Since it is truth that sets us free - free from our addiction and free from crippling fear - we come to love this truth, even when it hurts. It was mainly our fear that kept us from recognizing the truth about ourselves. We needed help and support from a Higher Power before we could face reality. Now that we are sustained by the AA program, we can devote our time and energy to striving for truth in all that we think, say, and do.
Our devotion to truth may bring us into conflict with those around us. What we need to remember is that we are not responsible for convincing anyone else of what we believe to be true. We are honest about where we are, but we do not expect or demand agreement from anyone else. Since each of us has a different perspective, we can only know the truth as we each understand it. Loving truth means that we acknowledge it to be too big for any one of us to grasp completely.
It's kinda funny, but I just read Phil's post about anger, then came to this. Anger is one of my problem areas. Honesty has a lot to do with the fix for that. AA has helped me to be more open, rather than bottle my frustrations. It has helped me to learn how to speak my mind when I truly should...."courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference".
Something else that's funny, is that when I am truthful, most of people that I feared would react in anger did not.. The few who do get angry and confrontational are the ones I need to get out of my space anyway, because they are working their own agenda at other's expense.
By golly, turns out that honesty is a pretty good way to separate the chaff from the wheat!
