Recovery from alcoholism- rivers and eddies

 

The other day I was reading in one of my morning meditation books the idea that we need to stay the course in recovery. We should focus on our life goals and not be distracted by small irritations and frustrations.

My over all life goal is to be the best me I can be- all the way till my last days on earth. That definitely includes staying clean and sober however it includes many other areas as well. Examples include, keeping my body healthy, keeping my thoughts  positive, absent of as many negative, fearful, resentful, angry as possible, being kind and considerate to others,-treating them as I would like to be treated, being honest, staying aware of the defects that cause me distress and becoming willing to let them go, helping others in need, being financially responsible, keeping in good spiritual condition, becoming a good father and husband…

These are a few of the major components of my life’s goal- Don’t laugh- I said it they were goals- The thing is although I don’t do well in some of the areas on a daily basis, at least I have a direction of where I want to go. This direction helps me with daily decisions and priorities.

Recovery from alcoholism- National Geographic article on the effectiveness of AA

A comprehensive assessment from outsiders on the effectiveness of AA and the 12 steps. They touch on the power of practices and experiences such as: Fellowship, connection with others, helping others, spirituality and the idea of a psychic change.

Here is the opening statements from the article:

Science has never revealed as much about addiction—potential genetic causes, influences, and triggers, and the resultant brain activity—or offered as many opportunities and methods for initial treatment as it does now.

Even so, the grassroots 12-step program remains the preferred prescription for achieving long-term sobriety.


http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/08/130809-addiction-twelve-steps-alcoholics-anonymous-science-neurotheology-psychotherapy-dopamine/


Your thoughts?

Perfection?, Excellence?, Extraordinary?

Funny  how God reveals things to you to confirm “whispers” that you may get. 

When I was writing my book “Under Construction…..,” I had written a chapter called “Walk before you run,”sub-titled “seek progress, not perfection.” My original sub-title was written as “seek progress, toward excellence”.  

I struggled with the sub title, feeling like the “seek progress, toward excellence” was what I really meant to say- but knowing many people would be more aware of the slogan “seek progress, not perfection”. So I fought off  spiritual instincts and changed it to the phrase people would be most familiar with. 

Last month I heard a sermon that basically said that seeking perfection was not a good thing for us to do. The pastor's  point was, in essence, the same as my original one- we can achieve excellence in the things we do- but never perfection.

Then yesterday, a friend of mine came up to me and said, “In my life I am trying to be extraordinary in all that I do. Not perfect, but extraordinary”. I like that- Excellence, extraordinary- and I'm not worried about ego or arrogance- I can seek these things without being prideful about it- understanding that God is helping me get there. Perfect would be a prideful thought. 

Oh well... I did follow other instincts in my book that I now feel really good about. So it goes…. I remain under construction- making some mistakes, learning from them, getting more confident in following “God whispers”, somewhat less worried about people pleasing… yes, I’m making progress striving for excellence. 

Your thoughts on this topic?

Recovery from alcoholism- Challenges and the third step

I was at a meeting the other day and someone was talking about an issue they had at work. They had made a mistake and were very concerned about the implications. They were in that state where something could possibly happen, you can’t control it, and worry and fear set in.

This triggered some not so fond memories of when I was in the corporate world and these kind of situations happened to me on a regular basis. I shared that what I would do in these cases is just try to pause for a minute and turn the situation over to God, specifically and intentionally. I added that, although I knew I had done this from the heart, it didn’t necessarily make me feel relieved. However, looking back, I’m sure God got the request and began his work.