Even wrong motives and intentions can lead to good outcomes if I practice the principles of our Program in my life. I learned this lesson from a share at an AA meeting.
ego
You Cannot Do God’s Job
An AA sister in Palm Desert shared, “You cannot do God’s work, and He’s not going to do yours.”
A normal person would not need to hear this, but I am not normal and need to hear this often.
The phrase, “You cannot do God’s work,” should be an obvious truth; a normal person might think to himself, “it goes without saying, I cannot possibly do God’s work; God is God, and I am me.”
Got the t-shirt
The subject of the conversation was ‘people-pleasing.’ The topic had come up at our Home Group Tuesday night, which we had attended the night before.
As we talked, we saw the topic, which is very common at AA meetings, was more profound than we realized.
I started by saying, “I needed people to like me; I craved approval and affection.”
In My Way and In My Way
The meeting topic was Step #3, “turning our will and our lives over to the care of God.”
An AA sister opened with a puzzle, “in my way, was in my way.”
My Ego is a Bad General
When I am not paying attention, my ego is in command. I am often not paying attention, so my ego is often in command.
It is difficult to learn something when you know it all
So true is the statement. So often I walk into meetings in business, conversations with friends, and prayers with God ‘knowing it all.’ There is no room to listen, much less learn. I already know it all.