Any Buddhists/Hindus/Atheists/Agnostics out there struggling with Step 3? Working with a sponsor but the step work asks 'list the reasons you believe in God as you understand it.'. How have others approached this?
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i struggled with the idea of “god” too. what i found helpful was thinking more in terms of a higher power, something that is bigger than ourselves. it will helps to create this higher power into something that you feel you can resonate with and to really personalize it to your beliefs. step 3 felt like a huge relief to me once i was able to do this because my entire life I’ve always tried to control everyone and everything around me and it was insanely exhausting. allowing ourselves to let go of this control/responsibility and surrender it to this “higher power” felt like a breath of fresh air.
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“3. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.” This was written 80 some years ago before gender neutral was a thing by men. Times have changed. All you need to know is something greater than you that can have your back 24/7 other than you. Could be the rooms, a person, a thing. Just anything or anyone you can depend on constantly. We can’t do this by ourselves. I have yet to find anyone with long term recovery who could. And I’ve been at it since early 80’s. My higher power guides my every moment today and he’s mine. Not yours or theirs. All mine. That’s the beauty of this all. We can’t be wrong in who we choose to have our backs.
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Thanks! The thing is that I believe in a higher power, but not in the way described in the AA book. So I suppose seeing how to reconcile this.
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well said
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Ditto​:clap:t3:
Forget the "a god of your understanding". This is just a kinder gentler way of deists trying to get you to hopefully eventually accept their god. I won't even read the steps or promises at traditional meetings because the first of the four absolutes is honesty. How can I read most of those things if I don't comprehend their meaning, because they aren't relevant to me? After I got over that and really thought about step three it was easy. Turn yourself over to the care of the group. Their experiences. That makes complete sense to me. Nothing mysterious, just like turning your care over to a doctor.
Also, there are secular AA meetings out here. Worth looking into.
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A higher power just is. The thing about “faith” is there is no way to prove it. You either have faith in something or you don’t. I would challenge your sponsor on a written list of reasons. If you believe in a HP that’s all that needs be done for step 2/3.
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I have faith in Jane, the barista where I go omw to work every morning. I have faith in her because over and over again she has proven that she knows how to make my drink, the way I like it. Faith built on something real, I can dig it. Faith in something unprovable just doesn't sit well with me. It's very akin to a rabbits foot or a lucky penny. Endearing notions at best.
But whatever works for you and makes you a better person is awesome.
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Don't think of God as your used to. Think of a friend or someone who has helped you through an addiction. The AA group as a whole being in meetings is spiritual for me. I think of nature(were all connected, people, trees, animals, etc) as my higher power.
I can identify with how you are feeling about what is in the na/aa books. For me I had to separate the word god from what I was taught n brought up with . It gets easier in time and practice . I’m a heroin addict that goes to AA meetings. In my area I have actually Chang the way I word things to respect the AA program that’s here. Once I started to see it has nothing to do with the substance and everything with my feelings, thoughts, , beliefs, lack of copping skills and views on whatever it was , is my issue .. it was my perception.I changed my perception and my life has gotten better . It’s like changing your lenses in your glasses.. once you change them and you’ll see more clearly.. then in time you’ll need to get a new pair of lenses.. the only thing holding you back is you.. once you allow yourself to stop looking so much at the words and Read between the lines for what works for you. You’ll look back and see the only thing in the way of this process was.. you.. good luck and keep asking people how they did it
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I’m not religious AT ALL. However, you can still learn from religious texts. You can apply it to whatever your believe in. God is the same thing to whatever higher being you believe in. For example, I do believe there’s a higher intelligence.
My only real issue with the god drama is religion's pushy grip on society as far as social issues go and that it is usually above reproach. If believing in God keeps people sorted out, cool. If you come at me with "you can't get sober/stay sober without some sort of god then you gotta move. The struggle for Christianity to control everything is REAL. So I find it necessary to push back, at least by showing other people out there that they don't have to feel alone in being "godless" but wanting to get/stay sober/clean.
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