Actions

	What actions?
		Well, you made a decision didn't you?
Once you've made that decision......you need to follow it immediately......with action.
	What we're talking about is a spiritual journey, the next step of which is clearing out the poor results of a mis-taken path.
That's all.
	Let me ask you a question.  If you were walking along the road and discovered you'd been going the wrong way, what would you do? If you said you'd turn around and go the right way, you're pretty close.  You would turn around and start going the other way. How do you know which is the right way when the only thing you know is that the way you were going wasn't the right way?
What a lot of us did, and still do, is what 12 Step programs call "Inventory".  The inventory does two things.  It demonstrates we were serious about our decision and it shows us which of our previous actions were taken in the wrong direction.
	It shows us a clear course so we can walk along, further on our journey, without carrying the load that weighed us down.
	And when we learn how to not cause the problems that get us turned around
	Our journey takes on a different tone, or flavor, or purpose.
		We uncover the problems.
	We discover our self.
We discard the ego.
Remember where we started?  With fear?  Fear, and it's side-kick Anger, are products of the ego.  Without ego you wouldn't be fearful or angry.
By taking stock of what you're all about today, you find out how big your ego really is.
		Ego isn't bad by itself.
	Only when it tries to run things.
What it wants is power.
	Another is property.
		And yet another is to have others think well of us.
We need some power to survive.
	We property is like shelter.  It helps provide comfort.  It gives us a place to be.
		Being thought well of helps us connect to others so we aren't alone.  Most of us weren't made to be alone.
Almost everything we do is related to those motivators.
	Mis-use, over-use, or abuse of these things, desires, instincts, actions, or words is what causes problems.
It's usually the ego's attempt to convince us we're better than we really are, or worse than we really are that gets us in trouble.
		An inventory helps us sort out what about us isn't working.  But it shouldn't stop there.
There are things about us that are just fine the way they are.  There are things about us that are really good.
	Sometimes people suggest we can use our strengths to overcome our weaknesses.
		It may be possible, but probably not very often.
For example, if I was a carpenter and the handle on my hammer was broken, a brand new saw with really sharp teeth wouldn't fix it.  And I couldn't use staples in place of a nail.  That's not what this inventory is about.
	In fact, the whole point is really to find out what you're missing so that you can go out and get some.
But you do want to be aware of the fact that you are not totally "bad".  In fact it's not about "badness" at all.
So now you know all about yourself, right?
		Maybe.
You need to double check with someone who knows you well enough to be able to see things you may have missed,
	is honest enough to tell you if you're mistaken,
	and who loves you enough to keep it all to themselves and to keep loving you, too.
	What if I admitted all of these things to another human being?...

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