The God Game

September 1985

By: J. M. | Fife Lake, Michigan

After sobering up and getting active in AA, I was going to do great things. I took a new member of the program into my home and was really going to keep him sober. At this point, I think God said to me, “Okay, go ahead and play God and see what pain and suffering you go through.” Things were great at first. I took him to meetings, got him a job, took him to work, picked him up from work, told him what to eat and when to get up, and even helped him get his driver’s license.

Then I took a vacation and let him use my car. After dropping me off at the airport, he stopped at the nearest party store and got himself a bottle. Needless to say, he was not at the airport when I returned. After several hours of searching for my car in a cab, we spotted it and pulled him over, and when I opened the door, there was his bottle in a paper bag.

I was very hurt and proceeded to let him know how I felt. I threw AA out the window, and God also (my language wasn’t too nice). After kicking him out, I bawled all the way home. Later that evening, I asked myself a question: “If you took a drink would you like to be treated that way?” Of course, the answer was no. So I had to ask God for help.

It took a dear friend of mine in Al-Anon to tell me, “Stop playing God.” I wouldn’t admit I had been playing God, but when I really got honest with myself, I knew it was the truth. She was right.

Today, I look back at this when I catch myself trying to change someone’s life. I see God looking down at me and saying, “Remember the last time. Let me do it, and you won’t have all that weight on your shoulders.”

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