Seeking a Higher Power: A Guide to the Second Step

Alcoholics Anonymous and other twelve step programs have had great success in restoring the lives of millions of people. However, millions more fail to grasp the program successfully. The biggest obstacle appears to be the requirement of reliance on a higher power. Many people are turned off by the frequent mention of God in the meetings and the literature. This book offers the reader ways to approach the idea of a higher power, and of how to rethink the idea of God that hopefully will overcome prejudice that has built up in the minds of prospective members. Gordon has written a collection of 38 essays on topics such as love, spirituality, Buddhism, Native American spirituality, and compassion, and an offers an extensive bibliography and suggested reading list. This book will be a valuable resource for people trying to negotiate their recovery journey.

Michael Cowl Gordon is an addiction medicine physician and recovery author. Born in Minneapolis in 1943 and raised in Chicago, he earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Chicago, with an MD degree in 1967. After several years of research and training, he opened a family medicine practice in Madison, Wisconsin, before transitioning into addiction medicine and moving to the metro Atlanta area. He completed 50 years of practice in the field, retiring in 2023 as Medical Director at The Berman Center in Atlanta. Dr. Gordon is a Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and received lifetime certification from the American Board of Addiction Medicine in 2009. Drawing on decades of clinical experience in addiction treatment and recovery, he is the author of The Twelve Step Pathway: A Heroic Journey of Recovery, which reframes the Twelve Steps of addiction recovery through Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, and Seeking a Higher Power: A Guide to the Second Step, along with the award-winning novel Autobiography of a Georgia Cat. He lives in Marietta, Georgia, with his wife, Judy, and their three cats.