Not God

Hebrews 6:13-17

When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.

Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. (NIV)

“Here are thousands of men and women, worldly indeed. They flatly declare that since they have come to believe in a Power greater than themselves, to take a certain attitude toward that Power, and to do certain simple things, there has been a revolutionary change in their way of living and thinking. In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of total failure of their human resources, they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into them. (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 50)

Funny.
You have to believe
there’s a god
and you’re not it.
Unless you’re God.
But I’m not.
I can’t swear on me
’cause I can’t deliver
but thank God, I don’t need to.
I show up, suit up,
do what God says,
and leave the results to him.
Works for me.
Yeah! It works for me.

God, relieve me of the bondage of self
that I may better do your will.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica.
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Trust God, Clean House

Hebrews 6:9-12

Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case—things that accompany salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. (NIV)

“Burn the idea into the consciousness of every man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is that he trust in God and clean house.” (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 98)

The only condition
has an “and” in it.
But a cynical analytical attitude isn’t the one
that gets God trusted and the house clean.
We are not to be lazy
but imitate those
who got where we want to be,
who have recovery.
Act as if and it will be.
Diligence to the end,
clean house.
It’s not just, “Let go
and
let God” —
not if I expect God to
work in the background
on auto.
I have to be there, willing
to know his will,
willing for the power
to carry it out.

God, teach me to believe.
Give me diligence and a spirit of surrender.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica.
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Thorns and Thistles

Hebrews 6:7-8

When the ground soaks up the falling rain and bears a good crop for the farmer, it has God’s blessing. But if a field bears thorns and thistles, it is useless. The farmer will soon condemn that field and burn it. (NLT)

“We find it a waste of time to keep chasing a man who cannot or will not work with you. If you leave such a person alone, he may soon become convinced that he cannot recover by himself. To spend too much time on any one situation is to deny some other alcoholic an opportunity to live and be happy." (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 96)

Let me love him
until he can love himself.
But convince me I can’t save him,
can’t pull him to joy, to peace,
can’t push him to right thinking,
can’t help him
because I decide to.
When he’s stuck in thorns
and thistles,
I make it worse
when I try to pull him out.
I do best if I let the thorns
and thistles burn out.

God, stop me when kindness intended
is damage inflicted.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,
Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

If They Fall Away

Hebrews 6:4-6

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. (NIV)

“Then he fell victim to a belief which practically every alcoholic has – that his long period of sobriety and self-discipline had qualified him to drink as other men. Out came his carpet slippers and a bottle. In two months he was in a hospital, puzzled and humiliated. He tried to regulate his drinking for a while, making several trips to the hospital meantime. Then, gathering all his forces, he attempted to stop altogether and found he could not.” (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 32)

Recovery – so glorious,
the most important thing in my life
joy beyond joy, peace beyond peace.
New vistas open, new challenges,
courage enhanced by program,
I move forward.
Reading? Meditation?
Calls? Meetings?
Sure. So very important —
but first I must…
then there’s…
Recovery – so glorious.
How did it slip away?
Why can’t I pull it back?
I’ve tasted the manna from heaven.
Where did it go?
I’m powerless.

God, all things are possible
for you. Thanks for reeling me back in.
I pray for those standing at the doors,
wanting back in. Give them the courage to ask.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica.
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Beyond the Baby Pool

Hebrews 6:1-3

So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding. (NLT)

“Next we launched out on a course of vigorous action, the first step of which is a personal housecleaning, which many of us had never attempted. Though our decision was a vital and crucial step, it could have little permanent effect unless at once followed by a strenuous effort to face, and be rid of, the things in ourselves which had been blocking us. (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 63-64)

Ah, the recovery waltz,
one, two, three, oops,
one, two, three, oops.
Important Steps, to be sure,
but the first three
feel safer, less exposed, kinder
than the road ahead.
So we linger, cover fundamentals
again and another time.
We risk, though,
blocking ourselves,
cut off
from the sunlight of the spirit.
When we move on to
further understanding,
we’re closer still to
promises
fulfilled.

God, give me the courage to face my fears,
to move to what seems treacherous ground,
knowing you hold my hand on the walk
to bliss.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,
Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Growing Up

Hebrews 5:13-14

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (NIV)

“If the family will appreciate that dad's current behavior is but a phase of his development, all will be well. In the midst of an understanding and sympathetic family, these vagaries of dad's spiritual infancy will quickly disappear.” (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 129)

How dark is the glass
I look through?
Do I speak as a child,
understand as a child,
reason as a child?
A wise woman used to say
the trouble with people being
born again
is they stay there and
never grow up.

God, make me an old-timer
in the rooms of recovery
one day at a time.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica.
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

You are spiritually dull and don't seem to listen.

Hebrews 5:11-12

There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. (NLT)

“So our troubles, we think, are basically of our own making. They arise out of ourselves, and the alcoholic is an extreme example of self-will run riot, though he usually doesn't think so. Above everything, we alcoholics must be rid of the selfishness. We must, or it kills us!” (Alcoholics Anonymous, page 62)

The Shoe Department
of recovery.
The Slippers, the Sneakers,
and the Loafers.
It’s a simple program,
not easy.
You have to WORK
the Steps,
to practice these principles
in all your affairs.
Stop directing the play,
look at yourself, the only person you can
change,
and do – by stopping trying,
by surrender.
Then you can learn.

God, remind me to listen to me
when I say such things
and to you all the time.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,
Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.