Meetings are for all who are interested in spiritual development, and they mean a lot to everyone who attends.
Newcomers should always go to meetings. And it will be better if you have a sponsor. Old-timers understand the importance of sponsorship and the importance of meetings, both.
I go to a lot of meetings. They have always been important in my life.
When I don’t have a sponsor, then the meeting is my sponsor and sharing at the meeting becomes my session with my sponsor. It becomes the time to share how my day went, or how difficult my life is, or maybe, rarely, I share how well things are going. Mainly, it is time to unburden and share my troubles.
Either way, it is a personal update. And it is difficult to see how that update will benefit the meeting. It is all about me. And will only rarely involve a spiritual solution.
Sponsors are great for personal sharing and dissection of living problems. One on one with my sponsor, I can discuss issues that are bothering me and develop solutions. Later, I can try the answers out and watch them work. If I have done this, I can attend meetings and not just share the problems, I can also share the solutions and tell the stories about my successes practicing the spiritual principles of the Program.
You can spot when I am not sponsored. I will talk about my day, my crises and problems — without any solutions. The meetings are my sponsors — I rely on meetings as a forum to share my problems, and I look to the meetings for solutions.Now if you cannot or will not find and use a sponsor, please keep coming to meetings and keep sharing. It will keep you from drinking. But how much better if you had a sponsor.
Related posts
From Frank Amos and his report to John Rockefeller in 1938
Half the Effort
