“When we refuse to practice acceptance, we are, in effect, still denying our faith in a Higher Power. Worrying is a lack of faith.” (The Basic Text, p. 93 – 94) (with quotes from Huxley’s Brave New World)
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What are some Brave new examples of when your own self-will got in the way of your faith lately?
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Why does today’s SFZ say that worrying shows a lack of faith?
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Medicine Man – The Hush Sound(3:30)
Huxley’s Brave New World Animation (10:22)
Spiritual Surrender into the Heart of God – Satsang (8:53)
Today’s SFZ explores the spiritual transition described in Step Two of 12-Step recovery: moving from self-will to faith. It focuses on the core struggle between control and surrender. The Basic Text explains that worrying signifies a lack of faith. Addicts often resist acceptance, which is essential to recovery. Without it, they remain trapped in denial and fear.
Psychologist Carl Jung emphasized the spiritual deficit underlying addiction. In his correspondence with Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Jung wrote that only a “spiritual awakening” could counteract the hopelessness of addiction. This aligns with the text’s claim: self-will alone leads to failure.
In Overeaters Anonymous 12 & 12, the idea is expanded. It shows that Step One reveals our powerlessness. Step Two invites belief in something greater. Philosopher Søren Kierkegaard described faith as a “leap into the unknown,” not as certainty, but as trust despite uncertainty. This is the leap addicts are asked to take.
Aldous Huxley, quoted here, called self-will the greatest obstacle to divine understanding. His words echo Christian mysticism, particularly Meister Eckhart’s idea that one must “let go of God for God’s sake.” Self-will, then, blocks revelation.
The call in this text is not to passive belief, but to radical trust. Worry and control stem from ego. Faith, by contrast, begins with surrender. Thomas Merton wrote, “Faith is not an emotion, it is a decision.” The 12-Step path demands that decision repeatedly. Surrender becomes strength.
Through active surrender, faith is no longer mute—it speaks, guides, and restores.
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