NA Prayers

The Narcotics Anonymous (NA) recovery program is a nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem. Narcotics Anonymous uses a 12-step model developed for people with varied substance use disorders and is the second-largest 12-step organization. Please feel free to download a PDF version of the NA Prayers.

A simple spiritual, not religious program…
It is important for you to know that you will hear God mentioned in our meetings. What we are referring to is a Higher Power or God of our understanding. The NA Basic Text explains it well “Our concept of God comes not from dogma but from what we believe and from what works for us. Many of us understand God to be simply whatever force keeps us clean. The right to a God of your understanding is total and without any catches. … The only suggested guidelines are that this Power be loving, caring and greater than ourselves.”

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.”

 Long Version Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity to accept the things that I cannot change.
Courage to change the things that I can.
and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time.
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it.
Trusting that He will make all things right, If I surrender to His will, that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with Him forever in the next.

NA Third Step Prayer

“Take my will and my life, guide me in my recovery, show me how to live.”

Gratitude Motto

“My gratitude speaks, when I care and when I share with others the N.A. way.”

Basic Text Preface Prayer

“We cannot change the nature of the addict or addiction. We can help to change the old lie “Once an addict, always an addict,” by striving to make recovery more available. God, help us to remember this difference.”

Service Statement

“Everything that occurs in the course of NA Service must be motivated by the desire to more successfully carry the message of recovery to the addict who still suffers. It was for this reason that we began this work. We must always remember that as individual members, groups and service committees, we are not and should never be in competition with each other.
We work separately and together to help the newcomer and for our common good. We have learned, painfully, that internal strife cripples our Fellowship; and prevents us from providing the services necessary for growth.”

Service Prayer

“GOD, grant us knowledge
that we may write*
according to Your Divine precepts.
Instill in us a sense of Your purpose.
Make us servants of Your will
and grant us a bond of selflessness,
that this may truly be Your work,
not ours —in order that
no addict, anywhere, need die from the horrors of addiction.”
*(“act” or “work” may be substituted for “write” in our committee meetings)

First Step Prayer

Dear Lord, I admit that I am powerless over my addiction I admit that my life is unmanageable when I try to control it. Help me this day to understand the true meaning of powerlessness. Remove from me all denial of my addiction.

Alternate Prayer

Today, I ask for help with my addiction. Denial has kept me from seeing how powerless I am & how my life is unmanageable. I need to learn & remember that I have an incurable illness & that abstinence is the only way to deal with it.

Second Step Prayer

Heavenly Father, I know in my heart that only you can restore me to sanity. I humbly ask that you remove all twisted thought & addictive behavior from me this day. Heal my spirit & restore in me a clear mind.

Alternate Prayer

I pray for an open mind so I may come to believe in a Power greater than myself. I pray for humility & the continued opportunity to increase my faith. I don't want to be crazy any more.

Third Step Prayer

God, I offer myself to Thee To build with me & 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 & Thy way of life. May I do Thy will always!

Alternate Prayer

Take my will & my life, Guide me in my recovery, Show me how to live.

Fourth Step Prayer

Dear God, It is I who has made my life a mess. I have done it, but I cannot undo it. My mistakes are mine & I will begin a searching & fearless moral inventory. I will write down my wrongs, but I will also include that which is good. I pray for the strength to complete the task.

Fifth Step Prayer

Higher Power, My inventory has shown me who I am, yet I ask for Your help in admitting my wrongs to another person & to You. Assure me, & be with me, in this Step, for without this Step I cannot progress in my recovery. With Your help, I can do this & I will do it.

Sixth Step Prayer

Dear God, I am ready for Your help in removing from me the defects of character which I now realize are an obstacle to my recovery Help me to continue being honest with myself & guide me toward spiritual & mental health.

Seventh Step Prayer

My Creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good & bad. I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you & my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here to do Your bidding.

Eighth Step Prayer

Higher Power, I ask Your help in making my list of all those I have harmed. I will take responsibility for my mistakes & be forgiving to others as You are forgiving to me. Grant me the willingness to begin my restitution. This I pray.

Ninth Step Prayer

Higher Power, I pray for the right attitude to make my amends, being ever mindful not to harm others in the process. I ask for Your guidance in making indirect amends. Most important, I will continue to make amends by staying abstinent, helping others & growing in spiritual progress.

Tenth Step Prayer

I pray I may continue: To grow in understanding & effectiveness; To take daily spot check inventories of myself; To correct mistakes when I make them; To take responsibility for my actions; To be ever aware of my negative & self-defeating attitudes & behaviors; To keep my willfulness in check; To always remember I need Your help; To keep love & tolerance of others as my code; & To continue in daily prayer how I can best serve You, My Higher Power.

Eleventh Step Prayer

Higher Power, as I understand You, I pray to keep my connection with You open & clear from the confusion of daily life. Through my prayers & meditation I ask especially for freedom from self-will, rationalization & wishful thinking. I pray for the guidance of correct thought & positive action. Your will, Higher Power, not mine, be done.

Twelfth Step Prayer

Dear God, My spiritual awakening continues to unfold. The help I have received I shall pass on & give to others, both in & out of the Fellowship. For this opportunity I am grateful. I pray most humbly to continue walking day by day on the road of spiritual progress. I pray for the inner strength & wisdom to practice the principles of this way of life in all I do & say. I need You, my friends & the program every hour of every day. This is a better way to live.

Just for Today

Tell yourself:

JUST FOR TODAY my thoughts will be on my recovery, living and enjoying life without the use of drugs.

JUST FOR TODAY I will have faith in someone in NA who believes in me and wants to help me in my recovery.

JUST FOR TODAY I will have a program. I will try to follow it to the best of my ability.

JUST FOR TODAY, through NA, I will try to get a better perspective on my life.

JUST FOR TODAY I will be unafraid. My thoughts will be on my new associations, people who are not using and who have found a new way of life. So long as I follow that way, I have nothing to fear.

Who is an Addict?

Most of us do not have to think twice about this question We Know! Our whole life and thinking was centered in drugs in one form or another—the getting and using and finding ways and means to get more. We lived to use and used to live. Very simply, an addict is a man or woman whose life is controlled by drugs. We are people in the grip of a continuing and progressive illness whose ends are always the same: Jails, institutions, and death.

CALL BEFORE YOU USE!!! You don’t have to wait for an overdose or jail sentence to get help from N.A. It is possible to overcome the desire to use drugs with the help of the Twelve Sep Program of Narcotics Anonymous and the fellowship of recovering addicts. What have you got to lose?

“KEEP COMING BACK”: We are not interested in what or how much you used or who your connections were, what you have done in the past, how much or how little you have, but only in what you want to do about your problem and how we can help. The newcomer is the most important person at any meeting, because we can only keep what we have by giving it away. We have learned from our group experience that those who keep coming to our meetings regularly stay clean.

WE DO RECOVER: When at the end of the road we find that we can no longer function as a human beings, either with or without drugs, we all face the same dilemma. What is there left to do? There seems to be this alternative: either go on as best we can to the bitter ends—jails, institutions or death—or find a new way to live. In years gone by, very few addicts ever had this last choice. Those who are addicted today are more fortunate. For the first time in man’s en-tire history, a simple way has proving itself in the lives of many addicts. It is available to us all. This is a simple spiritual—not religious—program, known as Narcotics Anonymous.

Service Prayer

God grant us the knowledge that we may work according to your divine precepts. Instill in us a sense of your purpose. Make us servants of your will and grant us a bond of selflessness, that this truly be your work, not ours: and that no addict anywhere need die from the horrors of addiction.

We hope you will find the NA prayers on Recovery HQ useful to your recovery or spiritual practice.  Please feel free to contact us directly with any questions you may have.