Higher Power or Higher Malarkey?

The fundamental crux of Alcoholic Anonymous is the corner-stone ideology of a higher power.

It is essential to understand the vast “exit” from traditional religion. In fact, we continue to see a steady drop each year according to?Pew Research. The variables involved in church drama are significant, therefore, it is essential to reconstruct a “salvation” narrative, from a pragmatic and alcoholic standpoint.

I don’t know about you, but the last time I went to church the pastor was gurgling on about the end-of-times while a lady was taking a few laps with a tambourine around the auditorium.

There is Only Power

The English language does a great job of categorizing the essential information we need as a species for survival. It does a pretty shitty job, however, in helping us navigate existential ideas.

We are inherently separating ourselves from our “Higher Power” with the use of the adjective “Higher”. Our brains do not have a choice but to associate the idea of something being “higher”, with the fallacy of our inability to reach it due to the linguistic structure of the idea.

The reality; we are not separate from it and it is not out of our reach. We were not, nor will we ever be. The insanity of life is that we ARE life; We ARE power; A conduit for living. That higher power is here now, inside of us, ready to be utilized.

The problem, the axiomatic problem, is that we are having trouble finding it.

Traditional religion does this really silly thing where they tell you one thing, and then act a different way. For example, God loves you / God will send you to hell.

The amount of sermons concocted by pastors across the world attempting to reconcile the aforementioned comparison is on pace to replace every document in the library of congress in number by the year 2040 (okay, maybe I am just guessing). The reality is quite simple, like a married bachelor, both of these ideas cannot exist in the same space, in context with the current reality we find ourselves in.

We typically refer to individuals who kill the ones they love as sociopathic serial killers. (And for those that argue that we get sent to hell because of our own decisions, kindly fuck off.)

Everything is Okay

Mark Mason, who I will regularly reference in my writing, said in one of his many brilliant articles:

One day, you and everyone you love will die. And beyond a small group of people for an extremely brief period of time, little of what you say or do will ever matter. This is the Uncomfortable Truth of life. And everything you think or do is but an elaborate avoidance of it. We are inconsequential cosmic dust, bumping and milling about on a tiny blue speck. We imagine our own importance. We invent our purpose—we are nothing.

Mark Manson,?The Uncomfortable Truth

While it sounds hopeless, he goes on to explain this is the foundation of finding meaning. I would argue it is the foundation for finding your higher power.

The realization that we have but a brief moment to pursue growth can either invigorate or traumatize us, depending on the narrative we chose that will allow us to utilize each and every tool we have to explore who we might become one day. This increases the value of our life tremendously. The supply is short, and demand is tremendous.

A glimmer of life lost and locked in an endlessly complex cycle of trial and error.

This is what it means to be human, whether you utilize Higher Malarkey or Calvinism; we all face the uncomfortable awareness of the human condition – we are void of meaning and desperately trying to find ways to fill it.

What You Can Do

I will write more about this concept in upcoming posts. However, at this point, these ideas beg the question, “So what is it that we CAN do…?”

If you are a Christian, then Christian.

If you are a Muslim, then Muslim.

If you are Spiritual, then go Spirit!

The intent of pointing out these contradictions and uncomfortable questions is to instill growth and the pursuit of understanding WITHIN ourselves about our Higher Power. Only you can answer this question for yourself.

There is incredible literature to be found in each and every faith, spiritual practice, and idea out there and whatever provides the greatest connection for you, should be utilized immediately. The point is not to become dogmatic about our Higher Power, but to constantly remain vigilant to the likely possibility that our understanding of it will change at some point. Is this not growth in and of itself?

If you or a loved one are struggling with substance use or addiction, contact the?Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline?at?1-800-662-4357?for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.?

For more mental health resources, see our?National Helpline Database.