The 'Just Read the Black Part' 12 Step Workshop

Hello. My name is Steve, and I am a grateful recovering person in the 12 step program. Welcome to the "Just Read the Black Part" 12 Step Workshop. Outlined in these pages are "the instructions" available concerning the 12 Steps. This is an Index to show you how to get to the parts where we have the steps outlined for us in the big book. I am now teaching a workshop of this nature and it has been my own personal experience that there are plenty of places in the book that leave some things up to our interpretation. Everyone that I have sponsored seems to run into the same questions that I did. For me, this was not a good thing. It caused me to have excuses to procrastinate, rationalizing that it was a matter of my lack of understanding. Hopefully, this will help alleviate the same problem for someone else. I only wish to be of service, not try to be an expert.

Some sponsors may disagree that this should be done by the book. I have buried people who didn't go by the book. For us this is essential. If someone reads this and sees places where I have inserted notes, these are not just my opinions developed from being a sponsor. These opinions are based on information provided to me by other members of the 12 Step Program in order to direct my thinking towards something other than "My Own Good Thinking". This was the first time in my life that I have tried to be directed by what the will of a higher intelligence, a power greater than myself, would have me do rather than what my own selfish thoughts would be. Because of this, I have gained over thirteen years of continous sobriety and in spiritual recovery. This may not seem important to anyone but me, although if you asked anyone who knew me before, they will agree that this is truly a miracle. Even the fact that I can have a change in my perceptions is a miracle in itself.