Week 17 – Faith and Trust
Dates: January 18–24, 2026 Big Book Reference: Pages 47–49 Focus: Faith builds one step at a time, even when outcomes aren't certain.
Taking the First Step When You Can't See the Whole Staircase
Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." That quote hits different in recovery.
When many of us first got sober, we wanted guarantees. We wanted to know: Will this work? Will I be okay? Will my life get better? The program couldn't give those guarantees. It could only say: "Try this. One day at a time. Trust the process."
That felt terrifying. But here's what we've learned: faith isn't about having all the answers. It's about being willing to take the next right step even when we can't see where the whole path leads.
Some days, faith looks like showing up to a meeting when you don't feel like it. Some days, it's making the call you've been avoiding. Some days, it's simply saying, "Higher Power, I don't know what to do, but I'm willing to keep trying."
The Big Book reminds us on pages 47–49 that faith develops through experience, not through instant certainty. We don't have to start with perfect belief. We start with willingness.
Where Trust Feels Hardest
Trust doesn't come easy for most of us in recovery. Many have been hurt, betrayed, or let down, by others, by ourselves, by life itself. So when the program says "Trust your Higher Power," it can feel like being asked to jump off a cliff.
Let's get honest: where is trust hardest for you right now?
- Trusting that sobriety will actually get easier
- Trusting people in fellowship not to judge you
- Trusting yourself to make good decisions after so many bad ones
- Trusting that a Higher Power actually cares about you
Here's the thing: you don't have to force trust overnight. You can start with willingness. You can say, "I don't trust yet, but I'm willing to try. I'm willing to show up. I'm willing to ask for help."
Action step: Name one area where trust feels hardest. Write it down. Then say a simple prayer: "Higher Power, I struggle to trust here. Please help me take one small step toward faith."
That's enough for today.
When Faith Carried You Before
Sometimes when faith feels impossible in the present, it helps to look back at when faith carried us before.
Think about it: How did you get here? How did you make it through the hardest days? Maybe you didn't feel strong or faithful at the time: but something kept you going. Maybe it was a meeting, a phone call, a moment of grace you didn't expect. Maybe it was just waking up and deciding to try one more day.
That was faith. Even if you didn't call it that. Even if it felt messy or desperate. You took a step when you couldn't see the outcome, and somehow, you made it through.
Practice: Journal about one time when faith: or willingness, or grace: carried you through something hard. What happened? How did you get to the other side?
Let that memory remind you: faith has worked before. It can work again. You've already proven you can do hard things. You're still here. That's evidence of faith in action.
A Daily Prayer of Trust
In recovery, prayer doesn't have to be fancy or perfect. Sometimes the most powerful prayers are the simplest ones.
This week, try a daily prayer of trust. Use this one, or adapt it to fit your own language and beliefs:
"Higher Power, today I choose to trust You with what I cannot control. I will do the next right thing in front of me, and I will trust You with the outcome. Help me let go of fear and lean into faith, one moment at a time."
Short. Honest. Repeatable.
Say it in the morning, at night, or whenever fear starts to take over. The goal isn't to feel perfectly peaceful every time you pray. The goal is to practice turning your will and your worry over to something bigger than yourself: again and again.
Action: Say this prayer (or one like it) once a day this week. Notice what shifts: not in your circumstances, but in your heart.
Faith vs. Control
Faith and control can't live in the same space. When we're trying to control everything: outcomes, people, timelines: there's no room for faith. And when we're practicing faith, we have to loosen our grip on control.
That's hard for a lot of us. Control feels safer. It feels like if we just manage everything perfectly, we can avoid pain or failure. But the truth is, control is exhausting. And it's an illusion. We can't actually control most of what happens in life.
Faith says: "I'll do my part, and I'll trust my Higher Power with the rest."
Your part might be:
- Showing up
- Being honest
- Making amends
- Setting a boundary
- Asking for help
But the outcome? That's not yours to control.
Question for today: Where are you still trying to control what you need to surrender? What would it look like to do your part with integrity, then let go of the results?
Faith isn't passive. It's active trust. It's doing the next right thing and releasing the need to control what comes next.
Acting in Faith, Even When Afraid
Faith doesn't mean you're not afraid. It means you act anyway.
Many of us used to think faith meant feeling calm, confident, and certain. But most of the time, when we've acted in faith, we've been scared. We've made the call with shaking hands. We've walked into the meeting with our hearts pounding. We've told the truth even though we didn't know how it would be received.
That's faith: doing the next right thing even when fear is loud.
One bold action in faith this week:
- Reach out to someone you've been avoiding
- Set a boundary you've been too scared to set
- Ask for help in an area where you've been trying to do it alone
- Share honestly in a meeting when you'd rather stay silent
You don't have to feel brave. You just have to be willing. Faith grows in the doing, not in the feeling.
Our Courage to Change Hoodie was designed for moments like these: a daily reminder that courage isn't the absence of fear, but the willingness to act despite it.
Building Faith One Step at a Time
As we close out this week on Faith and Trust, remember: faith isn't built in one big moment. It's built in a thousand small ones.
Every time you:
- Show up when you don't feel like it
- Tell the truth when it's uncomfortable
- Ask for help instead of isolating
- Pray even when you're not sure anyone's listening
- Take the next right step without knowing the outcome
You're building faith. Step by step. Day by day.
You don't have to have it all figured out. You don't have to feel certain. You just have to keep showing up, keep being willing, and keep trusting that the path will unfold as you walk it.
This Week's Challenge
Take a moment to honor the faith you've already practiced this week: and this year. You've taken steps you couldn't see. You've trusted when it was hard. You've kept going when you wanted to quit.
That's faith in action. And it's enough.
Daily affirmation: "I don't need to see the whole staircase. I just need to take the next step."
Question to carry: What's one step I can take in faith today: even without guarantees?
Week 17 of the MAP to Victori recovery journey. Faith builds one step at a time, even when outcomes aren't certain.