Step 7
“Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.”
“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
Step 7 is the action that follows Step 6’s readiness. It’s brief — a prayer, a moment of genuine humility — but it marks a real shift in how you relate to your own character.
What it means
“Humbly” — the key word. Not demanding, not bargaining. Humility here means seeing yourself accurately: neither grandiose nor worthless. Just a person asking for help.
“The whole emphasis of Step Seven is on humility. It is really saying to us that we now ought to be willing to try humility in seeking the removal of our other shortcomings just as we did when we admitted that we were powerless over alcohol.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
“Asked Him” — this is a prayer. The Seventh Step Prayer in the Big Book is one form; any sincere request to your Higher Power works.
“We saw that we needn’t always be bludgeoned and beaten into humility. It could come quite as much from our voluntary reaching for it as it could from unremitting suffering.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
“Remove our shortcomings” — the same defects from Steps 4–6. You’re not fixing yourself; you’re asking for help being changed.
“Since most of us are born with an abundance of natural desires, it isn’t strange that we often let these far exceed their intended purpose. When they drive us blindly, or we willfully demand that they supply us with more satisfactions or pleasures than are possible or due us, that is the point at which we depart from the degree of perfection that God wishes for us here on earth.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
Common struggles
“I said the prayer but nothing changed.” The removal often happens gradually, through changed behavior and circumstances — not in a single moment.
“We may be surprised that our new-found faith is so weak in action. The truth is that faith becomes real only when it is put to work.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
“I keep acting on the same defects.” Step 7 doesn’t guarantee instant removal. It begins a process. Keep asking, keep noticing, keep working with your sponsor.
“We shall have to be honest with ourselves about our shortcomings. We shall have to be willing to have them removed. We shall have to ask God to remove them.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
“Humility feels like humiliation.” They’re different. Humiliation is being made to feel small. Humility is seeing yourself clearly — no more, no less than you are.
“Humility, as a word and as an ideal, has a very bad time of it in our world. Not only is the idea misunderstood; the word itself is often intensely disliked.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
Practical suggestions
- Say the Seventh Step Prayer with your sponsor present
- After the prayer, act differently — Step 7 without changed behavior is incomplete
- When a defect surfaces, pause and ask your Higher Power to remove it in that moment
“The chief activator of our defects has been self-centered fear — primarily fear that we would lose something we already possessed or would fail to get something we demanded. Living upon a basis of unsatisfied demands, we were in a state of continual disturbance and frustration.” — Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Step 7
Speaker talks on Step 7
- 12 Steps to a Spiritual Awakening (Part 3) — Sandy B
- Working Workaholics Anonymous Steps 1–9 — Workshop
- Spiritual Aspects of Recovery — Katie R
Related tags
character-defects · humility · spirituality · step-6 · step-8
All Steps
Step 1 · Step 2 · Step 3 · Step 4 · Step 5 · Step 6 · Step 7 · Step 8 · Step 9 · Step 10 · Step 11 · Step 12