Relying on Something Greater than Yourself to Restore You!

We live in a world of you can do it. We are told this all of the time; in magazines, on the TV, Face Book, and the radio. Heck! I say this all of time, I preach on it more than not, and I fully believe it to a certain extent! Yes, I believe we can do more than we realize, I believe we can grow, and I believe we can be better than we were yesterday. However, I do not believe that I can do anything without being fully restored to my full potential, and it’s here that I stop believing in the “I can” and start struggling with the“God can”. I struggle with the fact that I can’t do something that directly helps me better myself, because I can’t restore myself. I have a real struggle with relying on anything that can help me, because I struggle with control. This comes from my “not enough” mentality, which pushes to be “more than enough”. This creates a very unnatural, and unhealthy dance with myself! As I continue to research and grow as I engage in the AA 12 steps, I’m realizing everything centers around step one: “I admit that I am powerless over my brokenness and my life has become unmanageable”. It makes complete sense to me that If I struggle with Step one, how could I ever come to embrace step two: “To rely on a greater power source, which can restore me”. Last month the church explored Step one with the focus on being Vulnerable! As we begin February, I’m still asking myself: what are the roads block to actually “Letting Go?” Brene Brown describes Vulnerability as uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure.  We are taught that doing those things will result in some form of assault upon us (Mental and/or physical). So, it makes sense why we wouldn’t be vulnerable, unless we are missing a bigger picture. If I truly admit that I’m powerless and I can’t manage my life, then I would have to seek out another power source that could help me manage, but that would also mean that I can’t be in control. Again, my research points to this as being the main cause of addiction! I happen to believe that we are all addicts of something. I need to truly come into the realization that if I want to be restored then I can’t be in control of that. Step one: take a risk, and step into understanding that my attempts to control my life have become one addictive measure after another. This has created a false sense of self and has fed my ego and fooled me into believing that “I can”. Stepping boldly into step one leaves me open to an unlimited power source that happens in step 2. It’s in Step two that “I can” becomes “God can”, and this takes the weight off of me to allow me an opportunity to grow and be better than I was yesterday. True change happens when we let go of the person we use to be, and boldly seek out the person we are supposed to be. Join us this month as we explore Step Two: “Come to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore”!!!

​Pastor Shawn R. Moore