Al-Anon daily reflection ·

Learning to Trust

I learned to trust Him in my Sixth, Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Steps.

Paths to Recovery, p. 123

My early Steps built a foundation: I began to trust my powerlessness in Step One and, with Step Two, felt a flicker of hope that things could be different. Giving over my will in Step Three felt like a leap. But it was in the middle Steps—Six, Seven, Eight, and Nine—where I truly learned to lean on my Higher Power.

These Steps brought a much deeper, more specific kind of trust. I had to trust that naming my character defects wouldn’t make me a terrible person, but that my Higher Power could indeed help remove them. The idea of amends felt terrifying, a messy confrontation I wanted to avoid. Yet, in those Steps, I learned to trust that facing my part, owning my actions, wouldn't shatter me, but actually lead to a sense of peace I desperately craved.

It was a gradual unclenching, trusting that a Power greater than myself had my back, even as I wrestled with difficult truths about myself. This wasn't abstract trust; it was lived, practical experience that showed me my Higher Power was there, guiding me through the messy, vital work of changing.

Practice

If I'm struggling to trust my Higher Power with something big, I can look back at the middle Steps. Those times I became willing, asked for help, made amends—each one taught me this Power is trustworthy. The track record is there.

Today’s Reminder

Trust grows through practice in the middle Steps.

More on trust in a Higher Power

Explore further

Written by people with lived experience of someone else’s drinking who practice the Twelve Step program of recovery. Published by Daily Growth, LLC.

The actual Daily Paths app: today’s reflection, journal, and daily tools

The Daily Paths app

Make room for yourself,
every day.

A daily reflection. A place for your thoughts. Small ways to bring the focus back to you.

Get the Daily Reflection in your inbox.

Sign up to receive a daily email with the Daily Reflection and a link to an article worth reading.

We’ll send a link to confirm your address. Unsubscribe at any time. Privacy