Aug. 31, 2014 - Step by Step

The Serenity Prayer

Step by Step

Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014

Today, I focus on Step 11 to answer honestly if I have "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve (my) conscious contact with God as (I) understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for (me) and the power to carry that out." In my own Program, simply acknowledging a Higher Power and looking to Him to guide me through my recovery is not enough; I must also seek what He requires of me and the knowledge and power to do what He wants of me. But why is the 11th Step important to both the early and later stages of recovery? In seeking our Higher Power's will for us, we are getting away from one of our addiction's most dangerous and contributory spiritual afflictions - selfishness. I dare not risk what progress I have made or seek by holding on to those poisonous character and spiritual defects like selfishness, anger, hate and bitterness that will undermine either the quality of my recovery or my recovery itself. Today, I seek through prayer and meditation the will of my Higher Power, not mine, to repay and maintain the gift of recovery the Program has given me. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2014