BASED ON THE BEATITUDES By Pastor Rick Warren
Principal 1: Realize I’m not God; I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and that my life is unmanageable (Step one*).
“Blessed are the poor in spirit.” Matthew 5:3
Principal 2: Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him and that He has the power to help me recover (Step Two*).
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Matthew 5:4
Principal 3: Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ’s care and control (Step Three*).
“Blessed are the meek.” Matthew 5:5
Principal 4: Openly examine and confess my faults to myself, to God and to someone I trust (Steps Four and Five*).
“Blessed are the pure in heart.” Matthew 5:8
Principal 5: Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects (Steps Six and Seven*).
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Matthew 5:6
Principle 6: Evaluate all my relationships. Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I’ve done to others, except when to do so would harm them or others (Steps Eight and Nine*).
“Blessed are the merciful.” Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Matthew 5:9
Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading and prayer in order to know God and his will for my life and to gain the power to follow his will (Step Ten and Eleven*).
Principle 8. Yield myself to God to be used to bring this good news to others, both by my example and by my words (Step Twelve*).
“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness.” Matthew 5:10
* These correspond with the “Twelve Steps” of Alcoholics Anonymous“.
