Change
When I teach meditation, I’m a stickler for keeping the body still. In the Old Testament there is a curious passage that says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Isn’t that curious? Be still, not “be righteous,” not “be busy,” not “be productive,” not even “be kind,” but “be still” to know God. Do we make enough room for stillness in our lives to know God?
This is where religion and spiritual practice come together. There was a prisoner in Illinois a couple of months ago who was saying he doesn’t know what this spiritual practice stuff is about, he’s a Christian and all he needs is his religion. I said, “Tell me something that is especially meaningful to you about your religion, like what’s a really important piece of it.” And he didn’t have to give it much thought at all, he immediately said, “The Serenity Prayer.”
You know the Serenity Prayer: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” I said, “So how has the Serenity Prayer changed who you are?” And he gave me this kind of blank look. He said, “Well it means a lot to me.” I said, “Talk is cheap, how has it changed you?” Because all spiritual practice is about, is taking something from religion and working with it in a way that changes us, really alters who we are. Not just changes our attitude, but actually our DNA. That’s the promise of every religion, we’re supposed to change, and spiritual practice really changes us in a very cellular way
So I said to the fellow, “Here’s what I’m talking about: You’re the one who told me that the Serenity Prayer is really meaningful to you. That means every morning of your life as soon as you wake up, before you go to the bathroom, before you get out of bed, the moment you realize you’re awake what you say to yourself is:
‘Lord today, grant me more serenity than I had yesterday to accept the things about this world that I am not going to be able to change. TODAY GOD, PLEASE may I have a little more courage than I had yesterday to influence the things that You want me to influence, and not turn my back. Oh please God, may I have more wisdom than I had yesterday, to know the difference between the two so I don’t waste your time and mine.’”
It takes about 30 seconds to do a prayer like that the moment you wake up. The Hassids, the mystical sect of Judaism that started in the Middle Ages with the Baal Shem Tov, the Hassids prayed more fervently than anybody I’ve ever seen, every prayer, every day. Every prayer was just rip your shirt open, “Oh God, please!” And you know what? They changed, because they meant it. They didn’t just come and sing politely and go home. They wouldn’t assume when you park your car this morning that you’re going to have no problem finding your way back home. We change. ~ Bo Lozoff
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