![]() Of course, believing is an important part of recovery. We are lovable, and we can love others without hurting them. Now our program tells us to believe in love. For many years, we had given up believing in ourselves, in a Higher Power, and in others. If somebody has gossip to share, I will politely move to another topic.īelieve that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact. Forgiving myself for past excursions into gossip, I will say nothing about others behind their backs. We cannot gossip and be completely trustworthy and reliable. The practice may be hidden, but it leaves us with guilt, fear, and shame. We cannot live freely and happily if we practice gossip in any form. This is often prefaced by the remark, “I don’t want to take Joe’s inventory, but … ” We should even ask ourselves if we are gossiping when we “discuss” another member who is not living up to our ideas of true Twelve Step standards. We also gossip by reveling in lurid accounts of others’ sins and failings. We can gossip by steering the conversation to a topic that is likely to bring revealing comments. When we are unwilling to part company with gossip, we devise subtle ways to keep it in our lives. We are growing up when we come to see that gossip feeds on our own insecurity and self-deception. ![]() “With little reflection, however, I realized that the more serious problem was the dishonesty that caused me to belittle somebody behind hie back!” When it occurred to me that my remark could come back to hurt me, I had a moment of panic,” an AA member said. “Without really knowing what was happening, I said something bad today about a person I secretly resented. When a leader power-drives us badly, we rebel but when he too meekly becomes an order-taker and he exercises no judgment of his own–well, he really isn’t a leader at all. service is a man (woman) who can personally put principles, plans, and policies into such dedicated and effective action that the rest of us naturally want to back him up and help him with his job. This would imply rather faceless robots trying to please everybody.Ī leader in A.A. We are apt to warp the traditional idea of “principles before personalities” around to such a point that there would be no “personality” in a leadership whatever. ![]() But we A.A.’s sometimes cherish the thought that we can do without much personal leadership at all. No society can function well without able leadership at all its levels, and A.A. I pray that I may be part of the cure for the ills of the world. I pray that I may do my share in making a better world. There is nothing in the field of personal relationships that they cannot do. Faith, fellowship, and service are cures for most of the ills of the world. Gradually the moral is overcoming the unmoral. Gradually the spiritual is overcoming the material in our minds. That is the purpose and destiny of the human race. ![]() The spiritual and moral will eventually overcome the material and unmoral. Do I remember the things that happened to me because of the power of alcohol? I was helpless before the power of alcohol. I think we all can agree that God is a power greater than ourselves. That’s practically impossible to believe. It has been said that atheism is blind faith in the strange proposition that this universe originated in a cipher and aimlessly rushes nowhere. But not to believe in such a Power forces us to atheism. Some people find it hard to believe in a Power greater than themselves. Yes, then came peace of mind - living in and sharing sobriety. Through experience and obedience, growth started, followed by gratitude. When I sought God, as I understand Him, He shared His treasured gifts. Through much pain came experience and, in suffering, I became obedient. How thankful I am today, to know that all my past failures were necessary for me to be where I am now. Through failure, we learn a lesson in humility which is probably needed, painful though it is.
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