At the end of the part of Chapter 5 read at most meetings we are told that "No human power could relieve our alcoholism." and then that, "God could and would if He were sought."
Alcohol did a pretty good job of relieving my alcoholism for a time, but worked less well over time and had a lot of nasty side effects that got worse over time. It wasn't a spiritual solution, as it did nothing to lessen my self-centeredness, but it was a quick and easy one. When I got to AA and then admitted and accepted that alcohol was no longer the answer, I found that I needed a lot of help to cope with sobriety, which then became my problem. Untreated with alcohol, my alcoholism came back to the surface and had me thinking that I had some sort of strange mental illness that I didn't realise was the alcoholism sometimes talked about in meetings which were dominated by drinking stories that seemed to be telling me that the problem is alcohol and the solution is not drinking the stuff. For quite a while, I transferred my addiction from alcohol to meetings as doing the first steps seemed like feats of mental gymnastics that I didn't think I would be able to do. Now, after 34 years of trying to do and live by them, my alcoholism has been relived to the point where I'm glad I have it as dealing with it is kind of fun now. I still find it a too simple to say that getting relief from alcoholism is simply a matter of seeking God's help, as living contentedly and comfortably with alcoholism still seems to require a lot of effort on my part, not just saying a prayer. The old adage that, "God helps them who help themselves." comes to mind. There are a number of things I do through well entrenched habit, including meetings, online AA, sharing everything with another member, trying to do the next right thing, enjoy each moment as it comes along, altering attitudes that get out of whack as well as that prayer. I used to be a bit envious of members who seem to able to get by with a lot less effort, coming occasionally to meetings to tell how well they are going. But then I realised that I really enjoy doing all this stuff and have the time to in retirement, so they are blessings as well as obligations. If, as I have heard, "The reward for living a good and sober life is a good and sober life." what I do is it's own reward, as well as making sure I don't get crazy enough to drink again. It seems important to remember that God relieves alcoholism, and doesn't remove it. If he had, I doubt if I would still be doing a lot of the things I do, as my motives still tend to be mixed and I doubt if I would put in much effort to carry the message out of gratitude if there wasn't something in it for me. |