The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK - April 15 2026

Meeting Prayer No. 3

God bless this meeting and the members gathered here tonight.

Help us to make this group a haven of strength and comfort, giving to all who seek help here the beauty and friendliness of home, which shall be as a shield against temptation of all kinds and against loneliness and despair.

Bless those who are going forth from this house to fight the gallant fight, to know suffering, and bless those who come here to rest, those who must readjust themselves to face life once more.

© 2004 by Hazelden Foundation

Ask God

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve…
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things…
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy…
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men…
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need for God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life…
I got nothing that I asked for, but everything I hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am among all men, richly blessed.

–This prayer was found on an unidentified Civil War soldier

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Some Step Prayers For you

Serenity Prayer

God,

Grant me the Serenity,

to accept the things I can not change,

Courage to change the things I can,

and Wisdom to know the difference.

First Step Prayer

Dear Lord,

I admit that I am powerless over my addiction.

I admit that my life is unmanageable when I try to control it.

Help me this day to understand

The true meaning of powerlessness.

Remove from me all denial of my addiction.

Second Step Prayer

Heavenly Father,

I know in my heart that only you can restore me to sanity.

I humbly ask that you remove all twisted thought &

Addictive behavior from me this day.

Heal my spirit & restore in me a clear mind.

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!

Fourth Step Prayer

Dear God,

It is I who has made my life a mess.

I have done it, but I cannot undo it.

My mistakes are mine and

I will begin a searching and fearless moral inventory.

I will write down my wrongs

But I will also include that which is good.

I pray for the strength to complete the task.

Fifth Step Prayer

Higher Power,

My inventory has shown me who I am,

Yet I ask for Your help

In admitting my wrongs to another person and to You.

Assure me, and be with me, in this Step,

For without this Step I cannot progress in my recovery.

With Your help, I can do this, and I do it.

Sixth Step Prayer

Dear God,

I am ready for Your help

In removing from me the defects of character

Which I now realize are an obstacle to my recovery.

Help me to continue being honest with myself and

Guide me toward spiritual and mental health.

Seventh Step Prayer

My Creator,

I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad.

I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character

Which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows.

Grant me strength, as I go out from here to do your bidding.

Eighth Step Prayer

Higher Power,

I ask Your help in making my list of all those I have harmed.

I will take responsibility for my mistakes and

Be forgiving to others as You are forgiving to me.

Grant me the willingness to begin my restitution.

This I pray.

Ninth Step Prayer

Higher Power,

I pray for the right attitude to make my amends,

Being ever mindful not to harm others in the process.

I ask for Your guidance in making indirect amends.

Most important, I will continue to make amends

By staying abstinent, helping others and

Growing in spiritual progress.

Tenth Step Prayer

I pray I may continue:

To grow in understanding and effectiveness;

To take daily spot check inventories of myself;

To correct mistakes when I make them;

To take responsibility for my actions;

To be ever aware of my negative and

Self-defeating attitudes and behaviors;

To keep my willfulness in check;

To always remember I need Your help;

To keep love & tolerance of others as my code; and

To continue in daily prayer how I can best serve You,

My Higher Power.

Eleventh Step Prayer

Higher Power, as I understand You,

I pray to keep my connection with You

Open and clear from the confusion of daily life.

Through my prayers and meditation I ask especially for

Freedom from self-will, rationalization, and wishful thinking.

I pray for the guidance of correct thought and positive action.

Your will Higher Power, not mine, be done.

Twelfth Step Prayer

Dear God,

My spiritual awakening continues to unfold.

The help I have received I shall pass on and give to others,

Both in and out of the Fellowship.

For this opportunity I am grateful.

I pray most humbly to continue walking day by day

On the road of spiritual progress.

I pray for the inner strength and wisdom

To practice the principles of this way of life in all I do and say.

I need You, my friends, and the program every hour of every day.

This is a better way to live.

The “Promises”

From pages 83-84 in “The Big Book”

If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are halfway through. 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 of 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. Are these extravagant promises? We think not! They are being fulfilled among us – Sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them.

Prayer Of St. Francis Of Assisi

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 Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy Name.

Thy Kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth,

As it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

As we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

But deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

The power, and the glory,

For ever and ever.

Amen.

 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter @EssentialsOfRec

Ask God

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve…
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things…
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy…
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men…
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need for God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life…
I got nothing that I asked for, but everything I hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am among all men, richly blessed.

–This prayer was found on an unidentified Civil War soldier

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Let go and let God. #essentialsofrecovery

As children bring their broken toys with tears with us to mend.
I brought my broken dreams to God because he was my friend
But then,instead of leaving Him in peace to work alone
I hung around and tried to help,
With ways that were my own.
At last,I snatched them back and cried
"How can he be so slow?"
"My child," he said,
"What could I do?
"You never did let go"

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Old Timer's Prayer #essentialsofrecovery

God, keep me from thinking I must share in every meeting, no matter the topic. Keep my mind free from the recital of endless details and give me wings to get to the point. Remind me to guard confidences and to keep still when I feel it is necessary to speak up for someone's own good. 

Release me from the need to straighten out everybody else's thinking and program. God, I ask for the grace to listen to newcomers. Please help me to remember the patience with which others listened to me when I was new. 
Please seal my lips to giving advice, and help me to remember to share only my experience, strength, and hope.

Remind me that my purpose is to fit myself to be of maximum service to You and to the people around me. Help me to remain teachable. Teach me (again) the lesson that, occasionally, it is possible that I may be wrong; and remind me, please, of the freedom that I gain when I am able to promptly admit I am wrong and make amends where necessary. 

Help me to remember the difference between making amends and just saying, I am sorry. Help me to be a worker among workers, a friend among friends. Please keep me from being a bleeding deacon, and help me to walk the path towards being an elder statesman/stateswoman. Keep me ever mindful that I cannot manage my own life through my own unaided will. I know that I am not a saint; please show me the way to seek You so that I may continue to grow along spiritual lines.

Remind me, please, of Rule 62 to not take myself so damn seriously. (It is so easy to take myself way too seriously.) Keep me free of gossip, character assassination, and judgment. Remind me that because I am not perfect, although I have humbly asked, my character defects and shortcomings still arise unexpectedly, to cause damage to others and to myself. 

Help me to walk with faith and acceptance, to see good things in unexpected places and talents in unexpected people, and give me the grace to tell them so. Help me to see that You love each of Your children, and that You do not need my opinion of them or suggestions on what they might deserve.

Amen 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

ELDER'S MEDITATION OF THE DAY #essentialsofrecovery

 “What does it matter how long I pray, so long as my prayers are answered?”

~ Sitting Bull, HUNKPAPA LAKOTA 

Too often we worry about the words we use in prayer. We focus on the words. What really counts is the spirit and intent behind our words. It is the spirit and intent that the Creator responds to. He reads and listens to our heart. Prayer isn’t only when we fold our hands and pray. Prayer is when we talk to the Creator even when we are walking down a path or sitting on a hill or walking in the mountains. The Elders say, walk in prayer. We should be willing to talk with the Great One.

Great Spirit, today I will pray to You all day. Listen to my heart.

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

The Secret- by Ralph S. Cushman #essentialsofrecovery

I met God in the morning
When my day was at its best,
And his presence came like sunrise
Like a glory in my breast.

All day long the Presence lingered,
All day long he stayed with me,
And we sailed in perfect calmness
O’er a very troubled sea.

Other ships were blown and battered,
Other ships were sore distressed,
But the winds that seemed to drive them
Brought to us a peace and rest.

Then I thought of other mornings,
With a keen remorse of mind,
When I too had loosed the moorings,
With the Presence left behind.

So I think I know the secret,
Learned from many a troubled way:
You must seek him in the morning

If you want him through the day! 

 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK #essentialsofrecovery

This First Step

Lord, I have nothing.
My addiction has taken my spirit and my sanity
I have lost my family and my soul.
My life is no longer my own.
Help me to restore my life so it is manageable;
Make my pains bearable.
I cannot do it alone—I have tried.
Today I ask that You will be with me
as I take this First Step.

© 2007 by Hazelden Foundation

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

The Warrior's Prayer #essentialsofrecovery

I am what I am.
In having faith in the beauty within me, I develop trust.
In softness I have strength.
In silence I walk with the gods.
In peace I understand myself and the world.
In conflict I walk away.
In detachment I am free.
In respecting all living things, I respect myself.
In dedication I honour the courage within me.
In eternity I have compassion for the nature of all things.
In love I unconditionally accept the evolution of others.
In freedom I have power.
In my individuality, I express the God-Force within me.
In service I give of what I have become.
I am what I am:
Eternal, Immortal, Universal, and Infinite.
And so be it.

~ Stuart Wylde

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

AROUND THE YEAR WITH EMMET FOX #essentialofrec #Emmet #Fox #Prayer

VITAL FAITH

Read Psalm 46.

Among all the beautiful and heart-searching prayers of the Bible there is none that surpasses the wonderful poem that we call the Forty-sixth Psalm.

It begins, as do nearly all the Bible prayers, with an expression of faith in God. This is extremely important in practice. You need to affirm constantly that you do believe in God, not merely as a vague abstract concept, but as a real, vivid, actual power in life, always available to be contacted in thought; never-changing and never-failing. The Psalm closes with a command and an affirmation.

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. This is really the whole Bible in a nutshell. Be still, and know that I am God. This is the very last thing that we want to do when we are worried or anxious. The current of human thought is always hurrying us along to its own ends, and it seems much easier to swim with it by accepting difficulties, than to draw resolutely away from these things, and contemplate God, which is the one way out of trouble. Even in your prayers there is a time to cease active work and, “having done all, to stand”—to be still, and know that I am God. 

© 1931 by Emmet Fox

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK #essentialsofrec #Prayer #Peace #recovery

Be at Peace

Do not look forward in fear to the changes of life,

rather look to them with full hope that as they
arise, God will lead you safely through all things.
And when you cannot stand it,
God will carry you in His arms.

Do not fear what will happen tomorrow.

The same God who cares for you today
will take care of you today and every day.
God will either shield you from suffering or
will give you unfailing strength to bear it.

Be patient and put aside all anxious thoughts and

imaginations.

© Copyright Hazelden Foundation

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

DAILY REFLECTIONS #essentialsofrec #Prayer #St.Francis

    21

A CLASSIC PRAYER

Lord, make me a channel for 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 under- stand, 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.

~ TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 99 

No matter where I am in my spiritual growth, the St. Francis prayer helps me improve my conscious contact with the God of my understanding. I think that one of the great advantages of my faith in God is that I do not understand Him, or Her, or It. It may be that my relationship with my Higher Power is so fruitful that I do not have to understand. All that I am certain of is that if I work the Eleventh Step regularly, as best I can, I will continue to improve my conscious contact, I will know His will

Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services Inc

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK #essentialsofrec #Prayers #Recovery

 22
October

Bad Day

Today was a bad day.
Forgive me for my anger toward others,
The anger was my own.
Forgive me for my prejudice toward others;
The prejudice and intolerance came from

my own arrogance.

Forgive me for my lack of faith in You;
My lack of faith is my own fear of failure.
Tomorrow will be a better day.
I had a bad day, but it has ended.
And I am sober.

© 2007 by Hazelden Foundation

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Responsibility

 23
September

The Simple Things

Lord, I pray to stay uncomplicated and do well these simple tasks:

If I open it, I will close it.

If I turn it on, I will turn it off.

If I unlock it, I will lock it up.

If I break it, I will admit it.

If I borrow it, I will return it.

If I make a mess, I will clean it up.

If I value it, I will take care of it.

If it will brighten someone’s day, I will say it.

— Author unknown

From the book:

The 12 Step Prayer Book Volume 2 by Bill P. and Lisa D.

The 12 Step Prayer Book Volume 2 by Bill P. and Lisa D. © 2007 by Hazelden Foundation

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK #essentialsofrec #Resentment #Prayer #Hurt

18
September

Release Hurt, Anger, Resentment

God of Reason, I am willing to release all feelings

of hurt and anger and resentment.

Help me know true forgiveness

and see each person as part of You.

Let my words and my actions

serve only to honor You.

May my honest and positive action

heal and comfort and harmonize my life
and the lives of those around me.

Thank You, God.

~ Adapted, author unknown ~

© 2007 by Hazelden Foundation

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

Just For Today Prayer. #essentialsofrec #prayer #recovery

2
May

Just For Today

1. Just for today I will be happy. This assumes that what Abraham Lincoln said is true, that "most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." Happiness is from within; it is not a matter of externals.

2. Just for today I will try to adjust myself to what is, and not try to adjust everything to my own desires. I will take my family, my business, and my luck as they come and fit myself to them.

3. Just for today I will take care of my body. I will exercise it, care for it, nourish it, not abuse nor neglect it, so that it will be a perfect machine for my bidding.

4. Just for today I will try to strengthen my mind. I will learn something useful. I will not be a mental loafer. I will read something that requires effort, thought and concentration.

5. Just for today I will exercise my soul in three ways; I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out. I will do at least two things I don't want to do as William James suggests, just for exercise.

6. Just for today I will be agreeable. I will look as well as I can, dress as becomingly as possible, talk low, act courteously, be liberal with praise, criticize not at all, nor fault with anything and not try to regulate nor improve anyone.

7. Just for today I will try to live through this day only, not to tackle my whole life problem at once. I can do things for twelve hours that would appall me if I had to keep them up for a lifetime.

8. Just for today I will have a program. I will write down what I expect to do every hour. I may not follow it exactly, but I will have it. It will eliminate two pests, hurry and indecision.

9. Just for today I will have a quiet half hour all by myself and relax. In this half hour sometimes I will think of God, so as to get a little more perspective into my life.

10. Just for today I will be unafraid, especially I will not be afraid to be happy, to enjoy what is beautiful, to love, and to believe that those I love, love me.

If we want to develop a mental attitude that will bring us peace and happiness, here is Rule #1:

Think and act cheerfully, and you will feel cheerful.

Written by Sybyl F Partridge in 1916 and printed in How To Stop Worrying, And Start Living by Dale Carnegie, 1951

 not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

From the A.A. Archives in New York #essentialsofrecovery.com #AA #BillW #Letter #LordsPrayer

A Letter From Bill W. Regarding The Use Of The Lord's Prayer In A.A. 

April 14, 1959

Dear Russ,
Am right sorry for my delay in answering. Lois and I were a long time out of the country and this was followed by an attack of the marathon type of flu that has been around here in New York. We are okay now, however, but I did want to explain my delay.

Now about the business of adding the Lord's Prayer to each A.A. meeting.

This practice probably came from the Oxford Groups who were influential in the early days of A.A. You have probably noted in AA. Comes of Age what the connection of these people in A.A. really was. I think saying the Lord's Prayer was a custom of theirs following the close of each meeting. Therefore it quite easily got shifted into a general custom among us.

Of course there will always be those who seem to be offended by the introduction of any prayer whatever into an ordinary A.A. gathering. Also, it is sometimes complained that the Lord's Prayer is a Christian document. Nevertheless this Prayer is of such widespread use and recognition that the arguments of its Christian origin seems to be a little farfetched. It is also true that most A.A.s believe in some kind of God and that communication and strength is obtainable through His grace. Since this is the general consensus it seems only right that at least the Serenity Prayer and the Lord's Prayer be used in connection with our meetings. It does not seem necessary to defer to the feelings of our agnostic and atheist newcomers to the extent of completely hiding our light under a bushel.

However, around here, the leader of the meeting usually asks those to join him in the Lord's Prayer who feel that they would care to do so. The worst that happens to the objectors is that they have to listen to it. This is doubtless a salutary exercise in tolerance at their stage of progress.

So that's the sum of the Lord's Prayer business as I recall it. Your letter made me wonder in just what connection you raise the question.

Meanwhile, please know just how much Lois and I treasure the friendship of you both. May Providence let our paths presently cross one of these days.

Devotedly yours,
Bill Wilson

WGW/ni
Mr. Russ

Twenty Third Psalm - Native American Version #essentialsofrec #NativeAmerican

25
March


The GREAT FATHER above a SHEPHERD CHIEF is.
I am His and with Him I want not.
He throws out to me a rope and the name of the rope is love
and He draws me to where the grass is green and the water is not dangerous,
and I eat and lie down and am satisfied.
Sometimes my heart is very weak and falls down
but He lifts me up again draws me into a good road.
His name is WONDERFUL .
Sometimes, it may be very soon, it may be a long long time,
He will draw me into a valley.
It is dark there, but I'll be afraid not,
for it is between those mountains that the SHEPHERD CHIEF will meet me
and the hunger that I have in my heart all through life will be satisfied.
Sometimes he makes the love rope into a whip,
but afterwards He gives me a staff to lean upon.
He spreads a table before me with all kinds of foods.
He puts His hand upon my head and all the " tired " is gone.
My cup he fills till it runs over.
What I tell is true. I lie not.
These roads that are "away ahead" will stay with me
through this life and after;
and afterwards I will go to live in the Big Teepee
and sit down with the SHEPHERD CHIEF forever.


Author Unknown

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?

The Secret Written by Ralph S. Cushman #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Prayer

24
March


I met God in the morning

When my day was at its best,

And his presence came like sunrise

Like a glory in my breast.




All day long the Presence lingered,

All day long he stayed with me,

And we sailed in perfect calmness

O’er a very troubled sea.




Other ships were blown and battered,

Other ships were sore distressed,

But the winds that seemed to drive them

Brought to us a peace and rest.




Then I thought of other mornings,

With a keen remorse of mind,

When I too had loosed the moorings,

With the Presence left behind.




So I think I know the secret,

Learned from many a troubled way:

You must seek him in the morning

If you want him through the day!

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?