Finding Non-Spiritual Answers to a Spiritual Problem – Sandy B.

About This Speaker Tape

Sandy B. maps out the paradoxical nature of recovery where setbacks often serve as the only way to force a deeper spiritual connection. He recounts a devastating marriage collapse and the loss of his home describing how the program allows a person to exist in two places at once: enduring extreme grief while simultaneously feeling a profound gratitude for the fellowship.

Sandy B. dismantles the illusion of 'willpower' and the 'intellectual dissertation' of the agnostic arguing that the only way out of the fatal illness of alcoholism is to surrender to the 'full package' of spiritual principles. He uses the image of a .45 caliber pistol cocking behind his head as a reminder of the stakes of sobriety contrasting the wreckage of the 'nut ward' with the joy of a boring stable life.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Introduction of Sandy B. and his 19-year sobriety milestone.
• 4:15 Laughter: Sandy B. discusses the 'revelation' that drinking gets you drunk.
• 7:30 The 'nut ward' story: Sandy B. describes his time at Bethesda Naval Hospital and the ashtray competition.
• 11:45 Sandy B. shares the pain of his fifth wedding anniversary and the end of his marriage.
• 15:20 Discussion on the 'technicolor' of life and the perspective provided by the fellowship.
• 20:10 Sandy B. addresses the 'problem with Higher Power' and the transition from 'Higher Power' to 'Higher Power'.
• 24:45 Analysis of the 'We Agnostics' chapter in the Big Book.
• 30:15 The analogy of the .45 caliber pistol and the 'fatal illness' of alcoholism.
• 35:40 The 'toothache' analogy: The struggle to accept the 'full package' of spiritual help.
• 42:10 Closing thoughts on the power of 'one day well lived' and staying in the middle of the group.