Change does not have to be grim, exhausting self-improvement. It can be approached as an adventure — something that happens when I stop fighting myself and allow a real transformation to unfold, one that I did not design and cannot fully control. There is something freeing in that surrender.
Step Six asks me for readiness, not perfection. I do not need to fix myself before moving on. I only need enough honesty to admit that some things in me are not leading to life, and enough humility to become willing to let God remove them.
This step is not about blaming myself or forcing change through willpower. It is about taking responsibility, letting go of denial, and entering a real process of healing, trusting that transformation is something God does in me, not something I can manufacture on my own. If I could have sorted this out by myself, I would have done it long ago.
#lent #12steps #step6
Honesty is not just a matter of saying the right words. It means speaking from a deeper place, not only from my head, but from the part of me that has truly met the truth.
Healing begins when I stop managing appearances and stop trying to say what sounds acceptable. At the very least, I have to stop lying to myself; but if I want real change, I also need to bring that truth to God and to another person I can trust.
That person matters. I need someone who will understand, who will not judge me, and who will not be harmed by what I say, because this step is meant to serve healing, not just to give me temporary relief.
This kind of honesty is not about perfection or about naming every detail out of fear. It is about saying what needs to be said in a way that serves recovery, because what stays hidden keeps growing in my mind and gains power over me.
Shame makes me want to stay silent, but silence does not set me free. What I finally speak aloud begins to return to its real size, and that is where recovery can move forward.
#lent #12steps #step5
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