Saturday, October 01, 2005

An Alcoholic's Control of his drinking

The post that says no alcoholic can control his drinking is part of accepted A.A. writing. And I would agree that most real alcoholics will never succeed in controlling the amount they drink once they start drinking. Or, as A.A. co-founder put it so simply: It's the first one that gets you.

Contrasted with those ideas, however, is the solution that was used in early Akron A.A.'s Christian Fellowship. Their position was that the real alcoholic could, should, and must abstain. Also that the real alcoholic could, should, and must resist temptation - temptation as to where to go, whom to see, what to drink, how to feel comfortable among drinkers, and why hanging out with old friends and at old places may not be a very good idea if they were drinking oriented.

The next phase, however, was the place that our Creator occupied in the solution process. He could guide you away from temptation. He could instruct you as to where temptation led. He could empower you to resist temptation. He could provide the thoughts that were not devilish in origin. And this solution was found in the Book of James that was so frequently and earnestly studied by A.A. pioneers.

See http://www.dickb.com/JamesClub.shtml

And find articles and audio materials on http://www.dickb-blog.com

God Bless, Dick B.