Not a very big word, but a powerful one. Willing is defined as being ready, eager, or prepared to do something. It takes a will to accomplish anything in life. One must have a willing desire to finish a degree, go to work, work on a project, change a behavior.
Willingness is the first step is achieving recovery. Someone else can wish or hope for your recovery, but only you can have a will for it. One must be willing to make changes. Without willingness, one would be just going through the steps and the steps would eventually lead them back down the wrong path.
First question one should ask themselves is how willing are they to take the actions needed to achieve and maintain recovery.
It is said, “If there’s a will, there’s a way”. This is true on many levels. If someone has a will to accomplish something and their effort is blocked, they will look to accomplish the will another way. Having a will for a desired outcome drives us to obtain the outcome. In addition, willingness makes us flexible, pliable and ready to make changes. Flexibility may be defined as “capable of being bent, usually without breaking; adaptable, willing to yield; pliable…Pliant stresses an inherent quality or tendency to bend that does not require force or pressure from the outside” (Dictionary.com) Just think of the possibilities one can achieve if they assume this nature.
Upon creation the Lord gave human’s a will. He wanted us to be able to think for ourselves and make choices, to have a ” free” will. How we use this gift can either benefit us or it can destroy us. Though we can and do make good choices using our “free will”, we can also make poor choices with our “free will.”
Sometimes we get so lost in our poor choices that it’s hard to find a way out of the depths we have dug ourselves into. When this happens, we hopefully come to a place of surrender. A surrender of our will over to the will of our maker. This is seen in the bible with the potter and the clay.
But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Jeremiah 18:2-6
The potter working with the clay reminds us that God is at work in us “for His good pleasure” . Philippians 2:13. Isaiah 45:19 says, “Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’?”
Once you’ve achieved your willingness to change and you’re ready to submit your will to your Creator, God can then accomplish His good and perfect will in you! imagine being a lump of clay. You are made with wonderful substance, but until you surrender yourself into the hands of the potter you will never realize your full potential. However, with the potter’s help and your submission, you can be made into a beautiful vessel. The vessel you were meant to be all along. Often times out of pride or disbelief, people stay stuck. They don’t want to admit they are powerless or need help. These are the people who may never get out of their addiction. They will return to it again and again, ultimately missing the chance to become the vessel they were meant to be . The result being, using their will for their own self destruction. This is a sad, but important reminder that we are given only so much time on this earth to use our will for good for ourselves and others.
Many people who don’t have faith in God, believe they are self made people. They feel that by their determination, hard work and good choices they have gained successful lives. This is partly true, however one must also realize that they didn’t give themselves the gift of life, nor the talents and abilities they possess. This came from a source outside of themselves. In addition, belief in our Lord and Creator moves us beyond our human limitations and enables the power of the Lord’s spirit to work in us and through us, perfecting us in all ways. This belief comes from the “free will” the Lord gave us upon our creation. It is very freeing to trust in the will of the Lord, it takes a lot of life pressures off of us. Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV) Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your path’s.
The question is, ARE YOU WILLING?
~Teri Storm