Prayers, Some Work, and the Promises

The Steps

1. We admitted we were powerless over 
alcohol-that our lives had become
unmanageable.

2. Came to believe that a power greater
than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our
lives over to the care of God as we 
understood Him.

4. Made a searching and fearless moral
inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to
another human being the exact nature of
our wrongs.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove
all these defects of character.

7. Humbly asked Him to remove our 
shortcomings.

8. Made a list of all persons we had 
harmed, and became willing to make 
ammends to them all.

9. Made direct ammends to such people
wherever possible, except when to do
so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to take personal inventory
and when we were wrong, 
promptly admitted it.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation 
to improve our conscious contact with God 
as  we understood Him, praying only for 
knowledge of His will for us and the power 
to carry that out.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the
result of these steps, we tried to carry 
this message to alcoholics and to practice 
these principles in all our affairs.

Promises of Recovery

We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness.

We will not regret the past,
nor wish to shut the door on it.

We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace.

No matter how far down the scale we have gone,
we will see how our experience can benefit others.

That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear.

We will lose interest in selfish things and
gain interest in our fellows.

Self-seeking will slip away.
Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change.

Fear of people and economic insecurity will leave us.

We will intuitively know how to handle situations which
used to baffle us.

We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us
what we could not do for ourselves.

Third Step Prayer

God,

I offer myself to Thee - 
to build with me and to do with me
as Thou wilt.
Relieve me of the bondage of self,
that I may better do Thy will.
Take away my difficulties,
that victory over them may bear witness
to those I would help of
Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of Life.
May I do Thy will always!

Amen

Eleventh Step Prayer

Lord,
Make me a channel of thy peace -
that where there is hatred,
I may bring love -
that where there is wrong,
I may bring the spirit 
of forgiveness -
that where there is discord,
I may bring harmony -
that where there is error,
I may bring truth -
that where there is doubt,
I may bring faith -
that where there is despair,
I may bring hope -
that where there are shadows,
I may bring light - 
that where there is sadness, 
I may bring joy.

Lord,
Grant that I may seek rather 
to comfort than to be comforted - 
to understand, than to 
be understood -
to love, than to be loved.
For it is by self-forgetting
that one finds.
It is by forgiving
that one is forgiven.
It is by dying
that one awakens 
to Eternal Life.

Amen

The music playing on this page is from the musical "Godspell."
It's a wonderful, uplifting play and movie I encourage 
you to see if you ever get the chance. The music alone is tremendously
encouraging and touches me deeply. The words to this song follow.

By My Side

Where are you going?  Where are you going?
Can you take me with you, 
For my hand is cold, and needs warmth.
Where are you going?

Far beyond where the horizon lies,
Where the horizon lies,
and the land sinks into mellow blue,
yes, oh please, take me with you.

Let me skip the roads with you.
I can dare myself.  I can dare myself.
I'll put a pebble in my shoe,
and watch me walk. I can walk. I can walk.

I shall call the pebble death.
We will talk together about walking.
Death shall be carried,
and when we both have had enough,
I will take him from my shoe
saying meet your new Lord.
And I'll take your hand
finally glad that you are here,
by my side, by my side,
by my side.


My Other Pages

Recovery and Angels
Back to my home page, the beginning...

One Little Angel Story
If you skipped over this one, go back and read it now...please.

Why We Are Chosen
Something special shared by a very dear friend.

Angels All Around Us
More favorite pictures...and more angel stories.

~~Sign My Guestbook View My Guestbook~~