Step 11

[bluidkiti]

By the time we arrive at Step Eleven, most of us have become comfortable with the concept of spirituality. We feel that the phrase "God, as we understood Him", tells us clearly that, whatever our belief is, some spiritual contact is essential to our recovery program.

Those of us who have been fortunate enough to find a support group-and have participated in our own recovery by being an active member of that group-have come to know the comfort of being a "part of" rather than feeling pain and loneliness because we don't seem to fit in anywhere. This camaraderie has given us the benefit of hearing how others learned to pray and meditate.

Many people have said of all the steps, they felt this one was the most healing. It reenforced their commitment to a power greater than themselves. And it gave them a more definitive sense of being on the right path at last.

For those of us who are loners, or whose circumstances preclude involvement with others, Step Eleven is like a beacon light. Its focus on meditation in addition to prayer teaches how to create calm in the face of chaos. It also familiarizes us with the effective value of guided imagery, which we can use when we do not have someone with whom we can share.

-Step by Step

[MajestyJo]

Step Three was my favourite Step, until I got to Step 11. It reinforced my faith, it made me aware of how important it was to have daily contact with my God, it Eleventh Step Prayer of Saint Francis Assisi, made me realize how important it was to be a clear channel, and to give to others and to myself, the Care that only a Higher Power can give.

Prayer St. Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred...let me sow love.
Where there is injury...pardon.
Where there is doubt...faith.
Where there is despair...hope.
Where there is darkness...light.
Where there is sadness...joy.

O Divine master, grant that I
may not so much seek
To be consoled...as to console.
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved..as to love,

For ...
It is in giving ...that we receive,
It is in pardoning...that we are pardoned,
It is in dying...that we are born to eternal life.

[MajestyJo]

Peace Prayer

May the people on this planet be changed.
Changed from hatred to love,
Changed from greed to giving,
Changed from selfishness to selflessness,
Changed from apathy to action,
Changed from jealousy to joy over someone's accomplishments,
Changed from intolerance to acceptance,
Changed from being destructive to being constructive,
Changed from fighting to peace,
Changed from killing to protecting life,
Changed from censorship to freedom,
Changed from ignorance to education,
Changed from fearing our differences to rejoicing our variety.

May we each take it upon ourselves to feed the hungry, cure the sick,
house the homeless, educate the illiterate, love the unloved,
compete to do the right thing instead of winning at any cost,
be heroes that teach our children to
make the world a better place instead of glorifying violence and war,
stand up and speak out against things that are wrong
instead of sitting back and waiting for someone else,
demand honesty from our governments,
demand honesty from ourselves.

May we each take responsibility for our own actions
and realize that by refusing to change ourselves,
we condone all the evils in the world.
If one person changes, they teach others by example,
who in turn change and teach more,
one person becomes as a pebble rolling down a mountain,
picking up more pebbles as it continues,
becoming an avalanche of change.
It can happen, it must happen, it will happen.

To make this prayer work, you have to change yourself.

Copyright 1997 Don Morris.

Something I posted on another site.

[MajestyJo]

Step Eleven


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.
--Step Eleven of Al-Anon


"... praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out" means that we ask on a daily basis to be shown the plan for the day. We also ask our Source for the power we need to carry that through. We will get a yes to both requests.
We do not ask other people to show their will for us. We ask God. Then we trust that we'll be empowered to carry God's will through.
God never, never asks us to do anything that He would not equip us to do. He never asks us to do anything we can't do. If we are to do it, we will be empowered. That's the easy part of this program. We never have to do more than we can, or anything we can't. If we want to worry and fuss we can, but we don't need to. That is our choice.
I have learned, through difficult and good times, that this Step will carry me through. When I don't know what to do next, God does. Working this Step, one day at a time, will take us to places we could never have traveled on our own. Simple acts, done daily in accordance to God's will for us, lead to a Grand Plan for our life.


Today, I will focus on asking God to show me what He wants me to do. I will ask God for the power to do that, then I will go ahead and get the job done. God, help me let go of my fears about living life one day at a time. Help me trust that when life is lived simply and in trust, a beautiful mosaic called "my life" will be woven. I am being divinely led, guided, and cared for.

Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie

Eventually, in everyone’s recovery comes the day when reason doesn’t cut it and we hit a wall. At this point, you either have a break down or a break through. If you’ve been doing Step Eleven, you’ll have the break through.

Sometimes I have to get on my knees to rise.

Excerpt from the Pocket Sponsor, By The
Hazelden author of ' Day By Day' & other Meditation Books

Step Eleven has been the strength of my recovery. When I read this I thought of the saying, "God answers knee-mail." With my arthritis like it is, my knees are saved for very special occasions. What I call the "heavy duty" stuff.

I have been to that wall many times. I am really grateful for the people in my life that have been there for me to show me the love and support that I needed to take down the bricks and rebuild my life. The hardest thing in recovery was to allow myself to become vulnerable. It is amazing what you can do when you are sick and tired of being tired and sick.

Some posts that I made at another site

[MajestyJo]

Step Eleven: 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.

"The actual experience of meditation and prayer across the centuries is, of course, immense. The world’s libraries and places of worship are a treasure trove for all seekers. It is to be hoped that every A.A. who has a religious connection which emphasizes meditation will return to the practice of that devotion as never before."

Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pg. 98

"Just For Today!" Web Site: http://www.aahistory.com/jft.html

I have gotten tapes from the library on meditation. One of my favorites is the one with colours. It was used when I was in treatment and I have used it the last sixteen years. Quite often when I am in pain and hurting, I will put music on while I go to sleep. I seem to have a deeper and more restful sleep.

[MajestyJo]

Step Eleven: 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.

Of course, it is reasonable and understandable that the
question is often asked: "Why can't we take a specific
and troubling dilemma straight to God, and in prayer
secure from Him sure and definite answers to our requests?"

This can be done, but it has hazards. We have seen AAs
ask with much earnestness and faith for God's explicit
guidance on matters ranging all the way from a shattering domestic or financial crisis to correcting a minor personal fault, like tardiness. Quite often, however, the thoughts that seem to come from God are not answers at all. They prove to be well-intentional, unconscious rationalizations. The AA, or indeed any man, who tries to run his life rigidly by this
kind of prayer, by this self-serving demand of God for replies, is a particularly disconcerting individual. To any questioning or criticism of his actions he instantly proffers his reliance upon prayer for guidance in all matters great or small. He may have forgotten the possibility that his own wishful thinking and the human tendency to rationalize have distorted his so-called guidance. With the best of intentions, he tends to force his own will into all sorts of situations and problems with
the comfortable assurance that he is acting under God's
specific direction. Under such an illusion, he can of course create great havoc without in the least intending it.

Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pages 103-104

This was a good reminder for me. So often, I forget and play God with other people's lives thinking I know what is best for them. I now try to pray and ask God that He give them what they need for their Highest Good the same way I do for myself. As my sponsor said many years ago, "Ask for health, happiness, prosperity and a spiritual blessing and awareness and they can't continue doing what their doing. They are sure to change."

I know it changed me.

[MajestyJo]

Anything unconscious dissolves when you shine the light of consciousness on it.

— Eckhart Tolle

Sounds like working Step Eleven to me. I can't heal in the darkness of isolation, walls, and a closed mind.

Perhaps the most popular relaxation modality is music therapy.

Whether New Age, rock, jazz, or classical, many people find that music distracts them from the painful moment, helping to reduce mental stress. In fact, in some hospitals, staff members give patients tapes of soothing music and reassuring voice-overs to use during surgical procedures.

In clinical studies, both doctors and patients agreed that listening to music produced greater decreases in peaks of tension, and produced greater compliance with relaxation practice. While the studies are limited, it's thought that music therapy can help to improve mood and pain tolerance. This therapy is thought to enhance the parasympathetic response through the effects of sound, encouraging relaxation at a deep level.

(Source: The Women's Guide to Ending Pain: An 8-Step Program, by Howard S. Smith, M.D., and Debra Fulghum Bruce, M.S. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.) This tip provided courtesy of ImmuneSupport.com

STEP ELEVEN: 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.

"Meditation is something which can always be further
developed. It has no boundaries, either of width or
height. Aided by such instruction and example as we
can find, it is essentially an individual adventure,
something which each one of us works out in his own
way. But its object is always the same: to improve
our conscious contact with God, with His grace,
wisdom, and love. And let's always remember that
meditation is in reality intensely practical."

c. 1952, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, page 101


**************************************************

"Just For Today!" Web Site: http://www.aahistory.com/jft.html

This was posted on my site Soundness of Mind in 2005. This was an e-mail I received regularly and the service was discontinued in 2008

Meditation has always been such a big part of my recovery. It is always good to have other people's words to think on.


A friend told me many years ago, to sit at a table, after doing prayer and meditation, with a paper in front of me, and as a thought crossed my mind, I was to write it down. By doing so, I could see the direction my mind was going, also to look at what is taking up space in my head that I needed to let go of, turn over to my HP, with new awareness as to my defects of character, the part of me that needed healing and those that needed cleansing.

[MajestyJo]

DAILY OM

Power, Beauty, And Warmth
Keeping The Sun Inside

Anyone who has endured a long, dark winter can attest to the power the sun has to both invigorate and relax body, mind, and soul. It can be daunting to begin the months of fall and winter, knowing that we may not see as much of the beautiful sun for quite some time. But it is important to remember that even during the darker days of fall and winter, the sun is still there shining, as beautiful as ever. Just because it is hidden behind clouds or setting early in our part of the world, does not mean that we cannot access its power, beauty, and warmth.

One way to do this is to find a warm spot in our house where we can sit or lie down in peace. Closing our eyes, we allow our breath to come and go easily, progressively lengthening each inhale and exhale until we feel very relaxed, peaceful, and warm. We imagine that it is a very warm summer day and that the sun is shining on us, allowing it to warm our body. In particular, we may feel as if a small sun has taken up residence in the area of our solar plexus or our heart. We do not need to think about which one too much and can simply trust our body to let us know where it is. Spend some time just experiencing this sensation, allowing the heat to radiate from inside your body.

If you live in a part of the world that loses a lot of light in the winter, you might want to do this exercise each night before retiring. You could also do it at the beginning of each day, giving yourself a chance to plug into that great source of energy. Keeping the sun inside of you when you are missing it on the outside is a way to say hello to the sun and let it warm your soul.

What do you think?

I call this centering. I do it before I go to bed at night. A form of meditation, letting go of all the stress, aches, pain, negativity, and balancing my chakras. Ask for what I need in healing and to be open to the good of what was sent to me in prayer. Asking for what is good for me, and to take away what is not. Asking for protection from anything that is harmful to my health and well being.

For me the Sun is healing. Light is all powerful. When I meditate and ask for the White Light to surround me and permeate my Soul and cleaning of all darkness.

May the White Light of Love and the Spirit of the Universe be with you and grant you the healing that has been given to me.

[MajestyJo]

Nourishment

STEP ELEVEN: 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.

"Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers. And when we turn away from meditation and prayer, we likewise deprive our minds, our emotions, and our intuitions of vitally needed support. As the body can fail its purpose for lack of nourishment, so can the soul. We all need the light of God's reality, the nourishment of his strength, and the atmosphere of His grace."

© 1952, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pages 97-98

Love this and reminds me of the quote from Step 2, bring it out of the darkness so the light of reason can shine.

We procrastinate about doing Step 4, yet when we bring things out of those secret corners, we allow ourselves to heal. It is a daily thing, not a one time process, be it Step 4 or 10.

By nourishing my spirit, I have that spiritual defence against my disease, to stay clean and sober in today.

I have to work the Steps on all levels, spiritual, mental, emotional, and physically.

[MajestyJo]

RIGHT ACTIONS

Samuel Thadeus Short

“By learning to contact, listen to, and act upon intuition, we can directly connect to the highest power of the universe and allow it to become our guiding force,” — Shakti Gawain

Right now in the silence of this moment let us be filled with wonderful healing light — as it moves into every cell and atom of our body —— we will be renewed and regenerated in body, mind and soul. We become inspired from within, and guided into perfect right action. We are in effect moving into Oneness with Spirit, or in tune with the vibrations of the universe.

In this way God is our source and supply for everything, actually our constant companion. As we move closer into this Divine relationship we become more whole, more complete and more perfect which is always our nature in the spiritual realm. As a result we think right thoughts received from inner direction which produce right actions in our life and affairs.

The Antesian Road To Enlightenment
antesianroadtoenlightenment-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
EXPANDING CONSCIOUSNESS

This is a beautiful concept of what Step Eleven means to me. It doesn't matter what you believe in, but when I realized that my Higher Power was a Source rather than a person, I was able to 1) Have more trust, 2) Learn to be open more to it, and 3) I became more willing to receive the gift of enlightenment.

Like all things in this program, it takes practice, practice, practice; but more importantly it is daily, and often in the moment. I can make that contact at any given time or place, no matter what is going on in my life.

When I looked at religion, it was God, Son, and Spirit, and it was the Spirit that I found empowering, it was what resided in me. It allowed me to make my God personal and not some distant being that I had to look up to find, or outside of myself to find the connection I needed to stay clean and sober.

[MajestyJo]

So many people don't seem to realize that once you get to Step "Whatever" the journey isn't over, it is a process. It doesn't stop at Step Twelve. It doesn't stop at Step Three because we don't want to do a Step Four. It doesn't end at Step Four because we don't want to tell a living soul. It doesn't stop at Steps Six because I know my defects, I am suppose to find a willingness and a desire to let them go. I can't stop without doing an amend to myself, my God, my friends and family.

Steps Ten, Eleven and Twelve are maintenance steps. You have to do the others to be able to have something to maintain. They are steps to be worked, just in today. As we get honest, as we heal, as we grow, the process goes on, and the road continues. We may make some detours along the way, but God willing, we will get back on the road and follow a path to recovery.

I get a new perspective, awareness, and a new outlook on my life, past and present. As I grew in recovery, Steps 10, 11, and 12 had new meaning and I was better equipped to work them.

[MajestyJo]

The Simplest Prayer

"…praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out."

Step Eleven - NA
One of my daily prayers is asking for my inner knowing. Knowing what is right for me, what is in my best interest and well being for the good of the whole. My truth, my understanding and my direction come from my Higher Power. By doing this, I get out of the way and allow Him to work through me.

Have had some challenging situations lately with Housing. Have tried to be patient but it is difficult when you get passed from one person to the next and no one wants to take responsibility.

Another one of those things, that shows us, life doesn't get better, we do. I still have issues with Housing, and I am still praying. This prayer and my thoughts were posted in 2009.

Housing is still being Housing, and I am still working my program. Lately things have been rough and have been going through some difficult times. It is nice to be reminded that challenges can be over come. Problems we stay stuck in. With my God, all things are possible, and that is starting to come true in today.