Give all your problems to God - He'll be up all night anyway!

[krafty]

When I first heard this saying I instantly thought of all the nights I used to lay in bed worrying, rehashing, or trying to solve all my problems. In fact, before recovery it was actually easier to sleep because I would use drugs or alcohol or even enmeshment with other people to help distract me. But when I entered the program, it seemed like it was just me and my problems - I didn't get a lot of sleep!

It took a long time for me to develop enough faith to turn my will and my life (and problems) over to my Higher Power. The idea of it sounded good, but it proved very difficult to do in practice. Oh I could turn it over in my morning meditation, but by noon I had usually taken it all back. And by night? Whew! It was just me and my problems again!

As I progressed in my recovery, I learned that the definition of faith is believing what you cannot see, and the reward of faith is seeing what you believe. Through faith and through developing a practice of turning situations, people and problems over to God, I've been rewarded with a life that is, for the most part, happy joyous and free.

And now when I go to sleep, I give all my problems to God because my faith tells me He will be up all night anyway!


Reflection Questions

Did I have problems getting to sleep in early recovery?

How did I deal with this?

Do I still lay in bed at night worrying about my problems?

How successful am I in turning my will and my life over to my Higher Power each morning?

What kind of a difference does this make for me?

Am I living a life that is happy, joyous and free?

The wisdom of the rooms

[MajestyJo]

Step Three asks us to listen for the quiet and in the stillness hear the direction our Higher Power has for us today. When we pray, we need to find that quiet to hear the answers. When my mind is busy, all I can hear is my own chatter and endless obsessiveness about what I want and what I think I need. I need to get out of my own way so the voice of reason can shine through.

Many things happen during a day which makes you aware that God is there for you, often when you aren't aware of it. Today I received a call from someone I met yesterday and was asked to be a temporary Al-Anon sponsor. This person was new to Al-Anon but knows me from another fellowship and I was honored to be asked.

Conscious contact can be as simple as doing the do things you need to do in today. Today started out to be a rainy day and has ended up to be a bright sun shiny one. I made the decision to stay home and rest the knee and am trying to patiently wait for my roast of pork to finish cook so I can have it with some apple sauce. Good food, good blessings, good friends and good experience all bring me closer to my God.

Tonight I went to a meeting, the first meeting in my city and surrounding area, that I have gone to in fourteen years that I have not known anyone at the meeting, until the last person arrived late. I knew her face but am not sure of her name. It is good to know that God is everywhere and no matter where I go, He is there.

Even in early recovery I saw people I knew from meeting to meeting because I went to two meetings a day for two years. At ten years sober, I was still dooing 7-10 meetings a week because of being involved in service. This showed me how isolated I had become and how you can get caught up in your own little corner and not reach out and move out of your comfort zone.

True I only get to this group as a rule once or twice a year, but have gone to it for 14 years, so tonight it shows me the program works. New people keep coming, more important they keep coming back so they don't have to come back.

December 2005

Addiction is more than a bad habit. It isn't just an action that is repeated physically, but a mental obsession, which makes you think about the action even if you aren't acting out in it.