Working the Steps

Step 11 : We seek through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, as revealed through the person of Jesus Christ, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry that out.

St. Francis Prayer in the 12&12 confronted me about motives during my early AA days . "By self forgetting, one finds." Some years later, the Big Book words loomed out with similar wisdom. "Resolutely turn our thoughts to someone we can help."

Most helpful to meditation about powers outside of myself were Big Book page 86 directions for starting and ending each day at a time. Link to p86 directions with comments.

With the linked page up or the Big Book open to page 86, consider that the first paragraph's directions calm and prepare the mind. Then we are in better state to consider changes in our usual opinions. We are raedfy for later directions such as "see where religous people are right" and "There are other helpful books also."

After a few hundred daily readings of p 86 , I heard mention in an AA meeting of the book "Sermon on the Mount" by Emmet Fox. Fox's book is reported as a main reference of AA's co founders before publishing the first Big Book. Indeed, my reading "The Sermon on the Mount" improved and even reversed many flawed perceptions of religion and God. Please read this reference revered by Bill and Bob. After AA's Big Book, many friends feel Fox's book to be most enlightening about step 11.

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