Midweek: Step Seven

 Step Seven: Humbly asked Him to remove these wrongs.

I know I already covered Step Seven in my last post on Walking the Twelve Steps with Jesus Christ. But something occurred to me as I was spending a little more time with the text: the act of going before our God and His mighty grace is indispensable. And worth addressing with a little more depth. 

Have you ever watched a child begin to walk? It all begins with intent. From the first moment a child raises that one leg to crawl or begins to rock on hands and knees, there is an idea, a desire to move forward. Once in a while, when the standing doesn't go so well or the falling becomes too frustrating, you will see the child abandon the idea of walking upright and return to crawling. However, when surrounded by plenty of things upon which the child can pull himself/herself up, when encouraged by parents and caregivers, the child will persevere and, eventually, walk. The intent, with the proper support, has stimulated the action necessary for success. 

Walking the Twelve Steps with Jesus Christ requires us to understand and act. Intention without action remains intangible. If you recall Step Six: I was ready to have God remove all the wrongs of my past life, it's a condition of preparedness, desire, intent. And while it's important our hearts are made ready for change, it is not change itself. Step Seven is that movement toward change.

I'll be honest, when I read through the steps for the first time, the word that came to mind was "redundant." I admit that..., I came to believe that..., I was ready to have... Why so much focus on our attitude? Why, after we know these things, do we have to take time to decide next steps? Let me answer that second question first. Because this is a process. If we go back to the example of the baby, God, in His wisdom, designed walking as a process; the strengthening of bones and muscles, the formation of muscle memory. Little by little, the mind of the child and the body come into sync to accomplish the task of walking. One can take the lead if the other is prepared to accompany it. Our intentions are formed by information, examination; from there we decide next steps. That is why the focus on our attitudes. How we perceive ourselves, what we know about God, impact the decisions we make. Our decisions then (hopefully) align with our behavior to lead a better life, to handle situations in a way that does not destroy us. This is why Step Six by itself is not enough; being ready is not enough. We must consciously, humbly, gratefully ask God to remove wrongs. And not just until the urge passes. The sincerity of our request is demonstrated by our willingness to allow them to stay removed. When faced with the wrongs of our life again, we turn to God. Is there more I need to confess about this? If so, please show me; if not, I stand on Your Word that I am a new creation. That was then; I'm trusting in You now. 

Uncovering wrongs that are keeping us bound is an important step. Knowing who God is and what He is capable of doing is as well. Those should foster in us a desire to be released from bondage. But taking that step to humbly come before God, asking Him to use His mighty grace to free us, is vital to our recovery.