May God Grant You Serenity and Courage

A reader who is stuck in very challenging circumstances and "can't seem to get ahead," asks,"Any prayer, affirmation, or advice would be greatly appreciated."

My reply...

I recommend pursuing two paths simultaneously:
1) Work to improve your circumstances.
2) at the same time, Choose to live the most joyful life possible within your current circumstances.

It's one of life's great paradoxes ...
Accepting with gratitude whatever life throws at us
is critical to happiness.
Yet without a goal and commitment, life loses much of its value.
The best we can do in the face of this paradox
is to play to win, but be cheerful in defeat
and ready to play again.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Courage and perseverance have a magical talisman,
before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish into air.
- John Quincy Adams

If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up.
Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.
- Michael Jordan

This is my wish for you:
Comfort on difficult days,
Smiles when sadness intrudes,
Rainbows to follow the clouds,
Laughter to kiss your lips,
Sunsets to warm your heart,
Hugs when spirits sag,
Beauty for your eyes to see,
Friendships to brighten your being,
Faith so that you can believe,
Confidence for when you doubt,
Courage to know yourself,
Patience to accept the truth,
Love to complete your life.
- Anonymous

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.
- Reinhold Niebuhr (Serenity Prayer)


May the world be kind to you, and may your own thoughts be gentle upon yourself.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

      

My Personal Motto

Question from a reader: WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO IN LIFE? AND WHY?

My Answer: I don't know that I have chosen a single personal motto. The "why" is that we can't control what happens to us, but we can control how we react - and that choice creates all our happiness or unhappiness.

The following mottos/quotes all reflect the idea that happiness is a matter of choice, rather than external conditions.

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.
- Reinhold Niebuhr (Serenity Prayer)

Life is as easy or as hard as you think it is.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Happiness depends upon ourselves.
- Aristotle

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...
It's about learning how to dance in the rain.
- Vivian Greene

Happiness is a choice.
- Anonymous

You don't have the power to make life "fair,"
but you do have the power to make life joyful.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

We cannot choose our external circumstances,
but we can always choose how to respond to them.
- Epictetus

Happiness doesn't depend on any external conditions,
it is governed by our mental attitude.
- Dale Carnegie

Attitude is everything.
- Charles Swindoll

Life is 10 percent what happens to me
and 90 percent how I react to it.
- Charles Swindoll

Choose the World You See, and See the World You Choose.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The beauty does not live out there; the beauty's in my eyes.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

My happiness depends on me.
- A Course in Miracles

Happiness is a function of accepting what is.
- Werner Erhard

The key to happiness is not to have what you want
but to want what you have.
- Anonymous

Success is getting what you want;
happiness is wanting what you get.
- Dale Carnegie

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Further reading: 7 Secrets for a Happy Life

Attitude Quotes

Happiness Quotes

Quotes about Choice

s Quotes to Live By

May the world be kind to you, and may your own thoughts be gentle upon yourself.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie