Prayer and meditation made easy
The Lords Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Serenity Prayer
God grant me the Serenity
To accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And the Wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time.
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as he did, this sinful world as it is,
Not as I would like it.
Trusting that he will make all things right,
If I surrender to his will.
That I may be reasonably happy in this world
And supremely happy in the next.
P.U.S.H.
When everything seems to go wrong, just P.U.S.H.
When the job gets you down, just P.U.S.H.!
When people don't react the way you think they should, just P.U.S.H.!
When your money looks funny and the bills are due, just P.U.S.H.!
When you want to give up because it looks hopeless, just P.U.S.H.!
P.U.S.H - Pray Until Something Happens!
--Randy Walker
Third Step Prayer
God, I offer myself to Thee – to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt.
Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will.
Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help
of Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of Life.
Big Book pg. 63
Seventh Step Prayer
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
Big Book pg. 76
Eleventh Step Prayers
MORNING PRAYER
God, direct my thinking today so that it be empty of self pity, dishonesty, self-will, self-seeking and fear.
God, inspire my thinking, decisions and intuitions.
Help me to relax and take it easy.
Free me from doubt and indecision.
Guide me through this day and show me my next step.
God, show me what I need to do to take care of any problems.
I ask all these things that I may be of maximum service to you and my fellows.
Compiled from the Big Book pgs. 86-88
NIGHTLY PRAYER
God, forgive me where I have been resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid today.
Help me to not keep anything to myself but to discuss it all openly with another person.
Show me where I owe an apology and help me make it.
Help me to be kind and loving to all people.
Show me how I could have done better today.
Use me in the mainstream of life, God.
Free me of worry, remorse or morbid reflections that I may be of usefulness to others.
Compiled from the Big Book pg. 86
Prayer of Saint Francis
Lord, make me a channel of Thy peace
that where there is hatred, I may bring love
that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness
that where there is discord, I may bring harmony
that where there is error, I may bring truth
that where there is doubt, I may bring faith
that where there is despair, I may bring hope
that where there are shadows, I may bring light
that where there is sadness, I may bring 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 the giving that we receive;
it is in the pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p. 99
Fear Prayer
God, remove my fear and direct my attention to what you would have me be.
Big Book pg. 68
Sick Man's Prayer
God, when a person offends me, help me to remember this is a sick person.
Help me show the same tolerance, pity, and patience that we would cheerfully grant a sick friend.
Show me how can I help them.
Save me from being angry.
Thy will be done.
Big Book pg. 67
Knots Prayer
Dear God,
Please untie the knots in my mind, my heart and my life.
Remove the have nots, the can nots, and the do nots that I have in my mind.
Erase the will nots, may nots, might nots that may find a home in my heart.
Release me from the could nots, would nots and should nots that obstruct my life.
And most of all, Dear God, I ask that you remove from my mind, my heart and my life all of the “am nots” that I have allowed to hold me back, especially the thought that I am not good enough.
Amen
Desiderata
GO PLACIDLY amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
By Max Ehrmann © 1927
Footprints in the Sand
One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.
After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.
This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
"Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You'd walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me."
He whispered, "My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you."
Do it Anyway
Alcohol - The Great Remover
Alcohol - The Great Remover
People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self centered.
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish,
ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful
friends and some genuine enemies.
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.
Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.
Create anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, will often be forgotten.
Do good anyway.
Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.
Give your best anyway.
In the final analysis, it is between you and God.
It was never between you and them anyway. - Mother Teresa
Alcohol - The Great Remover
Alcohol - The Great Remover
Alcohol - The Great Remover
Alcohol is a product of amazing versatility.
It will remove stains from designer clothes, and will also remove the clothes from your back.
If by chance it is used in sufficient quantities, alcohol will remove furniture from the home, rugs from the floor, food from the table, lining from the stomach, vision from the eyes, judgment from the mind.
Alcohol will also remove good reputations, good jobs, good friends, happiness from children's hearts, sanity, freedom, spouses, relationships, and man's ability to adjust and live with his fellow man, even life itself.
As a remover, alcohol has no equal!
I don't think I'll drink any today!
You DON’T have to drink even if you want to!