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The Third Step is both a decision and a commitment. This decision and commitment are activated by a prayer substantially in form and substance as follows:God, I offer myself to Thee, to build with me and do with me as Thou wilt. Relieve me of the bondage of self that I may better do Thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Thy Love, Thy power and Thy way of life. May I do Thy will always. Amen.The first requirement is that the addicted person come to understand that he is responsible for all that has befallen him. Blaming others, fate or God for his troubles has been his preoccupation and his excuse for his wrong behavior. The addicted person is a prime example of self-will run riot. He has been driven by his selfishness, self-pity, selfcenteredness and self-centered fears to place himself in a position to be hurt. He must accept that his troubles are of his own making, that he is the author of his own misery and that God did not do it. He must also accept as a fact, that he is powerless over this selfishness and that he must have God's help to be free of it.The next requirement is that the addicted person must come to believe that from now on God must be the Father and he the child: That full surrender to God is the only hope he has for his spiritual bankruptcy. When he takes the position of full surrender and maintains it by willingly living a spiritual life in God's will, God will provide everything he needs, the only proviso being that he perform God's work well by helping others through loving service and by being an example of God's power and love as reflected in the way he lives his life.Next, it is necessary that the addicted person be willing to submit his life to God's care without reservations of any kind. He must be willing to go anywhere and do anything that God commands and he must understand that his life will never be the same again. He must also understand that this Step is an offer to God of his life and will and that this offer must still be accepted by God when the addicted person has done all of those things necessary to prepare himself to accept God's grace.Finally, the addicted person must, by this prayer, make a commitment to go forward with the rest of the Steps and to do all those things necessary to clear away the wreckage of his past and to find and be rid of those things which are blocking him from God.As was true of the First and Second Steps, this Third Step (decision) is a great gift of God and cannot be the result of pressure, fear, logical argument or a desire to please his mentors. He must read the literature, attend meetings, consult with others and pray. When the Third Step prayer is said without reservation, the Third Step has been done.STEP FOUR"Bless those who persecute you, bless do not curse" Ro 12: 14"Do not repay anyone evil for evil." Ro 12: 17"Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: It is mine to avenge; I will repay says the Lord." Ro 12: 19"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Ro 12: 21"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God." Isa 41: 10"The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid?" Ps 27: 1"Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body." 1Co 6: 18"A fool gives vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control." Pr 29: 11"An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot tempered one commits many sins." Pr 29: 22"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." Jas 1: 19&20"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." Php 2:3"Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgement on disputable matters." Ro 14: 1MADE A SEARCHING AND FEARLESS MORAL INVENTORY OF OURSELVES.The Fourth Step constitutes the first of seven spiritual tools which the addicted person will learn to use and will carry with him for the rest of his life. These spiritual tools are: Inventory (Step 4), Admission (Step 5), Submission to God (Steps 6&7), Amends (Steps 8&9), Prayer (Step 11), Meditation (Step 11), and, Working with others (Step 12). The daily use of these spiritual tools will assure continued surrender to God's will and continued sobriety and will result in spiritual growth and spiritual fitness. These are the tools which put God's great spiritual principles to work in the every-day life of His people and translate faith into action.Having offered his life and his will to God in the Third Step, the addicted person must now make a strenuous effort to find and be rid of the things in himself which are blocking him from God. This means he must take a thorough inventory of his defects of character, his spiritual weaknesses and his insanity. When the spiritual illness is solved with God's help, he will recover mentally and physically. He must also identify the persons he has wronged by his actions and the resulting guilt, remorse and shame which he is carrying with him, since these are also blocks to his relationship with God and he must be rid of them as well as his defects.

Channel: People & Blogs
Uploaded: November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am
Author: 12stepp

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