Cooperate Then Move On
Our job is to cooperate with God and then move on to Step Eight.
I've been working Step Seven for a year. Praying repeatedly. Cooperating by choosing differently. Being gentle with myself when defects return. But I'm starting to wonder - when do I move to Step Eight? Do I wait until all my character defects are removed? Because that feels impossible. They're still here and probably always will be.
Our job is to cooperate with God and then move on to Step Eight. Move on. Not wait until perfect. Not delay until all defects are removed. Not stay stuck in Step Seven until transformation is complete. My job is to cooperate - to pray, to choose new responses when opportunities arise, to work with God on removing what's ready. And then move on while defects remain.
My sponsor said she moved to Step Eight while still actively struggling with major character defects. The Steps aren't linear achievements where you master one before starting the next. They're a spiral. You work them, you progress through them, and you come back to them again throughout recovery. God's removal of defects continues through all the Steps not just Step Seven. Staying in Step Seven waiting for perfect removal is itself a form of controlling. My job is to cooperate faithfully and then trust that moving forward is part of God's plan for my recovery.
If I've been working Step Seven for months wondering when to progress, I can ask my sponsor: Am I cooperating with God to the best of my current ability? If yes, it's time to move to Step Eight. The Steps aren't about perfection before progression. Cooperation plus forward movement is how recovery works.
