We have talked a lot lately of the first 3 Steps and how we achieve success with them and why. Today let’s see how continuing on with progress from working this remarkable program fits into our lives. And, just as importantly, should it fit into the rest of our lives? My mission in life, and this program, is to stay sober and to help anyone who will pay attention to my story with my words and, hopefully, my actions. I can not change anyone else but I can show what a tremendous change has occurred in my life. If the other person did not know me when I was in the madness, he will either be able to relate to me or not. That is not my choice but is entirely the other person’s.
I am Happy, Joyous, and Free and can not make anyone or anything else anything at all. I can only show what this program has done for me and, if they want it too, they are free to either take it or reject it. What does this show? God has given us free choice and, if we didn’t drink or drug today, we can now truly choose. If the other person did not drink or drug at the time, they can now choose. Many of us never felt the luxury of free choice for our own good before the AA Program entered our lives. It all is a learning process that does not occur overnight. Time takes time.
We spent how many years of our lives as if living as an actor in a play where others wrote our scripts and the scripts were very tightly written with no room at all for leaving this scenario? Like a drink, one is too many and a thousand is not enough. So let’s each change our lives starting right now. If we do, this is the start of a wonderful, happy, joyous, and free lifetime. Now the big question arises – how can I achieve Happiness, Joyfulness, and Freedom all the time when there is so much misery around me and, sometimes, in me?
Life never stops coming at us. It is not what happens around us, though, it is how we act and react to these events that matters. I can not keep someone who is near and dear to me from dying or contracting a serious or fatal disease or injury. I can not stop my bones and organs from being affected by wearing out over the years and causing misery and pain. I can not turn a relationship that sours into one of bliss. I can ONLY control the way that I react to these and other similar circumstances.
I accept that things go from mildly to fatally amiss in the lives of people, including myself. Acceptance does not mean liking these things, just understanding that there is absolutely nothing that I can do to change them. If driving down the road I see a tornado coming toward me I can not change the absolute fact that there is a dangerous force approaching. I can change only my route. Or keep on going. This choice is mine but I can not stop that twister.
How did I deal with the tornados that occurred in my life while in the madness? I drank as either a solution or a way to numb the effects. This numbness would leave and the problem was still there. Then, I would have to either drink more or suffer deep depression, agony, resentment, remorse, anger – you name it. Now, what did all of these negative feelings achieve? More resentment, anger, frustration, agony, remorse, and all that goes with them so the probable answer was to drink or drug again or more. And on and on and on and on!
This is where Happy, Joyous, and Free come into play. Since we stopped growing emotionally when we started drinking alcoholically, we just continued to achieve what we were used to and this only led to more fear, resentment, agony, remorse, and of course more drinking to drown our problems. Today, I am Happy, Joyous, and Free! This is because I, for the very first time, am dealing with life coming at me without being clouded by a mind altering substance. I am Happy because I am now dealing with problems successfully, not trying to drown them in alcohol. I am Joyous because everything is being dealt with without alcohol or drugs. I am Free of any mind-altering substances that were killing me.
To answer the question of how to carry our the mission mentioned in the topic, I work my program 24/7/365 TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY. I just try to just do the next right thing. How do I know if it is right? Because of what I have learned in this amazing program. It has given me a real conscience and ability to achieve good, not the “I’m sorry” conscience of the madness. This means that if it feels right, IT IS RIGHT! If there is any apprehension at all, I must STOP and reconsider. This is a very simple program. Let’s not overcomplicate it. FEELS GOOD – GO! FEELS BAD – STOP. It gets easier with practice and you will also get much happier. THAT IS A PROMISE!