June 18: God at Work in You

What if you can’t even make yourself want to change?

Paul says something that takes the pressure off. It is God who works in you both to will and to work, for His good pleasure.

To will. That means to want. To be willing. God works in you even at that level. Not just helping you do the right thing, but helping you want to.

That’s huge for Step Six. The step asks you to become entirely ready. But what if you can’t produce that readiness? What if you’ve tried to want to let go of a defect, and you just don’t?

Paul’s answer is that willingness itself is something God gives. You don’t have to manufacture it from scratch. He’s already working in you, shaping your desires, changing what you want.

That doesn’t mean you do nothing. The verse just before this says: work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. You cooperate. You show up. You pray. You stay honest. You keep doing the things that keep you close to God. But underneath your effort, God is doing the deeper work.

Many people find this a relief. Recovery isn’t a test of how hard you can try. It’s a relationship with a God who is working in you even when you can’t feel it.

You might notice it in small ways. A defect you used to defend starts to bother you. Something you used to enjoy now feels empty. You find yourself wanting to be kinder, more honest, more patient, without forcing it. That’s God working in you to will.

Pay attention to those shifts. They’re signs that Step Six is happening, even if you don’t feel entirely ready yet.

One thing today

Write down one way your desires have changed since you got sober. Something you want now that you didn’t before, or something you used to want that no longer pulls you. Thank God for working in you.

A prayer

God, I can’t even make myself want the right things sometimes. Thank You that You work in me to will and to do. Keep changing what I want. I’m cooperating as best I can. Do the deeper work. Amen.

Read about Step Six.

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