Step One - A Fresh Look At Life

Step One – A Fresh Look At Life

We value the spiritual principles we find in the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and other recovery circles.  For the next days we will use each step to help us find our path forward with God.

Step One – We admitted that we were powerless over our dependencies and that our lives had become unmanageable.

It is a profound moment when we come to our senses and realize we are powerless and that our lives have become unmanageable.  It’s not meant to be one of hopelessness but rather a moment of letting go and turning our focus somewhere new for solutions to our life’s problems.

Foolish people say in their hearts, “There is no God.”  They do all kinds of horrible and evil things.  No one does anything good. The Lord looks down from heaven on all people. He wants to see if there are any who understand.  He wants to see if there are any who trust in God. All of them have turned away.  They have all become evil. No one does anything good, no one at all. Psalm 14:1-3

The real root cause of the unmanageability of our lives is the fact that we either didn’t know or didn’t dare to reach out and trust that there was a God who made us, who loves us, and who is longing to care for us in a way that makes life possible and meaningful.  We thought and lived as if there was no God. 

The path before us is one where we become willing to let go of this notion that “there is no God” and give God a chance to reveal to us if He’s there and how He’s willing to act on our behalf. 

Thank God that even though we gave up on Him, He didn’t give up on us but kept on calling out to us and inviting us to a life that was always meant to be – a life dependent on His goodness and love for us so we could do good things.  

And even if we’re not sure of anything today except that our lives on our own are a mess, perhaps the experience of so many others can encourage us to hope today as we hear their report that, “God could and would if He were sought.” 

Loving God, Forgive me for the chaos and suffering I’ve caused by living as though You did not exist.  Help me to come to know that You are God, that You created me in love, and that You will show me a way to live well. 

I’m not sure how it all works but the wreck of my life, and the witness of others who say that You made a difference in their lives have stirred a bit of hope in me so here I am.  Please show me the way, one step at a time. 

Admitting where we are at, as honestly as we can, is the only place that will start us off on the right path.  We’ll explore that next time.  I hope you come back.