In steps four and five of the 12 steps, the addict takes a moral inventory of himself and shares it with his sponsor in the presence of his Higher Power, who he came to believe in through steps two and three. Certain patterns of behavior, known in the fellowship as character defects, become glaringly obvious. In the seventh and eighth steps, it is time to work on getting those defects removed.
Step six-were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character
This step is not one that can be done in a day. Becoming ready to have one’s character defects removed is a long and humbling process. The defects showed themselves in the previous step, and now comes the time to become ready to have them removed. Like step three, this step is about being open-minded and willing. It is believing that it is possible for the addict to live freely, with the defects removed from him by his Higher Power. In the second step, the addict came to believe in a Higher Power, and that Power’s ability to restore him to sanity. Much like that step, he must now realize that he alone is powerless over his defects, and that only God can remove them from him. If he tries to rid himself of his flaws by just willing them away, he will have little success. The key factors in a solid sixth step are perseverance, willingness, faith and self-acceptance. Trust must be placed in the Higher Power of the addict. The willingness refers to being willing to change one’s own ways of behaving in an effort to avoid acting on defects. Perseverance is required because no one is perfect, and this step is continually practiced, but never mastered. Once the addict is ready for God to remove his defects, he is ready for step seven.
Step seven- humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings
Now that the addict has become ready to have his defects removed, it is time to take the seventh step, where he seeks the help of his Higher Power to have them removed. This step is merely asking one’s Higher Power to free him from the bondage of himself. By this point, the addict should have developed a good quantity of humility that was most likely not present before he began the steps; this humility is necessary for step seven. The work done now greatly depends on the addict’s concept of a Higher Power. The most common method of asking a Higher Power to remove defects is through prayer, but that may not be the option that everyone wants to choose. Willingness is key here. Asking God to simply remove the defects will not do much good if the addict doesn’t make the effort to change the way he has been acting. “Faith without works is dead.” Efforts must be put forth that show willingness to live differently. The addict alone can’t rid himself of defects, nor can God remove them from an unwilling person. Through prayer and subtle changes in daily living, the addict will grow to see great changes manifesting in his life. A more spiritual life will be developed, and this will prepare the addict for the eighth and ninth steps.
Sources
"Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions" AA World Services; December 2009
Kathleen Odenthal - Kathleen Odenthal began her writing career in 2010 with Demand Media Studios, writing as a contributor for eHow. After that, she branched ...
