Right now, I am having trouyble with my higher power, because I am not exactly sure who or what it is. I know this will not occur to me overnight, and I know it will take time. I believe I have a higher power, and right now I am somewhat content with this belief. I am told to be patient and keep believing, and not lose faith in it. I am just struggling because I have no idea what or who my higher power is.
So, my question is: What is your idea of a higher power and how did you come it?
hEY bROWNEYED GIRL!! Literature asks us(Do I now believe or am even willing to believe that there is a Power greater than myself?if you can say yes then you are on your way....a wonderful effective spiritual structure can be built from here.....From the Basic Text it tells us in 'how it works"the only suggested guidelines are that this Power be loving,caring and greater than ourselves!We need to open our minds and know that this power can be used long before we understand it...When we go to meetings we want to hear how'God' helped others,not about their religion...we like to find out what others use in their spirituality to grow and live a more serene existence!My personal faith beliefs are based on a "relationship" I have with the ''God' of my understanding and not rules that man appoints.Even though I have had the same faith since I was a little child ,thru the years it has developed to where it is now.That is the Power that I strive to walk closer with each day of my life...Good to hear from you Merry Christmas and peace!
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Our purpose is to remain clean,just for today,and to carry the message of recovery.
fantastic question! i can relate to wondering what this is all about.
i had gone a bit of a full circle with religion prior to recovery - but when i did come into the rooms, i didn't believe in much of anything. i only knew that my using had destroyed my life and that i learned in the first step that i had no control over my using once i start. i was powerless, and my life totally fucked up (okay, unmanageable for sure)
did i find a burning bush, have a beam of sunlight shine down on me, or hear angels sing? god no. at first i only knew that going to meetings worked. treatment worked. i was ready to listen to other people. there was SOMEthing about the fellowship, meetings and all that - that was helping me to not use. THAT was my higher power for a number of years.
over time, my understanding of this power has evolved a bit, but is still pretty rudimentary when compared to others. (i don't care) my higher power has no name, no face and represents only good things. it's in all things at all times.
i do believe that i know two things for sure about god.
I agree with Steve, that is an excellent question, brwneyedgyrl!
I spent a lot of my early recovery stressing over who or what my HP was. I have always believed in God, but my concept of God was skewed and uncertain. Religion had taught me many things, much of which I balked at.
In all honesty, my concept of God is still very fluid. I'm now comfortable not having rigid or well-defined ideas about the God of my understanding.
Here is what I believe:
There is a God. I am not capable of fully understanding God. God loves me and wants only good things for me. God got me clean, and wants me to do my part, so God sent me to NA. God is good.
Thats enough for me!
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I may not be 'All That', but I'm always on my mind!
The higher power issue is difficult for many NA'ers. I jumped around quite a bit myself. The progression that led me to my belief went something like this. The group meets every week at the same place and time no matter what, so the group is a power greater than me. I look at the ocean or the night sky and know that that is a power greater than me. The leap for me was in believing in a power that could "restore to me sanity" Was i really insane???? well, if continuing to use drugs after all the trouble they caused me isn't a form of insanity than I don't know what is. What, or who could restore me? It had to be a God of my understanding. So, I over time, by listening to others share about their higher power, and by honestly exploring my own truths, I came to believe that my higher power, God, is the ultimate creative force in the universe. Everything will pass except the creative energy that always was and always will be. This vast power can do anything, for nothing would exist without it. It works for me. Good luck on your journey.
