Choosing Love and Life

  

 There are plenty of times in life when we would rather not have to make decisions; the alternatives are too painful or the responsibilities too heavy. In such situations we may procrastinate or become very passive, but there is still choices that we make. To "decide not to decided" is still a decision. We might adopt rigid institutional values, adhere to frozen policies, or even join cults to avoid the responsibilities that come with making our own choices, but avoiding responsibility is also a choice. Freedom and responsibility are perfect boomerangs; they keep coming back to us no matter how or where we try to throw them away. The one thing we are never free to choose is choicelessness.

Firing your old God

 One day I heard a new man in the program talking to an old-timer about the Third Step. The new man said, " No way I'm going to turn my life over to God. He'd ruin me-and I deserve it." He went on to say that for him God was a giant policeman.
  The old-timer, a strong quiet man, listened to the new man's description of God and then said, " You ought to fire that God. You've got the wrong God for this program, friend. The God who operates here is loving, forgiving and always be there for you. I had a God like yours when I first came in here, but I had to fire him and get me a new God."
  All my theological buzzers went off. I thoughts, "Fire God... We're dealing with Ultimate Reality here, friends. You just can't fire God and get a new one."

Constructive Anger- and my share

Living in a relationship with other people means that we will experience seasons of anger. Anger is a normal human emotion. It is an unavoidable ingredient of any fellowship.

Unfortunately, for most of us anger is a problem. We know that anger can lead to destructive behaviors. Some of us have been on the receiving end of verbal and physical attacks from an angry person. And some of us have lashed out at others with our anger. So we fear anger because we have seen the destruction which results when anger leads to sin. We have seen how anger can damage relationships and lead to loneliness.