"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. Amen." - Seventh Step Prayer, Alcoholics Anynymous
Step Seven is where all the work we've done up to this point begins to come together. We've admitted we're not perfect, we've come to believe we need help beyond ourselves, we've taken an honest moral inventory, and we've admitted our wrongs. Now comes the humble request to have our defects removed.
Notice the goal isn't to become a perfect person. The prayer asks only that the defects standing in the way of our usefulness be removed. That's an important distinction. Recovery isn't about creating a new personality. It's about becoming less driven by fear, pride, resentment, and selfishness so we can be of greater use to God and the people around us.As we continue to practice these principles, we often discover that usefulness grows as self-centeredness shrinks. That's the quiet work of Step Seven.
What defect of character gets in the way of your usefulness the most today?
Notice the goal isn't to become a perfect person. The prayer asks only that the defects standing in the way of our usefulness be removed. That's an important distinction. Recovery isn't about creating a new personality. It's about becoming less driven by fear, pride, resentment, and selfishness so we can be of greater use to God and the people around us.
As we continue to practice these principles, we often discover that usefulness grows as self-centeredness shrinks. That's the quiet work of Step Seven.
What defect of character gets in the way of your usefulness the most today?
