Step 11: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

Many groups, religious and non-religious, have long experience practicing meditation. Here are some of the practices that they have found helpful.

• Get a meditation book like SA’s The Real Connection or any book used for this purpose.

• Have a place to meditate, quiet with few or no distractions.

• Have a picture, religious icon, or something else you can focus on — a beach or trees for instance.

• Do the meditation at the same time and same place each day.

• Read a short passage and then reflect on what strikes you.

• The goal is to be open to/contact God and your inner self.

• When you make contact, stay there.

• Start slow: first 10 minutes and over time increase the time.

• Use an alarm timer so you don’t keep looking at the time.

Some techniques for getting inner silence:

• Focus on your breathing.

• Use a short saying that helps you focus, like help me find peace, keep me sober.

• Focus on a picture or object or view that helps you focus.

• Focus on being in the now/the present moment.

Position for prayer:

• Physically relax: the position should be comfortable so you focus on the prayer and not on your physical discomfort.

• Stand or sit, kneel or walk, as long as your position doesn’t distract you because it is uncomfortable.

Other suggestions:

• Prayerful reading using a good book [like SA or AA literature]. The aim is not to finish a section but to reflect on the reading. Stop when you find something that moves you.

• Use a memorized phrase or prayer to start and end.

• Some find music helps them focus and relax.

• Some find journaling helpful as part of the meditation or after.

• Slowly saying a prayer or passage that has meaning for you focusing on what moves you.

• When you find yourself wandering, do not panic, but gently return to your meditation.

• Go to a spiritual center or a place that you find inspiring like a church, a meditation garden, or a temple.

• Join a meditation group.

• Light a candle and/or incense.

• Use guided meditations on a CD or DVD.

The most basic rule is to do what works for you and be willing to try new ways.

Tell us how you work Step Eleven. Please share your meditation experience and practice with Essay at essay@sa.org