I hope wherever you are, you know Recovery is with you right where you are.
Many of us seek the fame, power, salary, or talent we see on American Idol. A SuperHuman Being learns to let go of the need to be famous or recognized. Today, being known as a famous person or even a survivor can sometimes be confused with true Recovery. This can signal that we are stuck in an earlier stage of our growth. Simply surviving and protecting our lives is a basic instinct we share with animals. It is important, but it is not Recovery in the fullest sense.
We are meant to thrive, not simply survive.
Survival takes courage, effort, and strength. But what happens when we begin to heal? How will we respond when life gives us the chance to become more than survivors? This is the question of the SuperHuman Being.
One sign that we are ready to Recover is our willingness to leave the nest and move beyond what is familiar. This may not happen during the first stage of Recovery. If we have spent many years building a house of success, pride, and self-importance, we may not want to leave it. We may have worked hard to build a shelter that protects us from our pain, and walking away from it can feel frightening.
But once we begin to see that there is a way out of our inner turmoil and comfort zone, our journey takes on a new purpose. We are invited to step into the light and face the deeper issues within us.
In the first stage of my Recovery, I began to face the shortcomings that kept me from feeling like a whole person. By the age of 30, I had achieved a great deal. I earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. I was an All-American basketball player. I became a head basketball coach, and our team won a state championship.
Success became a drug for me. It gave me something to chase and helped me avoid my suffering. From the outside, my life looked successful. But my success did not heal the turmoil inside me.
Then I became tired of chasing success. I finally realized that underneath my accomplishments, I was sad, anxious, and carrying deep wounds from my past.
At that point in my life, I turned to a 12-Step program. I began to listen to the invitation of my soul. I started to acknowledge my suffering and develop a deeper reliance on God. I was beginning to understand that Recovery was not about building a better life on the outside. It was about allowing God to heal me from the inside.
Unless we build our first house well, we may never feel ready to leave it. But building our house well does not mean staying inside forever. It means allowing ourselves to be gently nudged beyond its doors.
Recovery invites us to step outside what we have always known. It calls us to leave the shelter we built for ourselves and trust that God is leading us toward something deeper, healthier, and more whole.
We are not meant to live forever in survival mode.
We are meant to step into the light, open the door, and learn how to thrive.
Remember, Recovery is happening right now, in this moment.