As you go through the stages and steps of recovery from sex
addiction, you may begin to add the habit of prayer into your life. Some
people who are in recovery from sex addiction have grown up in churches
or with the tradition of religion in their lives and families; others
have no experience with God at all. Regardless of where you are coming
from, it is recommended that you integrate prayer into your day-to-day
life. Prayer can come from any tradition you are familiar with, be
written by another person, be self-created, or simply be a conversation
between you and the God of your own understanding.
As you begin your journey from sex addiction to healthy sexuality, you may have a difficult time building a relationship with your Higher Power. You might even find yourself actively resisting the idea of God at all. If this is true for you, you might begin your daily habit of prayer by praying for the willingness to have a Higher Power be a part of your life.
You may find that the daily habit of prayer can become more powerful if you first take the time to define God for yourself. For people in recovery from sex addiction who have not found a home in organized religion, or for those who do not come from a church background, this can be very important. If you are to turn your life over to something outside of yourself, it is helpful to find clarity on what that something is.
In most twelve step groups that focus on sex addiction God is defined simply as a power greater than yourself. It is up to you to choose what that means to you. You may choose to find your God in a traditional form, in the beauty and power of nature, or in something else entirely. Work to not become discouraged during the process of defining God as you understand God. Try to be open-minded. If this idea is proving difficult for you, speak with others at meetings or sex addiction support groups who are sober and appear to have a positive relationship with God.
Prayer provides a time for communing with the God of your understanding; it helps in building and strengthening the relationship between you and your Higher Power. There is no right or wrong way to pray, it is simply the act of prayer that is important. It is up to you to decide how you pray and what the content of those prayers is. You might pray for help in your recovery from sex addiction. You may want to pray in thankfulness for your life and for the well-being of those you care about. Very often you may find that you pray for guidance as you try to comprehend sex addiction and what you should and should not do.
Some people working through the steps of their recovery from sex addiction find that a specific time or place set aside for prayer can help keep them involved in the habit, as well as make the practice more real and personal. You may want to engage in prayer at a traditional house of worship, or a special place within your own home. If you schedule a time each day, however short or long you like, for prayer and meditation, you will have an easier time bringing this principle of prayer into your life.
A good place to start when you are considering prayer is with the well-known Serenity Prayer: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." This prayer is widely used and recited at most meetings of sex addiction support groups. For many it provides immediate comfort and brings alignment with their Higher Power. You might find it helpful to memorize and recite again and again during times of high anxiety, stress or insistent temptations, and triggers attached to your sex addiction.
The Serenity Prayer is especially helpful as it provides guidance when working to understand what the next right thing might be. If you are facing a particular challenge that you can't change, you can turn it over to your Higher Power. If you are looking at behaviors, especially those associated with your sex addiction, that you can change this prayer helps to invite action and courage. You may find that using the Serenity Prayer helps you to understand the differences between what you can and can't change and, in doing so, brings peace.
However you decide to implement prayer into your life, and whatever words you use, you will find that the practice brings peace and hope to an otherwise challenging journey through recovery from sex addiction.
As you begin your journey from sex addiction to healthy sexuality, you may have a difficult time building a relationship with your Higher Power. You might even find yourself actively resisting the idea of God at all. If this is true for you, you might begin your daily habit of prayer by praying for the willingness to have a Higher Power be a part of your life.
You may find that the daily habit of prayer can become more powerful if you first take the time to define God for yourself. For people in recovery from sex addiction who have not found a home in organized religion, or for those who do not come from a church background, this can be very important. If you are to turn your life over to something outside of yourself, it is helpful to find clarity on what that something is.
In most twelve step groups that focus on sex addiction God is defined simply as a power greater than yourself. It is up to you to choose what that means to you. You may choose to find your God in a traditional form, in the beauty and power of nature, or in something else entirely. Work to not become discouraged during the process of defining God as you understand God. Try to be open-minded. If this idea is proving difficult for you, speak with others at meetings or sex addiction support groups who are sober and appear to have a positive relationship with God.
Prayer provides a time for communing with the God of your understanding; it helps in building and strengthening the relationship between you and your Higher Power. There is no right or wrong way to pray, it is simply the act of prayer that is important. It is up to you to decide how you pray and what the content of those prayers is. You might pray for help in your recovery from sex addiction. You may want to pray in thankfulness for your life and for the well-being of those you care about. Very often you may find that you pray for guidance as you try to comprehend sex addiction and what you should and should not do.
Some people working through the steps of their recovery from sex addiction find that a specific time or place set aside for prayer can help keep them involved in the habit, as well as make the practice more real and personal. You may want to engage in prayer at a traditional house of worship, or a special place within your own home. If you schedule a time each day, however short or long you like, for prayer and meditation, you will have an easier time bringing this principle of prayer into your life.
A good place to start when you are considering prayer is with the well-known Serenity Prayer: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." This prayer is widely used and recited at most meetings of sex addiction support groups. For many it provides immediate comfort and brings alignment with their Higher Power. You might find it helpful to memorize and recite again and again during times of high anxiety, stress or insistent temptations, and triggers attached to your sex addiction.
The Serenity Prayer is especially helpful as it provides guidance when working to understand what the next right thing might be. If you are facing a particular challenge that you can't change, you can turn it over to your Higher Power. If you are looking at behaviors, especially those associated with your sex addiction, that you can change this prayer helps to invite action and courage. You may find that using the Serenity Prayer helps you to understand the differences between what you can and can't change and, in doing so, brings peace.
However you decide to implement prayer into your life, and whatever words you use, you will find that the practice brings peace and hope to an otherwise challenging journey through recovery from sex addiction.
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