My Daily Beginnings
I celebrated three years of continuous sobriety on November 5, 2016. I am very proud of my accomplishments and I thank my God each and every day. Without my connection to him as I know him, I do not think I would have been able to carry on this wonderful journey. I am truly blessed to have crawled back from the brink of self-destruction to be in a position that I am today. Recovery has made that possible. How did I get there? I did what the people who had years of success in recovery told me to do. I listened. I took from their words, and I applied to me.
When I got to treatment, I knew I was ready, but I was scared and afraid of failure. After detox, the fog started to clear and I started doing what was asked. Each morning and every night after group activities, we recited prayers.
At the time, it was just a senseless act of reading words off of a sheet of paper. It wasn’t until the middle of treatment that I actually listened to the meaning and started to understand the power of the words. One prayer that I had to read over and over again to get the words right became my favorite. That prayer is the third step prayer.
“God, I offer myself to Thee,
to build with me,
and to do with me as Thou wilt.
Release me of the bondage of self,
that I may better do Thy will.
Take away my difficulties,
that victory of them may bear witness
to those I would help of Thy Power,
Thy love and thy way of life.
May I do Thy will always!”
At first, the words did not just roll off my tongue. But today, it is my mantra! I start off each day by reciting this prayer, whether it’s the first thing when I wake, or over coffee, or in the shower.
Am I perfect? Absolutely not! We are reminded in the program to look at progress, not perfection. But I know that I am taking a proactive choice to do His will. My journey has had tremendous highs and some lows as I have progressed through the past three years. I thank God for guiding me and those great supporters through the twelve steps that have assisted me in getting me where I am today. If you are struggling with addiction, I can only give you these words of advice. Show up, listen, take what you can, and hold on for the ride of your life!
If you would like to share your story with Heroes in Recovery, you can reach me at Bo@heroesinrecovery.com. I love to hear your comments!
Much love,
Bo