I Can't, He Can, I'll Let Him: Steps 1-3 of the 12 Steps

The First Step requires our complete surrender to what is. We are powerless over our addictions. We are human. We are fallible. The truth is we can’t go it alone otherwise we would be in this world alone and not with our peers. We exist together for a reason and a season for a purpose. This purpose is to support one another on our paths and encourage each other to be the best we can be. We are powerless in and of ourselves. Being alone in the negative self-talk of addiction is a scary place to be. I’ve heard it described as going into a bad neighbor, in a dark alley at night. You’re almost sure of impeding danger.
Addiction creates isolation and consequences that become unmanageable, as do our lives. The First Step asks us to look at these and remember that in our addiction, we suffer tremendously and we lose. We always lose in addiction and in addictive thinking. So much so that we begin to realize we can’t even begin to entertain negative thinking anymore. We begin to realize that we are powerless over people, places and things in our lives. Ah, but herein lies true power. For when we realize where our powerless is, we begin to see where our true power resides. While we can’t control other people, places and things,we do have self-will and freedom of choice. We can choose again. We can choose where we direct our thinking and what we desire to create. Once we admit that we are powerless over our addiction, other people, places and things, we begin to see that we do have a choice in our behavior. While our lives may be unmanageable at the moment, there is a window of opportunity shining at the end of Step 12 in performing community service and paying it forward. Hope lives in me and through me from the moment Step One begins.
Step Two asks us to consider believing in a Higher Power and Its ability to restore us to “sanity”. I like to think of it as God making manifest my highest good at all times. This step asks us to have faith in what is not seen but what is known to be real through your heart chakra and your personal relationship with the Divine. This step asks you to acknowledge that, “He can!” Not only that “He can!” but really, “He has!” Going a step further, “You have!” You are extraordinary. To even be reading this means you are ascended beyond 85% of the population and you’re a Lightworker of the most fairyrific kind! So, know that you deserve to be loved and happy and joyous at all times! Believe in magic and in yourself. You have the kind of stardust that will move mountains. I wish you only knew how beautiful you are and how beautiful this world is. If I could show you how much joy and beauty exist in this world by encapsulating it or fragmenting it into the palm of my hand it would be a picture of Divine perfection. You can feel it in your heart chakra now.
Step Two lets God in. It lets God do his/her/its handiwork in and through you. The Creator desires to know and work in/with/through you every day of your life. God has a divine purpose and mission for your life. There are also certain boundaries the Creator wants you to adhere to. Balance is one of those boundaries. When you overeat or oversleep or over drink or over-anything, the Creator will ask you to take a look at that and get it back into balance.
Step Three is all about allowing. It’s about allowing the Creator to work through, with and for you. It’s a decision and a choice. This is where we come into our power. God doesn’t want to leave us broken, that was never the intention. When we begin to say, “I can’t!” The Creator immediately meets us there. This is where we realize we are not alone and Creator is there. The choice is then offered. We must turn our entire will and lives over to the care of our loving Creator as we understand Him/Her/It. Thus, the spiritual journey begins. This simple three-step process is the beginning road to recovery and to the spiritual journey of self-discovery.
Our Creator immediately asks of us to do some physical world work on ourselves. This can be scary and so, Creator gifts us with teachers, mentors, counselors and friends who help us in this leg of the journey. They are the action items of the 12 Steps and I will discuss those in the next issue. Until then, remember to do it “One Day At A Time” and to “Keep It Simple”. Oh, and like they always say, “Keep Coming Back!”