Hope for Recovery: A 7-Day Plan for Those in RecoverySample

Day 7: Give It Away

If you’ve gotten to this point of your recovery, you know one thing very, very well: you are only here because other people have helped you get here. Yes, you’ve done a lot of heavy lifting yourself, but others have encouraged you, have sat with you in the midst of your despair, have worked with and alongside you, and have made sacrifices in their own lives so you could get yours back on track.

And now the time has come for you to become one of those people and give back.

It doesn’t have to be flashy, it doesn’t have to be out in the open, but you do need to learn to give away the blessings you’ve been given. Why? Because this ultimately strengthens you and helps you keep a firm footing on your road to recovery.

How does it feel to know other people have sacrificed for you? You can bring that feeling to others!

What natural gifts and talents might you be able to give away to others? What aspect of your personal story do you think could benefit someone else? How can you give back?

Maybe you’ve already begun thinking about ways you can do this. After all, it’s a pretty cool thought, right? It’s empowering to realize you have something that someone else needs.

Make a list of three people who’ve given to you. Look at it with gratitude and think about how much they mean to you. Now imagine this: someone else, a year or two or more from now, reads this plan and makes that same list… and you’re on it. Your name is there. They feel about you the way you feel about the people on your list.

That’s the kind of impact you could have.

Who will you give back to? Who will you share your story with? Who will you be a blessing to? That’s the power of recovery—that we don’t do this on our own. You were blessed so you can be a blessing.

Someone gave to you.

Go and do likewise.

Pray:

God, I am blown away at how much you love me, that you give me a second chance to change my life. This free gift of sobriety and hope has changed everything about me. But I know that I have not done this on my own. I know on my own I am a mess. But thanks to you, I have new hope today. Thank you for the people who’ve helped me get where I am today. Help me to be one of those people for someone else. Show me who I can give back to. Bring them into my path. Send me into theirs. Let me a blessing to someone today and give them what they need. Amen.

Do you need recovery? Do you know someone in recovery and hope to find support for them or yourself? Hope is Alive is here to help. Learn more at hopeisalive.net or call the free HopeLine at 1-844-3-HOPE-NOW.