Tonight, I was sitting in an A.A. meeting as we read page 100 of the Big Book. We were discussing working with others, spiritual fitness, and the remarkable things that become possible when we place ourselves in God’s hands.
One man shared something he once heard from another member of A.A. Every morning, as soon as that man woke up, he would say:
“Good morning, God. I’m clocking in.”
That simple sentence created a powerful picture in my mind.
The Big Book says on page 63 that “We had a new Employer.” When I took the Third Step, I accepted a change in management. God was no longer someone I occasionally consulted when my plans fell apart. I was placing my will and my life under His direction.
God is not my assistant. I am His.
Clocking in means I am reporting for duty. It means the day ahead does not belong entirely to me. My time, abilities, experiences, and even my painful past have been placed in God’s hands so they can be used for a purpose greater than my own comfort.
The question is no longer simply, “What do I want to accomplish today?” The better question is, “God, what would You have me do today?”
Reporting for Duty
The Big Book gives us clear morning directions on page 86. “On awakening,” we consider the twenty-four hours ahead and ask God to direct our thinking. We especially ask to be separated from self-pity, dishonesty, and self-seeking motives.
I can still make plans. I can keep appointments, go to work, care for my family, and handle my responsibilities. Clocking in does not mean sitting around waiting for a mysterious voice to give me instructions.
It means surrendering the ownership of those plans.
There is a big difference between saying, “God, please help me get everything I want today,” and saying, “God, please show me what You want done today.”
The first prayer asks God to help me run the show. The second acknowledges that I am “no longer running the show” (p. 87).
When I clock in, I bring God my schedule—but I also give Him permission to interrupt it.
The phone call I did not expect may be today’s assignment. The newcomer (who just got out of jail one more time after yet another slip) who needs to talk may be more important than the task I wanted to finish. The person who irritates me may be the person God is asking me to treat with patience. An apology, an honest conversation, or a few minutes spent listening may be the most important work I do all day.
God’s assignments are not always dramatic. Most of them look remarkably ordinary.
- Sometimes the job is to answer the phone.
- Sometimes it is to keep my mouth shut.
- Sometimes it is to admit I was wrong.
- Sometimes it is to show up when I would rather stay home.
- Sometimes it is to notice the person everyone else has overlooked.
- Sometimes it is simply to be kind.
The Job Description
On page 100, the Big Book says, “Assuming we are spiritually fit,” we can do all kinds of things alcoholics were once warned against doing. That spiritual fitness does not make us invincible or give us permission to become careless. It makes us available.
A spiritually fit person does not have to spend the entire day hiding from life. He can enter difficult places with the right motive because he is not going there to see what he can get. As the Big Book suggests on page 101, he considers what he can bring to the situation.
That is the heart of the job.
My assignment is not to be the most impressive person in the room. It is not to control everyone, fix everything, or make sure the day unfolds according to my plans. My job is to stay close to God and be available for “maximum helpfulness to others” (p. 102).
Maximum helpfulness does not necessarily mean doing the maximum number of things. It means being fully available for the thing God places in front of me.
The Big Book says on page 89, “To be helpful is our only aim.” That gives me a wonderfully simple job description:
- Stay spiritually fit.
- Remain available.
- Look for where I can help.
- Leave the results with God.
Staying on the Clock
My old employer, self-will, never gave me a day off. It kept me working constantly to protect my pride, satisfy my desires, manage other people, and force outcomes. No matter how hard I worked, it never seemed to be enough.
My new Employer asks for something different: willingness, honesty, humility, love, and service and when I give those things, one of the men in the meeting shared he was, often times, given nine things back – Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control.
Page 100 reminds me that when I place myself in God’s hands, what comes into my life can be better than anything I could have planned. But I usually recognize that only when I look back. During the day, my assignment may simply be to trust, take the next indicated action, and resist grabbing the manager’s chair again.
When I become agitated or doubtful, I can pause and clock in again:
“God, I’m still here. What is the next right thing?”
I may need to say that prayer a dozen times before lunch. That is all right. Spiritual fitness is not something I achieve permanently. It is a condition I maintain one decision, one prayer, and one act of service at a time.
At night, page 86 gives me a way to clock out through honest review. Was I resentful, selfish, dishonest, or afraid? Was I kind and loving? Was I thinking mainly about myself, or was I considering what I could contribute to life? Where I fell short, I ask forgiveness and consider what corrective action should be taken.
This is not a performance review to determine whether I have earned God’s love. His love was never my paycheck. The nightly review simply helps me see whether I followed His direction or quietly returned to working for myself.
Then, God willing, I get some rest and report for duty again tomorrow.
My Morning Routine Prayer
Good morning, God. I’m clocking in.
You are my Employer, and this day belongs to You. Direct my thinking and remove the selfish motives that keep me trapped inside myself. Show me my next step. Place me where I can be most helpful, and help me recognize the assignments that arrive disguised as interruptions.
Use my experience, my recovery, my time, and my life to help someone else. Keep me spiritually fit, willing to serve, and free from the need to control the results.
Today, let me do Your work well.
The Big Book closes by encouraging us to ask God in our morning meditation what we can do each day for the person who is still sick (p. 164).
That sounds like a perfect way to begin the workday.
Good morning, God. I’m clocking in.
Note – This article appears in the blog for Rick W’s excellent website ‘Take the 12’. Rick W has over 38 years of sobriety and offers excellent free resources including his outstanding book ‘The Prep Steps: Setting Up Action In A.A’ – Bruce M