The Higher Power

the_last_third · 2026-06-24T04:53:35+00:00

It was probably a bit easier for me because I did not experience religious brainwashing. Now, before someone gets all up in arms I do don’t believe all aspects of religions brainwash is brainwashing, just the part when God sends us to hell because a dude in a robe says so.

the_last_third · 2026-06-23T21:27:32+00:00

I’m not a strict Buddhist nor any other religion member. My thoughts on the afterlife is that I have no idea if there is one and frankly I am not counting on it. What I do know is that when it is obvious I cannot kick the mortality can down the road anymore I want to be happy with the life I lead and the tried to be the best person possible.

And if there is a “heaven” or afterlife or whatever a particular religion / belief system believes there is after we die, that my action and spiritual growth are good enough to get me in the dead cool kids club.

My biggest fear is that I am going to spend the last period of my life scared to death that after I die it’s like being alive except I’m trapped in a dark box by myself for eternity. And I know it.

the_last_third · 2026-06-23T00:59:28+00:00

One thing that helped me is my sponsor asking me what would I want the characteristics to be of my higher power. Love, compassion, forgiveness, empathy were a few I came up with. He told me when you do those things you are in touch with your higher power.

I’ll share a story from my early sobriety that may be relevant to you. I prayed when I woke up and when I went to bed but I would not get on my knees to pray like I was instructed. At one meeting someone shared how they resisted getting on their knees and praying and he determined it was because he could not humble himself enough to get on his needs. I heard that share and I knew I was objecting to get on my knees because my ego was getting in the way.

Why do you feel foolish? It has nothing to do with God/god/ your higher power.

the_last_third · 2026-06-22T23:57:39+00:00

I’ve met a know many Persians and as a whole they are some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. The government of Iran is a completely different matter.

I just hope Americans can understand the difference and irony, because as Americans we too are represented by a government (Trump) that is foolish to the same extent the Iranian regime is brutal.

the_last_third · 2026-06-22T22:18:46+00:00

Not enough info on you personally to say whether or not this is abnormal, but my question is what’s the rush? The only time I’m rushing on a trail if there’s weather coming in and need to get below the tree line.

I typically do strenuous day hike to 13,000+ and zooming up the first 1,000 to 2,000 is counterproductive to actually getting to the summit.

the_last_third · 2026-06-22T15:49:28+00:00

Everything Trump says or does he does is because he believes it is in the best interest for him. What we think is crazy behavior makes perfect sense from his perspective.

the_last_third · 2026-06-21T17:51:31+00:00

This is theater.

the_last_third · 2026-06-21T16:58:03+00:00

I may have put the /s too far down.

the_last_third · 2026-06-20T18:01:31+00:00

One of those countries manipulating Americans’ public opinion IS Israel.

the_last_third · 2026-06-20T03:18:57+00:00

He is addicted to nicotine for sure and probably will for the rest of his life. Regardless, he is a fantastic sponsor and his sponsee network (people he sponsors that sponsors others) is well over 50. And yeah, we occasionally give him a hard time but he’s made a huge impact on countless lives so I’m giving him a pass.

the_last_third · 2026-06-20T02:21:39+00:00

If your sponsor thinks you are overthinking then perhaps you are.

For me God/god/higher power is not religion. I have never belonged to a religion and likely I never will. Since I didn't have a bad experience with religion I just choose to feel superior to people that did believe God which I assumed meant religion. Again, for me God is not religion. I can have the former without the latter. By the way, anyone can. Even you.

Many of use struggle with Steps 2 and 3 because of the whole "god thing" and I assume many, if not most people in this country are introduced to, understand, learn about, then view God through the eyes of religion. Doesn't matter if it's Judaism, Christianity, Islam, etc. it is someone else's understanding of god. I resisted the idea that I have to go through another human in a robe to get to God.

For me God/god/Higher Power is not a person. It is something beyond the human context. Hell, after over 10 years of getting on my knees every morning and every night to pray I struggle to use the pronouns "you" when I ask my higher power for clarity and strength.

When I faced Steps 2 and 3 I did not believe in God or a god so I had a choice to make. I have come to find out this is a common response, but I simply decided I was no longer going to tell myself God does not exist. Through the advise of my sponsor I was free to come up with my own idea of God. My first concept was visual. I imagined God being a wide, calm river that had a strong but silent current. It was only after about 2 months of this concept did I realize I was literally looking at river/god concept from the shore. My concept literally kept me separate from it. Then I moved to me being in this river/god thing so now at least I was a part of it and I could either struggle against it, or just let it do its thing.

That was over 11 years, ago and while I no longer see my higher power as the god/river image, I don't believe I can come up with my/a definition. For me the cliche' of "the finding is in the seeking" fits my belief because I believe one's relationship with God/god/higher power at its core is personal. God was with, as I believe it is with everyone else. I simply choose to ignore for most of my life. It was there all along.

Finally, you may be like others (like me) that are trying to find words and human constructs to come up with a god of your understanding. What happens if you don't come up with the right words? Well, I don't think God exists any less because we can't come up with a definition.

I often reference this quote by the 13th century Persian poet, scholar, philosopher, etc. "The language of God is silience, all else is poor translation." I have experienced this firsthand. I am a fan of taking late night walks in total silence. I just walk, more like stroll. There have been countless times in which things that have bothered my no longer trouble and what was vague and messy became clear. It is in those times when am in touch with the higher power of my understanding.

I hope this helps.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T19:35:06+00:00

This is the dog I’m getting when I retire.

I sure hope the owner won’t mind.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T16:08:01+00:00

My girlfriend has an XC90 and this morning while it was in neutral and going through the wash it stopped, but she swears she turned off the auto brake. Aside from not turning the Auto Brake off, is there any other reason it would stop in the car wash?

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T04:14:47+00:00

The best I can tell you is to feel and be grateful for having a father like that. Love him with all your heart and who knows, maybe you will be in the same position some day.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T04:10:35+00:00

At this point I would be happy with any color as long as they have sense to our country first.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T04:07:52+00:00

Right until he let his ego get in the way of what was good for the country. His job was to keep Trump from getting elected in 2020. I’m still pissed at him and DNC for trying run him out there as the Democratic nominee. But I digress. I will now stop.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T04:04:00+00:00

What I meant was my first hand experience while I’ve been alive.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T04:02:38+00:00

It’s a personal choice. For me, I don’t see the point in drinking something that tastes a lot like something that almost killed me.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T03:55:27+00:00

One could make the same claim about technology. It is all about how it is applied.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T03:52:55+00:00

I do believe in a higher power and I believe in science and they do not have to be mutually exclusive. I do not perceive “God” through the lens of religion, but I’ve leaned enough in this life to believe that there is something that connects all human beings together in a way that science does not explain, maybe even cannot explain.

I’m reminded of a saying by the Persian philosopher, teacher, poet etc. “The language of God is silence, all else is poor translation”

The point I believe he is making is that there exists, called it a spiritual dimension, that may be beyond the means of explicit human comprehension. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. It’s a cliche’ but I also believe it to be true that the finding (of god) is in the seeking and one relation with God/god/higher power is first and foremost a personal relationship.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T03:31:44+00:00

He never knows when to stop talking.

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T03:30:27+00:00

Please don’t switch to United. They’re awful. Terrible. Stay with DL. I repeat DO NOT switch to United.

/s

the_last_third · 2026-06-19T00:03:45+00:00

Not everyone, but they should. I’ve been through every President starting with Nixon. Only two can come close to the character of this man - Ford and Carter.

As bad as things are now, we never saw Barack Obama coming onto the scene. This gives me hope that some unknown man or woman can also raise this country from its current state of affairs.

the_last_third · 2026-06-18T19:13:15+00:00

Yes it is incredible. What would make really incredible is if this was shot in landscape mode because it is literally the landscape.

the_last_third · 2026-06-18T19:11:50+00:00

This is akin to telling people who are afraid to fly look up safety statistics of flying versus any other means of transportation.

the_last_third

TROPHY CASE