How AA Taught Me To Pray

When I first started my AA odessey,  about 23 years ago, I was a broken human being and so was my Christian faith. It took me a while before I could let "those people" teach me anything about God...I should be teaching them. But that is not what happened.

The teacher had to become a student. These people found the way to quit drinking and drugging but I could not. So there God was doing something for them that mine could not or would not do. That was my thinking at the time. Of course I believe there is only one God but that's a different story entirely.

So after enough pain I finally broke down and got a sponsor (an AA mentor) and we started working the 12 steps of AA. After a while I went to him with a problem that I was having with someone and this is what he told me that transformed the way I pray for others.

He said Larry...everything you want for yourself you have to pray for them...you have to pray that they will find peace and that their lives will prosper and their souls will prosper.

He might have said a little more but what he said was enough for me...it was more than enough at the time...I took the ball and ran with it. I looked at my life and I prayed and pleaded that they would have everything I needed... A peaceful heart... Deep healing of old wounds... A greater ability to give love and to receive love... A large spirit and a builder of hope in others... Strength to get through this journey... And unimaginable grace to forgive themselves and the mistakes of others. I could go on of course...I could go on and on and on and I often do while praying for those who hurt me the most. Because in praying that way for them I find healing.

But what I no longer do after that day is to pray for others what I think they need, because I think they need to quit being stupid! I think they need to humble themselves and get off their throne and stop being so completely self-centered in their life. What they need is to come to God and get their life right and it would solve all their problems... Most of them anyway. What they really need is... Once again I could go on and on and on...

In praying the way that my sponsor taught me I learned and am learning still to keep ego out of my prayers... To try and keep self-will out of my prayers... And finally to pray that "Thy will not mine be done"... At least in my prayers for others.