Daily Meditations
Find inspiration day by day in quotes from OA literature.
Recovery story
Our personal recovery stories remind us that we are not alone. Through another’s experience, strength and hope, we can know recovery for ourselves.
Serenity prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.
The OA Promise
I put my hand in yours, and together we can do what we could never do alone. No longer is there a sense of hopelessness, no longer must we each depend upon our own unsteady willpower. We are all together now, reaching out our hands for power and strength greater than ours, and as we join hands, we find love and understanding beyond our wildest dreams.
The Third-Step Prayer
God, I offer myself to thee—to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt. Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Thy power, Thy love, and Thy way of life. May I do Thy will always! (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 63)
The Seventh-Step Prayer
My creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding. Amen. (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 76)
We who began working the Steps in order to recover from compulsive eating now find that through them we have embarked on a lifelong journey of spiritual growth. From the isolation of food obsession we have emerged into a new world. Walking hand in hand with our friends and our Higher Power, we are now exploring this world, using the great spiritual principles embodied in the Twelve Steps as the map to guide our way. We gratefully follow in the footsteps of many others who have walked this way before us, and we’re gratified to be making footprints of our own for others to follow.
Those of us who live this program don’t simply carry the message; we are the message. Each day that we live well, we are well, and we embody the joy of recovery which attracts others who want what we’ve found in OA. We’re always happy to share our secret: the Twelve Steps of Overeaters Anonymous, which empower each of us to live well and be well, one day at a time. (The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous, p. 106)
Hearing Is Believing
Listen to Hearing Is Believeing, an inspiring collection of interviews depicting the journeys of several OA members from despair to recovery and serenity.
Been Slipping and Sliding? A Reading and Writing Tool
For members who want to stop “slipping and sliding,” download Been Slipping and Sliding?, which contains 30 questions for use in daily writing and/or discussion with a sponsor. The questions are also recommended for those in relapse who want to recommit to their OA program.
Recovery Insurance Policy
Together we can do what we could never do alone … This Recovery Insurance Policy is a pledge between two OA members to support and to be accountable to one another. No member is immune to relapse or to quitting OA. This agreement is an “insurance policy” against both possibilities.