Daily Reflection: A 3rd Step Prayer for Surrender

The third step of AA’s addiction program is to surrender to a power greater than oneself (to the god or the higher power of your choosing). Surrendering to this power will set you free from the bondages of insanity, addictions, and suffering.

The higher power of your choosing doesn’t have to be personified divinity. It can also be Love, Wisdom, or Community.

The 3rd Step prayer can be found in what’s called the Big Book of AA. It says:

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. May I do thy will always.

What does this prayer mean?

It means that trying to get through life on willpower alone is painful, nearly impossible, and unnecessary as well. A power greater than the individual is necessary in order to practice non-attachment and experience healing. And aligning with one’s strengths and purposes brings blessings that we can then give back to other people.

This level of surrender to God is difficult for me, because I want to be perfect on my own terms, but it’s a necessary step because it is impossible to do this journey of life without strong support. On my own, I was unable to conquer my cravings and my weaknesses. But with the support of Wisdom, Love, and Community, I can do anything, aligned with my true purpose as a human being.

As an agnostic, here is my own version of the 3rd Step prayer.

Wisdom, help me surrender to your will and your plan for my life instead of fighting to do it alone. Guide my communication and actions with other people using truth and compassion. Grant me the courage to carry divine will out as I follow your lead in my affairs. I invite you into my space as I process the anger that I’ve been holding onto from childhood that has been holding me back. Reveal the nature of my resentments and flaws to me and replace these parts of my nature with gratitude, humility, and effectiveness, and most of all love.