In Chapter 4 of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous it says, "...we had to fearlessly face the proposition that God is everything or else He is nothing. God either is, or He isn't. What was our choice to be?" When I came to the very point in my recovery where I had no desire to turn back to my old life but I was fearful of letting go of my nature (and living in the will of God), the above statement had to be answered. I may have answered in the affirmative earlier in my recovery but it wasn't until that precise moment that I fully understood what was being asked of me - or rather, required of me. If we are to recover from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body; if we are to be free of manifesting our human defects in our behavior; if we are to live a life where we are tolerant and loving of all but never accepting of evil, if we are to live a life free from fear, anxiety and anger, if we are to be respected and loved and posses the spirit of charity forgiveness and joy - not because everything in life is as our human nature thinks it ought to be but because God is with us. Joy is not the absence of sorrow but the presence of God.
For the first time in my life I had become fully alive as the Spirit was fully awakened within me. I became and am the human being that God created me to be, maximizing my human potential, free of conflict, and at peace.
I am aware of what is required of me, and I have answered "Yes, God is everything." What will your answer be?
Written By Armand
Michael C.
ReplyDeleteTo know peace is to know and understand that I am living my life as the person I was born to be. It took years of sobriety to comprehend that my fear-based human nature was going nowhere. Instead, it had to be replaced and suffused with a far stronger force, a force that already existed within me but remained unawakened. Only by integrating all Twelve Steps into my life in such a way that they became my life did I find the peace of self. But that can only exist through The Power Within me. In that fulfillment, we become One. To become One is to know Peace
Muchael what a joy not to be fearful do that we are not constantly defending our nature. That has been entrusted to God. Now we can be relaxed and interact in a loving way with those about us...Thank you...Armand
DeleteChapter 4, "We Agnostics," is my favorite chapter in the book. The first time I read it, the words seemed to speak to me directly. It says: "Were our contentions true, it would follow that life originated out of nothing, means nothing, and proceeds nowhere." That described my old belief systems. No wonder I drank! Only when I came to Alcoholics Anonymous-- crushed by a self-imposed crisis I could not postpone or evade-- did I discover a meaning to my life, one founded on the right answer to the question you pose-- yes, God is everything.
ReplyDeleteDan every alcoholic must answer if they are to recover from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body...Thank you...Armand
ReplyDeleteArmand,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing.
For the first 37 years of my life I was the very definition of a shallow “human doing” burning my way through an incomprehensible world of mixed messages and shallow promises that all proved empty at every turn.. Like a shipwrecked sailer desperately clutching for any floating debris in the aftermath of a tsunami of misspent living, I would not; and more importantly, could not fathom that there is indeed a living and loving God, just beyond my earthly senses, who was patiently and knowingly waiting for me to abandon that wreckage and finally reach out to His eternally extended hand.
What joy and freedom there is to escape the self imposed prison of that totally me-centered life to that of a true human being, made in the image and likeness of God and dedicated to His eternal plan. There are no words to describe the gift, or convey the experience of the "peace that surpasses all understanding" when one finally, willingly and joyfully surrenders to God and agrees to be conformed to His purpose.
There is no greater gift that can be given than to finally accept the unearned grace that is given by the One who pursues us with a love beyond telling and determination that never wavers who came for one purpose, "To seek and to save those who are lost," and having been found, that must I also do. As I finally experience the joy of God's presence. The 12 Steps of AA reveal their foundation in the Gospel of Jesus Christ who proclaims Gods simple program that opens the door to the immeasurable depth, fullness and light that is... the mind and heart of God. There is, as you have faithfully witnessed, no greater joy nor peace in living.
A Gratefully Recovering Alcoholic
A Gratefully Recovering Alcoholic at St.Momica's grade school in first grade I learned I was made in the image and likeness of God. AA through the 12 Steps has given me the opportunity to experience it...Thank you...Armand
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