Faith In Recovery - Step 2
Step 2 - “Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.”
(Adapted from the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous)
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” - 2 Tim 1:7 (NKJV)
Hope in a Solution
In Twelve Step recovery, Step 2 is often seen as the point at which someone opens their heart and mind to the idea that they can be helped out from the bondage of addiction with the help of a power greater than themselves. They are no longer going to depend entirely on their own willpower as that hasn’t worked. Often neither has the willpower, strength and schemes of their family, friends and even professional support. Their own willpower, desire to stay clean and sober and actions are still important as is their support network but ultimately it has been established that they need something bigger to stop drinking and using and stay stopped.
Traditionally this has meant that people start to think about God - the being, the person, the word, their previous experience or even prejudice about the whole idea. People are encouraged to think about ways of relating to the word “God”, sometimes using the label “higher power” to detach from religious connotations that they may not be comfortable with. Sometimes people are more comfortable at first, just seeing the “power greater than ourselves” as their recovery group and the program that they follow. This can be the beginning of a real solution to the cycle of addiction as they commit to following a set of principles that have worked for countless others in long-term recovery.
So what does this mean for us Christians in recovery? As Christians, when we look at this step, we may think we’ve got it by default. We already believe in this “power greater than ourselves”, we’re entirely comfortable with the idea of this being God- we already love God! We may have been going through a period of our lives struggling with addiction but we have at some stage been able to “Taste and see that the LORD is good” (Psalm 34.8) - we have experienced his goodness and we know he can do anything (like “restore us to sanity” for instance) - so this step in our recovery should be done and dusted.
But it never seems to be. Why are so many Christians in recovery drifting from relapse to relapse whilst having a sincere belief in and love for God? It can seem that our eagerness to think “we’ve got this bit” can actually damage our recovery, while those in 12 step programs who still grapple with who God is often start to build a faith that has the power to keep them sober even without yet knowing Christ.
“Came to believe”
If we have a relationship with God but are not making any progress or engaging with the necessary support to get free from our addictions, we haven’t yet grasped that God has the power to carry us through the difficult times, cravings, anxieties, setbacks and ultimately set us completely free. Maybe none of us can fully grasp that and trying to lean into that truth is not easy but we can take small steps of faith and watch what happens.
That small step of faith might be agreeing to detox, agreeing to accountability, committing to time in rehab or a community or to working through a recovery program, deciding to pray or pick up the phone for support as and when a craving comes up. God will not put these small steps of faith to shame. As Christians we can be active in coming to believe at a deeper level, taking it one day at a time but also knowing that our God’s idea of restoration is infinite- the stories of Christians in long-term recovery are often pretty amazing!
“a power greater than ourselves”
Up to this point we have found that our addiction has been the power greater than ourselves. In the Bible, The LORD is described repeatedly as our “shield, refuge, strength, portion, deliverer, provider, salvation, strong tower, healer” - from a personal perspective, sadly, I could have described alcohol in those terms before my recovery. My mind, body and soul yearned for it. Addiction has such a profound power in our lives that only God can overcome it.
But what does that mean? Of course we need to pray, be prayed for and find any waywe can to stay close to God if he is our solution. How about the people and things that God might be putting in our paths? While a recovery group or program won’t be the greater power for us, we should acknowledge the power in them if so many have gotten clean and sober and stayed that way through working 12 step or other programs and making them part of their wider discipleship. We need to look at how the power of God in recovery is received by people - and usually it is through living in his ways, abiding in him, in community rather than a sudden and complete miracle.
“could restore us to sanity’
It is common to want to distinguish an alcohol or drug problem from insanity. We might feel that our overuse of alcohol and substances is just that and its consequences have been unfortunate or even tragic but other than that, we have been of sound mind. Sometimes people are ready to acknowledge the insanity of their addiction by recounting the most extreme stories of intoxication, bad behaviour and chaos.
However, the starkest evidence of us not being of sound mind is that after all kinds of incidents, regret, humiliation and worse, we have gone back and tried to use alcohol or drugs again, so committed to and dependent on them that we refuse to accept life without them. Further down the line, we may detox and enjoy a good patch of sobriety where we repair the damage done by our drinking and using, but the insanity of addiction will cause us to suddenly try to drink or use successfully again, in the face of all the evidence and experience we have and often at huge personal cost. This is the insanity that makes addiction so hard to overcome.
But overcome we will- in Christ we have full access to the ultimate “power greater than ourselves” but we must cooperate with him and his grace for that to mean anything to our recoveries.
To quote the “Big Book” of Alcoholics Anonymous:
“Remember that we deal with alcohol [or mind-altering substances]—cunning, baffling, powerful! Without help it is too much for us. But there is One who has all power—that One is God. May you find Him now! Half measures availed us nothing. We stood at the turning point. We asked His protection and care with complete abandon. Here are the steps we took, which are suggested as a program of recovery:....” - Alcoholics Anonymous (p58-59)
As Christians, let’s move further into line with what we say we believe about God, allowing him to rescue us from the insanity of addiction. Remember, we know that he can do it but as his children, we also know that he wants to.
Prayer
LORD, thank you for your power in our lives, your spirit living in us and the good works you set out for us to do that are all for our good and healing. Please help us in moments of unbelief, show us the next step of faith we need to take as we take up the freedom and life that you have for us. Amen.
Questions for Reflection:
Do you recognise a lack of sanity in your addiction?
Do you believe that God can restore that sanity?
Do you believe he wants to do that in you?
How are you cooperating with God in your healing?
How could your recovery journey be more aligned with your beliefs about God?