Prayer
When I got sober, I didn't know how to pray or what to say in a prayer. Most of my prayers consisted of if only and I'll never if God would give me what I wanted or bail me out of my latest scrape.
When I had hit my bottom, I first prayed for God to take me…to end it all and let me die. Obviously that didn't happen. But He took me just the same. But not in a way that I have every envisioned Him to do.
At first my prayers were very simple. Guidance and Gratitude. Then as I was able and understood my spirituality more I began to pray for other things.
I began to pray for others. I prayed for understanding. And I also made the mistake of praying for acceptance. Everything in the world went wrong that day and I got through it only by praying for a swift end to the day and was deeply grateful when it was over. I have not prayed for acceptance since.
There are short prayers such as "God save me from anger!" and then there are longer prayers in so much as my life is a prayer in the way that I live it. God's answer is in the results of the choices that I make.
I learned that all of my prayers are answered. Every one. Sometimes the answer is no, or not now. But the prayer has always been answered.
With in these many answers to my prayers I have learned that I am responsible to fulfill my own destiny. Where I sometimes think that God is saying no, I find that I am given the tools to build that destiny. I have learned that faith without works is dead.
"Faith can move mountains, but God expects us to come with our own pick and shovel."
The power of prayer was fully demonstrated to me time and time again during an ongoing ordeal with my wife's health. From Minere's Disease to Cancer to Strokes, our prayers have helped both my wife and I come through these many ordeals.
It has become clear to me that prayer is a very important part of sobriety and few alcoholics remain sober very long without it.
Here are some payers that have greatly helped me over the years.
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