E216: Beyond Belief- Navigating Higher Powers and Personal Spirituality in Recovery Artwork

Sober Friends

The Sober Friends Podcast: Two Guys Talking Recovery

Matt and Steve have been sober for over a decade each. They still don't have it all figured out.

This is a podcast about recovery - AA recovery specifically - but it's not your sponsor's recovery podcast. It's two friends talking through the stuff that actually matters:

What do you DO when you're not drinking? How do you handle control issues 15 years in? Why does calling someone in recovery feel so goddamn hard? What happens when you remove alcohol but don't replace it with anything? And seriously, do you miss drinking or do you just miss the relief?

Every week Matt and Steve work through these questions together - sometimes they have answers, sometimes they're figuring it out in real time, and sometimes they just need to talk it out like you do with a friend who gets it.

If you're in recovery, thinking about recovery, or just trying to figure out how to live without alcohol as your coping mechanism - welcome. Grab some coffee. Let's talk.

Topics: Alcoholics Anonymous, 12-step recovery, sobriety, addiction, relapse, service work, early recovery, staying sober, and everything in between.

Matt and Steve work AA programs but speak only for themselves. This show isn't affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous.

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Sober Friends

E216: Beyond Belief- Navigating Higher Powers and Personal Spirituality in Recovery

February 18, 2025 • Matt J, Steve C • Episode 216

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In this thought-provoking episode of Sober Friends, Matt and Steve engage in a candid conversation about spirituality in recovery following their experience at a Joe and Charlie Big Book study. They thoughtfully examine the suggestion that atheists cannot truly work the AA program, offering nuanced perspectives on what constitutes a "higher power."

The discussion explores several important dimensions of recovery:

Alternatives to traditional religious concepts of God in sobriety
The role of nature and energy as potential higher powers
How fellowship can serve as a power greater than oneself
Personal experiences finding peace at the beach and during solo hikes
The value of questioning beliefs while maintaining sobriety
Balancing individual spiritual journeys with program fundamentals

This episode provides valuable insights for anyone in recovery who is working to define their own spiritual path, whether they identify as religious, spiritual-but-not-religious, agnostic, or atheist. Matt and Steve demonstrate through their own experiences that recovery is accessible through various spiritual frameworks, emphasizing that what matters most is finding what works for you.

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