March 5 From rude awakening to spiritual
awakening


"When a need arises for us to admit our powerlessness, we may first
look for ways to exert power against it. After exhausting these ways, we
begin sharing with others and find hope."

Basic Text, p. 79


We've sometimes heard it said in our meetings that "rude awakenings
lead to spiritual awakenings." What kind of rude awakenings do we have in
recovery? Such an awakening might occur when some undesirable bit of
our behavior that we thought safely hidden away is suddenly revealed for
all the world to see. Or our sponsor might provoke such an awakening by
informing us that, just like everyone else, we have to work the steps
if we expect to stay clean and recover.

Most of us hate to have our covers pulled; we don't like being laid
naked in full view. The experience delivers a strong dose of humility. Our
first reaction to such a disclosure is usually shock and anger, yet we
recognize the truth when we hear it. What we are having is a rude
awakening.

Such awakenings often disclose barriers that block us from making
spiritual progress in our recovery. Once those barriers are exposed, we can
work the steps to begin removing them from our lives. We can begin
experiencing the healing and serenity which are the preludes to a renewed
awakening of the spirit.


Just for today: I will recognize the rude awakenings I have as
opportunities to grow toward spiritual awakening.

pg. 67