January 3

Our greatest need

"We eventually redefine our beliefs and understanding to the point where we see that our greatest need is for knowledge of God's will for us and the strength to carry that out."

Basic Text, p. 48

When we first arrived in NA, we had all kinds of ideas of what we needed.  Some of us set our sights on amassing personal possessions.  We thought recovery equaled outward success.  But recovery does not equal success.  Today, we believe that our greatest need is for spiritual guidance and strength.

The greatest damage done to us by our addiction was the damage done to our spirituality.  Our primary motivation was dictated by our disease: to get, to use, and to find ways and means to get more.  Enslaved by our overwhelming need for drugs, our lives lacked purpose and connection.  We were spiritually bankrupt.

Sooner or later, we realize that our greatest need in recovery is "for knowledge of God's will for us and the strength to carry that out."  There, we find the direction and sense of purpose our addiction had hidden from us.  In our God's will we find freedom from self-will.  No longer driven only by our own needs, we are free to live with others on an equal footing.

There's nothing wrong with outward success.  But without the spiritual connection offered by the NA program, our greatest need in recovery goes unmet, regardless of how "successful" we may be.

Just for today:  I will seek the fulfillment of my greatest need: a vital, guiding connection with the God of my understanding.