Celebrate Recovery Step 11 | How to Start Prayer & Meditation

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Celebrate Recovery Step 11 takes you on a new adventure of prayer and meditation, growing you closer to God and His Will for your life. In the article for the last step, Step 10, we discussed being personally responsible when you are wrong. It’s time to experience more growth!

This 12-step recovery program is called Celebrate Recovery and follows the 12 steps of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). Step 11 in AA is another version of what you will find in CR.

If you are new to Celebrate Recovery’s 12 steps, please begin by reading Celebrate Recovery Step One! If you are continuing with us and want to review the last article, please go and read Celebrate Recovery Step 10 on our website.

In Celebrate Recovery Step 11, you will learn how to seek God’s Will through prayer and meditation, which will improve your relationship with God and help you carry out what He wants for your life.

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What is Celebrate Recovery Step 11?

As mentioned, Step 11 for AA corresponds with Celebrate Recovery Step 11. These go together with the 8 Principles of Recovery in Celebrate Recovery. These principles are from the Beatitudes in the Bible. The 12 steps of Celebrate Recovery are based on the 12 steps in AA.

Celebrate Recovery Step 11 states: We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His Will for us and the power to carry that out.

CR Step 10 goes with Celebrate Recovery Principle 7 of the 8 Celebrate Recovery Principles.

All the numbers in Celebrate Recovery (principles, lessons, and steps) can get overwhelming, so go check out this FREE list of Celebrate Recovery Numbers. This worksheet will clarify things as you complete Celebrate Recovery Step 11.

Celebrate Recovery Principle 7 states: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His Will for my life and to gain the power to follow His Will.

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly. – Colossians 3:16

What Does Celebrate Recovery Step 11 Mean?

In Celebrate Recovery step 11, we look at healthy ways to avoid any relapse into your hurtful behavior, bad habit, or difficult hang-up. We do this by embracing our relationship with God in new ways and being grateful for the path He has taken us on.

To accomplish Celebrate Recovery Step 11, reserve a daily time with God, take an evaluation, listen to Jesus, have some alone time, practice prayer, slow down, enjoy your growth, and be thankful for God, the others in your life, your recovery, and your church.

Celebrate Recovery Step 11 corresponds with Celebrate Recovery Lesson 21 – Relapse and Celebrate Recovery Lesson 22 – Gratitude. For more details about Step 11, be sure to read those two articles, which go deeper and have a free study guide.

Let us give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing love and wonderful deeds for mankind. – Psalm 107:15

How to Accomplish Celebrate Recovery Step 11

In Celebrate Recovery Step 11, we learn of the importance of reserving a daily time with God, evaluating your needs, listening to Jesus, praying, enjoying the growth you experience in recovery, and being thankful to God our Creator.

If you don’t have any relationship with God, it’s not too late to develop one. Start developing a relationship with God by exploring the Spiritual Growth section of our site. There are many resources and articles available there that will help you grow spiritually!

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. – Philippians 4:13

Prayer

As you learn to develop a daily time with God, you will want to know how to pray. Prayer is a chief component of CR Step 11. Prayer connects you with God. It gives you a chance to make requests that you feel you have and thank Him for all of the blessings you’ve received.

If you don’t yet know how to pray, you can still learn. Try creating a prayer journal or a prayer binder. Most of all, remember that there is no right or wrong way to pray. Just speak from the heart; the Lord already knows your concerns, but He wants to hear from you.

Grab additional prayer tips as you mature spiritually! It doesn’t need to all happen overnight. Take your time. The most important thing is to try and connect with God. Find some more new ideas and ways to light up your prayer life over time in our prayer articles.

Come close to God, and God will come close to you. – James 4:8

Meditation

Meditation is the other key part of CR Step 11. Meditation goes hand in hand with prayer in many cases. You might wish to just be still and listen to God, meditating on a Scripture or picture that means a lot to you and connects you to God in a personal way.

Another way to meditate is to focus on the Bible. There are many ways to do this, but if you want to meditate on Scripture, it is very helpful to memorize Scripture. You can try a Bible memory system or just memorize verses that mean something to you.

Be still, and know that I am God. – Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

Gratitude

Gratitude is the other crucial element of CR Step 11. Prayer and meditation will help you if you relapse and will certainly help you avoid a relapse, but gratitude is another part altogether. Think of all the blessings God has given you in your life since you began recovery. Take a moment.

As you work towards building an attitude of gratitude in recovery, the following resources should prove to be helpful. However, you should be able to just look around you to see all of the abundance that the Lord has provided for your life! Thank Him daily for this!

Use these resources to build your sense of gratitude as you walk the road to recovery:

Thank the LORD! Praise His name! Tell the nations what He has done. Let them know how mighty He is! – Isaiah 12:4

Additional Tips for Celebrate Recovery Step 11

In order to get the most out of the 12 steps, you might have to try many different things. As you work through Celebrate Recovery Step 11, try one thing to start. If that doesn’t resonate with you, try something else. Never give up!

One of the best things you can do is attend a Celebrate Recovery meeting! There, you will meet similar, non-judgmental people, who are going through similar struggles. Check out the 30 benefits of going to a recovery meeting!
To really grow in recovery, join a Celebrate Recovery Step Study! While the CR meetings will get you started, a step study is where real growth happens.
We talked about prayer, but I’d be remiss if I did not mention it again. It is essential to growth of any kind. Know that there is a greater purpose for you, and God holds all the cards. Connect with Him today!
Another way God will connect with you is through the Bible. To really implant Bible verses on your heart, internalize them. One way to do this is by taking the time to memorize scripture! Start with John 3:16, 1 Corinthians 10:13, or Psalm 23.
Memorize the Serenity Prayer for continued support in your journey of recovery. You won’t regret it.

Bonus Celebrate Recovery Step 11 Resources

These bonus Celebrate Recovery Step 11 resources will help you on your road to recovery! Take advantage of some or all of them!

Step 11 in Celebrate Recovery Video to Watch

Other Celebrate Recovery Step 11 Resources

I have the Celebrate Recovery NIV Study Bible – which is full of great information! I highly recommend it!
The Celebrate Recovery 365 Devotional Book is another fabulous resource that can give you a morning boost each day! I have gotten a lot of compliments when I share devotional messages from it.
The Celebrate Recovery Blog Series – learn about how to do the 25 lessons (plus the free resources) and work through all 12 steps of recovery.
Check out the first article – What is Celebrate Recovery?
Purchase the updated study guide set for Celebrate Recovery on Amazon to have even more questions and study the materials that you want on your own or with a group.

Conclusion

You now know all about taking step 11 in Celebrate Recovery. Celebrate Recovery Step 11 makes sure you do not relapse by helping you build a closer relationship with God. You can do this by implementing prayer and meditation or improving those elements in your quiet time.

You are only one step away from completing all 12 steps of recovery! Remember to trust the 12-step process as millions of people have found success this way. Keep hope alive and don’t forget that God is with you every step of the way, and you’ll see winning results!