March 14

Most of the time when we think about the Fourth Step, we think of our relationships with people. People are definitely a major part of our Fourth Step. We also have to inventory our relationship with places and things.

Some places we might want to include are, churches, schools, military, hospitals, and any other community structures and services. Have we acted out toward these places? Did we forge paperwork to get services we didn't need or qualify for? Have we stolen property from anyone of these places, or cause structural or any other kind of damage? Things that we might owe amends to can also be in forms of ideas. Have we created resentments with religious beliefs? Have we rebelled against society and therefore became a menace? Although some of these harms seem invisible to the eyes of those things, it did have an effect on our thinking, attitudes and behaviors.

Our Literature tells us that most of all we harmed ourselves. In our active addiction we demanded to be served or catered to, by services that are really a privilege, rather than a right to have. Having the privilege to obtain a driver's license seems to be a common example of this right to entitlement, when it's really a Privilege. Resenting places because we were not hired or got fired by the establishment.

Many of us held resentments against colleges and the military, and spoke against these places, when asked what we thought about them. One of our greatest resentments seem to be with God; this affected us the most. We need a Higher Power to Recover, and if we don't establish a relationship with one, we are surely doomed.

We must go deep in our search.