24hrsAday

sobriety is a gift from god.. what we do with it.. is our gift to god! A.A. has saved my life and given me a life i never knew i could have.. ODAAT it just keeps getting better!

Music

This is what makes one day, one hour, one minute of sobriety so important. Sobriety is a gift. The OPPORTUNITY to get sober is a gift so many either overlook, or completely disgard. There's good reason why right now is called the "present." Right now is a gift and I should take advantage of this time to show appreciation and gratitude to my Higher Power.

DaveBB164

Bills Story p14,

to establish and maintain the new order of things, were the essential requirements.

Simple, but not easy; a price had to be paid. It meant destruction of self-centeredness

Believe808

Sobriety is a gift, but if not shared properly and maintained with meetings and steps, I will lose this gift forever. My sobriety is the best gift I received, and what makes it so special is that my HP saw fit to give me this gift twice. Three strikes and I'm dead.

Tommyh

ty 24,indeed it is a great gift

Puddy

You knew someone had to come in and throw a wrench in this post dintya?

My turn...sobriety has not been a gift to me. A gift implies something for nothing. I tried to just accept the initial sobriety I had back in 2001-2002 without working for it. I lost it.

I've had to earn sobriety...it is not a gift to me...I have to work for it through action and earn it. Then I have to work my butt off just to keep it...not so much a gift, rather an opportunity to save my life but only if I'm willing to go to any length.

I believe, for me, the gift I have been given is twofold: the gift of desperation and the gift of willingness. The first gift was a result of my self will and my thinking. The second gift was a gift from God. After all, I never generated any willingness to do the right thing for myself and others for 41 years beforehand. Must have been from God. I must have been called upon because I would have never sought this out.

This program ain't for those who need it, neither is it a program for those who want it...it is only for those who are willing to go to any length, and then actually go to any length.

Sorry to throw a wrench in this but I'd rather not be given any more gifts - I always misuse, neglect, and abuse gifts. My gifts get broken, and this goes all the way back to childhood with toys that would break through my actions.

You guys are all a gift to me though I do know that for sure! I promise to try not to abuse, misuse, or neglect you! Please let me know if I am so I can make it right whenever it may occur.

Dave

McGowdog

I was just thinking this too! I can go and get the Hardliner Wrench, come in here and ...

God loves me sober.

God loves me drunk. I don't know why, but...

God doesn't keep me sober. My fit spiritual fitness/condition does.

What God DID do is remove the obsession from THIS crazy mind. But left a whole bunch of other stuff.

God, could you come back and remove my temper? What's that? I'm still using it? Oh.

I must decide for myself if I'm going to live or if I'm going to die. I must decide if I'm going to submit to THIS process or not. Once I do that, it's pretty simple. I'm gonna be asked to do a bunch of things I don't want to... don't make sense... but that's ok... It's not not a clinical problem for me, so it won't be a logical solution... just an experiential one.

...and booze, right?



Or in other words, "A.A. is for those who do it."


No need to be sorry. I think Dave BB beat you to it.

How does the saying go? Two Dave's don't make a wrong?

Puddy

that goes without saying! The booze was a symptom of my self will and my best thinking.

Related to the post, an old saying about something else just popped in my head that describes continuous sobriety perfect - I'm going to start using it -

You have to earn your keep.

Instant classic! Man I am a badass sometimes...and modest too

tomvlll

this is pretty much how I used to see to it as well.!!!

one of the best descriptions of the great GAWUH ( God as We understand Him) is the signal on the the tv set. A clear picture is ALWAYS coming through , but if I have the tv tuned to the wrong channel , all I get is snow and static.

All I have to do is turn to the right channel.

And then I can see clearly that I was born sober and that polluting my mind with alcohol is not the right thing to do. Put another way, I was born with the 'gift' of sobriety.

Puddy

I like that, I think Sandy B. described it similarly, about how God is a clear channel but our screens are filled with static...our thoughts

24hrsAday

just for the record.. i am a true believer that god as i do not understand him/her/it and the A.A. program can and will keep me sober 24 hours at a time!

Tommyh

we can`t earn or buy God`s Grace

Boleo

Before I experienced the 10th step promise I thought sobriety was an achievement (no wonder it took me 2 years). Now I see the word "GIVEN" has a special meaning in the 10th step promise found on page 85:

"We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been GIVEN us without any thought or effort on our part. It just comes! That is the miracle of it. "

- All quotes from the Big Book 1st Edition -

KenL

This thread reminded me of my own musings on the concept of sobriety and how it relates to our individual beliefs. There are two versions of my thread. Here are the links to each one, they have different people replying to them. Thanks for sharing your thoughts 24hrsaday. :ghug2


http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...rden-gift.html

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...rden-gift.html

gravity

Alcoholism is a gift (still struggle with this - sometimes I "get it").
Recovery is a gift.

Big picture...Life is a gift.

I have to honour these gifts by doing my best.

Nothing happens in God's world by mistake so I guess the drinking & the misery were a necessary part of it. I had to suffer enough before I could even begin to recover. The suffering was a gift?

Boleo

Thanks for this grate post link. It reminds me that recovery is:

1. The end of Happiness
2. The beginning of Joy

Where Happiness is singular - Joy is plural!

McGowdog

So what does God's Grace have to do with me being an alcoholic?

Pinkcuda

Depends on how you look at it. I didn't do well as a practicing alcoholic. The benefits I get from being a "Recovered Alcoholic" are something I would have never gotten otherwise.

shaun00

god grace has very little to do with me being an alcoholic.

but he does have a lot to do with me being a non drinking alcoholic.

god grace has always been with me.

its just being sober has given me the ability to "feel it".

Puddy

I agree 100% that we can't buy God's grace.

I disagree 100% that we can't earn it. I believe we have to earn it.

That sobriety is not given to us at all, or else anyone who showed up at a church and prayed that timeless alcoholic prayer - "God please help me. I can't take this anymore" would then be given a perfect, permanent release from alcoholism. That might happen only so occasionally, here and there like Jung said, but for the most part that never happens. Which is why God brought Bill and Bob together to work their asses off for a lifetime and bring the world the program and fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Notice in Step 10 it is given to us without any thought or action on our part...step 10...lot's of work to do get there. By then you have earned it. For that day only.

No way was I given sobriety in any way. Someone else here may have been, but I sure wasn't. I was given willingness, thank you God.