Do not let any prejudice you might have against spiritual terms deter you from honestly asking yourself what they mean to you. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 47
The idea of faith is a very large chunk to swallow when fear, doubt and anger abound in and around me. Sometimes just the idea of doing something different, something I am not accustomed to doing, can eventually become an act of faith if I do it regularly, and do it without debating whether it’s the right thing to do. When a bad day comes along and everything is going wrong, a meeting or a talk with another drunk often distracts me just enough to persuade me that everything is not quite as impossible, as overwhelming as I had thought. In the same way, going to a meeting or talking to a fellow alcoholic are acts of faith; I believe I’m arresting my disease. These are ways I slowly move toward faith in a Higher Power.
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Faith had become a stumbling block for my recovery. The sentence before the quote today says “When, therefore, we speak to you of God, we mean our own conception of God.”
This meant I could re-imagine God without creeds or dogma. This was such a freeing experience which allowed me to become really acquainted with the god of my understanding. This added to my peace and serenity.
Bob
Thanks Bob, this approach to relating with a Higher Power is personal and effective for me too!
Why so serious?
The road to recovery begins with you. Today, I’m armed with the tools I need. Faith, understanding, and happiness. The faith I use today is a working faith and not blind faith. I can “ASAP” Always Say A Prayer at any given time or day. It is also better to understand than be understood. I didn’t get this far in life by myself. And happiness comes from knowing self. I’ve met some of the poorest people in the world who were the happiest people, and I’ve met some filthy rich people who are the most miserable people in the world. Faith, it works if you work it.