bell that had long been ringing,of taking a place at a table that had long been vacant." Malcom Muggeridge on his entry into the Catholic Church,Nov 27,1982
ReplyDeleteJulie, I think you will especially like this.
I can't believe I have never come across that quote before! Thank you! :-)
ReplyDelete