“For each step we take towards God, God takes a thousand steps towards us.”

– Life with Hope, first edition, page 56

The Eleventh Step is about communication with our Higher Power, something we can do every day. We have heard it said in 12-Step meetings that while praying is talking to our Higher Power, during meditation we make the stillness that allows our Higher Power to guide and talk to us.

I stopped these practices when I started smoking. I never started in the first place; either way it is never too late to learn and begin again. Prayer is about thanking as well as asking, and my Higher Power answers all my prayers; sometimes the answer isn’t what I want it to be. Sometimes the answer to a plea is, “I’m sorry, but no,” or “not yet,” or “instead of that, how about this?” When I thank my Higher Power in prayer, I always receive a “you’re welcome” in return.

If I am aware of the world around me; the people, the situations in which I find myself, or moments in nature, I might find the answers to my prayers there. Meditation enhances and hones my awareness. It separates the mud of my inner self into earth, air and water, making one thing distinguishable from another. Sometimes meditation answers prayers I wasn’t even conscious of—like a gentle suggestion I hadn’t yet considered, or a feeling of oneness with the universe that I hadn’t experienced, a sense of belonging, or a taste of serenity.

Final thought: Today, I will ask my Higher Power to keep me sober today, and before going to sleep tonight, I will thank my Higher Power for having kept me sober this day. In between, I will let my Higher Power speak to me.