Happy are the Peacemakers

Principle 6: Evaluate all my relationships; Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I’ve
 done to others except when to do so would harm them or others.



Happy are the merciful. 

Matt 5:7  

Happy are the peacemakers. Matt 5:9

The time I consider myself most active in my recovery is when I am constantly checking life events against the steps and principles. In order for me to stay clean, I have to constantly go through the steps and principles no matter how many times I have done them in the past. 

The one principle that I have always had trouble doing my best with is Principle 6. Principle 6 for me is the one where I take a look at my past and present and see if I have wronged anyone or if anyone has wronged me. I then try to approach each issue and see if there is anything I need to do in accordance with principle 6. I mentally ask myself questions like this:
 Do I need to apologize to my wife for not helping get the kids ready for school? (The answer is yes, by the way.) 
Or
 I should probably sit down with my daughter and apologize for yelling at her when she didn’t deserve it.
 I know I am supposed to do these things and sometimes they are easy and sometimes they are not. 

Part of principle 6 says …Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me. This part is something I usually do in my head if the person has not apologized to me. I try to give it to God and then I don’t have to worry about it.
 
I say all that but I do have a situation where I am praying to God about a betrayal that I still get angry about. When I start to get angry I will usually ask God to take the anger away. I have to do these things so that I can learn to be a better person and also to stay drug and alcohol free. 
 

Grateful Believer,

Eddie