STEP TWELVE
Having had a spiritual awakening,
we tried to carry this message to others,
and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
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Opening Prayer
Dear Father always near us,
may your name be treasured and loved,
may your rule be completed in us—
may your will be done here on earth
in just the way it is done in heaven.
Give us today the things we need today,
and forgive us our sins and impositions on you
as we are forgiving all who in any way offend us.
Please don’t put us through trials,
but deliver us from everything bad.
Because you are the one in charge,
and you have all the power,
and the glory too is all yours—forever—
which is just the way we want it!THE LORD’S PRAYER
(as paraphrased by Dallas Willard)
DIRECTION
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This expression has been around for years, but I just heard it from a good friend describing his own life journey. The strange truth is that the story of our weakness, failure, and pain often becomes a gift we can offer that brings hope to others.
So identify: What is one mess that has played a prominent role in your life? Make the decision that you will not make “hide the mess” your primary life goal. Think about people you know who may have suffered in a similar way. How might you tell your story to another person—perhaps someone who has gone through a similar hardship—in a way that could be helpful to them? Perhaps you want to write a brief description of it so that you will be prepared to share it when the time is right.
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Which part of the statement “Keep coming back. It works if you work it” most challenges you? Think about that, identify why, and pray for help with over- coming it.
Whether you’re in a peak or a trough, spend time thinking about which message you most need right now.
Remember: it’s temporary.
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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.
We will know peace.
No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others.
The 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 economic insecurity will leave us.
We will intuitively know how to handle situations that used to baffle us.
We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.
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Which of these promises makes your heart beat faster? Which of these promises do you find yourself most desiring to be fulfilled in your own life? Identify any barriers you can think of that would prevent this promise from being realized. Ask God to help you move toward its reality, and take any actionable steps that come to mind.
The promises remind us that we were made for hope and cannot live without it. It is particularly important for us to have hope at the beginning of each day. So this is a five-second habit that you can incorporate into your life that can make a significant impact.4
When you wake up in the morning and your feet hit the ground, let your first words be “This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.”
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Luke 17:33
“Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”
Luke 6:38
“Give, and it will be given to you.”
Matthew 10:8
“Freely you have received; freely give.”
2 Corinthians 1:4
“God comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”
Hebrews 12:1
“Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
James 2:20
“Faith without works is dead.”
1 Corinthians 13:5
“Love keeps no record of wrongs.”
John 15:2, 5
“Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. . . . I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
2 Corinthians 1:20
“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.”
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Hebrew Proverb
“One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.”
The Buddha
“Giving brings happiness at every stage of its expression.”
Hindu Teaching
“They who give have all things, they who withhold have nothing.”
Christian Smith & Hilary Davidson
Generous people are healthier, happier, friendlier, calmer, live longer, and die older than ungenerous people. By giving ourselves away, we move toward flourishing.”
Thomas Aquinas
“Any good that diminishes when it is distributed is only a small good.”
James Clear (Atomic Habits)
“At some point it comes down to who can handle the boredom of training every day, doing the same [exercises] over and over.”
Joseph Nowinski (If You Work It, It Works!)
“Each of the Twelve Steps reflects an underlying principle.”
Richard Rohr (Breathing Underwater)
“Until people’s basic egocentricity is radically exposed, revealed for what it is, and foundationally redirected, much religion becomes occupied with rearranging deck chairs on a Titanic cruise ship.”
Shawn Achor (The Happiness Advantage)
On the importance of focusing on gratitude instead of flaws. He shares an anecdote of a tax auditor making a spreadsheet of his wife’s mistakes and how this led to depression
Bill W. (Alcoholics Anonymous: The Big Book)
“We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it.”
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In what ways have you experienced the paradox of gaining more through giving? How does this challenge or reinforce your current views on generosity?
What are the areas of your life where perseverance has led to transformation, even when immediate results were not evident? How do you differentiate between healthy perseverance and an unwillingness to let go?
How do you maintain hope in seasons of waiting or pruning, when growth isn’t immediately visible? What practices or beliefs sustain you during these times?
How do you balance faith and action in your life? In what ways do you see movement (even small steps) as a catalyst for spiritual or emotional transformation?
Pray for each other to close.