Notices

AA for a non- Christian?

Old 10-27-2011, 05:30 PM
  # 21 (permalink)  
Member
 
debsam's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Present Moment
Posts: 646
Welcome Jallen

Your quote "I want to do whatever it takes"....you're off to a damn good start with this!
debsam is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 05:38 PM
  # 22 (permalink)  
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: pacific standard time
Posts: 289
So sneaky!

Cunning, Baffling, Powerful....

believe me, my disease is chatting it up with me right now.

I recently had to make a serious decision about putting my kitty to sleep. Without higher power i'd still be on pills & booze, and likely would not have made a decision, and if i had, i wouldn't have felt good about it, and i would have popped pills and had wine the whole way through. But since getting sober with the 12 steps, and taking action (prayer, in this case) i was able to not only make the decision, but give up on the idea that i know what's right and seriously ask for guidance. and guess what - i got it. not from the "big man upstairs" (wtf who is that anyway) but from....a power greater than myself. in the form of a gut sensation, and i just knew what to do. i felt it in my gut. I am sober, i am present - and so i was able to give my kitty a dignified death. i was 100% present when it happened. and for that i am both proud and stronger. and it was peaceful. and it was right. i could not have done this without a higher power.

i drone on. but maybe you get the idea?

i just find it to be such a relief that the only thing i need to know about higher power is that i'm not it! woo hoo!

i'll shut up now.
OceanSize is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 05:53 PM
  # 23 (permalink)  
Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude
 
Zencat's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Oxnard (The Nard), CA, USA.
Posts: 13,687
Originally Posted by laurie6781
There are many "Non Christians" in AA. Be they Athiest, Agnostic, Buddhist, Muslim, etc

When you hear the word God, train your mind to think of this:

G.O.D. = Good Orderly Direction

or

G.O.D. = Group Of Drunks
As an implicit atheist, the above works for me. I've learned the hard lesson that if I am not true to myself, all my recovery efforts will be of no use to me. In active addiction I was a fraud and a shell of a man. One of my first tasks in early recovery was to discover what made me feel alive, what was my passion, what will I live for. I knew all to well what it was to live a lie, so discovering my truth was of the most importance. And the truth is I'm an atheist and being as that is is no hindrance to my ability to live drug/alcohol free.
Zencat is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 05:55 PM
  # 24 (permalink)  
Member
Thread Starter
 
Jallen83's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Hudson Valley, NY
Posts: 42
Thanks for sharing that Oceansize. I have a pup myself so I get it.
Jallen83 is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 06:06 PM
  # 25 (permalink)  
Om, Aum, Ohm...
 
Sugah's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Punxsutawney/Pittsburgh
Posts: 4,797
I use the word "God" a lot. Most people understand I'm talking about a Higher Power (though not necessarily a Higher Power as they might understand It) and it's easy to spell.

Don't sweat it. And, as has been suggested, try a few different meetings before you decide if AA is or isn't for you.

Peace & Love,
Sugah
Sugah is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 06:15 PM
  # 26 (permalink)  
Member
 
TheTinMan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Roxboro, NC
Posts: 544
When I was at my worst and decided to try recovery I was willing to say, believe or change everything just not to feel like I felt. If someone had told me I had to believe in God to be sober then I would believe in God.

A lot of people get hung up on the "God" thing when it comes to AA. Well, do you want to recover or do you want to debate a supreme being that can shout the universe into being and that sent is His son to die and be raised from the dead? AA is not about God. There is no requirement for you to believe in God. There is no requirement for you to pray the Serenity prayer or the Lord's prayer.
TheTinMan is offline  
Old 10-27-2011, 06:19 PM
  # 27 (permalink)  
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 1,146
About 14 in my homegroup of 140 or so are Christian. All of them are in the under 25 year crowd, the longer term people with 26 to 48 years are all non Christian. No one cares what anyone else's specific beliefs are, or wants to hear about them.

If Christian beliefs were required then the alcoholics in non Christian countries would be pretty well screwed, but the program works just fine there too for the willing.
langkah is offline  

Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are Off




All times are GMT -7. The time now is 09:43 PM.