12 Steps of Sponsorship
Some say that there are NO MUSTS in AA… actually, if you are working the Program outlined within the AA Text Book; there are 96 Musts. I heard someone say at a meeting that they were falling short on working the “Spiritual Aspect” of the program. It was quickly pointed out to them that there is NO SPIRITUAL ASPECT of this program - and that this IS a Spiritual Program of Recovery. The entire Program is Spiritual in Nature. There is no “Aspect” to it. (aspect means portion, perspective, section) We must do this work or we will die, of course , unless, you are NOT an alcoholic of the hopeless variety.
In turning my will and my life over to the care of God (as I understood Him) isn’t always an easy thing to do. I keep taking back control - or did I never fully give it up to begin with?
Fear lays at the heart of every AA, in that they lived, breathed and consumed fear throughout their lives in every aspect of the word. Not having fear is impossible for an alcoholic because they do not believe they can survive without being false, and their falsehood begins within themselves. They do not trust themselves and therefore, do not trust anyone esle, and where there is no trust, in themselves as well as anyone esle, there can be no peace, ever. They fear everything and everyone one, to diffreeing degrees. Knowing this and knowing that any alcoholic can and will recover if they are willing, honest and open minded enough to follow the steps outlined in the Big Book, to best of their ability, and continue to enlarge upon their spiritual lives through the continual completion of steps 10, 11, and 12.
We thought “conditions drove us to drink, and when we tried to correct these conditions and found that we couldn’t do so to our entire satisfaction, our drinking went out of hand and we became alcoholics. It never occurred to us that we needed to change ourselves to meet conditions, whatever they were.