Alcoholism Support Group
Alcoholism is the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages, even when it is negatively affecting your health, work, relationships and life. If you think alcohol is causing you to lose control, it's time to seek help. Our group is a safe place to vent, check in, get back up if you fall, and reach sobriety.
I found a good definition for how an Atheist can be spiritual in choosing the AA way of life. By embracing spirituality as the way of patience, tolerance, love and kindness.
Being Christian and believing in an undetectible diety involves faith, the idea that while we can't prove something to be true, we can choose to trust it to be true. A believer in God and an Atheist can both have Faith, that he or she will find love, good friends and a life that's fulfilling. While there is no certainty that any of this will happen, having faith means spending less time worrying and more time believing that it can be true. Whether it's a God or God's or some other Diety or electrons and neurons in play, it doesn't matter. Faith is hope and hope is something we can all believe in regardless of race, ethnicity, or religion!
Being Christian and believing in an undetectible diety involves faith, the idea that while we can't prove something to be true, we can choose to trust it to be true. A believer in God and an Atheist can both have Faith, that he or she will find love, good friends and a life that's fulfilling. While there is no certainty that any of this will happen, having faith means spending less time worrying and more time believing that it can be true. Whether it's a God or God's or some other Diety or electrons and neurons in play, it doesn't matter. Faith is hope and hope is something we can all believe in regardless of race, ethnicity, or religion!
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check out that smoke ring. It tasted really good. I smothered it with Maulls BBQ sauce which is Local to St. Louis and one of the best I ever had.....
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I was recently separated from my wife of 33 years and it's complicated. Anyway I rented a room about 15 minutes away and I see my kids about once a week. I see the people who own the house I live in once in a while but other than that I stay in my room where I do my cooking, wash dishes in the shower, read, color, and sleep. I get out at least once a day. I grocery shop and I attend 2 meetings...
That said-most days I choose to believe. It comforts me. However-on those dark days I will tell you what my HP is: think about our cells in our bodies-think about the legions of networks working together feverishly to maintain your life. This is happening-you are not really consenting to this-other than not killing yourself and perhaps taking note of the fact their are things you can do to help these networks.
So this is what I do-I think that their is a order to all of this-it is not chaotic. So why should the rest of the networks outside of myself be any different? There is order in nature, in social communities, in everything. If the order is thrown off balance-it corrects itself eventually.
So atheists-perhaps your higher power can be these legions of networks inside of you-outside of you, that go on and on and on, to establish a basic order. Can you have these be your higher power? Because I do this, when I am feeling dark and faithless. It really helps me center, and see I am a part of a very cohesive network, and I need to go with the flow and not fight it. Ahhh that brings me peace just saying it.
That said-most days I choose to believe. It comforts me. However-on those dark days I will tell you what my HP is: think about our cells in our bodies-think about the legions of networks working together feverishly to maintain your life. This is happening-you are not really consenting to this-other than not killing yourself and perhaps taking note of the fact their are things you can do to help these networks.
So this is what I do-I think that their is a order to all of this-it is not chaotic. So why should the rest of the networks outside of myself be any different? There is order in nature, in social communities, in everything. If the order is thrown off balance-it corrects itself eventually.
So atheists-perhaps your higher power can be these legions of networks inside of you-outside of you, that go on and on and on, to establish a basic order. Can you have these be your higher power? Because I do this, when I am feeling dark and faithless. It really helps me center, and see I am a part of a very cohesive network, and I need to go with the flow and not fight it. Ahhh that brings me peace just saying it.
That said-most days I choose to believe. It comforts me. However-on those dark days I will tell you what my HP is: think about our cells in our bodies-think about the legions of networks working together feverishly to maintain your life. This is happening-you are not really consenting to this-other than not killing yourself and perhaps taking note of the fact their are things you can do to help these networks.
So this is what I do-I think that their is a order to all of this-it is not chaotic. So why should the rest of the networks outside of myself be any different? There is order in nature, in social communities, in everything. If the order is thrown off balance-it corrects itself eventually.
So atheists-perhaps your higher power can be these legions of networks inside of you-outside of you, that go on and on and on, to establish a basic order. Can you have these be your higher power? Because I do this, when I am feeling dark and faithless. It really helps me center, and see I am a part of a very cohesive network, and I need to go with the flow and not fight it. Ahhh that brings me peace just saying it.
Just speaking for me here and my experiences thus far, believing in something greater than myself is not really the issue it is being able to believe that I can tap into that power via prayer or whatever other method...I just do not feel it is possible.
Who is to say that there are not a million universes inside of the tiniest atom? Have we as people even set foot on the bottom rung of the ladder of knowledge? I dont know the answers but I think that we know very little. Therefore, on the balance of probabilities, I would say that there is some sort of guiding force. There is much about the human mind that is yet to be discovered but even going on things that cannot be fully explained such as extrasensory perception, I have reason to believe that I can tap into that unknown force that I choose to call God. To discount the possibility that God exists would be an act of extreme arrogance on my part.
Your last sentence sums it all up in a few words: I believe we are all free to follow our own paths in this matter and who are you or I or anyone else to say that we are on the right path?
I agree with you entirely and I am not sure that many here would have disagreed with you or have tried to convert you to anything.
What you believe is not my concern and I would never dream of trying to push my conception of God on anyone. I think that all that people here were trying to do was to help you to find some means of dealing with the alcohol problem and I personally tend to urge people to try the AA approach because I know that it works. However, the thing that attracted me most to AA at the start was that nobody said that I had to believe in anything. The ball is very much in your own court.
Doesn't sound like you are accepting of anyone else's beliefs to me PJ...once again it sounds very dismissive. I have already stated that I appreciate the sentiment behind the post but I strongly dispute the practicality of it from an atheist point of view. Thus far I see no other atheist agreeing with it either.
Whether you are AA, Rational Recovery, on your own, or whatever, what only matters is that you find a way to not drink if you have a problem drinking.
My AA group has plenty of Atheists in the room and no one cares when they talk about their beliefs, which seem to really come up when the leader starts out talking about God, not a HP but God. Personally I believe in God, my own version of God who is my HP. I don't care what anyone else thinks, and who said HP equals God? I don't think that is in AA.
A healthy fun debate? Absolutely. Who is right and wrong, it does not matter.
i have my own beliefs, and i will never argue them.....spirituality is the corner stone of heart. heart is heart....to each his own. hope is a wish......
i understand that faith and spirituality is on a per person basis. i had to smile at your response....."humans".......we are a speck. we are made of the elements of the universe...therefore we are.
i sadly disagree that man will save mankind. greed, power and domination is mans survival instinct. the only "humans" one can save are those that we come in contact with. i do agree that faith will save individuals.
by the by.....from a family of 6 siblings......all are atheists/agnostic except for my ma...one bro and myself.......to each their own... they are still good "humans" and have heart.
To me, that shows the high level of maturity the members here have.
Peace!