For me, the CONSCIOUS CONTACT is a personal relationship with
God in this moment and at this time. I do not look back in regret and I
don't look forward in fear, as through the grace of God in this moment I
have relinquished my human nature. My human instincts are no longer
propelling my thought process but rather my thought process is propelled
by the will of God through inspiration.
The Big
Book of Alcoholics Anonymous says "we may face indecision, we might not
be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for
inspiration, an intuitive thought or decision. We are often surprised
how the right answers will come after we have tried this for awhile.
What used to be the hunch or the occasional inspiration gradually
becomes a working part of the mind. We find our thinking will be as
time passes more and more on the plane of inspiration. We come to rely
upon it." The dictionary defines inspiration as "the thoughts of God
implanted upon the mind and soul of man." I don't need to run the
thoughts of God through my intellect as I instantaneously perceive them
as truth. The question becomes, will I be obedient. Is my behavior
going to be propelled by the will of God or is my behavior going to be
propelled by my human instincts. The back half of the Eleventh Step
says "praying only for the knowledge of God's will for us and the power
to carry that out" as my human nature will never do the will of God.
It is here that a recovered alcoholic lives, in the will of God through a CONSCIOUS CONTACT.
There are so many distractions in life. Sometimes it is just decisions, decisions, decisions ! Many times in dress rehearsals we know we will make right decisions. But when the heat is on, what will our end result be? Do we panic like a drowning man, or do we tread water and wait for help to come ? As we sit through A.A. Meetings, do we listen or are we just waiting our turn so we can share with everybody about our selfed up lives? Well
ReplyDeleteIf I'm selfed up, then I'm directly proportional to feared up. If I'm willing to open my mind to the inspirational writing in the first 164 pages of Alcoholics Anonymous & thouroghly follow the path of the fellows who have recovered from a hopeless state of mind and body. Then and only then am I able to trust . A trust that is based on my relationship with God.
I am no longer reliant on myself or anyone else. God inspires me to engage or disengage , not my instincts which have been warped by years of self centered fear. Rough seas make for a skilled sailor.
How am I when the seas get rough? When all is going well it is easy to walk the walk. But what am I truly relying on when the seas get rough. Is my mind set God concious when I'm under attack or only during dress rehearsals . Prayer and meditation to improve my concious contact with God. When times are tough I honestly have to ask myself am I feared up which equals selfed up or am I relying on God to inspire me to be the man He intended me to be ? God reliant ?
This personal relationship with The Power Within is not a matter of thought process. It is, instead, a matter of trust. As a former marathon runner, I know that daily training is necessary, and that finding an elevated state of feeling comes from that daily commitment. On a far greater level, the certainty that I am in the care of an Always Present Spirit provides a sustaining intimacy which I can only describe as love. Prayer is knowing that my will is surrendered to His, and asking for the power to carry His Will out in all my actions. I know that peace of mind is only available to me through conscious contact.
ReplyDeleteDon the purpose of the actual program of Alcoholics Anonymous is to give us a way to surrender our will to God and to live in the will of God through inspiration. It is only here that we will experience peace and maximize our human potential...Thank you my friend...Armand
ReplyDeleteMichael A lot of people talk about the will of God but few are willing to pray and meditate on a daily basis to improve their conscious contact with God. Why? I don't know but in my case it took a series of events before I was willing to improve my conscious contact with God even though I knew that it is a vital part of the program...Thanks...Armand
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