STEP TWELVE
June 9, from “Strengthening My Recovery” daily reader
“Spiritually awake adult children understand the spiritual axiom which states: ‘We must give away what we have to keep it.’ This is one of the most selfless acts of love we can offer a confused world; however, we must love ourselves first to have something to give away.” BRB p. 288
“We who felt terribly lost and hopelessly confused, or bitterly angry and very sad for most of our lives experience a deep and lasting peace of mind from working the ACA program. Using the Steps, reparenting ourselves, and achieving a spiritual awakening feel so good. We are full of joy and want to share the wealth!
Our daily lives feature endless ways to share our True Selves with our families, co-workers and neighbors: everyone can potentially enjoy our recovery. Perhaps newcomers to our meetings benefit most from our spiritual awakening. They hear our emotional sobriety and sense our joy. Many come to meetings from a dark place and may be somewhat bewildered by the terminology and frank talk about deeply-held family secrets. They may never have heard anyone talk openly about these subjects and offer a Solution.
We are a very special group of folks whose experience, strength, and hope can light the way for others if we keep coming back and sharing that light. By remembering the slogan “First Things First,” we transmit our recovery through a personal act of service -loving our True Selves.
On this day I will recall my early days in ACA and the wonderful gifts I have received: clarity and freedom. I will share my love for my True Self so that others may know hope.”
My Experience:
The spiritual awakening started to happen for me when I started working the steps. I share my experience, strength, and hope as much as I can. Whether that is being frank in the meetings or with people that ask me about my book or blog, I give a real answer about my past because it is likely that they need to hear it. People are able to see my newfound joy and lust for life and those that knew me before program can attest to the incredible changes that have happened. Just recently, while my son was driving and I was in the passenger seat, he hit a cement structure that held a light post. In the past I would have surely been upset, said something inappropriate like, “what is wrong with you” and fumed for quite a while afterwards. Instead, I felt and displayed no anger, looked to see if there was damage, and hoped this was a learning experience for him. In fact later on as we told his mom and some of his friends, we laughed about it. What a difference this program makes!
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