Why the Big Book Is a Suggested Program Not a Program of Suggestions – John L.

About This Speaker Tape

2006 Tennessee Conf of Young People - 2006

A Memphis man with a high-energy delivery describes a life once defined by stealing wine from his mother and selling it to a 'booze hound' on a balcony. He recounts the visceral shock of his system rejecting alcohol at sixteen a precursor to a vicious descent that left him waking up on chapel floors among a hundred smelling men. The turning point arrives on December 8 2001 after a failed attempt to lie about a sobriety date while clutching a 40-ounce beer. He details the rigorous process of the Fourth Step where his sponsor acted as a prosecuting attorney to strip away his lies and the profound relief of paying back $850 to a former employer at Sonic Drive-In and $500 to a corporate office after stealing from a single mother. He frames his recovery not as a series of spectacular feats but as a simple stubborn obedience to spiritual principles to avoid a 'death warrant.'

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Introduction by the Speaker Chair praising John L.'s energy and dedication.
• 4:15 John L. recalls the three promises a mentor gave him: never having to drink again, never being alone, and that the program works.
• 8:30 Story about stealing wine from his mother and selling it to a 'booze hound' on a balcony.
• 12:45 The heartbreaking moment his mother tells him she loves him but doesn't like him.
• 15:30 Waking up on a chapel floor with 100 men and the decision to finally surrender to alcohol.
• 18:45 Discussion of the Big Book and the 'suggested' 12 steps as a program of action.
• 22:15 Detailed account of the Fourth Step and his sponsor's role as a 'prosecuting attorney'.
• 25:00 The process of making amends and paying back $850 to Sonic Drive-In.
• 29:30 Reflections on the 12 and 12 and the warning about signing one's own death warrant.
• 33:00 Laughter: The 'Today is the day' joke about the priest and the man in the back.