All of us struggle with this step for two distinct reasons. The first is grappling with the question of why would God allow these terrible things to happen in my life? The difficulty arises from not accepting the fact that Christ is more concerned with the eternal than the temporal issues.
He does not promise us a trouble-free life; He does however, promise us supernatural comfort in difficult times.
Step 3 – Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood him.
· Many among us have felt unworthy of God’s help and healing, and consequently denied Him the opportunity. We must allow Him to help us in order to fully recover.
· Many of us, due to the impacts of addiction, trauma and broken relationships, have a lack of trust in God and others.
· If we live in isolation and bitterness, it leaves no room for Christ and those who genuinely love us.
· Letting go of our control and our will can cause a great deal of apprehension, especially when we have been unable to trust our parents or authority figures while we were growing up.
· The Third Step is a step out of “insane choices” and a step into serenity. If we can better understand God’s true nature, it’s easier to trust Him with our lives.
· Don’t act on panic or fear. Choosing to wait to decide when we’re not clear on how to proceed is an indication of faith.
· When we can choose to wait instead of acting on impulse to control others or a situation, God will give us clear direction when we ask.
· When we are busy pursuing our impulses or building walls around our lives and hearts, we leave a wake of destruction behind us. There is no room for Christ or our loved ones to operate in our lives.
· The essence of the Third Step is turning our will over to God, so that we can get out of our own way.
· How does the following scripture change the way you understand God’s love and care?
· “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:23, NIV)
· Recovery is a spiritual process that opens the door of faith and trust that leads to hope.
· Things would be different for all of us if we expected God to respond to our problems with God-sized power.