As Bill Sees It

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The 12 Step Prayers

The Twelve Step Prayers were created using the text of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous.  The text used to develop the prayers are shown at the end of the prayer in parenthesis.  My hope is that these prayers will provide a framework for you to develop your own or expand on the wording below.

The Set Aside Prayer

"Dear God please help me to set aside everything I think I know about [people. place or thing] so I may have an open mind and a new experience.  Please help me to see the truth about [people. place or thing]. AMEN." (This prayer comes from the Chapter to the Agnostic, primarily pages 47 and 48 Big Book ).



First Step Prayer

Dear Lord, Help me to see and admit that I am powerless over my alcoholism. Help me to understand how my alcoholism has led to unmanageability in my life. Help me this day to understand the true meaning of powerlessness. Remove from me all denial of my alcoholism. (This prayer is developed from the chapter, More About Alcoholism)

Second Step Prayer

Heavenly Father, I am having trouble with personal relationships. I can’t control my emotional nature. I am prey to misery and depression. I can’t make a living. I feel useless. I am full of fear. I am unhappy. I can’t seem to be of real help to others. I know in my heart that only you can restore me to sanity if I am just willing to stop doubting your power. I humbly ask that you help me to understand that it is more powerful to believe than not to believe and that you are either everything or nothing. (p. 52:2, 52:3, 53:1, 53:2  Big Book  )

Today in A.A. History

Today in A.A. History:
June 17, 1935
Actual date of Dr. Bob’s last drink

Abstinence or Sobriety?

The program that is used to create and sustain sobriety involves a number of concepts. Let’s look at then in the order they are presented:


Admittance (Step One) - We start to recover or heal when we are willing to admit that there’s something wrong. If a person is unwilling to face their particular issue it is next to impossible to help them.

Discover a God...as we understand him (Steps Two and Three) It is amazing to think that A.A. proclaimed, over sixty years ago, such a freeing and open concept. Our God, Higher Power or Source need not be religious. The Twelve Step program does not belong to any one religion or denomination, it is absent of any dogma or creed, and in this powerful sense it is seen to be a spiritual program.

Acting "as if"

 

Everyday . . . life confronts us with new problems to be solved which force us to adjust our old programs accordingly.
  —Dr. Ann Faraday

Facing the day straight on is occasionally difficult to do. There are those days we feel like crawling under the covers and staying there, certain that we can't handle whatever might be asked of us. Maybe today is one of those days. Perhaps we feel 12 years old, instead of 42. To consciously behave like a responsible 42-year-old is out of the question. Acting "as if" is the next best thing, the program tells us, and it is.

Acting "as if" also comes in handy when only a minor kink interferes with the day's progression. Most problems don't fit an easy solution or a familiar one. However, most problems are dispensed with by seeing them as opportunities for creative response, calmly seeking guidance and then moving ahead slowly, being aware of the effects of our actions.

Today, and every day, I will have an opportunity to think creatively and to rely on my inner guide. Instead of dreading the unfamiliar, I will be glad for it. It's moving me ever closer to understanding life's mysteries.