Our program teaches us on a daily basis per our 10th and 11th Step drawing from the page in the BB on Step 4 which of course shouldn't just be done once. It's every time I experience an area in my life where I am not seeking God but seeking self or others....that's when "fear" is welcomed in.
Again, any area of my life where I seek anything but God is me putting out the welcome mat for fear. If I am in reliance of what spiritually and mentally sick people do, or don't do, say,or don't say, think, or don't think-yes, I am in a great amount of fear -like when I was a child in school that I wouldn't be accepted or in fear my mom would die or go to jail or we would be taken away.
Then depending upon my willingness to get well, I can stay and marinate in fear-or take action toward getting to the root cause as to why I am in so called "fear". More often than not, as an adult, I am in fear of outcomes not conforming to my plans and designs for living. Wanting people to "think" or "see" me a certain way because that's how I stay elevated and relevant because they or it defines my existence-or I get angry at them for not being as I wish that they were or want things different than they are. I am utterly exhausted being in self or external reliance. YUCK
Fear is a good thing if I am using it to keep me from jumping off high buildings, walking around the inner cities at night or even taking a drink...when I am misusing the emotion of fear is when I use it to justify complacency to avoid having to make a decision, set boundaries or goals because I do not want to put the effort into knowing what it's like to not be a host for the parasites that hold me in statis under the false evidence appearing real to me at that time.
It's my job now as a recovered drunk to go deeper-not to transmit or put anyone in captivity because I don't want to work my program. Every post coming through on grow has the title FEAR...what a wonderful thing to wake up to!! How about we cancel that spell with the word COURAGE-just as we are taught to do. Help others, be useful, find purpose, trust God; or host and spread fear.
"We reviewed our fears thoroughly. We put them on paper, even though we had no resentment in connection with them. We asked ourselves why we had them. Wasn't it because self-reliance failed us? Self-reliance was good as far as it went, but it didn't go far enough. Some of us once had great self-confidence, but it didn't fully solve the fear problem, or any other. When it made us cocky, it was worse.
Perhaps there is a better way - we think so. For we are now on a different basis; the basis of trusting and relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite selves. We are in the world to play the role He assigns. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would have us, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to match calamity with serenity.
We never apologize to anyone for depending upon our Creator. We can laugh at those who think spirituality the way of weakness. Paradoxically, it is the way of strength. The verdict of the ages is that faith means courage. All men of faith have courage. They trust their God. We never apologize for God. Instead we let Him demonstrate, through us, what He can do. We ask Him to remove our fear and direct our attention to what He would have us be. At once, we commence to outgrow fear." pg 68