“Came to believe in a power greater than ourselves that could restore us to sanity”
In the first step we have admitted complete defeat. We’ve given up and have come to the conclusion that of our own accord our lives are not manageable by ourselves alone. So now what? It’s time to move on to the next step. Like we spoke about in the first step, the second step also has two parts as well.
The first part is coming to believe in a power greater than ourselves. First, we’d like to point out that the step does not say God, Jesus, Allah, Buddha, or any other religious fixture. If you are of a religious faith, that is great, and by all means please use that experience to your advantage. Religion, however, is NOT a requirement to make the approach to this step.
Step Two is simply asking us to believe that outside of self, there is something out there that can help us. Many people start by using the power of the group in their 12 step fellowship. Here is a group of people, who at one point felt like we do in the beginning. Using the group as a power of hope, faith, and strength is a great start. This may take some people days, weeks, months, or even sometimes years. That is OK as long as we are not defiant against the principle of this power.
The next part of the step deals with the word insanity, and that in active addiction we are suffering from it. There are many different definitions of the word insanity. The simplest for is ‘doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.’ Insanity can also be described as any kind of behavior that is at odds with what is generally accepted as normal behavior. Maybe the easiest and most nailed down explanation of the word is that we act and behave in ways that are not acceptable to ourselves, families, and society. The insanity comes from drinking/using over and over again despite the adverse consequences we always get in return. We must accept the fact that our thinking and behaviors to date are, in fact, insane…and more importantly, we must accept help if we are to recover.
12 step groups don’t demand anything. The steps are suggestions. With that said, those that have followed the suggestions always seem to be a lot happier and at peace with themselves when compared with those that don’t.
