Ultimately my prayer turned from petition to thanksgiving. To know and understand the nature of God is the objective of the 12 steps. They looked like big steps to me, but if taken in baby steps, they yield the results, which God intended for them to yield.

As an alcoholic the spiritual language of the saints was too difficult for me, but AA paraphrased it and simplified it. Just like a little baby, I craved the milk of AA and ultimately I was able to be weaned and digest solid food.

The AA book tells us: " Many of us exclaimed, "What an order! I can't go through with it." Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principles. We are not saints. The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines. The principles we have set down are guides to progress. We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection."