Prayers

Randy's situation has made me think more about praying, naturally. It calls to mind something I was told more than a dozen years ago when a very dear friend was facing a prison term. I was still in the monastery, and as the time approached, I found myself uncertain about how to pray for him. I was not sure what I wanted to ask God to do. 

I mentioned it to someone who told me that he had faced a similar situation with a relative. He had decided to pray the Serenity Prayer for that person:

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

It was great advice for me: to take a prayer that we usually pray for ourselves and apply it to someone else. I have found that approach very helpful in the intervening years. It does not feel like I am trying to tell God what to do and how to do it. But I am asking for what the person probably needs most -- not my all-too-feeble idea of a solution, but the serenity, courage and wisdom to live every day, no matter what the circumstances.