When you get involved in a 12-Step program, one of the main suggestions is to find that person that can be your sponsor. Someone that you can see yourself connecting and building a healthy, trustworthy relationship with. The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, p18, has an excerpt in the book that describes the qualities that a sponsor should uphold.
“That the man who is making the approach has had the same difficulty, that he obviously knows what he is talking about, that his whole deportment shouts at the new prospect that he is a man with a real answer, that he has no attitude of Holier Than Thou, nothing whatever except the sincere desire to be helpful; that there are no fees to pay, no axes to grind, no people to please, no lectures to be endured – these are the conditions we have found most effective.”
The passage does not state that the sponsor should know everything, or that the sponsor has all the answers to everything. If the sponsor is working their 12-Step program with their sponsor, then hopefully they will be implementing the principles of the program, including humility, and leading a spiritual life.
You can learn how to handle many of your situations by utilizing the experiences that your sponsor has walked through. Even though they may have a similar background to you, you may turn out different results. Learning how to make decisions based off the guidance of your sponsor and through the direction of a Higher Power can show you a better way to live.
There may be a few things that you are enduring that your sponsor has not walked through and that they may not have the capacity to answer due to their unawareness. You can either find the answer to the question by asking someone else in the program that has shared about the same thing, or you can have your sponsor ask their sponsor. This is the beauty of the program. Someone has probably walked through your current plight before and the answer is most likely out there. You can always share in meetings, use your 12-Step book, pray or meditate if you cannot find your immediate answer. Using these tools can take the pressure off your current status to be uplifting and produce the answer you have been looking for all along. The appropriate resolution can come to light for any circumstances that may materialize by using the tools of the program.
Serenity Oaks Wellness Center can assist someone struggling with drugs and alcohol by giving them an individualized recovery plan. Our clients will receive holistic therapy and 12-Step aspects to ensure long-term sobriety.
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844-720-6847
