Praise God for AA

[madison1101]

I am so grateful for Awhile AA and the 12 Steps. I am home, nursing a bad wound, , having been hospitalized for two weeks in January. When I was in rehab a little more than two years ago, I wisely completed the first three steps. I basically took Step 3 when my counselor was preparing to request more time inpatient. I really did not want to stay there any longer, and really tried to change him mind. But, each morning, I met for devotions with another believer, and I made a conscious decision to turn that part over to God. When I saw my counselor, he told me he was shocked that my insurance was willing to give me another full week. I then did Step 3. What I learned during the following week broke through an arrogance I did not realize I had.

Prior to my hospitalization and treatment, I heard a wise old timer share that while AA meetings, reading literature, calling my sponsor, and talking to other alcoholics were all good stuff, they are not the program of Alcoholics Anonymous. The programs of recovery is the 12 steps of AA. I truly did not get that at first. When people would encourage me to work my program, I honestly thought they were talking about phone calls and ,meeting attendance. I had been in AA for 21 years, and I did not get the Truth till right before rehab.

Then, while in rehab, I started to learn things that I may have heard said, before, but it had not gotten through my thick skull. I learned that I could learn from young people, and people who had less time in AA before. I realized that I had not fully worked all 12 Steps. Nor, had I ever done them under the supervision of my sponsor before.

So, since rehab, a little over 2 years ago, I have been released from the obsession to drink. Praise God.

The reason I am so grateful is that I was in the hospital for cellulitis and surgery, and I never once felt sorry for myself, no did I was to abuse my narcotic medication.

 

[If Not For Grace]

STeps 3 & 6 have always given me problems. I keep thinking I have turned my will over and then I keep finding out I still want my way and I try to sidestep God, like I can get by with it.

For some reason I keep hanging on to my defects, perhaps b/c as long as I have them I don't have to do what God calls me to do (or so I think). I keep working & I do make progress. I too Thank God for the 12 Steps and for allowing me to come back to Him through the program.

You are right the Steps are the program, but we usually have to go to alot of meetings BF the steps begin to make sense. We have to be still and listen and learn. That too is the program.

 

[madison1101]

STeps 3 & 6 have always given me problems. I keep thinking I have turned my will over and then I keep finding out I still want my way and I try to sidestep God, like I can get by with it.

For some reason I keep hanging on to my defects, perhaps b/c as long as I have them I don't have to do what God calls me to do (or so I think). I keep working & I do make progress. I too Thank God for the 12 Steps and for allowing me to come back to Him through the program.

You are right the Steps are the program, but we usually have to go to alot of meetings BF the steps begin to make sense. We have to be still and listen and learn. That too is the program.

I totally agree that the meetings are important, and I attend them several times a week, like clockwork. It just took me 20 years to figure out the importance of working all the Steps. I never was released from the obsession to drink till I had been in rehab for 12 days.

Basically, having been a teacher for many years, I figured out the Steps are the curriculum, meetings are the classroom where I learn about the curriculum, the Big Book and the 12&12 are the textbooks, along with the other literature, my sponsor is my teacher, and the other women in the program are valuable classmates I can learn from and help along the way. It helped me to put things in perspective this way. All are important, but if I don't work the entire 12 Steps, I relapse.

I managed to stay sober for two months without meetings, because I was either in the hospital or on bedrest. As soon as I was able, I got right back to meetings. Somewhere in the Big Book it talks about there will be times when the only thing standing between me and a drink is God. I experience perfect peace and serenity the entire time. My sponsor visited me in the hospital, and brought me a meal when I was home. We talked all the time.

 

[PBWYMikeW]

Recently I was released from jail. While in jail I turned my life over to God and began studying the Bible and attending any and all church services they had in there. For 18 months it did not occur to me that I may be an alcoholic, or an addict. I was trying to get to rehab through a furlough that was approved as part of my sentence. As God would have it I did not go to rehab. When I was released I had to go to a halfway house and attend AA or NA meetings. Through out my last 5 months in jail I was praying to God to guide my feet on the right path when I was out in the free world. He put AA in my path for a very good reason. I've never felt so at home than I do at AA. Alkys are my family away from family! So yes PRAISE GOD for AA!

 

[madison1101]

Recently I was released from jail. While in jail I turned my life over to God and began studying the Bible and attending any and all church services they had in there. For 18 months it did not occur to me that I may be an alcoholic, or an addict. I was trying to get to rehab through a furlough that was approved as part of my sentence. As God would have it I did not go to rehab. When I was released I had to go to a halfway house and attend AA or NA meetings. Through out my last 5 months in jail I was praying to God to guide my feet on the right path when I was out in the free world. He put AA in my path for a very good reason. I've never felt so at home than I do at AA. Alkys are my family away from family! So yes PRAISE GOD for AA!

I'm glad you are no longer in prison, and that you are feeling at home in the rooms of AA. It took me a long time till I felt at home.

I'd like to recommend the Life Recovery Bible. I believe you will find it helps in your recovery journey.

 

[drjean]

Somewhere in the Big Book it talks about there will be times when the only thing standing between me and a drink is God.

I wanted to comment that while it may be a drink for you, it's something else for another... that you are just like the rest of us believers that the only "thing" between our downfall and ourselves is God! The good part about being believers is that we are more than conquerers and God does not see our sin through Christ Jesus. Justified by faith: just as if we had never sinned.
Be well.

 

[madison1101]

I wanted to comment that while it may be a drink for you, it's something else for another... that you are just like the rest of us believers that the only "thing" between our downfall and ourselves is God! The good part about being believers is that we are more than conquerers and God does not see our sin through Christ Jesus. Justified by faith: just as if we had never sinned.
Be well.

I totally agree that without my close relationship with the Lord, I would not be able to experience victory over any sin.

I have several addictions, drugs, alcohol, overeating, sex, to name a few. I have been a believer in Jesus for all of my adult life, but only in the past three years have learned just how important the 12 Steps are in my Spiritual journey. I have participated in AA for 22 years, but never appreciated AA till I ended up in rehab in 2010. Prior to rehab, I took my sobriety, and AA for granted.

In addition to AA meetings, I attend a women in recovery support group at my church. There, we use the Life Recovery Bible, which shows the relationship between the 12 Steps and Scripture. This Bible is for all addictions.

 

[WayTooManyDaves]

Amen to everything said so far in this thread. I've just entered a 12-step program (not AA) and it has turned me away from self-destruction. I'm still very much a newbie, but I'm keeping my eyes on God now and I feel better inside than I have in a very, very, very long time!

 

[ElijahProphet]

Im grateful for aa its helped me so much!

 

[If Not For Grace]

Surrender to Win:

~ WISDOM TO KNOW ~ (More Daily Meditations For Men) ~

There are some defeats more triumphant than victories.

~ Michel de Montaigne ~

The spiritual path is filled with paradox. One example is the word defeat, which has a bad reputation. In recovery we learn that brokenness can be the beginning of changes for the better. Sometimes the drive of our ego takes us on a very exciting but destructive ride. Only in defeat do we open our eyes and begin to understand the deeper truth and go in a direction that fits our better self. That is every man’s story in recovery. Out of defeat we find a new form of triumph.

This may be a day in which we face particular worries or losses. Our first thoughts are about the pain and difficulty—we don’t yet know what we need to learn from them. We only need to stay focused on the kind of man we choose to be. From that will come the wisdom and the wherewithal to create the kind of life we will feel good about.

Today I am grateful for the sustaining power of this spiritual life and will stay focused on the kind of man I choose to be.

 

[If Not For Grace]

When working Step 4 I like to remember to Focus on my attirbutes, when I do this I am focusing on the skills I can use to "change the things I can" and on how to move forward in a positive light.

I have a chance here to find out what I Like, What I'm good at and how I can incorporate that into my program.

Ex: I like to read, I like quips and quotes-

I will use this skill to obtain a habit of positive attitude & renew my mind Daily with uplifiting literature.

I will start each day with the Serenity Prayer and a reading from at least one of the Daily readers.

 

[madison1101]

< Staff Edit >


Congratulations on tackling the 4th Step. Many people don't tackle it, and end up going back out. I hope you're working with your sponsor.

God bless.

 

[If Not For Grace]

From: ~ WISDOM TO KNOW ~ (More Daily Meditations For Men) ~


Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world, for indeed, that’s all who ever have.

~ Margaret Mead ~


The pessimists and the naysayers believe that the future is bleak. Storm clouds are always present somewhere, they say, leading things inexorably to the worse. Yet our own recovery and our restored lives are living proof that growth and improvement are always possible. We know how bad things felt in our own lives and how much better they have now become. Our own experience is all we need to give us hope.

When a couple of guys in Ohio first got together to find a path out of alcoholism and despair, they started a Twelve Step recovery program that has brought hope and transformation to millions. When so many around them were hopelessly caught in the grip of alcoholism, these guys dared to hope that they could be restored to sanity. They changed the world.


On this day, perhaps we see danger looming. We may despair about a relationship, or worry about a friend or loved one. But if we care, and if we keep the faith, we know that things can change for the better. ~

I'm so glad a few got togther and to them I owe a Thanks-because what they did changed my world--for the better. It works..if you work it and that was the only promise they ever made..


Today I will carry the knowledge that a Power greater than ourselves can restore us.

 

[If Not For Grace]

From 12 Steps Pearls of Wisdom:

Some examples of sanity:
- Not screaming
- Not being in jail
- Not waking up in a gutter
- Not ranting or raving
... - Not nagging or caretaking
- Not beating the crap out of strangers, friends, and loved ones
- Not cutting yourself with razors
- Not being obsessed with others, alcohol, drugs, sex, food, gambling, violence, suicide, etc...
- Not damning God when you wake up in the morning
- Not being constantly confused yet convinced you have all the answers
- Not needing to be right all the time
- Not needing to be in control of others all the time
And we could increase this list ad infinitum

 

[If Not For Grace]

There is a God...

You are reading from the book Touchstones

What is obvious to me is that we did not create ourselves... life is something inside of you. You did not create it. Once you understand that, you are in a spiritual realm.
—Virginia Satir

We do not belong to ourselves, but to the universe. No man planned to come into existence; he just happened to find himself here. We are the expressions of a life fo...rce whose beginnings are in the forgotten past. What does this mean on a practical level for how we will live today? For one thing, maybe we don't need to take ourselves so seriously. And we certainly are not to judge our existence. We have a right to be here, just as everyone does.

We can live this day fully and not hold ourselves back. We may work hard, play, and enjoy it. We need not rein in or attempt to control this force, which so far exceeds our individual powers. Rather, today we can learn to flow with the current.

Today, may I remember my Higher Power is within every cell of my being, whether I notice it or not.