Store Up In Yourselve the Riches of God

STORE UP IN YOURSELF THE RICHES OF GOD
The Twelve Steps require our attention, time and study of them, then applying and practicing them in our lives to allow understanding and eventually wisdom to grow in us. The one Step that most of us have applied from the start and that got a lot of us into Alcoholics Anonymous and can be applied at anytime is of course Step Eleven. Prayer and Meditation are good at anytime, anywhere; it can throw light on the other Steps, and any situation or problem we may be experiencing. Meditation can be simply a quieting of the mind and the contemplation of spiritual truths. Prayer can simply be a conversation with God, whether it is a memorized prayer, or personal words from ourselves. The purpose of prayer and meditation is to put God first and foremost into our life. It can celebrate a success with thanks, and it can move our minds away from the problem and raise our minds to higher thoughts. It is a good idea to take time morning, afternoon, evening and at night to purposefully develop the habit of prayer and reflection on God and to pray about our tasks or events. It removes our minds from their business, and onto God and or one spiritual idea, a slogan, a phrase, a one liner from the Big Book or Bible that may be helpful to us. It brings us into conscious contact and awareness of God.
Step Eleven: “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.”
Prayer and Meditation are about doing something. It is an action towards situations and or circumstances, to bring peace to our minds and souls, to ask God’s help and to bring our will into line with God’s Will. It helps us to get things done, to think and say and do the right things. Prayer gives us an upward look towards God, it ought to turn negatives into positives and help us see the beauty and goodness and truth in and around us. Prayer and Meditation can bring God’s calmness, patience and tolerance to our situations. Keeping our thoughts and eyes towards God, keeps us going onward and upward, keeps our spirit growing. As we continue in prayer and meditation we will grow in the spiritual life and be enabled to do many things that seemed too hard and difficult for us before. In and with God there is limitlessness and infinite possibilities for spiritual growth and therefore growth in all ways.
Our minds are fascinating busy places; we alcoholics have minds that can fabricate, multiply, magically magnify stuff that doesn’t even exist in personal relationships. We can create or get ourselves into all sorts of trouble. A thought harbored long enough will become an action. So the deal is what are we going to allow our minds to think about, to dwell upon. We cannot afford to lose touch with Divine guidance. We must remember God and think about the things of God so we are steered towards sobriety, faith, trust, confidence, positive thinking, an optimistic attitude and outlook. Our dependence is upon God, and we must remember this fact.
The Program is spiritual, we stress this feature freely, we stress the need for God, for could and would help and guide us if we seek Him and ask for His help, peace and comfort. We can pray for the resources, personalities and information we need, for new knowledge and understanding can come through instruments, people and new spiritual tools. The Twelve Steps are spiritual tools, instruments to use as a means of realizing and remembering and surrendering will and life over to God. We use these Twelve Tools to reach beyond ourselves and our senses to receive help and communion with God, and to be lead ever further. We will be guided to get even more out of this A.A. Program and other establishments of God as we stay in touch with our Heavenly Father. Our conscious contact, our peace of mind and of soul, God’s Will for us will become known to us. Requesting God’s help is a requirement for our growth and learning how to live the spiritual way of life. The Twelve Steps are disciplines if you like, containing principles that we need to master to be spiritually awakened to a life that is happy, joyous and free. We still have much to learn, the lessons of God are only complicated by our unwillingness. We learn how to live; we look at how we’ve messed up our lives and then turn to God to help us straighten it all out. Stresses, a heavy burden, things seeming hard or complicated, all indicate were not on track with God’s ways. Do not fret, simplify your life, open yourself back up to God, do some new learning, train your mind to “Let go and let God” enter, if it is relationship issues, “Live and let live.” We must offer everyone and each other perfect freedom to totally be who God means for them to be.
We must review and return to the Twelve Steps of discipline again and again, we can learn new ways to work on the Steps, new circumstances will come along, new personalities will enter our lives to help us practice and master the Steps for our growth. We don’t need so much to figure out the “Whys” of things, so much as just that there are solutions that work. God is the solution, He has given us what we need, and the rest is up to us.
John 14: 12 “And greater works than these shall you do; because I (Jesus Christ) go unto my Father (in heaven).
Prayer is greater works. Prayer prepares us for God’s works. Prayer produces miracles by the power of God, prayer is the way to God, in battle and peace our duty is to pray. With prayer we are all of some use where we are, in all circumstances, wherever you are, God has put you there to pray. We labor the best we can, when it is in the line of God’s direction, we pray that we make the most of God’s Will possible. Prayer and action with the Twelve Steps is our labor and the results happen as God will’s it. You will be amazed before your half-way through the Steps at the result of God and prayer with action in your life. Keep up the habit of prayer and you will take the right actions and orders from God.
Matthew 6: 33 “Seek” ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and these things shall be added unto you.
Wherever you are, in whatever circumstances you find yourself seek God. Where God is remembered and brought, reality, truth and the solution will be as well. When we put into practice remembering “the Presence of God” the solution appears, and the difficulty will soon disappear.
Romans 4: 20- 25 …in view of the Promise of God, he did not waver through unbelief but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, being fully aware that whatever God has promised He is able also to perform.
Luke 12: 13- 21 …take heed and guard yourselves from all covetousness, for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. (But be rich in as regards to the things of God).