MYSTERIOUS WAYS

Daily reflections - March 17

. . . out of every season of grief or suffering when the hand of God seemed heavy or even unjust, new lessons for living were learned, new resources of courage were uncovered, and that finally, inescapably, the conviction came that God does "move in a mysterious way His wonders to perform."

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 105

After losing my career, family and health, I remained unconvinced that my way of life needed a second look. My drinking and other drug use were killing me, but I had never met a recovering person or an A.A. member. I thought I was destined to die alone and that I deserved it. At the peak of my despair, my infant son became critically ill with a rare disease. Doctors' efforts to help him proved useless. I redoubled my efforts to block my feelings, but now the alcohol had stopped working. I was left staring into God's eyes,  begging  for  help.  My  introduction  to  A.A.  came within days, through an odd series of coincidences, and I have  remained  sober  ever  since.  My  son  lived  and  his disease is in remission. The entire episode convinced me of my  powerlessness  and  the  unmanageability  of  my  life. Today my son and I thank God for His intervention.