6 Powerful Prayers for Recovery

Want to experience a breakthrough in your recovery from addiction but have tried everything? Have you read many books and gone through many challenging programs but had no success? If so, there is one thing you can do starting today that will give you incredible results: Pray. Life Recovery Step 11 says, “We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry it out.”

If you want to make prayer an integral part of your recovery journey but don’t know where to start or what to say, here are six powerful prayers you can pray daily.

1. “Lord, forgive me for the ways I’ve fallen short.”
If you’re new to recovery and have never sought conscious contact with God before, it’s not too late! You can be reconciled to God by admitting that you have fallen short of His standards and trust in Christ. When we seek God’s forgiveness and trust Him, we are promised that “He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west” (Ps. 103:12, New Living Translation).

2. “God, give me peace in spite of pain.”
One reason many of us turn to addiction is to escape pain—whether it’s emotional, physical, relational, spiritual, or some other type of pain. John 14:27 says, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” Turning to Christ can help you find peace, even as you start to confront the pain underlying your addiction.

3. “Heavenly Father, comfort me in my darkest moments.”
Prayer is a powerful tool that brings comfort. Whenever you find yourself in a dark valley, ask the Lord to comfort you as Psalm 23:4 assures, “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.” Talk to God anywhere, anytime—He is near to those who seek Him.

4. “Wonderful Counselor, give me strength where I am weak so I can make it through the day sober.”
Perhaps addiction has taken such a toll on your body, mind, and soul that you wonder if you’ll ever be able to break free from it. However, when you pray to our Triune God, you are reminded that He is strong where you are weak. Even Paul struggled with temptation. While God did not remove his struggles, He did give Paul the strength to face them. God told Paul, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9).

5. “Mighty God, guide me in the direction You want me to go.”
Ask God to guide you when you don’t know where to turn or go. Isaiah 30:21 says, “Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say,‘This is the way you should go, whether to the right or to the left.’” Feelings change day by day, even moment by moment. Rather than base a decision on how you feel, seek God through prayer and look to God’s Word to see what it says about your situation.

6. “Everlasting One, give me hope that things are going to get better soon.”
As you journey closer and closer to sobriety, there will be days you want to take a detour or give up altogether…don’t! Right before dawn is when the night seems darkest; right before a breakthrough is when things will be the hardest. Keep going. Keep persevering. Proverbs 23:18 says, “your hope will not be disappointed.” Ask God to give you hope that things will get better, and you’ll soon be on your way to succeeding in your recovery.

If you need prayer, please know we are here for you! Call us at 800-NEW-LIFE (639-5433) for prayer and resources to help you overcome addiction and grow in your faith.

By Kimberlee Bousman