The opening stanza of the popular Serenity Prayer is as wise as it is hope-filled: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
The circumstances of life are as varied as the people who experience them. Some we can change and control, asking God for the courage necessary. Other times, however, we face circumstances we simply cannot change—experiences beyond the scope of our control—and we’re forced to ask God for the strength to accept the limits of our personal power and, instead, endure with trust. Peter reminds Christians that suffering can often be of the latter variety—uncontrollable, inevitable, and unavoidable. And, while we can’t always control the suffering itself, what we can control is how we endure that suffering.
Listen below through Spotify, or find our Podcast “From the Pulpit” for weekly Sunday morning messages on Anchor, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever else podcasts are found.
Josiah has served the Oakridge Bible Chapel family as one of its elders and one of its pastoral staff members since September 2018, before which he ministered as an associate pastor to a local congregation in the Canadian prairies. Josiah's desire is to be used by God to help equip the church for ministry, both while gathered (edification) and while scattered (evangelization). He is married to Patricia, and together they have five children—Jonah, Henry, Nathaniel, Josephine, and Benjamin.
