Recently in my home group, thanks to a brother’s presentation on the 7th step, I had the awareness of how the Divine comes alive for us as we work through the steps. We come into the community and land on the first step spiritually bankrupt and, for all intents and purposes, functioning atheists. As we climb to the second step, we at least acknowledge our wrongdoing to this Divine Power. On the third step we decide to turn ourselves over to a Higher Power, but only to a caring God, a God who is there for us.
By the 5th step we are willing to acknowledge our wrongdoing to this Divine Power, trusting we will not be shamed or, worse, damned. We and God are making progress. With step 6 we become willing to have God work in our lives and we actively enlist God in our conversion in step 7. Steps 8, 9, and 10 make no mention of God, but God makes a grand re-entrance with step 11 as we commit to “conscious contact” with this One who obviously has initiated the contact and wants to sustain it.
In a sense, all we were doing was climbing the steps, and we discover that our Higher Power was as well. This Higher Power manifests Him/Her self however the Power wishes. The crucial element is CARE – the only God worth worshipping is a God who aches with us, feels with us, laughs and cries with us, and gives us the power to live the one glorious awake and recovering life that is ours.
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