WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN

Ah, my friend, 'when the chips are down' — that's the moment we find out what our recovery is really made of. You see, in the Big Book, we're told that our sobriety is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition [Page 85]. When the bottom drops out — a job loss, a relationship crisis, or just a terrible day — we don't pick up a drink. Instead, we turn to the Steps we've practiced. Step Ten tells us to 'continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear' and when these crop up, we ask God for the right thought and action [Page 84]. That's when the chips are down: we spot the old reaction, pause, and choose a new one. The Promises assure us that 'we will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it' [Page 83] — even when the past shows up in the present. Our job is to stay close to the program, reach out to another alcoholic, and remember that this too shall pass. As the Big Book says, 'God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves' [Page 84].