One of the most wonderful things about AA, is the way it enables us to find God through it's 12 steps of recovery. One of the greatest truths that I have established in my own life is, the way God has removed my obsession to drink alcohol. From that point on it was a question of gratitude to God & improve my spiritual life.
The AA book Pg 84 says:"We have entered the world of the Spirit. Our next function is to grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter. It should continue for our lifetime."
If you are a newcomer, with a drinking problem, please read & study the AA book & work the steps as best as you can. Seek a good sponsor, somebody who has done these things & whose life is a living example of recovery. There are many such "elder statesmen" in AA. They will guide you, if you let them.
One of the best things about membership in AA is the new relationship we can develop with God (Higher Power) I joined AA to quit drinking and God took that compulsion away. I stay in AA so I can develop a richer spiritual life and a life truly worth living according to God's will, not mine. It's God's grace that got me here and God's grace that keeps me here. :)
Lovely post...thank you!
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I think there's an invisible principle of living...if we believe we're guided through every step of our lives, we are. Its a lovely sight, watching it work.
The AA book Pg 84 says:"We have entered the world of the Spirit. Our next function is to grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter. It should continue for our lifetime."
we are not saints, we claim spiritual progress not spiritual perfection
I am reminded of that master Suzuki Roshi who said,(and I paraphrase) "Patience isn't learning how to wait for things to change, patience is allowing the present to be what it is"
Once I am on the path of sobriety, I need to learn patience while I work at growing in understanding, because it is a lifetime job, but learning patience means allowing today to be today, and to allow things to be what they are, without my interference, sometimes, including me
many times the best thing we can do in life is get out of our own way
God Bless my brother
-- Edited by LinBaba on Wednesday 27th of July 2011 02:02:17 AM
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it's not the change that's painful, it's the resistance to change that is painful