Were  entirely  ready  to  have  God  remove  all  these  defects  of  character. Humbly  asked  Him  to  remove  our  shortcomings. Some  A.A.  pioneers  refer  to  Steps  Six  and  Seven  as  the  “second  surrender.”    In  Step  Three  we ask  God  to  “take  away  (our)  difficulties,”  even  though  we  may  only  have  a  general  idea  as  to what  they  are.    In  Steps  Six  and  Seven  we  surrender  the  specific  items  that  are  preventing  us from  tapping  into  the  “Power  greater  than  (ourselves)  that  will  solve  our  problem.” In  the  first  paragraph  on  page  76,  the  “Big  Book”  authors  provide  details  about  this  second surrender:

“.   .   .   (W)e   then   look   at   Step   Six.     We   have   emphasized   willingness   as   being indispensable.    Are  we  now  ready  to  let  God  remove  from  us  all  the  things  which  we have  admitted  are  objectionable?    Can  He  now  take  them  all—every  one?    If  we  still cling  to  something  we  will  not  let  go,  we  ask  God  to  help  us  be  willing.” Throughout  the  “Big  Book,”  the  authors  make  clear  we  must  be  willing  to  take  certain  actions  if we  are  to  overcome  our  addictions  and  compulsive  behaviors.    On  page  568,  the  authors  state that,  “Willingness,  honesty,  and  open  mindedness  are  the  essentials  of  recovery,”  and  on  page 124   the   authors   explain   the   importance   of   willingness   when   they   write,   “We   grow   by   our willingness  to  face  and  rectify  errors  (our  liabilities)  and  convert  them  into  assets.”

Willingness  implies  acceptance  without  reluctance.    We  must  have  no  reservations  about  giving up  the  liabilities  we  talked  about  in  Steps  Four  and  Five;  specifically,  the  resentments  (page  64), the   fears   (page   68),   and   the   harm   we   have   done   to   others   because   of   our   selfishness, dishonesty,  inconsideration,  jealousy,  suspicion  and  bitterness  (page  69). As  we  learned  in  a  previous  article,  “Healing  is  in  the  sharing,  not  in  the  writing.”    During  the Fourth  Step,  the  sponsor  writes  down  some  generic  names  and  puts  some  marks  on  a  checklist. The  objective  is  to  compile  an  amends  list,  not  chronicle  every  dastardly  deed  or  questionable behavior  the  sponsee  has  ever  engaged  in. In  Step  Six,  we  ask  the  God  of  our  understanding  to  remove  the  liabilities  that  are  blocking  us. If  we  are  unwilling  to  let  go  of  some  of  these  shortcomings,  the  sponsor  and  sponsee  together pray  for  the  willingness  to  have  these  shortcomings  removed. This  prayer  can  be  life-­‐changing.    I  have  personally  witnessed  many  “psychic  changes,”  as  the direct  result  of  making  this  “petition”  in  the  presence  of  the  sponsee.    I  have  seen  abuse  issues resolved  and  fear  issues  overcome  with  this  simple  request  for  willingness. The  Sixth  Step  question  is  a  rewording  of  the  third  sentence  in  the  first  paragraph  on  page  76. It  reads:

“Are   you   now   ready   to   let   God   remove   from   you   all   the   things   which   you   have admitted  are  objectionable?” If  you  can  answer  in  the  affirmative,  then  you  have  taken  Step  Six  and  are  ready  to  move  on  to Step  Seven. In  the  Seventh  Step  we  turn  our  assets  as  well  as  our  liabilities  over  to  the  “Power  greater  than ourselves.”    Then,  we  ask  the  Power  to  give  back  to  us  only  what  we  need  “to  be  of  maximum service   to   God   and   the   people   about   us”   (page   77,   lines   3-­‐4).     According   to   the   “Big   Book” authors,  being  of  service  is  our  “real  purpose.” We  ask  the  God  of  our  understanding  to  remove  the  blocks  that  have  been  standing  in  the  way of  our  recovery.    We  ask  that  these  blocks  be  taken  away,  not  for  our  own  well-­‐being,  but  so  we can  help  others.    We  get  out  of  ourselves  by  working  with  those  who  are  still  suffering  or  who have  lost  their  way.    Once  we  remove  those  things  that  have  separated  us  from  the  Power greater  than  human  power,  we  become  much  more  efficient  and  effective  in  our  ability  to  carry a  beneficial  message. This  is  a  selfless  program  and  the  Seventh  Step  prayer  exemplifies  this  concept  of  selflessness. The  prayer  is  found  in  the  second  paragraph  on  page  76:

“.  .  .  My  Creator,  I  am  now  willing  that  you  should  have  all  of  me,  good  and  bad.    I  pray that  you  now  remove  from  me  every  single  defect  of  character  which  stands  in  the  way of  my  usefulness  to  you  and  my  fellows.    Grant  me  strength,  as  I  go  out  from  here,  to  do your  bidding.    Amen.” Even  though  we  have  identified  the  blocks  and  asked  “the  One  who  has  all  power”  to  remove them,  the  blocks  are  not  cleared  away  until  we  make  restitution  to  those  we’ve  harmed.    We  do this  is  Steps  Eight  and  Nine  which  we  will  cover  in  the  next  article.