I love this brief article’s insight into learning to use our defiance for the greater good consistent with our 3rd step decision and prayer. It may be a great way of helping us internalize what can happen when we learn, with God, to love our internal enemies – those parts of us that seem to cause so much pain, suffering and confusion in our lives. And to see more clearly the seed of good that lies within these parts of us we may quickly judge as bad and our enemies.
Most of us can recognize how our defiance contributed mightily to our impulsivity and addictions… and perhaps to our resentments and relationship problems. We may hate or really dislike this part of ourselves. We may see it as a part we would just like to erase or eliminate … to ‘move away’ from by denying, condemning, suppressing or repressing.
This article helps us see how we can ‘move towards’ our defiance not as an enemy but as a misunderstood and perhaps mixed up friend in need of love and understanding … and a Higher Power for guidance and direction. And how our defiance can be transformed , with God’s help and our cooperation, to the indispensable virtue of perseverance in what the Big Book describes as the ‘proper use of the will’ in this paragraph on page 85.
“It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe. We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition. Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God’s will into all of our activities. “How can I best serve Thee – Thy will (not mine) be done.” These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. We can exercise our will power along this line all we wish. It is the proper use of the will.”.
I believe this is very consistent with the section of the website entitled ‘Healing Our Dr. Jekyll/My. Hyde Divided Self ‘ and the suggestion of the 3rd step prayer to ‘offer ourselves to God’ as He relieves us of the ‘bondage of self’ – Bruce M.
Let Us Not Be Weary
“Let us not be weary in well doing–“Galatians 6:9
If we are striving to live the A.A. Program every day we should not become weary because things do not just happen, or turn out as we expected, or as we wanted them to.
We should strive the harder to overcome our weaknesses, our fears and our weariness. There is a weariness of spirit predominant in the world today. People are tired, full of fear and skeptical. Now we should remember that the Power greater than ourselves still sits upon His throne. All is well with the world but the peoples in it are sick in body, mind and soul.
Great Test
One of the great tests of human character comes when there is a call to push forward even though one is tired.
The weariness of spirit is experienced most often when conditions appear to make impossible the accomplishment of worthy ends. The discouragement sets in and there is a tendency to give up and find rest in the abandonment of purpose.
All persons possessed of noble ambitions experience such moments. Vast significance attaches to the attitude that finally is caused to govern in such a crisis.
Those who surrender lose much.
By Defiance
Most all great advances and achievements are gained by defiance of weariness; by the exercise of the unsurrendering spirit. We must refuse to be diverted from our goal by weariness and fear.
We must suppress fear and weariness and remain at the task until our goal has been achieved.
If we expect the ideals of A.A. to cover the earth we must continue to labor in the face of soul-tiring endeavor.
In these things there is encouragement for all whose purposes are high and who would make this world more blessed with the unfolding of the years.