For those of us in Twelve Step recovery it's significant that King Benjamin teaches all Twelve Steps of recovery in his famous address in the Book of Mormon. They are actually all contained and explained in great detail with excellent commentary in Mosiah chapter 4. The timing of this event and the entire text being centered on becoming a king or queen, like the Heavenly King (Mosiah 2:19), and the events following in Mosiah 5 as they become spiritually begotten sons and daughters of Jesus Christ through a covenant relationship, should be of paramount interest to LDS addicts in recovery.
I'm gonna get stuck on this chapter for a while and cover all Twelve Steps as they appear in his speech, comparing them with the original Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and the steps used in the LDS Addiction Recovery Program.
Today, we will look at Step One.
AA Step 1: " We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives had become unmanageable."
LDS Addiction Guide Step 1: "Admit that you, of yourself, are powerless to overcome your addictions and that your life has become unmanageable."
Several verses in Mosiah chapter 4 relate to this idea of being powerless, especially in comparison with God's infinite power. Here a few examples:
"And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth. And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men" (Mosiah 4:2).
"For behold, if the knowledge of the goodness of God at this time has awakened you to a sense of your nothingness, and your worthless and fallen state—" (Mosiah 4:5).
"And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel" (Mosiah 4:11).
Words and phrases like "less than the dust of the earth," "nothingness," "worthless and fallen state," and "unworthy creatures" definitely portray a feeling of being powerless. However, King Benjamin's intent is not to discourage us, but rather to compare the difference between a life with God and a life without Him.
I was first exposed to Step One almost thirty years ago on a warm summer morning in 1987 as I was walking to work. I was walking to work to avoid getting another DUI. About halfway there I encountered a building with a sign that said "Alano Club." My only interest was the word "Club" as I had been in several "clubs" and they were all drinking establishments. And seven o'clock in the morning was as good as any time to have a drink or two, or ten, or whatever, in my sick mind.
As I attempted to enter, I found the building was locked, but the morning sunlight illuminated two large posters with the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous. For some unknown reason, I was compelled to read through them all. Only three words in Step One made any sense to me, and the words were "powerless over alcohol." I asked myself if I really was powerless over alcohol. But I have to tell you, I had one killer denial program, so over the next three miles I told myself that surely I could quit drinking whenever I was ready to do it. It had been five years since I had seen a sober day.
Like with any practicing alcoholic or addict, life got worse. I did two more years of "research" as we call it in AA, and racked up a seven-year stint without a single sober day. By this time my life was spinning recklessly out of control, and I was ready to quit. I made promises to quit, but soon found I was totally powerless over alcohol, and was "less than the dust of the earth" in my efforts to stop drinking.
On July 17, 1989 after another blackout drunk I was heading home and driving by the same Alano Club when the words "powerless over alcohol" somehow popped into my mind. I pulled into the parking lot without a meeting schedule or any concept of an AA meeting, and found that coincidentally the Monday Night Beginners Meeting would be starting in ten minutes. What a tender mercy from God!
And speaking of tender mercies, a man walked up to me at that meeting and said, "Do you have a drinking problem?" I said, "Yes." He said, "Sit down, you're in the right place." That good dear man has now passed on to the spirit world, but his son is the current facilitator at the LDS Twelve Step meeting I go to. The Lord has a way to remind us of His grace.
About twenty minutes into that meeting, I choked out those very difficult, but honest words, "My name is Brad, and I'm an a-a-al- alc-o-hol-ic." I didn't realize it at the time, but recovery was just beginning for me.
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