Step Two
Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Please share your experience, strength, and hope as it relates to Step 2. The opinions expressed here are strictly those of the person who gave them. Take what you liked and leave the rest. Member sharing on the Member Blog may be used in future Al‑Anon publications.
My Twlve Steps are a lifestyle “One Day at a Time” (ODAT).
Step Two is God’s grace, which keeps in His grace to be spirit-minded by thinking about what I am thinking about before I open my mouth, by using the Serenity prayer, reading CAL literature, and putting pen to paper for me. I love my God for blessing me with His grace upon grace ODAT.
Step Two was not my favorite Step when I first came to Al-Anon. I felt that the very fact that it was considering me insane was rather insulting. I must admit that I was far from having a healthy mind and I was also far from being sensible and showing good judgment. They say that the truth sometimes hurt and it surely did it for me. I finally came to my senses after putting Step One into practice and looking at Step Two. I came to realize that somehow my being insane on occasions was not far from the truth.… Read more »
Coming to believe that a power greater than myself could restore me to sanity truly saved me. I discovered a God I had never known. One that was kind, gentle, and forgiving. A God that didn’t expect perfection. This was a God so different from the one I had been led to believe in. I can trust this God. I can rely on Him for everything knowing that He understands me, forgives me, and won’t punish me when I make a mistake. It has relieved me of exhaustion, fear, loneliness, and desperation. He has given me peace, serenity, tranquility, and… Read more »
God showed me that if a sponsee is hiccuping over Step Two, maybe their concept of a Higher Power needs to change. I invite them to take their “old god’s” inventory. I have them list their grievances and how it hurt them. When we go over that list, we invariably find either a parent, a beloved, or even an institution masquerading as a deity. But it is never a kind, loving, forgiving God, which is who we find when taking Step Two in this program. Once we identify the culprit playing god in that person’s mind and heart, we fire… Read more »
First “I came,” then I “came to,” then I “came to believe!” Like so many others who begin attending Al-Anon meetings, I did not initially realize the extent of how the disease of alcoholism had indirectly effected ME. I “came to” quite quickly however when I witnessed first hand other people laughing and enjoying life in spite of their own difficulties! Step 2 gives a person reason to hope! It’s true that no situation is too difficult to be bettered. Recovery is possible! I believe in a Power greater than myself because I can SEE how this power has transformed… Read more »
As a long time Al-Anon member, I recently relocated to out of State to ‘age out’ affordably and each of the 12 Steps guided my path along the way – Step 2 – my belief in a Higher Power whom I choose to call God was my saving grace to restore my sanity. I had become distraught with anger and I needed to dispel it so my sanity would return so I could get clarity of mind to rightly discern what I should do about my future housing need. My Higher Power, over time, guided me on how to use… Read more »
Today, at this moment I have serenity and peace. I know that with the decision I have made today to believe that I could be restored to sanity gives me hope and love and kindness to myself and the loved ones that can be so hard to love when they are in their disease. I didn’t cause my Mom’s alcoholism, I certainty can’t control it, or change it. Today, I have choices. Today, I pray for her and for myself, for recovery to carry the message and show me how to live.
I want to share how happy I am that I have stuck out my negativity until my Higher Power and my group could see me through. After many years, I was ready to give up on Al-Anon. I had ups and downs and after years of recovery I was losing it again. I tried to keep practicing my program but I had lost the will. I found some outside help because Al-Anon encouraged us to reach out when we need it. I also have been an advocate on keeping our small meeting live. It has been a struggle in the… Read more »
I have started to see the program as a power greater than myself. A power that I trust. When I learn about the many aspects of the program I’m always amazed. When I talk to members who have done a lot of service, about the structure of the program, how it works as a whole and has continued successfully for so many decades, I feel confident this is a power I can trust. I have been to so many meetings in different cities, and online in different countries. I have always grown and been uplifted by my time spent in… Read more »
Step Two opened for me a world of discovery when I came to program, as I had lost faith in the punishing God of my childhood. I rediscovered a Higher Power that would not punish me, but would help me be a better person. There was hope for me to live in some sanity, which had been foreign to me for years. I loved it when I heard “Came”, “Came to” and “Came to believe” as this was what I needed. I needed first to come to the meetings and just attend without demands. With time “I came to” my… Read more »
The freedom within Al-Anon offers me my own personal understanding of my Higher Power. This is the key in surrendering my ego. I can let go of my childhood’s understanding that God was always watching me, and was angered by my incapability to live accordingly to religious standards. I gave up trying and I stopped attending. Step 2 makes it possible for me to believe in a Power greater than myself. I no longer need to fear an angry God with impossible standards to live by. I can now begin to look at myself openly and honestly without fear and… Read more »
My mother-in-law passed away recently as a result of the disease of alcoholism. My hubby also suffers from the disease and is starting to experience health challenges. His mother’s passing has led him not to comply with his doctor’s orders. Nothing I said or any action I took worked. Forcing solutions only left me angry and frustrated. He stopped taking care for himself and was frequently verbally abusive. A family member has taken over his care. I was upset about this at first, but I have no control over another’s behaviors. Watching the people that I love so much destroy… Read more »
When I started in Al-Anon, I had lost faith and any meaningful connection with my Higher Power. Very slowly by attending meetings, listening, and applying Al-Anon’s principles to my life, I could begin to see my Higher Power working in me and with me in everyday situations. I learned that when I aligned myself and my will to my Higher Power’s will for me, I could then expect to grow into the loving person that my Higher Power meant me to be.
When I came to believe that a power greater than me could restore me to sanity, I finally felt relief. I had spent so much time trying to control the uncontrollable and trying to fix everything on my own. The insanity I felt for so long was threatening to destroy me. It was freeing to let it all go and to rely on a power greater than myself. It was the beginning of a peace in my life that I never thought possible.
God is what gives me hope. This Step is one of the most powerful in my eyes. I believe we can’t do life on our own. We need others and I lean on God for strength, hope, faith, and love. I also believe that God would only put us through tough circumstances/experiences to teach us valuable life lessons. I’m learning, sometimes the hard way, but learning.
For me there is no right or wrong way to work through the Steps but reading Step 2 tells me what will happen next. It says “came to believe” which means that it happened already. I interpret that to mean that by working through Step one and attending meetings, by listening to others tell there stories of strength and hope and by seeing the happiness that seems to be in their lives that I will come to believe that there is a power greater than me alone which could restore me and bring sanity to my life. Grateful member
When I look at the words of this Step, I see that I am of worthy, I am of value…I can be restored by a power greater than myself. That power has evolved and I am grateful for the guidance of my Sponsor, who allowed me to grow and evolve that loving spiritual power. I now understand that is not the punishing GOD of my upbringing and I am free to connect with via nature. Today I am grateful that I may choose to connect with Good Orderly Direction daily by reading CAL; walking in nature and lighting a candle… Read more »
I have been focusing on Step One for a few weeks now – accepting “powerless”. I’m not sure when you are ready to move on to the next Step. I consider myself a person of faith and spirituality and Step Two makes sense. I’ve been looking to faith for a long time especially when I knew I had a problem with my husband’s alcoholism. Sometimes I feel like my prayers are not answered and then I blame myself. I’ve been praying for so long, asking for peace in my life. I’ve also just recently been attending Al-Anon on a regular… Read more »
I have had a very flexible and fluid idea of “God” long before coming to this program. The same way I believe a “day” in the creation of the earth could be a million years, I also believe my Higher Power can be a traditional God but can also be many powers that are outside of me: the Al-Anon program, the AA program, the universe, the world of science. So having multiple ideas of a Higher Power makes it easy to feel that in any given circumstance, one of those powers could restore me to sanity. The Step doesn’t say… Read more »
The controlling patterns of my spouse recently came to the surface of my awareness just a few months ago and I reached out to friend who provided affirmation and assurance to me that the way I had been living was no longer tolerable, especially on an emotional level. Through this friendship I began to see how much more support I needed, beyond the friendship. Another person alone wasn’t enough to help me continue on in this journey of needing even more affirmation and assurance. I needed to reestablish my relationship with my Higher Power on a deeper level. To cry… Read more »