3. Made a decision to turn our will and lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
The thread for sharing our experiences with this Step.
The thread for sharing our experiences with this Step.
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Step 3
- Thread starter LoG
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For me this Step was a life-changing event because of the "as I understand Him" part. I was raised in strict Bapist/Reformed style churches that emphasized God's qualities of justice and vengeance on the wicked. The God I heard about demanded my obedience, my love, my praise and my adherence to his laws and statutes which I had proven to myself time and again I was not capable of following.
Realizing that my upbringing was too stronly ingrained for me to deny the God of the bible and choose a different higher power, the thought occurred to me one day that the concept of God I had was the result of what my parents, church, ministers etc. believed, not what I knew for myself. I started to read the scriptures with an open mind and came away from that with quite different viewpoint then what I started with. The God I saw in those readings was a Power that I was able to turn my will and life over to.
This Step is about making a decision but the action that needed to come as a result of that decision was to continue on with the remainder of the Steps.
Realizing that my upbringing was too stronly ingrained for me to deny the God of the bible and choose a different higher power, the thought occurred to me one day that the concept of God I had was the result of what my parents, church, ministers etc. believed, not what I knew for myself. I started to read the scriptures with an open mind and came away from that with quite different viewpoint then what I started with. The God I saw in those readings was a Power that I was able to turn my will and life over to.
This Step is about making a decision but the action that needed to come as a result of that decision was to continue on with the remainder of the Steps.
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jerry ralph
Senior Member
Step three seems to be a stumbling block for many who are new to recovery. I've seen some that take months and months working this step and eventually relapse because they never got around to doing a forth step (house cleaning). Many think that turning our will and life over to the care of God is something that must be done all at once and forever.
In working with newcomers I try and encourage them to work the first three steps well because it is the foundation of our recovery. In step three I always tell them an parable.......share this with me.
There are three frogs sitting on a log, one decides to jump, how many are left?
The answer I get usually is "two."
Then I continue to tell them that the one frog only made a decision,......nothing was said about jumping. there are still three frogs on the log, only one of them has made the decision to jump.
Step three is about making a decision.
Of course it is a decison that must be made daily, and sometimes hourly or more.
For myself I must work the first three steps daily.
In the 12 X 12 Bill W. said that step one is the only step that can be worked completly. The rest are what we would call "a work in progress."
"We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection."..........thanks for letting me share....jerry
In working with newcomers I try and encourage them to work the first three steps well because it is the foundation of our recovery. In step three I always tell them an parable.......share this with me.
There are three frogs sitting on a log, one decides to jump, how many are left?
The answer I get usually is "two."
Then I continue to tell them that the one frog only made a decision,......nothing was said about jumping. there are still three frogs on the log, only one of them has made the decision to jump.
Step three is about making a decision.
Of course it is a decison that must be made daily, and sometimes hourly or more.
For myself I must work the first three steps daily.
In the 12 X 12 Bill W. said that step one is the only step that can be worked completly. The rest are what we would call "a work in progress."
"We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection."..........thanks for letting me share....jerry
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angelgabrielle1973
Active Member
Step # 3: Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood him. I knew I was going to have to make this decision soon since Sunday (May 6th) was coming up. I attended AA Sunday morning at 10 a.m. and then went to church. Pastor Patrick relinquished the pulpit to his wife. She had a word from God for us.
The scripture was Genesis 19:12 - 26. As she was giving the sermon, I kept asking myself if she was familiar with the 12 Steps because it seemed to me she was talking about that the whole time. And I also felt she was speaking directly to me. How did she know what I was going through?
At the end of the sermon, the question was: Are we going to be like Abraham who was God-focused? Or like Lot who was hesitant? Or like Lot's wife who, as she was running towards her salvation, she turned away from God and look back at the life she was leaving behind?
I felt like I was Lot's wife, turning away from God and going back to my old lifestyle of drinking. She gave the altar call and I took it. She made a bee-line towards me and said she was very proud of me to have stepped forward. She prayed for me as I cried and cried. I did tell her I had joined AA but I also want to tell her about everything else that was going on in my life. When I went back to my seat, I felt better, I felt I was no longer carrying a burden on my shoulders. The things I was trying to overcome were no longer on my shoulders but in the hands of my Savior! I felt relieved! He wants us to cast our cares upon him because his yoke is easy.
In Christ,
~Angel Gabrielle~
The scripture was Genesis 19:12 - 26. As she was giving the sermon, I kept asking myself if she was familiar with the 12 Steps because it seemed to me she was talking about that the whole time. And I also felt she was speaking directly to me. How did she know what I was going through?
At the end of the sermon, the question was: Are we going to be like Abraham who was God-focused? Or like Lot who was hesitant? Or like Lot's wife who, as she was running towards her salvation, she turned away from God and look back at the life she was leaving behind?
I felt like I was Lot's wife, turning away from God and going back to my old lifestyle of drinking. She gave the altar call and I took it. She made a bee-line towards me and said she was very proud of me to have stepped forward. She prayed for me as I cried and cried. I did tell her I had joined AA but I also want to tell her about everything else that was going on in my life. When I went back to my seat, I felt better, I felt I was no longer carrying a burden on my shoulders. The things I was trying to overcome were no longer on my shoulders but in the hands of my Savior! I felt relieved! He wants us to cast our cares upon him because his yoke is easy.
In Christ,
~Angel Gabrielle~
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Good stuff Gabrielle, sounds like God has really opened your eyes to some things.
Perhaps God showing you who to do your fifth step with when you reach that point.
I have a good fourth Step format available when you are ready to tackle that Step. Post or message me.
Perhaps God showing you who to do your fifth step with when you reach that point.
I have a good fourth Step format available when you are ready to tackle that Step. Post or message me.
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angelgabrielle1973
Active Member
I would love to hear what you have to say about the 4th Step. I feel that I'm ready for this next step. I have been asking at AA about getting a sponsor. Another member and I are suppose to meet today before the meeting to begin going over The Big Book but I won't be able to attend because it's bible study night. *grr*
I'm *so* ready for the 4th step but I have no idea how or where or with what to begin. I'm eager to hear / read what you have to say. Thanks in advance.
In Christ,
~Angel Gabrielle~
I'm *so* ready for the 4th step but I have no idea how or where or with what to begin. I'm eager to hear / read what you have to say. Thanks in advance.
In Christ,
~Angel Gabrielle~
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Ok I will get the paperwork ready for upload but in the meantime here is a link to a set of speaker tapes by Joe and Charly. These are 2 guys that travel around the country doing 12 Step conferences where they lead the group through all 12 over the course of a weekend. I've been listening to these tapes over and over for 12+ years and get something from it each time.
The mp3 files on the site I linked are free for download. The ones for Step 4 are numbered 21-28. If you have the time and oppurtunity these are an excellent tool for grasping what is being looked for in the Fourth Step. The files 1-20 are for the first 3 steps. They are a good lead-in and I highly recommend them if you again have the opportunity to listen to them.
I'll have the paperwork ready for tommorrow or later tonight.
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