Accept Every Present Moment as if You Had Chosen it



“God grant me serenity to accept the things I cannot change.” These are among the most essential words in Recovery. For years, those of us with addictive or compulsive personalities have fought reality. We wanted whatever we couldn’t have. We wanted it, or him/her, and we wanted it NOW.

It made no difference if reality was telling us we could not have what we so desperately wanted. It made no difference if reality was telling us we were powerless to change the unchangable. We were determined to have it our way— and we were just as determined to be miserable every time we hit our heads against reality’s impenetrable wall.

We told ourselves “I can’t (or won’t) be happy until I have Mr or Ms Right, or a new job, or more money, or complete freedom from anxiety, or my kids living their lives the way I think they should be.” We placed our demands on life and set limitations on our own happiness. We created almost every second of misery we experienced.

When we refused to face reality in the present moment, we created chaos and drama for ourselves and others. And we did all of this because we weren’t willing to trust life, or a Higher Power. We had to be in control of every moment, every person and every situation.

Well, for me, that was my yesterday. It is no longer my reality. I now accept that I am powerless over others, life and every present moment. And in recent weeks, I’ve decided to accept whatever the present moment presents to me. I’ve dropped my unreasonable expectations, and I’ve freed myself, by the grace of God, from demanding everything has to be the way I want in order for me to be happy.

I’m accepting the present moment as if I myself have chosen it to be just the way it is— whether the moment is pleasant or difficult. Either way, I benefit. I find instant joy in the present moments that are pleasant and I find the challenge for me to grow as a person in the present moments that are difficult.

Today, I wouldn’t have it be any other way. I’m done with putting my own demands and conditions on being happy. I surrender to my Higher Power and go with the flow of every present moment just as it is— and all is well because I am no longer getting in the way of my own natural happiness.

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