Endigar 1070
From Courage to Change of Oct 21:
Many times I have said, “I wish I had faith.” And what I’ve heard from so many wise Al-Anon members is, “Surrender your lack of faith to your Higher Power, and ask for faith.”
I have said, “I know I am powerless, but I feel so helpless, frightened, hopeless,” and I have been told I had the option to surrender those feelings and ask for what I need. Powerless does not mean helpless. In fact, it can lead us to a source of enormous power – the power to carry out God’s will.
I have also said, “I can’t figure out what God wants me to do, though I’ve prayed for guidance.” My loving Sponsor always says, “God doesn’t speak in code. Ask for clarity, and then trust that you will get it when the time is right.”
When in doubt, I am learning that the answer is to ask.
Today’s Reminder
After years of asking only for a particular solution to a problem, such as, “Please make the alcoholic stop drinking!” — I need to learn a better way to ask for help. Today I will meditate for a few minutes on what I need, and then I will ask a Power greater than myself to help me with it.
“Even if we have struggled with the idea of a Higher Power, we have learned that asking for help works…” ~ In All Our Affairs
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Powerless, Not Helpless
There’s a subtle but vital distinction here. Powerless means recognizing that I cannot control outcomes, people, or timing. Helpless would mean believing that therefore, nothing can be done. But in recovery, surrender is never the end of movement—it’s the alignment of movement with truth. The moment I surrender my powerlessness, I open the door for a greater power to act through me. This is not passivity; it’s participation in grace.
Asking Without Prescription
For many of us, our prayers began as negotiations: “Please make the alcoholic stop drinking.” But the Step tradition teaches us to shift from asking for what we want to asking for what we need. It’s a discipline of trust—believing that the solution may look different, and that transformation often begins in our perception, not in our circumstances. When I ask simply, “Help me with this,” I move from manipulation to relationship.
God Doesn’t Speak in Code
What a freeing reminder. When we can’t hear, it’s rarely because God is cryptic—it’s because we are still translating divine language through fear. The answer to prayer often begins as peace, or a subtle loosening of tension. Clarity comes as we grow willing to stop deciphering and start listening.
Daily Reprieve 
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