Finally! A pretty straight forward step with none of that pesky "God" stuff right? Yes this is true, but like all steps, this one should be started with some level of reverence, "prayer" if you will. You don't have to "Pray" in the traditional sense of the word, but some time of quiet reflection and thought before you just start writing will help you to focus your thinking and action.
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<center>![d3627c54170cd9060ee9152033270719--aa-steps-funny-signs.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmQdJ4cakuvTxoAXD7F6d14SU55LsnrMm1qeM6AoqxqoZo/d3627c54170cd9060ee9152033270719--aa-steps-funny-signs.jpg)
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### Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all
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Seems pretty simple right? Well the good news is- It is! The bad news is- Not as simple as it seems. The biggest problem that people have with this step is thinking that the problem they had did not hurt anyone but themselves. This could not be farther from the truth. 

Think about it, if your problem was gambling for example, didn't that money you lost hurt your family? What about the time you spent in the casino that could have been spent with them? What about the worry for your safety when you had bookies looking for you? You can pretty much use this example for any kind of addiction or compulsion. We harmed others not only by our actions, but by our inaction just as much. Lost time, worry, all of that hurt the people that care about us. You can then expand this out to even the community as a whole, Did you pay taxes? Did you break the law? Did you help perpetuate a stereotype? All of these hurt others indirectly.

When you take an honest look it should be apparent that our actions did in fact hurt others. Our list may be longer than we first thought!

When we make this list it is imperative that we include everything we can think of, every person and harm, no matter how large or small. When I did this step I had worries about all of the people I had stolen from through the years. How was I ever going to make that right? I didn't even know who most of them were! At this stage that isn't the point, right now we just nned to make the list, that's it!
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### But the second half...
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The second half of this step is to become willing to make amends. This is where you have to make a choice. You have to decide that you are willing to fix the things you caused to be broken through the years. Keep in mind that the purpose of this step is not to make the people you hurt feel better, not at all. This step is for you!

What do you mean? you might ask. Well, it really is pretty simple. If you are going to be in a position to move on with your life, you have to leave the guilt of your past behind. This means you have to know that you made the effort to make things right in some way. After that, whether they forgive you or not is not your concern. Yes it is nice when someone does forgive you, but not everyone will, be prepared for that.

That really is it, make a list and be willing to make the effort to fix things, see pretty simple! As always, keep in touch with your sponsor and talk to him about any concerns you have along the way! You are doing great and should be feeling quite a bit of relief by this time in your recovery, but don't let off the gas, we still have work to do!
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### Please Read!
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I write about 3 main areas. Recovery issues, My life story (Including my ongoing battle to lose weight) and My general daily life. If you have enjoyed this post, please read more of my writing and become involved with helping others on the platform. Here are the previous posts I have written directly about recovery:

What type of meeting is for me? [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/so-many-meetings-which-one-is-for-me)

My loved one has a problem: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/my-loved-one-has-a-problem-what-do-i-do)

Sponsorship: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/sponsorship-the-key-to-recovery)

Step One: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/walking-the-steps-powerless)

Step Two: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/addiction/@nobutsd/came-to-believe-in-what-exactly-step-two-of-recovery)

Step Three: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/addiction/@nobutsd/making-the-decision-but-is-that-really-doing-anything-step-three-of-recovery)

Beware the Three Step Shuffle: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/beware-the-three-step-shuffle)

Step Four: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/addiction/@nobutsd/step-4-searching-and-fearless)

Step Five: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/admitted-to-god-to-ourselves-and-to-another-human-being-the-exact-nature-of-our-wrongs-step-5)

Step Six: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/became-entirely-ready-recovery-step-6)

Step Seven: [--HERE--](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@nobutsd/humbly-asked-him-to-remove-our-shortcomings-step-7)

If you have enjoyed this post and would like to read more about a hard-core drug addict that has been redeemed by Jesus, please follow and support me. Also, we have succeeded in creating a chat room on Discord for Recovery and Addiction issues! Please go [--HERE--]( https://discord.gg/j9q9Sx) to join and be a part of our online support network.

My Bosses have given me permission to mention the name of our Ministry in my blogs. I work at Endeavor House Ministries Inc. in Lansing, Michigan. If you look us up you can see us on Facebook, and at https://endeavorhouseministries.com You can donate to the Ministry through PayPal if you want to. 

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Image Credit: [1](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d3/62/7c/d3627c54170cd9060ee9152033270719--aa-steps-funny-signs.jpg)