JUN 25, 23 .. JUNE ..THE 6th MONTH .. THE 6th STEP

 And what exactly does the below photo have to do with Step 6?

It helped me to get centered and settled as I begin an extremely short Post about Step 6. 

Step 6 - Were entirely ready to have God remove all of these defects of character.

Copy and paste is great.

Step 6 - Were entirely ready to have God remove all of these defects of character.

Now, in addition to having known Step 6 for all of your time in A.A., will you all tell me precisely where it says what, if anything, God IS going to actually do?

I do not see where it says, or implies, that God is going to do anything!

All Step 6 says is that we, as individuals, are entirely ready to have God remove all of these defects of character.

A week or so ago, in a meeting, a friend brought Step 6 up and in discussing it pointed this fact out. 

Ask 1,000 members of A.A. what Step 6 says, and my money is on them saying that, in Step 6, God is going to remove all of these defects of character.

Let's all smile!

Do you suppose that the Ducks are pondering Step 6?

JUL 26, 21 .. ARE YOU DRINKING MORE ALCOHOL THAN USUAL DURING QUARANTINE?

I am sure many (most) of you have seen and read the various questionnaires Are You An Alcoholic?

Recently I saw this 'Are You?' Questionnaire and just howled! 

A little Blast-From-The-Past (DEC 18, 14). Here is another short phrase that I like.

http://aaphotoshere.blogspot.com/search/label/AA%20Astronaut

When we read How It Works (Chapter 5, pages 58-60 in the A.A. Big Book) we read the following:

If you have decided you want what we have.

The problem is that 'what we have' changes from the day we walk into A.A. until after we have achieved some (call it) respectable 'dry time' of not drinking.

Confused? Let me explain.

When we walk into the rooms of A.A., what most of us we want to do is to stop drinking alcohol one day at a time.

After we achieve respectable 'dry time' (I will let you decide for yourself what this is for you, months, years, multiple decades?) and freedom from the desire and perhaps psysiological need to drink alcohol, then we no longer have as our primary purpose stopping drinking because we have stopped.

The story (A.A. TAUGHT HIM TO HANDLE SOBRIETY) on page 553 of the Big Book states : 

"It's no great trick to stop drinking; the trick is how to stay stopped. To do that, I had to come to A.A. to learn how to handle sobriety-- which is what I could not handle in the first place. That's why I drank."

Why Work The Steps.

The first reason we work the steps is to elicit a change in how we approach life. If we don't change we will drink again.

After working the first five steps we have hopefully begun to clear away the wreckage of the past. 

Now comes the time to change and Step 6 and 7 (character defects and shortcomings) come into our lives.

If we are living with (to name but a few character defects) hate, intolerance and anger, resentments towards others and the world itself, dishonesty, lying, selfishness, blaming others for our woes, contempt prior to investgation, impatience then we are more apt to pick up a drink to ease the tremendous stress of living with these character defects. 

Saying the 6th and 7th prayer on page 76 of the Big Book invites God into the equation to assist us with our desire to change.

BUT the bottom line to all of this is : One must want to change.

 Why Work The Steps.

The steps are a design for living. If followed they will enable us to change, to experience the spiritual awakening promised in the 12th step.

Once more take the questionaire.

Over and Out with a big smile.

JUN 28, 18 .. STEP SIX

When Bill Wilson was writing the steps and getting things organized, he evidently came upon the concept of 12s. 

12 Steps. 12 Traditons. 12 Concepts of World Service.

I don't think for one moment that he did this consciously or by design. That is, when he wrote the 12 Steps, I doubt if he began thinking, "I will make 12 Steps." In fact there is reason to believe that he began with 6 Steps and ended up with 12.

Amazingly nice that each calendar month has its very own step or tradition or concept.

Step 6 : Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

Step 6 helps us get the willingness to change.

Steps 6 and 7 go together like the proverbial hand and glove. In the A.A. Big Book they are lumped together in three paragraphs on pages 75 and 76. Step Six is mentioned once at the top of page 76 and then he wrote at the end of the second paragraph on page 76, "We have then completed Step Seven."

As the Big Book states, willingness is the key to Step Six.

Willingness also appears in Chapter 5, "If you have decided you want what we have, and are willing to go to any length to get it -- then you are ready to take certain steps."

IF I can add anything to any discussion about Steps Six and Seven it is this.

Step Six mentions defects.
Step Seven mentions shortcomings.

What is the difference? 

I was taught that a defect is an actual flaw of character.

Lying, Cheating, Stealing, Bullying, Rape, Racism, Resentment, Anger, Fear, Cowardice, Self Pity, Self justification,

Self importance, Egotism, Guilt, Self condemnation, Evasiveness, Dishonesty, Impatience.

Perfectionism, People-pleasing, Apathy, Laziness, Resentment, Hatred, Rage, Selfishness, Pride, Hubris, Arrogance, Envy, Lust, Gluttony. 

On the other hand I was taught a shortcoming is falling short. Failing to do something that you 'should' do.

Shortcomings are killers for me.  

When I am home watching the Super Bowl, I think, "Am I falling short of God's Will for me? Instead of sitting here watching this football game, 'should' I be out helping a struggling alcoholic?"

I ask anyone that I work with to memorize the Sixth and Seventh Step Prayer. It will be found on page 76. And to pray it daily.

"My Creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefullness to you and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding. Amen."

Pray the prayer, continue to pray it daily, and see what happens with your defects and shortcomings.

I was taught that you do not get rid of character defects by working on them and thinking about them. 

NO! 

You REPLACE DEFECTS WITH POSITIVE AFFECTS.

You don't walk around all day saying to yourself, "Today I am not going to take a drink." All this does is to put drinking into your immediate consciousness.

Instead think to yourself, "Today I am going to be sober." This way you are placing sobriety into the front of you mind.