Today's Readings - Voices of Recovery

"By following these Steps, thousands of compulsive overeaters have stopped eating compulsively . . . What we do have to offer is far greater than any of these things - a fellowship in which we find . . . the healing power of lo e." OA 12 & 12 p. ix It is sometimes asked which is more important, the Steps or the Fellowship? For me the answer is that the Steps and the Fellowship are like two oars in a rowboat. If I only row with one arm I will go around in circles. Before I was an OA member, i had a copy of the Twelve Steps on my wall. With great enthusiasm i went around making amends and went home to overeat. I'm glad to say I found healing power in the OA Fellowship. On the other hand, I have a friend who loved to socialize after meetings but thought the Steps were optional. She couldn't stay abstinent until she embraced the Steps. Today, we are both among the thousands of OA members who have many years of freedom from compulsive eating. With one hand rowing the Steps and the other hand rowing the Fellowship, I have no free hands with which to overeat. God is on board directing me to the dry land of a contented abstinence.