March 14

“The purpose or goal of our service is to carry the SAA message: that freedom from addictive sexual behavior is possible through the Twelve Steps of SAA.”

Sex Addicts Anonymous, page 84

I have had the privilege of twelfth-stepping several newcomers into SAA. This can be a daunting task. Newcomers are often people in crisis. They may have lost a job or a marriage or both. They may be facing arrest or imprisonment. Their friends and family may no longer be speaking to them. Their lives have been shattered; often they are in tears.

What can I say to someone in that situation that will make a difference? Here’s where the Fifth Tradition comes to the rescue. I need only have one message for the newcomer in crisis: that no matter how bad things may be, there is hope. Others have been where they are—in fact, I have been where they are now—and have gone on to live healthy, happy lives in recovery. And the vehicle of that hope is the SAA program.

That’s not much of a speech to give, but the Fifth Tradition assures us it is all we truly need to get across. It is enough to say.

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May I carry the message of SAA in my own heart, so I may readily share it with those who still suffer.