The story goes that Brian was leaning against a fence enjoying a magnificent view of the Grand Canyon, when the fence broke and he began plunging down into the abyss.

About halfway down he was able to grab and clutch the branch of a tree growing out of the side of the canyon. Gasping he looked up and down, there wasn’t any escape. The chasm below stretched out before him unbroken for 500 yards or more. He knew to fall would be to die. He also knew that no one had seen him fall, he was alone at that lookout spot and he guessed that he was far enough down that his screams would not be heard. He knew that this was the end, but something inside of him desperately wanted to live.

He cried out to the heavens, ” God help me.” Recognizing how much fear he was in he again repeated, ” Please God, help me.”

To his amazement, within seconds there came a response, “All right.” The initial warmth and relief turned to even more fear as the the voice continued, “Let go.”

Brian glanced down thinking maybe something below had changed, but he still saw the cavernous abyss and he knew that to let go would be to die.  He looked to the heavens and said, “But God you don’t understand, I’m too far up, I can’t let go”.

“Let go,” the voice repeated.

Silence filled the canyon, then in a weak terrified voice Brian asked, “Is there anyone else up there”?

I’ve given plenty of examples that describe intentions wrapped in ego. Let me end with a wonderful example of intentions that include a healthy sense of self. The more I understand of the life of Betty Ford who passed away this past week, the more impressed I am. She was a true super hero in the mold of Wonder Woman. After dealing with her own demons, she set the intention to make a difference in other people’s lives. You would think that having the highest profile drug and alcohol treatment center in the country named after you might be an ego trip.

On the contrary, apparently she agreed to her name being associated only reluctantly. In fact, it was a matter of accountability for her. She said this, “The center’s name has been burden, as well as honor. Because even if nobody else holds me responsible, I hold myself responsible.”

I like to believe that so many people have been helped by Betty Ford and her treatment center because she set healthy intentions to begin with, and did so with a healthy sense of self and a desire to genuinely empower people in their recovery just as she was empowered.

What are your bold intentions for yourself and the world? Whether you set large scale intentions like treatment centers or whether it’s the intention to live in more peaceful relationships or the personal intention to live with greater balance, get your ego out of the way and get on with the business of being the change you want to see in the world. Participate in the raising of a global intention, galvanizing the collective power of millions of kindred spirits, to bring healing to the world, one person, one community and one nation at a time. There is an abundance of the resources that matter most. Together we have the power to transform entire systems for the greater good of all of humanity, for generations to come.

Copyright 2010 by Ian Lawton. All rights reserved.

The other issue was that humility hadn’t been a part of my character. To me, it was the same as being vulnerable and I wasn’t about to let anyone crack through the wall I had built up around myself.

As usual with the steps if there is an issue it is best to examine the previous step: my relationship with my Higher Power and my willingness to have it come before anything else needed to be confirmed.

A persistent effort on my part was necessary. I had to leave behind the striving to be perfect and the consuming idea that I could always be right. In recovery I had a lot of learning to do.

Once trust was established with my Higher Power it was time to search deep into my resentments, fears and harms I had caused.

It says in our Big Book: “Being convinced that self, manifested in various ways, was what had defeated us, we considered its common manifestations.”

Admitting these shortcomings to another human being relieved me of my terminal uniqueness. Now I was able to examine my selfishness, inconsideration, dishonesty, low self-esteem, greed and lust. These were not characteristics I wanted but they were comfortable. The opportunity was now present to humbly ask my Higher Power to remove them if I was ready. I believe the spiritual awakening that comes from finally sharing my deepest secrets unlocked a readiness in a way nothing else could.

I found humility of self from letting go of my defects and trusting my Higher Power. After all, they weren’t of any benefit and my new life required me to get comfortable with what had been uncomfortable.

I wanted to be generous in spirit, a humble soul and have a modest appetite; to occupy that middle ground of life that allows me to be happy, joyous and free.

My thoughts were that I had everything under control. But my street-smarts brought me to a crash that should have taken my life. Learning that we have a lot to learn-that we’ll always have a lot to learn-is one of the greatest lessons of recov­ery and of life. In recovery I have learned that the more I learn, the more I have to learn. My saving grace has been that I am willing to be teachable and to take action based on what I learn.

Seger’s line, though grammatically difficult, and the song seem to be about life’s struggles and the realization that we never know it all. That real knowledge comes from knowing oneself on the inside and being honest to that.

The realization that we can leave unlimited knowledge to God can be very liberating. No more pretending. We don’t have to put up a false front. We no longer have to worry that our “ignorance” will be discovered. It means that we can accept that our knowledge gaps are not character defects. They are simply human. It means that we can ask for help from God, from others, from ourselves. Most of all, it makes it possible to learn that we don’t know.

Not having to have all the answers is a strength, not weakness.

Rally for Recovery by In The Rooms

Why:
This weekend is the InTheRooms.com 1st annual “Rally For Recovery” in Miami. The Rally for Recovery will be held in Bicentennial Park in beautiful Downtown Miami and will include a festival featuring Eric Burdon and the Animals, Richie Supa and many more.

For a small donation of $9 dollars, you can be part of this great walk and festival – as well as support InTheRooms.com’s non-profit foundation for the recovery community. The folks at InTheRooms.com promise that the event will be full of great music, delicious food and wonderful array of great people from the recovery community.

Want to be part of the 2009 Rally for Recovery? REGISTER HERE!

Eric Burdon and the Animals and Richie Supa are just a couple of the acts set to perform at the rally which is scheduled to be an all day event that begins with registrations at 7 am and the festival doesn’t stop until well past 4 pm.

InTheRooms.com is the fastest growing social networking website on the web. At ITR, you’ll find a friendly and supportive community of people in recovery – including friends and family of people in recovery.