CBA. Conceive, Believe, Achieve
In this simple guide, I will show you how to deal with life that just keeps on coming at you, even after you have stopped drinking.
When I was new to the AA Program, I often wondered why I seemed to have more emotions than I ever had before when I was still drinking. Whenever someone close, even only fairly close, was ill or made their transition, I became very emotional. Whereas before, when still in the madness, I didn’t get emotionally involved in or with hardly anything or anyone. A tough day made me even more emotional. This usually made me mad! I could achieve nothing good, then!
I discovered that I had emotions and responses that I never knew about before I started working on becoming sober. I really wondered what was wrong with me. “If sobriety makes a blubbering idiot of me, I don’t want any part of it!”
I was heartily advised by my sponsors that the reason that I was feeling this way now and not before was that, whenever these trigger situations arose before, I sedated them. And therefore my emotions with alcohol being involved were dulled.
Without alcohol, I was actually feeling these same things without the sedative of alcohol and/or drugs. Now, I was put into the position of actually dealing with these situations as they occurred, not adding the fogging element of alcohol to try to cope.
When I was in the madness and a situation would arise, I would sedate myself with alcohol. Then, when the high wore off, the situation still had to be dealt with. By someone. Now that I did not have the sedation, I was feeling the emotions and having to deal with them for the 1st time in my life. And, as far as whatever had to be done, I JUST DID IT!!! Surprisingly well, too, I might add.
Now, after being in the program for a while, I actually like my emotions and no longer try to hide them. I use the word Love a lot because I think of Love a lot.
When I am around someone who I love, I also want to touch them. I have turned into the “dreaded hugger” of the family. It has spread like a wildfire among my children and grandchildren.
I even have a 30+-year-old grandson who is as tall as I am coming across a room when I enter to give me a big hug. I wouldn’t trade the feelings that I get from this type of thing for anything. I was never able to achieve anything like this before!
Good friends, I want to at least touch as I walk by or they walk by me. I NEVER felt this good about contact with others before.
How did I get to this point? I first discovered that I was part and parcel of my Higher Power, who I now choose to call God. He was lovingly inside my secret place, which others may call the mind and soul or heart. Not sitting on a throne “up there somewhere” judging, testing, and punishing me. He was and is there working through, not only me but also all others.
My Higher Power is the great creator. He did achieve the creation of the entire universe and all within it. He created us in His image. This means that we are also creators. Look at all of the lies that we used to just stay alive, when we were in the madness.
So, as the image of our Higher Power, we are creative. We have proven this to ourselves and others by still being alive, even doing what we did when drinking. As a creator, we CONCEIVE the idea that we can be happy, joyous, and free, just like the others we are meeting in the program.
Then we look around us and see others who have been as bad or worse than us who are now genuinely happy, joyous, and free. So, we begin to BELIEVE that, if they can do this, so can we.
Now, we watch and listen to see how they did this. Next comes a plan. Then we put this plan into effect and actualLy ACHIEVE it. We notice that we are happier, more joyous, and all while not under the influence of a mind-altering substance. We are FREE from alcohol and drugs so it is a done deal. Some work is involved but not nearly as deadly, agonizing, and tiresome as the work we were doing before.
There, you just were able to ac CBA. Doesn’t it feel good? I never thought I would be able to feel this good again.
Since He works through others, it is on me to watch and listen to what is going on around me. Why? Because He is there and working, whether I see Him or not.
This was not something that was easy at first but, really, how much simpler could it be? Just watch, look, and listen and then JUST DO IT! Whatever IT is.
Now, to answer the question posed in the title of how do we make it through a long, tough day without drinking, we all have some days that are easier to deal with than others. This is where we simply do the next right thing. The next right thing becomes easier to identify the more we work on our Program.
How do we know if it is right? When working our program to the best of our ability, this leads to “if it feels right, it IS right.” If there is any apprehension at all, it is time to reconsider. Then, if it feels right after reconsideration, JUST DO IT. If it doesn’t feel right, STEP BACK AND RECONSIDER!
Because of the simplicity, it did become much easier as time and practice occurred. Let’s make it even simpler. Just say the shortened version of the 3rd Step, “God Help Me,” then step back and let Him. This is a very simple method for having a life full of Happiness, Joy, and Freedom.
Do you want it too? If so, just say “God Help Me” and then JUST DO IT, whatever IT is, and you will have it.
After trying this, please let leave a comment and let me know your thoughts and what you achieved.
God bless you.
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