Thursday, November 16, 2017

Self Will Or God's Will

The importance of Step Three is that a decision is made (in fact it is a final choice) for our thought process to no longer be propelled by our human instincts (our self will) but rather by the will of God through inspiration.  Inspiration is defined as, "the thoughts of God implanted in the mind and soul of man."
            The Third Step is, "We mad  e a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him."  In the Big Book Alcoholics Anonymous in the chapter "How It Works" it states, "The first requirement (in taking the Third Step) is that we be convinced that any life run on self will can hardly be a success." As stated prior to this, "Remember that we deal with alcohol, cunning, baffling, powerful.  Without help it is to much for us.  But there is One who has all power -that One is God. May you find Him now!"  The chapter goes further in stating, "Selfishness - self-centerednes! That, we think, is the root of our troubles... So our troubles, we think, are basically of our own making. They arise out of ourselves, and the alcoholic is an extreme example of  self will run riot..."  Self will is our thought process propelled by our human instincts. In the Big Book it says "above everything we alcoholics must be rid of this selfishness and there seems no way of entirely getting rid of self without His aid."
                 I learned in the program of Alcoholics Anonymous that we have three basic instincts, a social, sexual and security instinct.  These instincts are God given and necessary for life but in us we can never get enough of what it is we think we need .  The great psychiatrist Sigmund Freud defines an instinct as "a bodily need manifested in our thought process."  It is there that our character defects exist - but these same defects, which will always exist to some extent in our human nature, cannot possibly be manifested in our behavior when our thought process is propelled by God's will, through inspiration.

7 comments:

  1. The words "final choice" gave new meaning to the necessity of making a decision in Step Three. My entire life had been one of shortcuts, mopups, lines of least resistance, and far too many decisions. In Step Three, I realized I had to give it my all. My thinking and its resultant behavior were altering the course of my life. The complete pattern of my existence was defective. It was only by incorporating all Twelve Steps into my is such a way that they became my life that I was able to release my will to The Power Within me. That transformation has changed the very fabric of who I am - a person I love and trust. And a life worth giving away.

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    1. Michael an Alcoholic cannot possibly be recovered unless they have surrendered their nature to the will of God...Thank you...Armand

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  2. As Step's 1 & 2 imply, the initial catalyst for reaching out to the God of my understanding was absolute desperation. I had exhausted every other known earthly option or avenue that would, or could, extricate me from the self imposed dilemma of my dreadful situation and the consequences thereof. I had deliberately chosen to live a life in direct opposition to the known will of God whenever my unsated appetites beckoned. I found myself, by my own design, on the precipice of an eternity staring squarely into the bowls of a continuous living hell.

    This time there was no employment of my well honed negotiating skills. No shallow foxhole prayers only to be forgotten as I fell back into my alcohol fueled journey into debauchery once the immediate crisis had passed. This time was different. This alcoholic knew it was an ignominious and eternal death or complete surrender. And as I later learned; that revelation, like a white hot lightning bolt that burst into the core of my being, was a gift from a Loving Father that had not, and will not ever give up on me.

    My entire life of rebellion was instantaneously revealed in space and time. Yet, immersed in that encounter with the God of all Eternity was a love and compassion beyond telling. He wasn't asking for all that I was willing to surrender at that time, but the one thing I still wished to hold back.. Yet, as Jesus lovingly beckoned I finally, fatefully, spiritually collapsed and surrendered the one thing that had always stood in the way of my redemption, me...

    As I pored my life out at His feet, all of the guilt and shame associated with my past was immediately washed away. I was, in the most profound sense reborn. From that point on following the Steps was assured. Not easy... but assured, and has, together with study and inspired implementation of His Word brought me into a time of refreshment and joy of living that is well beyond my wildest dreams. Today, life is a bountiful continuous lyric of "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me... I was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see"..

    A Gratefully Recovering Alcoholic.

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    1. A Gratefully Recovering Alcoholic As you wrote the Lord will never give up on us. How true. As Bill says the surrender necessary is "simple but not easy. It meant destruction of self centeredness." Only through His grace is this possible for me...Thank you...Armand

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  3. It is the proper use of the will when I am living in Gods will and I can exercise my will power along this line all I wish. Step 11 asks me to pray only for the knowledge of his will for me and the power to carry that out. But I have to be careful of worldly clamors which can block out Gods will and send me veering off course. The great thing about this program is that I can get right back on track any moment. All I have to do is ask for help and God is right there.

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    1. Anne well said. As a human being my character defects are still part of my being and when they manifest in my behavior, I see that I am not in the will of God but a simple prayer and surrender in that moment as you say" I can get right back on track."...Thank you...Armand

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