Life Trail

TRUTH

For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.

Proverbs‬ ‭1‬:‭32‬-‭33

REFLECTION

I turned a lot.

When I was drifting off course it was mostly because of a childish complacency deep in my spirit.

I turned toward the enticement of alcohol, not worrying about the threat of addiction.

I turned away from good teaching, not considering it might be literal.

I turned toward immediacy, not caring for spiritual investment.

I turned inward, thinking I might not have to worry with the rigors of normal living.

Perhaps I’ve been addicted to the allure of shortcuts long before I became physically hooked on anything.

The idea that I can get around a decent set of instructions in order to somehow kick my legs up in self-satisfied glee has poisoned my reasoning.

But thank God it’s rarely too late to turn back around yet again.

Sometimes it’s a quick veering back on course, and sometimes it’s a decade-long swerve back into the traffic of a good life.

I began to swerve but found that I had developed more of a self-sufficiency than I’d realized. It took a handful of years before I was truly back on the good path.

Maybe in a few more years I’ll look back and see that as I write this I’m still not where I should be.

I think that to a degree that’s how I want my life to always be—a leaning forward into the future with hope and expectation for another layer to be peeled back.

Even on the right path, we will look back on weary miles that we don’t wish to repeat. Sometimes they might have been avoided by going some longer way, but often they are the exact miles we needed to trudge through.

God, give my legs the strength to trudge through your good trail for my life.

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NEXT

When you’re ready, here are some tools for you:

1. Book List (amazon link)
   Some of my favorite reads related to recovery and/or wrestling with faith.

2. 4th Step Guide (free download)
   A PDF with instructions and worksheets for a thorough 4th step. Straight from the Big Book. Fearlessness not included.

3. 12-Step Christianity (YouTube)
   My thoughts on the parallels between discipleship and sponsorship.

KEEP LEANING FORWARD

Cheers, Eamonn
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