Blog entry for:

Tue, Jan 15, 2008 12:01:22 PM


∞ when i feel afraid, i ask myself, ** is this fear an indication of a lack of faith in my life? …
posted: Tue, Jan 15, 2008 12:01:22 PM

 

have i taken control again, only to find my life still unmanageable? **
good questions, especially today, as i have had to send off a check to the federal government for my estimated taxes, ARGH! the fact that i sent the check off is an indication that i am practicing a spiritual principle or two, and the fact that i actually saved the money to do so is also evidence of living a program, and that i am becoming a responsible and productive member of society. does that lessen my fear? a bit, i am always anxious when i deal with the government, even though i am doing the next right thing, at the very last minute. so anyhow, enough about the the facts of life and into what i got from the reading this morning.
there are two paths i can go down or perhaps it is only a single path. what i heard was that my FAITH in the care of a HIGHER POWER can replace my FEAR of life itself. as i have progressed in my recovery, i find myself, less fearful these days. i seem to feel a connection with something greater than my senses can quantify, and that connection calms me when i am afraid. that same connection seems to also be a conduit for the things i NEED to hear and FEEL in real-time. for me, i need to remember, today as well as every day, the damage i do when i decide that some part of my life is under my control. unfortunately, even though i make a conscious choice to surrender all of my life into the care of a HIGHER POWER before i hit the streets, i still find myself thinking that somehow, i can handle events and situations with my will alone. i have yet to move into the constant application of that daily decision, i catch myself lapsing into self-will =on a constant basis. perhaps that is just a function of being human, perhaps it is an indication that my disease is still active, or perhaps it just is, and will continue to be so until the day i shuffle off this mortal coil. why really does not matter, my task is recognize this behavior in the her and now and amend my behavior accordingly. i know that fear is a reactive feeling to the world around me, and i also no to be fearless is hardly a desirable state to live in. i was fearless when i was using. the substances and my behaviors replaced fear with a whole lot of undesirable things, things that nearly destroyed me before i had the chance to recover. so instead of trying to live without FEAR, i try to recognize FEAR and see if it is based in reality, and if it is not, a quick foxhole prayer and a bit of thought about WHO is really running the show can give me the courage to walk forward in life.
anyhow, it is off to the races and into the real world to see if i can accomplish a few things today, and you know what, i am less anxious than when i started writing this. it is a good day to recover.

∞ DT ∞

 

djtConsulting Brand
The views expressed on this page are solely the opinion of the author.
While the author is a member of a 12 Step recovery fellowship, these writings are not intended to endorse or express the published wisdom of any fellowship.
These writings are not meant to be socially or politically correct, and if you take issue with any opinions expressed, please seek the guidance of someone wiser than me.

Another Look!

↔  overcoming my fear of life  ↔ 384 words ➥ Saturday, January 15, 2005 by: donnot
∞ when i lapse in my program, i begin to take control of my own life again, ∞ 365 words ➥ Monday, January 15, 2007 by: donnot
δ through working the Twelve Steps, i have found that faith in a POWER greater than myself helps relieve my fear. δ 413 words ➥ Thursday, January 15, 2009 by: donnot
∫ living on self-will is frightening, unmanageable ∫ 423 words ➥ Friday, January 15, 2010 by: donnot
¤ as i have grown to feel comfortable with a HIGHER POWER as a source of strength, ¤ 724 words ➥ Saturday, January 15, 2011 by: donnot
… i will rely on the care of the POWER that fuels my recovery … 656 words ➥ Sunday, January 15, 2012 by: donnot
⊕ when i lapse in my program, i begin to take control ⊕ 554 words ➥ Tuesday, January 15, 2013 by: donnot
ξ in recovery, i turn my will and my life safely over ξ 655 words ➥ Wednesday, January 15, 2014 by: donnot
¿ is FEAR an indication … 515 words ➥ Thursday, January 15, 2015 by: donnot
✦ FEAR ✧ 546 words ➥ Friday, January 15, 2016 by: donnot
❢ growing to feel ❢ 762 words ➥ Sunday, January 15, 2017 by: donnot
🌮 learning to overcome 🌭 678 words ➥ Monday, January 15, 2018 by: donnot
🌋 self-will is a 🌄 637 words ➥ Tuesday, January 15, 2019 by: donnot
😨 overcoming my fear 😬 426 words ➥ Wednesday, January 15, 2020 by: donnot
😕 overwhelmed  😟 619 words ➥ Friday, January 15, 2021 by: donnot
😇 living on 😈 463 words ➥ Saturday, January 15, 2022 by: donnot
🤔 an indication 🤔 589 words ➥ Sunday, January 15, 2023 by: donnot
≠ practicing equality ≠ 383 words ➥ Monday, January 15, 2024 by: donnot
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☯ The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao ☯

THE TAO TEH KING, OR THE TAO AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS
by Lao-Tse
Translated by James Legge

Book 1

2) The multitude of men look satisfied and pleased; as if enjoying
a full banquet, as if mounted on a tower in spring. I alone seem listless
and still, my desires having as yet given no indication of their presence.
I am like an infant which has not yet smiled. I look dejected and
forlorn, as if I had no home to go to. The multitude of men all have
enough and to spare. I alone seem to have lost everything. My mind
is that of a stupid man; I am in a state of chaos. Ordinary men look
bright and intelligent, while I alone seem to be benighted. They look
full of discrimination, while I alone am dull and confused. I seem
to be carried about as on the sea, drifting as if I had nowhere to
rest. All men have their spheres of action, while I alone seem dull
and incapable, like a rude borderer. (Thus) I alone am different from
other men, but I value the nursing-mother (the Tao).