Addiction Help

WHAT IS GOD’S WILL?

At the early stages of recovery, I kept hearing about God’s will and gaining the power to carry it out.

The word God to me means something that is different to me than many people I know, and it is a word that when I hear it turns my thoughts turn to church and religion. I believe in no one church and do not follow a particular religion.

God for me today means a power great than myself (Higher Power), the divine spirit of the universe, the small quiet voice that dwells within and feelings similar, and God is a highly personal thing with me.

I have conscious contact today with my Higher Power, and do not ever knock anyone’s concept of God as long as it is not a living person on earth currently. I don’t think I could ever go there, but do believe the higher power exists within all living things. God is life.

STRUGGLING WITH GOD?

A NOVEL IDEA

Looking back to the start of the journey I call the process of life recovery, I certainly struggled not only with the word God, but with nearly anything spiritual. I think I fit the category that is called “spiritually bankrupt”.

I was brought up going to Sunday school and most of my family and people I knew went to a church of some type. People and church sort of became intermingled.

I learned of a punishing god growing up, I had an infant sister die; I lived with abuse, and upon announcing intent to get married (to my pregnant girlfriend), hit a rejection from a church that still boggles my mind. Church, people, death, religion, but today I understand the rejection did not come from the God I understand today.

LYING TO FEEL ACCEPTED

I blog frequently for several reasons.

I have “journalled” or blogged for years as a part of my life recovery. Simply, it lets me get things that are on the inside to the outside. I was taught that this was healthy behaviour and guess what? It helps. Honest sharing is good for all.

Over the years, as I’ve shared some of my writings, I have been told that they have helped others. I am not unique, and others can relate to some of the thoughts that go through the “Disney World” that sometimes serves as my mind. Sometimes in sharing I connect with new people and build a personal relationship, once in a blue moon I attract someone who wants my professional help

Often in sharing, I get great feedback, ideas to improve the things I do, new perspectives and some things that set off a bell.

Today, I heard from an online “friend” John, as he responded on an article “10 Reasons We Fail”, about something I certainly did, but have not thought about in this context for a long time.

I Let HIM Do It

The process of life recovery is in part, a spiritual journey. In finding a Higher Power in my life, having conscious contact on a growing basis, and listening to that small quiet voice inside, there is a great caution I learned.

Pray to God but row to shore.
--Proverb

“There exists a Divine partnership between God and man that is wonderfully depicted in the following story. A young minister was driving through the countryside when he spotted a farmer tilling 40 acres of magnificent farmland. The minister pulled over and addressed the farmer, "God has certainly blessed you with a wonderful piece of land." The farmer replied, "Yes, but you should have seen the mess it was in when God had it to Himself!"