Getting through tough times
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Dallas, TX
Posts: 325
Getting through tough times
I'm just now approaching 18 months sober. There have been a lot of great things happen to me in sobriety, but there have also some really unfortunate situations as well. I'm still learning how to live life on life's terms, but I don't always like it!
This past week or two have been the hardest I've had in sobriety. Being sober has blessed me with almost everything I could ever ask for, except financial relief. Lately, I had been focusing on how the heck I plan on getting out of this financial mess, and it was just starting to look a little bit brighter. To get straight through the bad stuff, someone I don't know who was a competitor in my field slandered my name across the community I work in, and his "facts" unproven were allowed to stay as gospel and essentially ruined the business I had worked on this year. It was a nightmare of a situation where collusion and seniority went against what was right.
The important thing is, as I was exhausting everything I had to try and make that terrible situation right, I realized that A) I didn't even think about drinking and B) That even though I was alone by myself in this situation on earth, that I actually had God on my side the whole time.
To be honest, I have been praying and "seeking" God for a long time, but in reality I can say that I didn't know who I was even praying too. When I went to Church, I was not really listening or believing all that I heard. When I read about religion, I was having a hard time reading and understanding. And when I watched a documentary on religion a few weeks ago disputing God, I had it "figured out" that I didn't need religion and was wasting my time with all of that.
So what do I think happened in the next weeks after I had it all "figured out"? Looking back, I can see where God has done many things for me that I couldn't have done for myself. The kicker is that what God does for me is not always what I want in the short term. He has done many things in a different way than I would have chosen, like "Lets lay him off on a random Tuesday since he is not in the right job" or "Let's have the girl he cares about leave him abruptly because that is not the right girl for him" and then the most recent "Let's have his business fail again unexpectedly because............"
So the major point that I have is that I believe that certain things happen for a reason, and I need to stop trying to figure this all out on my own. This past week I had my back against the wall, but in reality I felt better than almost anyone else, because maybe, just maybe, this is what I needed to totally surrender to the God of my understanding and move forward in life.
If I would have written the script for my life back when I was growing up, I would have chosen "the good life" according to the Bud Light commercials and would still be on the road to nowhere. I don't know where the road is taking me right now, but since God and I have different ideas for what is best for me, I think I'll let Him keep running the show.
This past week or two have been the hardest I've had in sobriety. Being sober has blessed me with almost everything I could ever ask for, except financial relief. Lately, I had been focusing on how the heck I plan on getting out of this financial mess, and it was just starting to look a little bit brighter. To get straight through the bad stuff, someone I don't know who was a competitor in my field slandered my name across the community I work in, and his "facts" unproven were allowed to stay as gospel and essentially ruined the business I had worked on this year. It was a nightmare of a situation where collusion and seniority went against what was right.
The important thing is, as I was exhausting everything I had to try and make that terrible situation right, I realized that A) I didn't even think about drinking and B) That even though I was alone by myself in this situation on earth, that I actually had God on my side the whole time.
To be honest, I have been praying and "seeking" God for a long time, but in reality I can say that I didn't know who I was even praying too. When I went to Church, I was not really listening or believing all that I heard. When I read about religion, I was having a hard time reading and understanding. And when I watched a documentary on religion a few weeks ago disputing God, I had it "figured out" that I didn't need religion and was wasting my time with all of that.
So what do I think happened in the next weeks after I had it all "figured out"? Looking back, I can see where God has done many things for me that I couldn't have done for myself. The kicker is that what God does for me is not always what I want in the short term. He has done many things in a different way than I would have chosen, like "Lets lay him off on a random Tuesday since he is not in the right job" or "Let's have the girl he cares about leave him abruptly because that is not the right girl for him" and then the most recent "Let's have his business fail again unexpectedly because............"
So the major point that I have is that I believe that certain things happen for a reason, and I need to stop trying to figure this all out on my own. This past week I had my back against the wall, but in reality I felt better than almost anyone else, because maybe, just maybe, this is what I needed to totally surrender to the God of my understanding and move forward in life.
If I would have written the script for my life back when I was growing up, I would have chosen "the good life" according to the Bud Light commercials and would still be on the road to nowhere. I don't know where the road is taking me right now, but since God and I have different ideas for what is best for me, I think I'll let Him keep running the show.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: northern michigan. not the U.P.
Posts: 15,281
awesome post and awesome to hear the "AH HA" moments happening for ya!
God builds your faith and my faith by testing it. He builds our faith by putting it to the test, by trying it. Faith is like a muscle and when it’s stretched and it’s pulled then it develops. When you test your muscles against weights then your muscles develop. And your faith develops as it is tested.
God builds your faith and my faith by testing it. He builds our faith by putting it to the test, by trying it. Faith is like a muscle and when it’s stretched and it’s pulled then it develops. When you test your muscles against weights then your muscles develop. And your faith develops as it is tested.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Bridgeton
Posts: 718
I can totally relate to what you (both) have said. I am at 15 months have been doing the right things, attending meetings, giving service & praying a lot. But it seems like it's hard to come up for air at times when life continually throws curveballs at you. I accept things better now and I have not wanted to drink...and I do thank God for that. Understanding his will for us will always be a puzzle. And like tomsteve said, it does seem that building faith often includes being tested. We may not enjoy these tests but what can we do about it? I hope for all of us going through these things in life that patience & faith will pay off in the long run. All we can do is believe and keep moving forward.
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