Today, I will stop straining to know what I don't know. To see what I can't see. To understand what I don't yet understand. I will trust that being is sufficient, And I will let go of my need to figure things out.
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'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'
Hi Pappy, your post on "figuring things out" is a gem. I'm sure there are plenty of regular folks out there who have what we might call a "complicated mind". But, I think we alcoholics are quite familiar with what anyone would call a "complicating mind". As a sponsor for many years, I've become accustomed to unraveling many of the over-thought issues my guys have brought to me. An alcoholic is usually a master at over-thinking and complicating something simple. I tell them, "If you're so damn good at figuring things out by yourself, how come you've never figured out how to stay sober by yourself?" "Stop the pseudo-intellectual crap and start taking action!" It always turns out that all we ever need to do is keep it simple stupid. Love the gems. Keep them coming! Blessings, Mike D.
Well said Mike, well said ... ... ... Thanks for your support ...
Oh, and once again you've shared my same approach to my sponsees when they keep saying "I don't understand" ... I usually start with 'why not try acceptance rather than figure out "how" it all works' ??? ... ... ... Because later on, you'll know, LOL ...
My sponsor used this with me:
I told him, 'I Do Not Understand' ... He said THAT'S IT ... and don't you ever forget it !!!
He said: When you know that you know, you'll never know ...
But when you start not do'n what we tell ya not to do and do the things we tell ya to do,
Then you'll begin to know that you don't know, then you'll know ...
I said, Hell you're Crazy, he said ... ... ... I know !
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'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'
I think the best advice I was given early on as I started working the steps was....Don't over think it. Not an easy thing for this alcoholic to do...It takes practice....And prayer. Good stuff Pappy!
Very, very true Stepchild, very true ... I 'over-thought' everything ... I could make something very complex out of something very simple, I got good at it ...
Here's an example of how it used to be: My wife is fixing to go to the store, she asks what would you like for dinner ? ... I say what are the choices ? Shes says how about 'fish' ? ... I say oh no, if you do that, then I'll have to open all the windows for a couple hours to air-out the house and then I'll have a big mess to cleanup tomorrow ...
She's says okay, how 'bout some hamburgers ? ... I say oh boy, that means I have to empty the ashes from the grill and load it with charcoal and lighter fluid that takes time and gets me all very dirty, then there's the cleanup, that's always messy ...
She said okay, what about a breakfast dinner of bacon and eggs ? ... I say that's tempting but do you realize my doctor says my cholesterol is way up there, plus there's the bacon grease splatter that'll no doubt be a pain in the ass to cleanup ...
She said would you like to make a pizza ? ... I said I don't feel like cutting up all the ingredients and and dirtying up all those kitchen utensils, plus I have to watch the stupid thing real close while in the oven ...
I said just get 'what-ever' ...
Later that evening, we had warmed up 'beans and weenies' ...
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'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'
