A friend of mine, who is relatively new, turned to me one day and said, how simple this program was. He said it’s all about surrender and acceptance. Now that’s simple. And, he was absolutely right.
After surrendering and accepting the first step, we have to go through it again in the second. Then we come to the third, the first action step. Again, surrender and acceptance. And so it goes down the line.
The reason I was thinking about this today was that, when I find myself having to ask my higher power to relieve me of the bondage of self, I have to go through this process over and over again. I never seem to have a handle on what was once termed the discipline of surrender. How often I find that I desperately need this discipline. I find that my total lack of discipline is a cause of some pain. That’s because I stumble over my lack of it.
Then, when I think about the reason for the discipline of surrender, I remember why I need this. It’s all because I never want to drink again. I am reminded of the fact that my primary purpose is not to pick up that first drink. That’s why I came here and as long as I have this in the forefront of my mind, the discipline comes much easier. I’m driven to surrender and acceptance; to seek and do the will of my higher power.
Like my friend said, it’s simple. Simple, but not easy. Not for an alcoholic like me. It takes effort on my part to get off my backside and to once again put this program of a spiritual nature into action. It’s an unending cycle to achieve some sort of spiritual condition which insures me that I won’t drink today.
Anyway, just thinking about this relieves me of some of the bondage of self.