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Daily Recovery Readings - December
December 1
Daily Reflections "SUGGESTED" STEPS Our Twelfth Step also says that as a result of practicing all the Steps, we have each found something called a spiritual awakening. . . . A.A.'s manner of making ready to receive this gift lies in the practice of the Twelve Steps in our program." TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 106-07 I remember my sponsor's answer when I told him that the Steps were "suggested." He replied that they are "suggested" in the same way that, if you were to jump out of a airplane with a parachute, it is "suggested" that you pull the ripcord to save your life. He pointed out that it was "suggested" I practice the Twelve Steps, if I wanted to save my life. So I try to remember daily that I have a whole program of recovery based on all Twelve of the "suggested" Steps. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The thoughts that come before having a slip are often largely subconscious. It is a question whether or not our subconscious minds ever become entirely free from alcoholic thoughts as long as we live. For instance, some of us dream about being drunk when we are asleep, even after several years of sobriety in A.A. During the period of our drinking days, our subconscious minds have been thoroughly conditioned by our alcoholic way of thinking and it is doubtful that they ever become entirely free of such thoughts during our lifetime. But when our conscious minds are fully conditioned against drinking, we can stay sober and our subconscious minds do not often bother us. Am I still conditioning my conscious mind? Meditation For The Day Having sympathy and compassion for all who are in temptation, a condition which we are sometimes in, we have a responsibility towards them. Sympathy always includes responsibility. Pity is useless because it does not have a remedy for the need. But wherever our sympathy goes, our responsibility goes too. When we are moved with compassion, we should go to the one in need and bind up his wounds as best we can. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may have sympathy for those in temptation. I pray that I may have compassion for others' trials. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Quantity or Quality, p. 11 "About this slip business--I would not be too discouraged. I think you are suffering a great deal from a needless guilt. For some reason or other, the Lord has laid out tougher paths for some of us, and I guess you are treading one of them. God is not asking us to be successful. He is only asking us to try to be. That, you surely are doing, and have been doing. So I would not stay away from A.A. through any feeling of discouragement or shame. It's just the place you should be. Why don't you try just as a member? You don't have to carry the whole A.A. on your back, you know! "It is not always the quantity of good things that you do, it is also the quality that counts. "Above all, take it one day at a time." Letter, 1958 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Why do bad things happen? Understanding life No one has been able to explain why pain and misfortune must be part of the human condition. Bad things can and do happen to everybody, and sometimes there's no way to explain it. Even in sobriety, AA members have misfortunes---times when it appears that God is hiding. We even hear members share such experiences at meetings. Many of us have found ways to use misfortunes constructively, however, by seeing how the program helps us deal with it. In some cases---but not all---we even learn that a misfortune was a disguised blessing. Most important, by using the program, we are eliminating the drinking that has been the cause of many misfortunes in our lives. That alone makes our immediate world a much better place for everyone. My life today can be both easy and hard. It gives me great comfort to know that I am not making conditions worse for myself and others. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps---First part of Step Twelve. We are awake! Our spirits are alive. We are part of the world. Our addiction no longer clouds our vision. How? Step Twelve answers this. The beauty of Step Twelve is that if we feel our spirits starting to go dead, we know how to awaken them. It's simple. Turn to the Steps. After all, working the Steps has awakened our spirits. The hope and serenity we feel are gifts given to us through the Steps of our program. And the more we turn to the Steps for help, the more life we'll feel. The Steps are what feed and heal our souls. Prayer for the Day Higher Power: Thank you for the Steps. If I start to believe it is I who keeps me sober, remind me of my life before the Twelve Steps. Action for the Day: Today, I'll read the Twelve Steps. I'll think of how each Step helped awaken my spirit. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning And it isn't the thing you do, dear, It's the thing you leave undone Which gives you a bit of a heartache At the setting of the sun. --Margaret Sangster A quality we all share, a very human quality, is to expect perfection from ourselves, to expect the impossible in all tasks done. We must rejoice for the good we do. Each time we pat ourselves on the back for a job well done, our confidence grows a little bit more. Recovery is best measured by our emotional and spiritual health, expressed in our apparent confidence and trust in "the process." We need to recognize and celebrate our strong points, and they'll gain even more strength. Likewise, we need to practice prayer and listening to guidance first to develop our ties to God, but more importantly to be able to acknowledge when help is at hand. We can do all we need to do with God's help. Having goals but keeping them realistic, for the day or the year, is a sign of emotional health. Not dwelling on those that can't be accomplished, at the moment, is another sign. A change of attitude is all most of us need to move from where we are to a better place emotionally. There's never a better time than right now for rejoicing over what I've done. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Although these reparations take innumerable forms, there are some general principles which we find guiding. Reminding ourselves that we have decided to go to any lengths to find a spiritual experience, we ask that we be given strength and direction to do the right thing, no matter what the personal consequences may be. We may lose our position or reputation or face jail, but we are willing. We have to be. We must not shrink at anything. p. 79 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." This Tradition is packed with meaning. For A.A. is really saying to every serious drinker, "You are an A.A. member if you say so. You can declare yourself in; nobody can keep you out. No matter who you are, no matter how low you've gone, no matter how grave your emotional complications - even your crimes - we still can't deny you A.A. We don't want to keep you out. We aren't a bit afraid you'll harm us, never mind how twisted or violent you may be. We just want to be sure that you get the same great chance for sobriety that we've had. So you're an A.A. member the minute you declare yourself." p. 139 ************************************************** ********* "Beware of little expenses. A small leak will sink a great ship." --Benjamin Franklin "There are no gains without pains." --Benjamin Franklin Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person. --C. Neil Strait Kind words do not cost much. Yet they accomplish much. --Blaise Pascal "It is a sign of strength, not of weakness, to admit that you don't know all the answers." --John P. Loughrane "What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity." --Joseph Addison ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation GOSSIP "Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss wants, small minds discuss people." -- Laurence J. Peter Gossip is ultimately a form of malicious cowardice. It is a "blasphemy" because it seeks to denigrate the human being that God has made in His image. As a practicing alcoholic I was a gossip. I exaggerated and manipulated the truth with my gossip. I made up stories against those people I had a resentment towards; innocent people were abused and victimized by my gossip. Also I loved listening to gossip. The listener plays an important role in the life of "gossip" because without the listener it could not exist. It takes two to gossip! Today gossip is unacceptable behavior in my program. ************************************************** ********* But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. James 2:18 "If I say I will forget my complaint, I will change my expression and smile." Job 9:27 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Accept yourself for who you are because who you are has a purpose and an important reason for being. Lord, Your love for me makes me special and lovable. Take care of yourself so that you may give care to others. Lord, may I never totally ignore myself and my feelings for the sake of others and fit in time daily to refresh my spirit. |
“Be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. Talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet. Make all your friends feel there is something special in them. Look at the sunny side of everything. Think only the best, be as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W.:170:101 |
December 2
Daily Reflections SERENITY Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, . . . TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 106 As I continued to go to meetings and work the Steps, something began to happen to me. I felt confused because I wasn't sure what it was that I was feeling, and then I realized I was experiencing serenity. It was a good feeling, but where had it come from? Then I realized it had come ". . .as the result of these steps." The program may not always be easy to practice, but I had to acknowledge that my serenity had come to me after working the Steps. As I work the Steps in everything I do, practicing these principles in all my affairs, now I find that I am awake to God, to others, and to myself. The spiritual awakening I have enjoyed as the result of working the Steps is the awareness that I am no longer alone. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The thoughts that come before having a slip seem to be partly subconscious. And yet it is likely that at least part of these thoughts get into our consciousness. An idle thought connected with drinking casually pops into our mind. That is the crucial moment. Will I harbor that thought even for one minute or will I banish it from my mind at once? If I let it stay, it may develop into a daydream. I may begin to see a cool glass of beer or a Manhattan cocktail in my mind's eye. If I allow the daydream to stay in my mind, it may lead to a decision, however unconscious, to take a drink. Then I am headed for a slip. Do I let myself daydream? Meditation For The Day Many of us have a sort of vision of the kind of person God wants us to be. We must be true to that vision, whatever it is, and we must try to live up to it, by living the way we believe we should live. We can all believe that God has a vision of what He wants us to be like. In all people there is a good person whom God sees in us, the person we could be and that God would like us to be. But many a person fails to fulfill that promise and God's disappointments must be many. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may strive to be the kind of a person that God would have me be. I pray that I may try to fulfill God's vision of what I could be. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Renew Your Effort, p. 68 "Though I know how hurt and sorry you must be after this slip, please do not worry about a temporary loss of your inner peace. As calmly as you can, just renew your effort in the A.A. program, especially those parts of it which have to do with meditation and self-analysis. "Could I also suggest that you look at excessive guilt for what it is? Nothing but a sort of reverse pride. A decent regret for what has happened is fine. But guilt--no. "Indeed, the slip could well have been brought about by unreasonable feelings of guilt because of other moral failures, so called. Surely, you ought to look into this possibility. Even here you should not blame yourself for failure; you can be penalized only for refusing to try for better things." Letter, 1958 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Bringing Projects to Completion. Fortitude Starting projects without completing them can be part of our alcoholic nature. It's related to immaturity and a tendency to become bored and discouraged quickly. The 12 Step program can help us overcome this problem. First, we realize and admit to such tendencies, fearlessly facing what has really been a very bad habit. Then we become honest about our motives. We realize that we didn't actually have the abiding interest that would have helped us complete some projects. In such cases, the projects never should have been started... and in the future we'll take are not to embark on similar projects. When something does need to be completed, the program will help us stay with it until it's done. We will always find that the satisfaction of completing a necessary project will be part of sober living. We'll also know that we're growing in the program. I'll take the necessary steps today to move any project toward completion. This will also help with future projects. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple ...we tried to carry this message to alcoholics...--Second part of Step 12. In this part of Step 12, we carry the message of hope. But it's not up to us if anyone accepts the message or not. This keeps us from playing God. We just gently deliver the message. We don't force the program down people's throats. In general, Step Twelve tells us, “Be helpful to those we can help.” When a neighbor is sick, mow her lawn. When a friend is in the hospital, visit him. Step Twelve reminds us that we make a difference. We have hope to give the world. And hope is what we stand for to the addict who still suffers. Hope is what we stand for to the addict's family. How beautiful to stand for hope! Remember when our lives stood for despair?? What a change! Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me shine brightly as a symbol of Your hope. Action for the Day: Today, I'll help someone in need. It may be an alcoholic or other drug addict, or just someone in need. I'll help make the world a better place. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning The old woman I shall become will be quite different from the woman I am now. Another I is beginning . . . --George Sand Change is constant. And we are always becoming. Each chance, each feeling, each responsibility we commit ourselves to adds to the richness of our womanhood. We are not yesterday's woman, today. Our new awarenesses have brought us beyond her. And we can't go back without knowing, somehow, that she no longer meets the needs of today. We can look forward to our changes, to the older woman we are becoming. She will have the wisdom that we still lack. She will have learned to live and let live. She will have acquired, through years of experiences, a perspective that lends sanity to all situations. The lessons we are learning today, the pain that overwhelms us now and again, are nurturing the developing woman within each of us. If only we could accept the lessons and master them. If only we could trust the gift of change that accompanies the pain. I am becoming. And with the becoming, comes peace. I can sense it today. I know where I was yesterday. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Usually, however, other people are involved. Therefore, we are not to be the hasty and foolish martyr who would needlessly sacrifice others to save himself from the alcoholic pit. A man we know had remarried. Because of resentment and drinking, he had not paid alimony to his first wife. She was furious. She went to court and got an order for his arrest. He had commenced our way of life, had secured a position, and was getting his head above water. It would have been impressive heroics if he had walked up to the Judge and said, “Here I am.” p. 79 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." To establish this principle of membership took years of harrowing experience. In our early time, nothing seemed so fragile, so easily breakable as an A.A. group. Hardly an alcoholic we approached paid any attention; most of those who did join us were like flickering candles in a windstorm. Time after time, their uncertain flames blew out and couldn't be relighted. Our unspoken, constant thought was "Which of us may be the next?" p. 139 ************************************************** ********* Destroying pride -- man becomes endearing; Destroying anger -- man gets rid of sorrow; Destroying desire -- man acquires peace; Destroying greed -- man achieves happiness. --Satya Sai Baba Whoever seeks God . . . has already found God. --unknown It's never too late to begin making an effort. --unknown When you find yourself rundown from life, pace yourself and take a refreshing break. --unknown BIG BOOK – Believing In God Beats Our Old Knowledge WILLING – When I Live Life, I Need God ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation PROBLEMS "The certainties of one age are the problems of the next." -- R. H. Tawney Life is a process of change that inevitably produces problems; the fear of the new, the discomfort of old values being seen to be wrong, the confusion that so often accompanies growth. Problems are part of life and we can only escape them in death. (Even then nobody can be sure we will be free of problems!) As an alcoholic I tried to run away from my problems by drinking. But the next day the old problems were still there and my drinking had usually brought new problems. Alcohol only produced a momentary escape but reality always returned. Today, with the acceptance of my alcoholism and my decision not to "pick up the first drink", I face my problems. I deal with my problems. I live with the problems of life. Teach me to accept joyously the problems that life and growth inevitably bring. ************************************************** ********* "But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear." Matthew 13:16 "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" Hebrews 13:5 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Life will be so much easier if you can accept that things don't always go as planned and see that these are often magnificent opportunities. Lord, help me learn from the occurences of today that seem to go awry and show me how to make the situation better through my own flexibility and creativity. Enthusiasm keeps the mind young and the spirit growing. Lord, may I always see wonder in the ordinary happenings of my day. |
“The way to happiness: Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry.
Live simply, expect little, give much. Scatter sunshine, forget self, think of others. Try this for a week and you will be surprised.” Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking. W.O.W.:170:101 |
December 3
Daily Reflections IN ALL OUR AFFAIRS . . . . we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 106 I find that carrying the message of recovery to other alcoholics is easy because it helps me to stay sober and it provides me with a sense of well-being about my own recovery. The hard part is practicing these principles in all my affairs. It is important that I share the benefits I receive from A.A., especially at home. Doesn't my family deserve the same patience, tolerance and understanding I so readily give to the alcoholic? When reviewing my day I try to ask, "Did I have a chance to be a friend today and miss it?" " Did I have a chance to rise above a nasty situation and avoid it?" "Did I have a chance to say 'I'm sorry,' and refuse to?" Just as I ask God for help with my alcoholism each day, I ask for help in extending my recovery to include all situations and all people! ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day There is some alcoholic thought, conscious or unconscious, that comes before every slip. As long as we live, we must be on the lookout for such thoughts and guard against them. In fact, our A.A. training is mostly to prepare us, to make us ready to recognize such thoughts at once and to reject them at once. The slip comes when we allow such thoughts to remain in our minds, even before we go through the motions of lifting the glass to our lips. The A.A. program is largely one of mental training. How well is my mind prepared? Meditation For The Day Fret not your mind with puzzles you cannot solve. The solutions may never be shown to you until you have left this life. The loss of dear ones, the inequality of life, the deformed and the maimed, and many other puzzling things may not be known to you until you reach the life beyond. "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot hear them now." Only step by step, stage by stage, can you proceed in your journey into greater knowledge and understanding. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may be content that things which I now see darkly will some day be made clear. I pray that I may have faith that someday I will see face to face. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It The "Slipper" Needs Understanding, p. 99 "Slips can often be charged to rebellion; some of us are more rebellious than others. Slips may be due to the illusion that one can be 'cured' of alcoholism. Slips can also be charged to carelessness and complacency. Many of us fail to ride out these periods sober. Things go fine for two or three years--then the member is seen no more. Some of us suffer extreme guilt because of vices or practices that we can't or won't let go of. Too little self-forgiveness and too little prayer--well, this combination adds up to slips. "Then some of us are far more alcohol-damaged than others. Still others encounter a series of calamities and cannot seem to find the spiritual resources to meet them. There are those of us who are physically ill. Others are subject to more or less continuous exhaustion, anxiety, and depression. These conditions often play a part in slips--sometimes they are utterly controlling." Talk, 1960 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Raising the frustration threshold Achievement What happens when we hit snags in our lives? In drinking, it was a common practice to chuck everything and just get drunk. This always made things worse, sometimes so much so that we forgot about the problem that triggered our frustrations. Dealing with frustration is another part of growing up emotionally. Self-understanding in sobriety will help us detect surges of anger and irritation when things aren't going as planned. We'll recognize these feelings as being the same emotions that plagued us in our drinking days. In sobriety, however, we are given choices. We actually do have the choice of pausing, letting the anger drain away, and then taking charge of the situation by knowing that God is working along with us. By doing this, we can eventually raise our threshold of frustration. If some task or issue makes me angry today, I'll back off and place the outcome in God's hands. I'll know this is working when I have a change in feeling about it. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple And to practice these principles in all our affairs. Third part of Step Twelve. This is a statement about us. We are now people of values. These values reflect our spiritual growth. We know how to help others. We know how to admit our wrongs. We know how to look at ourselves and change our defects. We know how to live an honest life. Step Twelve tells us. "Go use these tools for better living. Go be all you can be. Enjoy life and live a life you can be proud of." Step Twelve also tells us about how to have loving relationships. By the time we complete Step Twelve, we make or regain many relationships. The most important one is with our Higher Power. As we grow in the program, we realize all our relationships are spiritual gifts. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I now have one face instead of many masks. Help me be a person who will stand before You with pride, not shame. Action for the Day: Today, I'll talk with a friend and talk about my new values. I will talk about how much my life has changed. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Sometimes, sisters have the same journey in their hearts. One may help the other or betray her. Will they cross over? Will the ship sail without them? --Louise Bernikow Other women share our struggle. When we treat our women friends as sisters and fellow pilgrims, we find great joy in our mutual help. We pray for the wisdom to let go our feelings of insecurity and rivalry with other women. Rivalry is not good for us. It leads us to forget our own unique qualities. We each are the best person in the world at one thing: being ourselves. When we compete, we need to retain a balanced perspective and to think well of ourselves whether we win or lose. We run the best race we can; therefore, let us not regard other women as rivals. They are our sisters, and they, too, are doing the best they can. Today, I will pray for the serenity that will let me see when my sisters have the same journey in their hearts as I. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION We thought he ought to be willing to do that if necessary, but if he were in jail he could provide nothing for either family. We suggested he write his first wife admitting his faults and asking forgiveness. He did, and also sent a small amount of money. He told her what he would try to do in the future. He said he was perfectly willing to go to jail is she insisted. Of course she did not, and the whole situation has only since been adjusted. p. 79 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." A member gives us a vivid glimpse of those days. "At one time," he says, "every A.A. group had many membership rules. Everybody was scared witless that something or somebody would capsize the boat and dump us all back into the drink. Our Foundation office* asked each group to send in its list of `protective' regulations. The total list was a mile long. If all those rules had been in effect everywhere, nobody could have possibly joined A.A. at all, so great was the sum of our anxiety and fear. pp. 139-140 *In 1954, the name of the Alcoholic Foundation, Inc., was changed to the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, Inc., and the Foundation office is now the General Service Office. ************************************************** ********* Joy increases as you give it, and diminishes as you try to keep it for yourself. In giving it, you will accumulate a deposit of joy greater than you ever believed possible. --Norman Vincent Peale A smooth sea never made a skilled mariner. --English Proverb "History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats." --B. C. Forbes "Spend unbroken chunks of time with the most important people in your life." --Brian Tracy "Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it." --William Durant ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation WONDER "Wonder rather than doubt is the root of knowledge." -- Abraham Heschel Living with paradox is part of my sobriety. Things are never quite what they seem. When I think I have something figured out, I am made to be confused again especially around my life, relationships, people, events and the universe. Life is both simple and incomprehensible. God seems to demand an agnostic faith! There is so much I do not know or understand. But all of this leads to a creative and exciting sobriety. It makes life an adventure. It feeds that artistic part of me that is reborn in my sobriety. Things I used to dislike when I drank, I now enjoy. People and writers that once bored me now fascinate me; even modern art has a spiritual message! O God, let the feelings of amazement always be a part of my faith. ************************************************** ********* "For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light." Ephesians 5:8 "Wherefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God." Romans 15:7 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16 "God has given gifts to each of you from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Manage them well so that God's generosity can flow through you." 1 Peter 4:10 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Allow your mind to become quiet and less judgmental and you will feel improvements in all areas of your life. Lord, help my mind avoid twisting the words I hear and misjudging the intentions of others in order to justify my own righteousness. Help me to spread Your peace. There is not one moment that we are separated from God's care unless we choose to be. Lord, You provide for my daily needs and deliver me from evil. You are my refuge. |
Forgiveness is the ability to go on in life with
the consequences of someone else's mistake without being hurt.. W.O.W.:170:101 |
December 4
Daily Reflections INTO ACTION A.A. is more than a set of principles; it is a society of alcoholics in action. We must carry the message, else we ourselves can wither and those who haven't been given the truth may die. AS BILL SEES IT, p. 13 I desperately wanted to live, but if I was to succeed, I had to become active in our God-given program. I joined what became my group, where I opened the hall, made coffee, and cleaned up. I had been sober about three months when an oldtimer told me I was doing Twelfth-Step work. What a satisfying realization that was! I felt I was really accomplishing something. God had given me a second chance, A.A. had shown me the way, and these gifts were not only free - they were also priceless! Now the joy of seeing newcomers grow reminds me of where I have come from, where I am now, and the limitless possibilities that lie ahead. I need to attend meetings because they recharge my batteries so that I have light when it's needed. I'm still a beginner in service work, but already I am receiving more than I'm giving. I can't keep it unless I give it away. I am responsible when another reaches out for help. I want to be there - sober. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day If we allow an alcoholic thought to lodge in our minds for any length of time, we are in danger of having a slip. Therefore we must dispel such thoughts at once, by refusing their admittance and by immediately putting constructive thoughts in their place. Remember that alcohol is poison to you. Remember that it is impossible for you to drink normally. Remember that one drink will lead to another and you will eventually be drunk. Remember what happened to you in the past as a result of your drinking. Think of every reason you have learned in A.A. for not taking that drink. Fill your mind with constructive thoughts. Am I keeping my thoughts constructive? Meditation For The Day Always seek to set aside the valuations of the world which seem wrong and try to judge only by those valuations which seem right to you. Do not seek too much the praise and notice of men. Be one of those who, though sometimes scoffed at, have a serenity and peace of mind which the scoffers never know. Be one of that band who feel the Divine Principle in the universe, though He be often rejected by men because He cannot be seen. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may not heed too much the judgment of men. I pray that I may test things by what seems right to me. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Those Other People, p.268 "Just like you, I have often thought myself the victim of what other people say and do. Yet every time I confessed the sins of such people, especially those whose sins did not correspond exactly with my own, I found that I only increased the total damage. My own resentment, my self-pity would often render me well-nigh useless to anybody. "So, nowadays, if anyone talks of me so as to hurt, I first ask myself if there is any truth at all in what they say. If there is none, I try to remember that I too have had my periods of speaking bitterly of others; that hurtful gossip is but a symptom of our remaining emotional illness; and consequently that I must never be angry at the unreasonableness of sick people. "Under very trying conditions I have had, again and again, to forgive others--also myself. Have you recently tried this?" Letter, 1946 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places The Lure of Greener Pastures Gratitude One of our old-timers spent a great deal of time trying to find a new job but never succeeding. When he finally retired, on a good pension, it became clear that the job he had kept was probably better and provided more benefits than any job he had been seeking. He was fortunate that none of his proposed job searches ever worked out. The fantasy of finding "greener pastures" is something many of us face, in both drinking and sobriety. We may be very well off where we are, yet feel that something rich and exciting is over in the next meadow. We can feel this way about our jobs, our lifestyles, and our locations. The answer to this greener-pastures obsession is to feel more gratitude for what we have here and now. We might also focus more upon today's activities and less upon impossible dreams of other places. There may be greener pastures somewhere, but I'll first look for the opportunities and benefits of my own life and surroundings. I may be richly blessed without knowing it. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple And to practice these principles in all our affairs. Third part of Step Twelve. This is a statement about us. We are now people of values. These values reflect our spiritual growth. We know how to help others. We know how to admit our wrongs. We know how to look at ourselves and change our defects. We know how to live an honest life. Step Twelve tells us. "Go use these tools for better living. Go be all you can be. Enjoy life and live a life you can be proud of." Step Twelve also tells us about how to have loving relationships. By the time we complete Step Twelve, we make or regain many relationships. The most important one is with our Higher Power. As we grow in the program, we realize all our relationships are spiritual gifts. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I now have one face instead of many masks. Help me be a person who will stand before You with pride, not shame. Action for the Day: Today, I'll talk with a friend and talk about my new values. I will talk about how much my life has changed. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning I want to feel myself part of things, of the great drift and swirl; not cut off, missing things, like being sent to bed early as a child. --Joanna Field Feeling apart from the action and always looking on; wanting attention, and yet afraid of being noticed; no doubt these are familiar memories to most of us. We may still struggle with our self-perception, but we can celebrate that we no longer drown our moods. Connecting with the people next to us, though difficult, is no longer impossible when we rely on the program. There is a way to be a part of the action, a way that never fails. It takes only a small effort, really. We can simply look, with love, at someone nearby today and extend our hearts in honest attention. When we make someone else feel special, we'll become special too. Recovery can help each of us move beyond the boundaries of our own ego. Trusting that our lives are in the loving care of God, however we understand God, relieves us of the need for self-centeredness. We can let go of ourselves now that God is in charge, and we'll discover that we have joined the action. I will open my heart, and I'll be joined to all that's around me. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Before taking drastic action which might implicate other people we secure their consent. If we have obtained permission, have consulted with others, asked God to help and the drastic step is indicated we must not shrink. p. 80 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." "We were resolved to admit nobody to A.A. but that hypothetical class of people we termed `pure alcoholics.' Except for their guzzling, and the unfortunate results thereof, they could have no other complications. So beggars, tramps, asylum inmates, prisoners, queers, plain crackpots, and fallen women were definitely out. Yes sir, we'd cater only to pure and respectable alcoholics! Any others would surely destroy us. Besides, if we took in those odd ones, what would decent people say about us? We built a fine-mesh fence right around A.A. "Maybe this sounds comical now. Maybe you think we oldtimers were pretty intolerant. But I can tell you there was nothing funny about the situation then. We were grim because we felt our lives and homes were threatened, and that was no laughing matter. Intolerant, you say? Well, we were frightened. Naturally, we began to act like most everybody does when afraid. After all, isn't fear the true basis of intolerance? Yes, we were intolerant." p. 140 ************************************************** ********* Gratitude is one of the sweet shortcuts to finding peace of mind and happiness inside. No matter what's going on outside of us, there's always something we could be grateful for. --Barry Neil Kaufman If we wait for perfection before enjoying life, we will never enjoy life. --unknown One moment of patience may ward off a great disaster; one moment of impatience may ruin a whole life. --Chinese proverb I am getting to know myself today. I accept who I am today. I like myself today. --Ruth Fishel The Lord will drench you with His showers, but He will dry you with His sun. --Czech Proverb "Good morning, This is your Higher Power speaking. I will not be needing your help today." We win half the battle when we make up our minds to take the world as we find it, including the thorns. --unknown Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly! --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation PREJUDICE "Everyone is a prisoner of his own experiences. No one can eliminate prejudices just recognize --them." Edward R. Murrow In recovery I am accepting that I am not perfect and some prejudices are part of my life what it is to be human. On a daily basis I am trying to deal with them, and talking about them helps. They don't go away just because I talk about them, but I get them in perspective and I grow in an understanding of myself through the recognition of my prejudices. Alcoholism made me into a " fake ". I appeared to be what I was not and my prejudices were part of the camouflage. My prejudices revealed my fears and my need to "people-please". Slowly, in my daily spiritual program, I am discovering the courage to stand alone. ************************************************** ********* Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good spirit lead me on level ground. Psalm 143:10 “But I tell you: Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you.” Matthew 5:44 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Be yourself in all that you do and you will soon learn that you are very special. Lord, help me find the peace that You have already placed within my soul. Take less for granted and you will become very busy enjoying all that you have. Lord, thank you for my blessings and for all those that I am able to share them with. |
Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. Give everyone a smile. Spend so much time improving yourself that you have no time left to criticize others. Be too big for worry and too noble for anger.”
Norman Vincent Peale. Words of wisdom::170: |
December 5
Daily Reflections A NEW STATE OF CONSCIOUSNESS He has been granted a gift which amounts to a new state of consciousness and being. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p 107 Many of us in A.A. puzzle over what is a spiritual awakening. I tended to look for a miracle, something dramatic and earth shattering. But what usually happens is that a sense of well-being, a feeling of peace, transforms us into a new level of awareness. That's what happened to me. My insanity and inner turmoil disappeared and I entered into a new dimension of hope, love and peace. I think the degree to which I continue to experience this new dimension is in direct proportion to the sincerity, depth and devotion with which I practice the Twelve Steps of A.A. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day In spite of all we have learned in A.A., our old way of thinking comes back on us, sometimes with overwhelming force, and occasionally some of us have slips. We forget or refuse to call on the Higher Power for help. We seem to deliberately make our minds a blank so far as A.A. training goes, and we take a drink. We eventually get drunk. We are temporarily right back where we started from. Those who have had slips say unanimously that they were no fun. They say A.A. had taken all the pleasure out of drinking. They knew they were doing the wrong thing. The old mental conflict was back in full force. They were disgusted with themselves. Am I convinced that I can never get anything more out of drinking? Meditation For The Day Give something to those who are having trouble, to those whose thoughts are confused, something of your sympathy, your prayers, your time, your love, your thought, your self. Then give of your own confidence, as you have had it given to you by the grace of God. Give of yourself and of your loving sympathy. Give your best to those who need it and will accept it. Give according to need, never according to deserts. Remember that the giving of advice can never take the place of giving of your self. Prayer For The Day I pray that as I have received, so may I give. I pray that I may have the right answer to those who are confused. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Relapses--and the Group, p. 154 An early fear was that of slips or relapses. At first nearly every alcoholic we approached began to slip, if indeed he sobered up at all. Others would stay dry six months or maybe a year and then take a skid. This was always a genuine catastrophe. We would all look at each other and say, "Who next?" Today, though slips are a very serious difficulty, as a group we take them in stride. Fear has evaporated. Alcohol always threatens the individual, but we know that it cannot destroy the common welfare. << << << >> >> >> "It does not seem to pay to argue with 'slippers' about the proper method of getting dry. After all, why should people who are drinking tell people who are dry how it should be done? "Just kid the boys along--ask them if they are having fun. If they are too noisy or troublesome, amiably keep out of their way." 1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 97 2. Letter, 1942 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Holding hands and hugging Sincerity The custom of holding hands while saying the Lord's Prayer has been adopted by many AA groups. We have also seen more hugging than in the past, even between the most unlikely members. Are these new practices good or bad? In accordance with AA tradition, we have to leave such questions to the group conscience. One thought, however, is that such physical actions do not necessarily mean that any true spiritual bonding has taken place. The old-timers who never held hands or hugged still had a great closeness in spirit and in feeling. We must also consider that we may be violating the privacy of the person who doesn't wish to hold hands or hug. If such a person chooses to stand outside the hand=holding circle, he or she maybe cast in the role of dissenter. Would that be fair? Hand -holding and hugging may be here to stay, but let's not make them out to be more than mere physical expressions. The program of the heart is still first. I'll remember today that true bonding is spiritual, not physical. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Each day, somewhere in the world, recovery begins when one alcoholic talks with another alcoholic, sharing experience, strength, and hope. ---Alcoholics Anonymous All over the world, recovering men and women use the same Twelve Steps to live their lives. Our fellowship keeps growing. The bigger it gets, the faster it grows. Why? Because the program brings our spirits back to life. All over the world, many of us were dying, and now we’re full of life and love. We are bringing our world bake to life. As we share our experience, strength, and hope, we help others join us in coming back to life. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me stay sober today. Guide me and all others who are doing Your will today. Action for the Day: Today, I’ll think of three things I can do to help spread the message of AA and NA. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning It is a long baptism into the seas of humankind, my daughter. Better immersion than to live untouched. --Tillie Olsen We have each had days when we preferred hiding under the covers, avoiding life at all costs. And in times gone by, we did just that, sometimes too frequently. What we didn't always know, and what we still forget on occasion, is that we have a ready and willing partner who will join us in every pursuit. The more fully we commit ourselves to one another and to all our experience, the closer we will come to the very serenity we long for. Serenity accompanies our increasing understanding of life's many mysteries. It's easy to cheat ourselves out of the prizes any day offers us. Fear fosters inertia, leaving us separate, alone, even more afraid. But we have an appointment with life. And our appointment will bring us to the place of full understanding, the place where we'll be certain, forever after, that all is well. And that life is good. Today's appointments are part of the bigger plan for my life. I will face them, enjoy them, and reap their rewards. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION This brings to mind a story about one of our friends. While drinking, he accepted a sum of money from a bitterly-hated business rival, giving him no receipt for it. He subsequently denied having received the money and used the incident as a basis for discrediting the man. He thus used his own wrong-doing as a means of destroying the reputation of another. In fact, his rival was ruined. He felt that he had done a wrong he could not possibly make right. If he opened that old affair, he was afraid it would destroy the reputation of his partner, disgrace his family and take away his means of livelihood. What right had he to involve those dependent upon him? How could he possibly make a public statement exonerating his rival? After consulting with his wife and partner he came to the conclusion that it was better to take those risks than to stand before his Creator guilty of such ruinous slander. He saw that he had to place the outcome in God’s hands or he would soon start drinking again, and all would be lost anyhow. He attended church for the first time in many years. After the sermon, he quietly got up and made an explanation. His action met widespread approval, and today he is one of the most trusted citizens of his town. This all happened years ago. p. 80 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." How could we then guess that all those fears were to prove groundless? How could we know that thousands of these sometimes frightening people were to make astonishing recoveries and become our greatest workers and intimate friends? Was it credible that A.A. was to have a divorce rate far lower than average? Could we then foresee that troublesome people were to become our principle teachers of patience and tolerance? Could any then imagine a society which would include every conceivable kind of character, and cut across every barrier of race, creed, politics, and language with ease? pp. 140-141 ************************************************** ********* Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action. --William James Money is not required to buy one necessity of the soul. --Henry David Thoreau If you want to accomplish the goals of your life, you have to begin with the Spirit. --Oprah Winfrey The steps did for me the very thing I kept hoping alcohol would do for me --- they gave me the peace and serenity I had been looking for in a bottle. --unknown Today is full of miracles! --Ruth Fishel "The principles you live by create the world you live in; if you change the principles you live by, you will change your world." --Blaine Lee "What we see depends mainly on what we look for." --John Lubbock The ultimate lesson all of us have is unconditional love, which includes not only others but ourselves as well. --Elisabeth Kubler-Ross ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation BEAUTY "Not every woman in old slippers can manage to look like Cinderella." -- Don Marquis Beauty is not what you wear or look like; beauty is within. We begin to love ourselves when we see the beauty that God has given to each and every one of us forever. God's image and beauty is expressed through our attitudes and feelings, how we greet and listen to each other and the gentle dignity we afford to another human being. For years I saw myself as ugly, boring, useless and stupid. This message came from parents who forever compared me with others and for years I believed their message. I hid through my teen-age years and quietly tried to escape in food, alcohol and drugs. Then after a crisis I met people who had felt the same but were now feeling different. They loved me until I could begin to love myself. Now I like me. Now I can love me. Today I can like and love you. Help me to see the beauty in the wrinkle; the power in the pain. ************************************************** ********* "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty." Psalm 91:1 "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence." I John 3:18-19 "Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'" John 8:12 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Imagine joy and you will find it. Lord, I thank You for the people that need me and love me, for the ability to hope and especially for the ability to love. One of life's greatest rewards is not what we get, but what we become. Lord, give me the courage to be all that I can. |
Thought 4 2day. "You were made by God’s masterful hands- wisely designed… uniquely formed… caringly crafted. You were made for God’s glorious purpose- to know His love… to display His grace… to express His heart".
W.O.W.:170:101 |
December 6
Daily Reflections WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN When we developed still more, we discovered the best possible source of emotional stability to be God Himself. We found that dependence upon His perfect justice, forgiveness, and love was healthy, and that it would work where nothing else would. If we really depended upon God, we couldn't very well play God to our fellows nor would we feel the urge wholly to rely on human protection and care. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 116 It has been my experience that, when all human resources appear to have failed, there is always One who will never desert me. Moreover, He is always there to share my joy, to steer me down the right path, and to confide in when no one else will do. While my well-being and happiness can be added to, or diminished, by human efforts, only God can provide the loving nourishment upon which I depend for my daily spiritual health. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day People who had a slip are ashamed of themselves--sometimes so ashamed that they fear to go back to A.A. They develop the old inferiority complex and tell themselves that they are no good, that they are hopeless, and that they can never make it. This state of mind is perhaps worse than it was originally. They have probably been somewhat weakened by their slip. But their A.A. training cannot ever be entirely lost. They always know they can go back if they want to. They know there is still God's help for them if they will again ask for it. Do I believe that I can never entirely lose what I have learned in A.A.? Meditation For The Day Nobody entirely escapes temptation. You must expect it and be ready for it when it comes. None of us is entirely safe. You must try to keep your defenses up by daily thought and prayer. That is why we have these daily meditations. You must be able to recognize temptation when it comes. The first step toward conquering temptation always is to see it clearly as temptation and not to harbor it in your mind. Dissociate yourself from it, put it out of your mind as soon as it appears. Do not think of excuses for yielding to it. Turn at once to the Higher Power for help. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may be prepared for whatever temptation may come to me. I pray that I may see it clearly and avoid it with the help of God. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It The Way Of Strength, p. 129 We need not apologize to anyone for depending upon the Creator. We have good reason to disbelieve those who think spirituality is the way of weakness. For us, it is the way of strength. The verdict of the ages is that men of faith seldom lack courage. They trust their God. So we never apologize for our belief in Him. Instead, we try to let Him demonstrate, through us, what He can do. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 68 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Alcoholism: Disease or Bad Habit? Understanding my problem.. While AA has always considered alcoholism a disease, controversy still simmers over its definition. In the past, alcoholism has been considered a sin, a sickness, or just a very bad habit. More recently, there has been a suggestion that some "problem drinkers" might not be alcoholics at all and can very possibly bring their drinking under control. This controversy will undoubtedly continue, but it is important that recovering people understand the NATURE of alcoholism. It is deadly, it is compulsive, and it is progressive. While there are occasional reports of alcoholics who claim to have become controlled drinkers, few of us have any firsthand evidence of such changes. Much more often, we hear stories of alcoholics who try to drink again, only to find themselves headed down a rocky road. It is not necessary that we define alcoholism perfectly or precisely. What's more important is that we remember we're powerless over alcohol and cannot safely pick up a drink. No definition will change that reality for an alcoholic who has had an unmanageable life. I'm fortunate AA gave me an understanding of my problem that I can live with---one that will help me continue living. Others can worry about defining alcoholism. I'll focus on staying sober myself. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The strongest of all warriors are these two--Time and Patience. Leo Tolstay One of the first things we learn about in recovery is time. Before, we may have tried to control time by Pushing it along. We tried to hurry everything and everybody. We wanted our "quick fix." But the program tells us to slow down. Easy Does It. We probably couldn't picture ourselves staying sober for the rest of our life. So we were told to just work at staying sober today. We learned to work our program One Day at a Time. We were thought that time can be our friend. Times is our Higher Power's way of not having everything happen at once. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, you are my teacher. You are in charge of the lesson. Help me accept this. Teach me how to use my time wisely. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list five ways I use my time in ways that aren't helpful to me. I'll work at making time my friend. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Each day provides its own gifts. --Ruth P. Freedman We are guaranteed experiences that are absolutely right for us today. We are progressing on schedule. Even when our personal hopes are unmet, we are given the necessary opportunities for achieving those goals that complement our unique destinies. Today is full of special surprises, and we will be the recipient of the ones which are sent to help us grow--in all the ways necessary for our continued recovery. We might not consider every experience a gift at this time. But hindsight will offer the clarity lacking at the moment, just as it has done in many instances that have gone before. We are only offered part of our personal drama each day. But we can trust our lives to have many scenes, many acts, points of climax, and a conclusion. Each of us tells a story with our lives, one different from all other stories and yet necessary to the telling of many other stories too. The days ahead will help us tell our story. Our interactions with others will influence our outcomes and theirs. We can trust the drama and give fully to our roles. Every day is a gift exchange. I give, and I will receive. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION The chances are that we have domestic troubles. Perhaps we are mixed up with women in a fashion we wouldn’t care to have advertised. We doubt if, in this respect, alcoholics are fundamentally much worse than other people. But drinking does complicate sex relations in the home. After a few years with an alcoholic, a wife gets worn out, resentful and uncommunicative. How could she be anything else? The husband begins to feel lonely, sorry for himself. He commences to look around in the night clubs, or their equivalent, for something besides liquor. Perhaps he is having a secret and exciting affair with “the girl who understands.” In fairness we must say that she may understand, but what are we going to do about a thing like that? A man so involved often feels very remorseful at times, especially if he is married to a loyal and courageous girl who has literally gone through hell for him. pp. 80-81 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Why did A.A. finally drop all its membership regulations? Why did we leave it to each newcomer to decide himself whether he was an alcoholic and whether he should join us? Why did we dare say, contrary to the experience of society and government everywhere, that we would neither punish nor deprive any A.A. of membership, believe anything, or conform to anything? The answer, now seen in Tradition Three, was simplicity itself. At last experience taught us that to take away any alcoholic's full chance was sometimes to pronounce his death sentence, and often to condemn him to endless misery. Who dared to be judge, jury, and executioner of his own sick brother? p. 141 ************************************************** ********* If you are seeking to live a joyful life, add music and dance to each day! --Gary Barnes "Fear less, hope more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Hate less, love more; And all good things are yours." --Swedish Proverb It has been said that our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength. --Charles Haddon Spurgeon Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step. --Martin Luther King Jr. Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. --Helen Keller The best gifts to give: To your friend - loyalty; To your enemy - forgiveness; To your boss - service; To a child - a good example; To your parents - gratitude and devotion; To your mate - love and faithfulness; To all men and women - love; To God - your life. --unknown People may doubt what you say, but they will believe what you do. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation FAILURE "There are two kinds of failures: those who thought and never did, and those who did and never --thought." Laurence J. Peter In my life I know that I am guilty of both these failures. I remember making sand castles in the air without realizing that I could attempt to build one in my life. I would see somebody I wanted to talk with and imagine a conversation, rather than going over and risking possible rejection. Today I am able to risk and I am now the possessor of a thousand memories that actually happened. I am also aware of how thoughtless I was in my addiction. I would react rather than respond; create hostility as a wall to keep people out. Today I am able to think through a problem and apologize when I am wrong. ************************************************** ********* "See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are." 1 John 3:1 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete." John 16:24 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration No matter who you are, it is your right to have peace. Lord, help me stay on my own path to peace and to turn my back on the distractions that are so intent on keeping me from it. To have courage, think courageous, act courageous, and pray to God for courage. Lord, You are full of love for all who come to You. |
Thank you.
I heard everything in my heart. Thank you God. Quote:
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“When you get up in the morning, you have two choices - either to be happy or to be unhappy. Just choose to be happy”
Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 7
Daily Reflections TRUE AMBITION True ambition is not what we thought it was. True ambition is the deep desire to live usefully and walk humbly under the grace of God. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 124-25 During my drinking years, my one and only concern was to have my fellow man think highly of me. My ambition in everything I did was to have the power to be at the top. My inner self kept telling me something else but I couldn't accept it. I didn't even allow myself to realize that I wore a mask continually. Finally, when the mask came off and I cried out to the only God I could conceive, the Fellowship of A.A., my group and the Twelve Steps were there. I learned how to change resentments into acceptance, fear into hope and anger into love. I have learned also, through loving without undue expectations, through sharing my concerns and caring for my fellow man, that each day can be joyous and fruitful. I begin and end my day with thanks to God, who has so generously shed His grace on me. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day When people come back to A.A. after having a slip, the temptation is strong to say nothing about it. No other A.A. member should force them to declare themselves. It is entirely up to them. If they are well-grounded in A.A., they will realize that it's up to them to speak up at the next meeting and tell about their slip. There is no possible evasion of this duty, if they are thoroughly honest and really desirous of living the A.A. way again. When they have done it, their old confidence returns. They are home again. Their slip should not be mentioned again by others. They are again a good member of A.A. Am I tolerant of other peoples' mistakes? Meditation For The Day It is in the union of a soul with God that strength, new life and spiritual power come. Bread sustains the body but we cannot live by bread alone. To try to do God's will is the meat and support of true living. We feed on that spiritual food. Soul starvation comes from failing to do so. The world talks about bodies that are undernourished. What of the souls that are undernourished? Strength and peace come from partaking of spiritual food. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may not try to live by bread alone. I pray that my spirit may live by trying to do the will of God as I understand it. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Foundation For Life, p. 33 We discover that we receive guidance for our lives to just about the extent that we stop making demands upon God to give it to us on order and on our terms. << << << >> >> >> In praying, we ask simply that throughout the day God place in us the best understanding of His will that we can have for that day, and that we be given the grace by which we may carry it out. << << << >> >> >> There is a direct linkage among self-examination, meditation, and prayer. Taken separately, these practices can bring much relief and benefit. But when they are logically related and interwoven, the result is an unshakable foundation for life. 12 & 12 1. p. 104 2. p. 102 3. p. 98 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places What rather than who Principles before Personalities. We're sometimes led to do something because a persuasive or important person recommends it. This is, in fact, the strategy behind endorsement advertising. We learn in AA that it's more important to ask what is right that who is offering a course of action. If a course of action is right, it matters not who recommends it. If it is wrong, a dozen important poeole cannot make it right by endorsing it. There are, indeed, many important people whom we can know and trust. But we should always remember that every human being will turn out to have clay feet if he or she is set up as a god. Our trust must always be in our Higher Power and in principles that never fail. I'll not be unduly impressed today by persuasive, charismatic people. I'll follow their ideas only if I believe them to be right. Principles have a precedence over personality. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple We are here to add what we can to, not to get what we can get from, Life. Sir William Osler Service is a word we hear in our recovery program. Service means work we do for others. It's the backbone of our program. The reason is simple. Service to our Higher Power and to others breaks down our wanting to be self-centered. Service brings us back into the world. We really are part of the group when we pitch in to make coffee, set up chairs, or talk in meetings. We really feel like part of the family when we run errands and help with meals and housework. We really connect with our Higher Power when we pray, "Use me today to help others." Service breaks down the feeling of being alone that being self -centered brings. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me to be of service to You and others. Show me what is needed. Action for the Day: Today will be a service day. I'll see how valued I am. I'll give to others, knowing that I, too, will receive. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Promises that you make to yourself are often like the Japanese plum tree--they bear no fruit. --Frances Marion The resolve to fulfill commitments we make to ourselves and others may be lacking until we learn to rely on the wisdom and strength offered by our higher power--strength that will make us confident in any situation; wisdom that will insure our right actions. What is difficult alone is always eased in partnership. We promise ourselves changed behavior, new habits, perhaps, or a positive attitude. But then we proceed to focus on our liabilities, giving them even more power, a greater hold over us. We can practice our assets, and they'll foster the promises we want to keep. No longer need we shame ourselves about unfulfilled promises. Whatever our desires, whatever our commitments, if for the good of others and ourselves, they will come to fruition. We can ask for direction. We can ask for resolve, and each worthy hope and unrealized promise will become reality. My assets, when strengthened through use, pave the way for God's help. Any promise can bear fruit when I make it in partnership with God. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Our design for living is not a one-way street. It is as good for the wife as for the husband. If we can forget, so can she. It is better, however, that one does not needlessly name a person upon whom she can vent jealousy. pp. 81-82 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." As group after group saw these possibilities, they finally abandoned all membership regulations. One dramatic experience after another clinched this determination until it became our universal tradition. Here are two examples: On the A.A. calendar it was Year Two. In that time nothing could be seen but two struggling, nameless groups of alcoholics trying to hold their faces up to the light. p. 141 ************************************************** ********* The heart is wiser than the intellect. --Josiah Holland (1819-1881) You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. --Kahlil Gibran The human contribution is the essential ingredient. It is only in the giving of oneself to others that we truly live. --Ethel Percy Andrus One of the great gifts of sobriety is learning to see beauty in things not always with the eyes, but with the feeling of the heart. --Shelley "When you get in a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn." --Harriet Beecher Stowe "When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." --Franklin D. Roosevelt ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation REALITY "Man is a complex being: he makes deserts bloom and lakes die." -- Gil Stern I am a mixture of good and bad. When I was drinking I could be cruel, sarcastic and violent and at other times loving, sensitive and thoughtful. Today in my recovery I know I can be honest, humble and creative, but I also carry within me a dark and destructive side that often hurts, lies and seeks negative power. What a mixture I was and what a mixture I still am! From all my many conversations with a variety of people I have discovered that this is what it is to be human. Today I am able to accept this and develop my spiritual life. I am not perfect, but I try to improve my attitude and behavior. I am not God, but I can aspire to be the best that I can be. Today I own the sickness in my life, but I also accept the responsibility for recovery. With my feet in the dirt, I look to the stars. ************************************************** ********* “To you, O lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: ‘What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down to the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me; O Lord, be my help.’ You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.” Psalms 30: 8-12 "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me." Psalm 51:10 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration For everyone there is a way to serve and honor God in this life on earth. Lord, let me seize every opportunity, no matter how small, to glorify You, make you better known and always bring myself and others closer to You. Part with what you cherish if it separates you or leads you away from God. Lord, help me place my heart in the right place so that I am not distracted in my journey to Eternal Life. |
“The trouble with most of us is that we'd rather be ruined by
praise than saved by criticism “It's always to soon to quit!” Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 8
Daily Reflections SERVICE Life will take on a new meaning. To watch people recover, to see them help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up about you. to have a host of friends - this is an experience you must not miss. . . . Frequent contact with newcomers and with each other is the bright spot of our lives. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 89 It is through service that the greatest rewards are to be found. But to be in a position of offering true, useful and effective service to others, I must first work on myself. This means that I have to abandon myself to God, admitting my faults and clearing away the wreckage of my past. Work on myself has taught me how to find the necessary peace and serenity to successfully merge inspiration and experience. I have learned how to be, in the truest sense, an open channel of sobriety. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The length of time of our sobriety is not as important as the quality of it. A person who has been in A.A. for a number of years may not be in as good mental condition as a person who has only been in a few months. It is a great satisfaction to have been an A.A. member for a long time and we often mention it. It may sometimes help the newer members, because they may say to themselves, if they can do it I can do it. And yet the older members must realize that as long as they live they are only one drink away from a drunk. What is the quality of my sobriety? Meditation For The Day "And greater works than this shall ye do." We can do greater works when we have more experience of the new way of life. We can have all the power we need from the Unseen God. We can have His grace, His spirit, to make us effective as we go along each day. Opportunities for a better world are all around us. Greater works can we do. But we do not work alone. The power of God is behind all good works. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may find my rightful place in the world. I pray that my works may be made more effective by the grace of God. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Two-Way Tolerance, p. 73 "Your point of view was once mine. Fortunately, A.A. is constructed so that we need not debate the existence of God; but for best results, most of us must depend upon a Higher Power, and no right-minded A.A. would challenge your privilege to believe precisely that way. We should all be glad that good recoveries can be made even on this limited basis. "But turnabout is fair play. If you would expect tolerance for your point of view, I am sure you would be willing to reciprocate. I try to remember that, down through the centuries, lots of brighter people than I have been found on both sides of this debate about belief. For myself, of late years, I am finding it much easier to believe that God made man, than that man made God." Letter, 1966 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places A new frame of mind Mood Control Long after AA was started, the term mood-altering drug came into vogue. Though this originally was applied to hard drugs, it is also true of alcohol. There's nothing wrong with wanting to alter one's mood. None of us really wants to be depressed, anxious, or fearful. We're all looking for ways to stay happy and high-spirited. The problem with all mood-altering drugs, alcohol included, is that they provide temporary highs while bringing on long-term destruction and enslavement. We would love to have those highs if they did not carry such a terrible price. But we can seek a new frame of mind in sober living that will give us better moods without destroying us. This is "the peace that passes all understanding," and it comes only from living the right way and listening to our Higher Power. This is the only mood control that really works. I want to be in a good mood today, but it must be as a result of having a healthy frame of mind. I have no desire for the false highs that were killing me. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple "When I was about 12, I used to think I must be a genius, but nobody's noticed."---John Lennon. "We all have secret ideas about ourselves. How often we have said to ourselves, If only They knew...But if we watch others, we see that many of their ideas are not so secret. We can often guess how they see themselves by the way they act. We all act out our secrets. Faith means trusting our Higher Power with our secrets. Faith in others means trusting them with our secret feelings. Why share these secrets? When we were using alcohol or other drugs we lived too much in a secret world. We need to give up the secrets that keep us from others. We need others in our lives. Our spirits need to be close to others. Prayer for the Day: God, help me to live in ways I'm not ashamed to tell others. Allow me to meet you and others, free of shame. Action for the Day: Today, I'll share one of my secrets w/ a loving friend." ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning I have found that sitting in a place where you have never sat before can be inspiring. --Dodie Smith Repeatedly, today and every day, we will be in new situations, new settings with old friends, and old settings and situations with new friends. Each instance is fresh, unlike all the times before. And inspiration can accompany each moment, if we but recognize how special it is. "We will not pass this way again," so the song says, which heightens the meaning of each encounter, every experience. Acknowledging that something can be gained each step along the way invites inspiration. Inspiration moves us to new heights. We will be called to step beyond our present boundaries. Maybe today. Whenever the inspiration catches our attention, we can trust its invitation; we are ready for the challenge it offers. We need not let our narrow, personal expectations of an experience, a new situation perhaps, prevent us from being open to all the dynamic possibilities it offers. I must be willing to let my whole self be moved, inspired. I must be willing to let each moment I experience be the only moment getting my attention. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Perhaps there are some cases where the utmost frankness is demanded. No outsider can appraise such an intimate situation. It may be that both will decide that the way of good sense and loving kindness is to let by-gones be by-gones. Each might pray about it, having the other one’s happiness uppermost in mind. Keep it always in sight that we are dealing with that most terrible human emotion--jealousy. Good generalship may decide that the problem be attacked on the flank rather than risk a face-to-face combat. p. 82 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." A newcomer appeared at one of these groups, knocked on the door and asked to be let in. He talked frankly with that group's oldest member. He soon proved that his was a desperate case, and that above all he wanted to get well. "But," he asked, "will you let me join your group? Since I am the victim of another addiction even worse stigmatized than alcoholism, you may not want me among you. Or will you?" There was the dilemma. What should the group do? The oldest member summoned two others, and in confidence laid the explosive facts in their laps. Said he, "Well, what about it? If we turn this man away, he'll soon die. If we allow him in, only god knows what trouble he'll brew. What shall the answer be - yes or no?" pp. 141-142 ************************************************** ********* A truly great person is the one who gives you a chance. --Paul Duffy We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have. --Frederick Keonig The surest way to drive out the darkness is to bring in the light. --unknown "All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them." --Walt Disney "History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats." --B. C. Forbes Serenity isn't freedom from the storm; it is peace within the storm. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation ENJOYMENT "All animals, except man, know that the ultimate of life is to enjoy it." -- Samuel Butler Today I choose to enjoy my life. Regardless of the problem and difficulties that this day will bring, I have an inner joy that comes with my recovery from addiction. With a clear head and body free from drugs and chemicals I can face today and look forward to tomorrow. My life is to be enjoyed not endured. My worst days today are better than my best days as an addict. Spiritually I am free because I have begun to discover me. God can now be perceived in His world because I have sobriety. Lord of all play, I dance before You in my world and I can stop to smell the roses. ************************************************** ********* Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation." Psalm 95:1 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 "God is able to do far more than we would dare to ask or even dream of - infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes." Ephesians 3:20 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration If you are able to accept the hand of love that God extends to you, you will be able to free yourself of fears and show the full beauty of your inner spirit. Lord, we all suffer from weaknesses of one kind or another, so in our moments of strength, we ask that we may offer help, not judgment, to those who need it. Take less for granted and you will become very busy enjoying all that you have. Lord, thank you for my blessings and for all those that I am able to share them with. |
The changing seasons remind us that nothing lasts.
The turning leaves fall, though lovely, are signs of death and decay. In much the way, all earthly life must end. There is nothing to fear from such changes. They are a part of the natural order of things. When we face changes that trouble us, we need only turn to the one who is unchanging –God. Our faith in God and God’s word will give us strength to weather the inevitable changes we must face, even the final transition from life to death to eternal life. From the book-the Word in Season. W.O.W. 101:D |
December 9
Daily Reflections LOVE WITH NO PRICE TAG When the Twelfth Step is seen in its full implication, it is really talking about the kind of love that has no price tag on it. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 106 In order for me to start working the Twelfth Step, I had to work on sincerity, honesty, and to learn to act with humility. Carrying the message is a gift of myself, no matter how many years of sobriety I may have accumulated. My dreams can become reality. I solidify my sobriety by sharing what I have received freely. As I look back to that time when I began my recovery, there was already a seed of hope that I could help another drunk pull himself out of his alcoholic mire. My wish to help another drunk is the key to my spiritual health. But I never forget that God acts through me. I am only His instrument. Even if the other person is not ready, there is success, because my effort in his behalf has helped me to remain sober and to become stronger. To act, to never grow weary in my Twelfth Step work, is the key. If I am capable of laughing today, let me not forget those days when I cried. God reminds me that I can feel compassion! ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The way of A.A. is the way of fellowship. We have read a good deal about fellowship and yet it is such an important part of the A.A. program that it seems that we cannot think too much about it. Human beings were not meant to live alone. A hermit's life is not a normal or natural one. We all need to be by ourselves at times, but we cannot really live without the companionship of others. Our natures demand it. Our lives depend largely upon it. The fellowship of A.A. seems to us to be the best in the world. Do I fully appreciate what the fellowship of A.A. means to me? Meditation For The Day We are all seeking something, but many do not know what they want in life. They are seeking something because they are restless and dissatisfied, without realizing that faith in God can give an objective and a purpose for their lives. Many of us are at least subconsciously seeking for a Power greater than ourselves because that would give a meaning to our existence. If you have found that Higher Power, you can be the means of leading others aright, by showing them that their search for a meaning to life will end when they find faith and trust in God as the answer. Prayer For The Day I pray that my soul will lose its restlessness by finding rest in God. I pray that I may find peace of mind in the thought of God and His purpose for my life. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Carrying the Message, p. 192 The wonderful energy the Twelfth Step releases, by which it carries our message to the next suffering alcoholic and finally translates the Twelve Steps into action upon all our affairs, is the payoff, the magnificent reality of A.A. ******************************** Never talk down to an alcoholic from any moral or spiritual hilltop; simply lay out the kit of spiritual tools for his inspection. Show him how they worked with you. Offer him friendship and fellowship. 1. 12 & 12, p. 109 2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 95 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Fixing things that aren't broken Self-acceptance. At the beginning of our AA sobriety, we were reminded that we were not reformers. Yet we sometimes have a tendency to want to "reform" ourselves or others after we've established sobriety. This can become a practice of "fixing things that aren't broken". We may not realize it, but many things in our lives and personalities were always all right, all along. In believing that we should be changed, we may be taking on the opinions of someone else. There might be no need for change at all. We also may be trying to please people who disapproved of us. Perhaps we're trying to obtain the affection of a parent who always rejected us. But if we're already on a spiritual path and are living rightly, there's no need for change. We'd be trying to fix something that isn't broken. I'll accept myself and others as we are today. We are not out to reform anyone, including ourselves. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple There is no stronger bond of friendship than a mutual enemy.--Frankfort Moore. A.A. is a fellowship united against the same enemy--alcoholism. Our bonds give us strength to recover. We may not even know each other's last name, but we'll do anything to help each other stay sober. Our illness has taken much. But it has also given us much. We have millions of new friends. Almost anywhere in the world, we can find a member of our fellowship. Our new way of life depends on the strength of the fellowship. We should do nothing to weaken it. When you don't feel like going to a meeting--go, not only for yourself but for the sake of the fellowship. It truly needs you. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, You have given me A. A. Now help me to keep it going. A.A. needs me, just as I need A.A. Help me give even when I don't want to. Action for the Day: Today, I'll give back to the program. I'll call a new member, volunteer to put on a meeting, or make the coffee." ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning To do nothing is failure. To try, and in the trying you make some mistakes and then you make some positive changes as a result of those mistakes, is to learn and to grow and to blossom. --Darlene Larson Jenks Life is a process, one that is continuously changing. And with each change, we are offered unexpected opportunities for growth. Change is what fosters our development as women. It encourages us to risk new behavior and may even result in some mistakes. Fortunately, no mistakes can seriously hinder us. In fact, most mistakes give us an additional opportunity to learn. Where we stand today is far removed from our position last year, or even last week. Each and every moment offers us new input that influences any decision from this moment forward. The process that we're participating in guarantees our growth as long as we remain conscious of our opportunities and willingly respond to them. We can be glad that the life process is, in fact, never static. always moving, always inviting us to participate fully. I will have the courage to make a mistake today. It's a promise of growth. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Perhaps there are some cases where the utmost frankness is demanded. No outsider can appraise such an intimate situation. It may be that both will decide that the way of good sense and loving kindness is to let by-gones be by-gones. Each might pray about it, having the other one’s happiness uppermost in mind. Keep it always in sight that we are dealing with that most terrible human emotion--jealousy. Good generalship may decide that the problem be attacked on the flank rather than risk a face-to-face combat. p. 82 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." At first the elders could look only at the objections. "We deal," they said, "with alcoholics only. Shouldn't we sacrifice this one for the sake of the many?" So went the discussions while the newcomer's fate hung in the balance. Then one of the three spoke in a very different voice. "What we are really afraid of," he said, "is our reputation. We are much more afraid of what people might say than the trouble this strange alcoholic might bring. As we've been talking, five short words have been running through my mind. Something keeps repeating to me, "What would the Master do?" "Not another word was said. What more indeed could be said? p. 142 ************************************************** ********* "The craving to find serenity utterly evaporated--and in its place there was serenity. I'd been looking out there for what was right here." --A.A. Grapevine, December, 2000, p. 49 Most of us are just about as happy as we make up our minds to be. --Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. --Eleanor Roosevelt The minute a man ceases to grow, no matter what his years, that minute he begins to be old. --William James The way you see things and the way others see things may not be the same. Be tolerant of other people's views. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation OLD "Growing old isn't so bad when you consider the alternative." -- Maurice Chevalier What is the alternative? Not to change! To stay rooted in adolescence, youth, middle-age or whatever. Not to age is not to live, not to experience and not to grow spiritually. An aspect of age, for which I am beginning to be grateful, is "comparison"; today I am able to look at the past and see the benefits of the present. Growth is measurable only through the tunnel of age. I suppose my fear of age is my basic fear of the "unknown" ; fear of "unmanageability" and "powerlessness". These words remind me of the spiritual program that teaches me to confidently place my life in the loving arms of God. If I am responsible in life, I will be responsible in old age. Teach me to use the spiritual perspective that comes with the gift of age. ************************************************** ********* In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame. Rescue me and deliver me in your righteousness; turn your ear to me and save me. Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of evil and cruel men. For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth. Psalms 71:1-5 "See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are." 1 John 3:1 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Do not waste any time disliking who you are because of something you can no longer do anything about. Lord, help me to forgive myself all shortcomings of the past that I still hold on to and rather make the very best of this moment. We never really know how far reaching our influence will be. Lord, may Your loving kindness always flow through me. |
“I place this day, my life, my loved ones, my work in the Lord's hands. There is no harm in the Lord's hands, only good. Whatever happens, whatever results, if I am in the Lord's hands it is the Lord's will and it is good.”
Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 10
Daily Reflections CARRYING THE MESSAGE Now, what about the rest of the Twelfth Step? The wonderful energy it releases and the eager action by which it carries our message to the next suffering alcoholic and which finally translates the Twelve Steps into action upon all our affairs is the payoff, the magnificent reality, of Alcoholics Anonymous. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 109 To renounce the alcoholic world is not to abandon it, but to act upon principles I have come to love and cherish, and to restore in others who still suffer the serenity I have come to know. When I am truly committed to this purpose, it matters little what clothes I wear or how I make a living. My task is to carry the message, and to lead by example, not design. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Our drinking fellowship was a substitute one, for lack of something better. At the time, we did not realize what real fellowship could be. Drinking fellowship has a fatal fault. It is not based on a firm foundation. Most of it is on the surface. It is based mostly on the desire to use your companions for your own pleasure and using others is a false foundation. Drinking fellowship has been praised in song and story. The "cup that cheers" has become famous as a means of companionship. But we realize that the higher centers of our brains are dulled by alcohol and such fellowship cannot be on the highest plane. It is at best only a substitute. Do I see my drinking fellowship in its proper light? Meditation For The Day Set for yourself the task of growing daily more and more into the consciousness of a Higher Power. We must keep trying to improve our conscious contact with God. This is done by prayer, quiet times, and communion. Often all you need to do is sit silent before God and let Him speak to you through your thought. Try to think God's thoughts after Him. When the guidance comes, you must not hesitate, but go out and follow that guidance in your daily work, doing what you believe to be the right thing. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may be still and know God is with me. I pray that I may open my mind to the leading of Divine Mind. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It True Tolerance, p. 203 Gradually we began to be able to accept the other fellow's sins as well as his virtues. We coined the potent and meaningful expression "Let us always love the best in others--and never fear their worst." ******************************** Finally, we begin to see that all people, including ourselves, are to some extent emotionally ill as well as frequently wrong. When this happens, we approach true tolerance and we see what real love for our fellows actually means. 1. Grapevine, January 1962 2. 12 & 12, p. 92 12 & 12, p. 65 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places HOW IMPORTANT IS IT? Good judgment. All of our lives, many of us had to deal with "tempests in a teapot." These were minor problems that we somehow magnified until they became disasters. Some of us also took refuge in the bottle when faced with problems. Remembering this with some guilt, we may feel a responsibility today to deal with every problem efficiently and promptly. This feeling might also create unnecessary anxiety. We can easily get to the heart of such matters by asking ourselves, "How Important is it?" We might be making something far more important than it really is. The importance of problems is revealed by our inability to remember what was upsetting us a week ago. Asking, "How important is it?" can be a useful test to avoid excessive worrying about any problem. I'll take a responsibility attitude today, but I'll watch myself for a tendency to go to pieces over things that really aren't important in the long run. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Kindness in giving creates love. --Lao-tzu. In our illness, we takers. Now, we've changed this around. We are now givers. Giving is a big part of recovery. Our word for it is service. Our program is based on care, respect, and service. Our program tells us to “practice these principles in all our affairs." No matter if it's getting to our meeting early to put on the coffee, or going on a Twelfth Step call, we are giving of ourselves. We give so that we know we can make a difference. We give so that we can know how to love better. The healing power of recovery is love. As we give love and kindness to others, we heal. Why? Because people grow by giving kindness and love to others. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power with Your help I'll be a kind and loving giver. I'll look for way to share Your kindness. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list five ways I can be of service to others. I'll put at least one of these ways into action today. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning The forgiving state of mind is a magnetic power for attracting good. No good thing can be withheld from the forgiving state of mind. --Catherine Ponder Forgiveness fosters humility, which invites gratitude. And gratitude blesses us; it makes manifest greater happiness. The more grateful we feel for all aspects of our lives, the greater will be our rewards. We don't recognize the goodness of our lives until we practice gratitude. And gratitude comes easiest when we're in a forgiving state of mind. Forgiveness should be an ongoing process. Attention to it daily will ease our relationships with others and encourage greater self-love. First on our list for forgiveness should be ourselves. Daily, we heap recriminations upon ourselves. And our lack of self-love hinders our ability to love others, which in turn affects our treatment of them. We've come full circle--and forgiveness is in order. It can free us. It will change our perceptions of life's events, and it promises greater happiness. The forgiving heart is magical. My whole life will undergo a dynamic change when I develop a forgiving heart. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION If we have no such complication, there is plenty we should do at home. Sometimes we hear an alcoholic say that the only thing he needs to do is to keep sober. Certainly he must keep sober, for there will be no home if he doesn’t. But he is yet a long way from making good to the wife or parents whom for years he has so shockingly treated. Passing all understanding is the patience mothers and wives have had with alcoholics. Had this not been so, many of us would have no homes today, would perhaps be dead. p. 82 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Overjoyed, the newcomer plunged into Twelfth Step work. Tirelessly he laid A.A.'s message before scores of people. Since this was a very early group, those scores have since multiplied themselves into thousands. Never did he trouble anyone with his other difficulty. A.A. had taken its first step in the formation of Tradition Three. p. 142 ************************************************** ********* "If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours". --SHASEC God, help me remember that when I admit and accept the truth, I'll be given the power and guidance to change. --Melody Beattie Keep your sobriety first, to make it last. --unknown Today, I will focus on what's right about me. I will give myself some of the caring I've extended to the world. --Melody Beattie Learn to Let Go. That is the key to happiness. --Buddha Worry is like a rocking chair -- it gives you something to do but it doesn't get you anywhere. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation SERVICE "There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed." -- Albert Schweitzer I enjoy doing things for other people. I enjoy seeing other people happy, seeing gratitude in their eyes and experiencing their hug of thankfulness. Some people need to restrict how much they do for others and begin doing more for themselves but I am happy and pleased with my service towards others. Why? Because I used to be a "taker". For years I would walk away with all that you could give me and only thank you because I wanted to return for more! In sobriety I am beginning to change this. Now I am giving and I am enjoying it. Lord, the gift of service is a precious gift. ************************************************** ********* "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." Matthew 5:6 I honor and love your commands. I meditate on your principles. Remember your promise to me, for it is my only hope. Your promise revives me; it comforts me in all my troubles." Psalm 119:48-50 Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. 1 Chronicles 16:9-11 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration A blessing is an explosion of joy from God that ripples through your heart and fills your mind with God's light and hope. Lord, help me speak the words of blessing when they are needed by someone who is lonely, or who is dying or who is depressed. As you draw closer and closer to God, you won't have to tell anyone because it will show in your face. Lord, teach me Your ways as I am ready and let Your love and peace flow through me even in my difficult moments. |
Because of Jesus I can say: I am not what I ought
To be. I am not what I wish to be. I am not what I hope to be. But by the grace of God I am not what I was, Thank God and A.A. W.O.W:195:101 |
December 11
Daily Reflections A GENUINE HUMILITY . . . . we are actually to practice a genuine humility. This is to the end that our great blessings may never spoil us; that we shall forever live in thankful contemplation of Him who presides over us all. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 192 Experience has taught me that my alcoholic personality tends to be grandiose. While having seemingly good intentions, I can go off on tangents in pursuit of my "causes." My ego takes over and I lose sight of my primary purpose. I may even take credit for God's handiwork in my life. Such an overstated feeling of my own importance is dangerous to my sobriety and could cause great harm to A.A. as a whole. My safeguard, the Twelfth Tradition, serves to keep me humble. I realize, both as an individual and as a member of the Fellowship, that I cannot boast of my accomplishments, and that "God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves." ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Doctors think of the A.A. fellowship as group therapy. This is a very narrow conception of the depth of the A.A. fellowship. Looking at it purely as a means of acquiring and holding sobriety, it is right as far as it goes. But it doesn't go far enough. Group therapy is directed toward the help that the individual receives from it. It is essentially selfish. It is using the companionship of other alcoholics only in order to stay sober ourselves. But this is only the beginning of real A.A. fellowship. Do I deeply feel the true A.A. fellowship? Meditation For The Day Most of us have had to live through the dark part of our lives, the time of failure, the nighttime of our lives, when we were full of struggle and care, worry and remorse, when we felt deeply the tragedy of life. But with our daily surrender to a Higher Power, comes a peace and joy that makes all things new. We can now take each day as a joyous sunrise-gift from God to use for Him and for other fellow people. The night of the past is gone, this day is ours. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may take this day as a gift from God. I pray that I may thank God for this day and be glad in it. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It We Need Outside Help, p.248 It was evident that a solitary self-appraisal, and the admission of our defects based upon that alone, wouldn't be nearly enough. We'd have to have outside help if we were surely to know and admit the truth about ourselves--the help of God and of another human being. Only by discussing ourselves, holding back nothing, only by being willing to take advice and accept direction could we set foot on the road to straight thinking, solid honesty, and genuine humility. ******************************** If we are fooling ourselves, a competent adviser can see this quickly. And, as he skillfully guides us away from our fantasies, we are surprised to find that we have few of the usual urges to defend ourselves against unpleasant truths. In no other way can fear, pride, and ignorance be so readily melted. After a time, we realize that we are standing firm on a brand-new foundation for integrity, and we gratefully credit our sponsors, whose advice pointed the way. 1. 12 & 12, p.59 2. Grapevine, August 1961 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Keep the Focus on Personal Responsibility Responsible attitudes. Alcoholics often try to shift responsibility to others. We once thought it was possible to blame others for our drinking, and we had sneaky ways of manipulating family members so they would feel guilty and comply with our demands. In sober living, we must not allow ourselves to slip back into this mode of thinking. Keeping the focus on personal responsibility is our best way of approaching all problems. "What is my responsibility in this?" is a good question to ask in evaluating our part in situations. We are always responsible for our own sobriety. Beyond that, we're also responsible for maintaining good attitudes and making sure that our own anger and pride do not make any situation worse than it already is. I'll be responsible today for my own thoughts, feelings, and actions. If any stressful issue or situation arises, I'll keep my focus on personal responsibility. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple When patterns are broken, new worlds emerge.--Tuli Keupferberg. Recovery has happened to us. We stopped drinking or using other drugs and, like magic, a new world appeared. Being sober sure shakes up a person's life! It's good to shake up our world every now and then. This way, we see there's not just one “world”, but many. We grow each time we step into a new world and learn new things. Of course, the addict's world was new and exciting to us at one time. But we got trapped and couldn't find our way out. Our Higher Power had to free us. We need to try new worlds, but we always need to take our Higher Power with us--into worlds where there's honesty, love, and trust. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, lead me to new worlds where I'll learn more about living fully. Action for the Day: I'll list 3 ways I can step into a new world today. For example, I could read something new, go to a museum, or eat a new food. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Occupation is essential. --Virginia Woolf Having desires, setting goals, and achieving them are necessary to our fulfillment. There is purpose to our lives, even when we can't clearly see our direction; even when we doubt our abilities to contribute. Let us continue to respond to our opportunities. Many of us experienced the clouds of inaction in earlier periods waiting, waiting, waiting, hoping our circumstances would change, even praying they would, but taking no responsibility for changing what was in our power. Inaction caged us. Stripped of power, life held little or no meaning. However, we've been given another chance. The program has changed our lives. We have a reason for living, each day, even the days we feel hopeless and worthless. Maybe we are without a goal at this time. Perhaps the guidance is not catching our attention. We can become quiet with ourselves and let our daydreams act as indicators. We have something essential to do, and we are being given all the chances we'll need to fulfill our purpose. We can trust in our worth, our necessity to others. I will remember, the program came to me. I must have a part to play. I will look and listen for my opportunities today. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION The alcoholic is like a tornado roaring his way through the lives of others. Hearts are broken. Sweet relationships are dead. Affections have been uprooted. Selfish and inconsiderate habits have kept he home in turmoil. We feel a man is unthinking when he says that sobriety is enough. He is like the farmer who came up out of his cyclone cellar to find his home ruined. To his wife, he remarked, “Don’t see anything the matter here, Ma. Ain’t it grand the wind stopped blowin’?” p. 82 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Not long after the man with the double stigma knocked for admission, A.A.'s other group received into its membership a salesman we shall call Ed. A power driver, this one, and brash as any salesman could possibly be. He had at least and idea a minute on how to improves A.A. These ideas he sold to fellow members with the same burning enthusiasm with which he distributed automobile polish. But he had one idea that wasn't so salable. Ed was an atheist. His pet obsession was that A.A. could get along better without its "God nonsense." He browbeat everybody, and everybody expected that he'd soon get drunk - for at the time, you see, A.A. was on the pious side. There must be a heavy penalty, it was thought, for blasphemy. Distressingly enough, Ed proceeded to stay sober. p. 143 ************************************************** ********* Cease to inquire what the future has in store, and take as a gift whatever the day brings forth. --Horace "Ask for what you want. Ask for help, ask for input, ask for advice and ideas -- but never be afraid to ask." --Brian Tracy "Material success may result in the accumulation of possessions; but only spiritual success will enable you to enjoy them." --Nido Qubein "The act of taking the first step is what separates the winners from the losers." --Brian Tracy Life is very beautiful, you know. It is a gift given to us by God. Don’t ignore its beauty. Don’t ignore its joy. Don’t ignore its love. Embrace it, cherish it, and live it with all of your heart. Make the life you live as beautiful and wonderful as the life God has given you. Whether you are rich or poor, young or old, healthy or sick always remember that life is beautiful and so are you. --Joseph J. Mazzella ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation TODAY "The only courage that matters is the kind that gets you from one moment to the next." -- Mignon McLaughlin I do not have to have courage for a lifetime, just for the moment. I am helped by the philosophy that teaches me to live one day at a time, one hour at a time, one moment at a time. It is too awesome to try to live my tomorrows today. Life is a process to be lived not a future to be anticipated. For years I tried to anticipate what life had to throw at me, and I always came away confused, surprised and exhausted. I missed the joy of the moment by worrying about the future. What was he going to do? What happens if the police get involved? Will my mother telephone next week? Will my niece grow up to be alcoholic? Am I to blame? I had a thousand questions that I could not answer; nobody can answer for the future today. I can only take responsibility for my life a day at a time. I developed the courage to face the moment and I became a winner. May I avoid the temptation to seek the fantasy of tomorrow for the reality of today. ************************************************** ********* For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ...' 1 Thessalonians 5:9 "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone-- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." I Timothy 2:1-5 “He who covers and forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats or harps on a matter separates even close friends.” Proverbs 17:9 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Use Jesus' as your example on how to live. Lord, You will guide and advise us and then You will leave it to us to decide our own future. Give us wisdom in our choices. God gives abundantly to those who pass His gifts on to others. Lord, let Your blessings flow in to me and then out from me. I will neither be selfish nor let my gifts stagnate. |
"Deep within the individual is a vast reservoir of untapped power awaiting to be used. no person can have the use of all this potential until he learns to know his or her own self. the trouble with many people is that they got through life thinking and writing themselves off as ordinary commonplace persons. having no proper belief in themselves they live aimless and erratic lives largely because they never realize what their lives really can be or what they can become”
Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 12
Daily Reflections A COMMON SOLUTION The tremendous fact for every one of us is that we have discovered a common solution. We have a way out on which we can absolutely agree, and upon which we can join in brotherly and harmonious action. This is the great news this book carries to those who suffer from alcoholism. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 17 The most far-reaching Twelfth Step work was the publication of our Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. Few can equal that book for carrying the message. My idea is to get out of myself and simply do what I can. Even if I haven't been asked to sponsor and my phone rarely rings, I am still able to do Twelfth Step work. I get involved in "brotherly and harmonious action." At meetings I show up early to greet people and to help set up, and to share my experience, strength and hope. I also do what I can with service work. My Higher Power gives me exactly what He wants me to do at any given point in my recovery and, if I let Him, my willingness will bring Twelfth Step work automatically. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Clergymen speak of the spiritual fellowship of the church. This is much closer to the A.A. way than mere group therapy. Such a fellowship is based on a common belief in God and a common effort to live a spiritual life. We try to do this in A.A. We also try to get down to the real problems in each others' lives. We try to open up to each other. We have a real desire to be of service to each other. We try to go deep down into the personal lives of our members. Do I appreciate the deep personal fellowship of A.A.? Meditation For The Day Love and fear cannot dwell together. By their very natures, they cannot exist side by side. Fear is a very strong force. And therefore a weak and vacillating love can soon be routed by fear. But a strong love, a love that trusts in God, is sure eventually to conquer fear. The only sure way to dispel fear is to have the love of God more and more in your heart and soul. Prayer For The Day I pray that love will drive out the fear in my life. I pray that my fear will flee before the power of the love of God. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Going It Alone, p. 274 Going it alone in spiritual matters is dangerous. How many times have we heard well-intentioned people claim the guidance of God when it was plain that they were mistaken? Lacking both practice and humility, they deluded themselves and were so able to justify the most arrant nonsense on the ground that this was what God had told them. People of very high spiritual development almost always insist on checking with friends or spiritual advisers the guidance they feel they have received from God. Surely, then, a novice ought not lay himself open to the chance of making foolish, perhaps tragic, blunders. While the comment or advice of others may not be infallible, it is likely to be far more specific than any direct guidance we may receive while we are still inexperienced in establishing contact with a Power greater than ourselves. 12 & 12, p. 60 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Demanding credit Approval. The struggle for recognition sometimes takes an ugly form in AA. Even the pioneers of AA had disputes about who deserved credit for the fellowship's success. Demanding credit and recognition is a loser's game for people who are seeking growth in sobriety. It is an indication that we still need applause and approval of the sort that drove us while we were drinking. It is a way of saying that we still don't believe good work should be done for its own sake, but rather for the applause that goes with it. The real kicker is that people who demand recognition never get enough of it. Ironically, if we don't try to obtain credit for our actions, it sometimes comes anyway, without effort on our part. I'll watch myself for any tendency to demand credit for the things I do in the program. My healthy growth in sobriety should be reward enough. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple God gave us memory that we might have roses in December.--James M. Barrie. Do you remember what it was like to not have sobriety? Remember the shame? Remember the loneliness? Remember lying and wishing you could stop? Remember the powerlessness? Do you remember, also, how it felt when you began to believe you had an illness? Your shame was lifted. Remember what it was like to look around at your meeting and know you belonged? Your loneliness was lifted. Remember when you family started to trust you again? Your dishonesty had been lifted. Sobriety gives us many roses. Our memory will help to keep them fresh. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, never let me forget what it was like. Why? Because I'm only one drink or pill away from losing You. Action for the Day: I'll find a friend I trust. I'll tell that person what my life was like before sobriety. I'll also talk about how I got sober. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning If I am to be remembered, I hope it is for the honesty I try to demonstrate, the patience I try to live by, and the compassion I feel for others. --JoAnn Reed Each of us hopes we are leaving a lasting, positive impression on those we befriend and maybe even those we encounter by chance. Having others speak well of us provides the strokes that are often necessary to our "keeping on" when difficulties surface. What we sometimes forget is that we are responsible for whatever lasting impression we leave. Our behavior does influence what another person carries away from our mutual experience. We may have left unfavorable impressions during our using days. On occasion, we do yet. However, it's progress, not perfection, we're after. And each day we begin anew, with a clear slate and fresh opportunities to spread good cheer, to treat others with love and respect, to face head-on and with full honesty all situations drawing our attention and participation. As I look forward to the hours ahead, I will remember that I control my actions toward others. If I want to be remembered fondly, I must treat each person so. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION Yes, there is a long period of reconstruction ahead. We must take the lead. A remorseful mumbling that we are sorry won’t fill the bill at all. We ought to sit down with the family and frankly analyze the past as we now see it, being very careful not to criticize them. Their defects may be glaring, but the chances are that our own actions are partly responsible. So we clean house with the family, asking each morning in meditation that our Creator show us the way of patience, tolerance, kindliness and love. p. 83 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." At length the time came for him to speak in a meeting. We shivered, for we knew what was coming. He paid a fine tribute to the Fellowship; he told how his family had been reunited; he extolled the virtue of honesty; he recalled the joys of Twelfth Step work; and then he lowered the boom. Cried Ed, "I can't stand this God stuff! It's a lot of malarkey for weak folks. This group doesn't need it, and I won't have it! To he!! with it!" A great wave of outraged resentment engulfed the meeting, sweeping every member to a single resolve: "Out he goes!" p. 143 ************************************************** ********* Just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you the best way they know how. --Unknown Smiles are contagious. See if you can infect someone today. --unknown I can't do His will my way. --unknown "It is a sign of strength, not of weakness, to admit that you don't know all the answers." --John P. Loughrane Miracles are not just extraordinary occurrences. They are also small simple things that are often overlooked. Take the time today to notice one. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation PRINCIPLES "At the back of every noble life are the principles that have fashioned it." -- George Lorimer God is to be found in the principles of life. The suggested patterns of behavior that lead to happiness, freedom and unity in the world. God is not just a "good idea", an intellectual philosophy or other worldly entity. God is practical goodness that can be demonstrated and seen in the world. Principles lead to action; principles produce change in attitude and behavior; principles must have a practical result. Sometimes you hear the phrase "walk the talk", implying that the principles we talk about should be evident in our daily lives. Also principles should be seen in the small things of life being courteous, giving a smile to a stranger, offering a hug to a friend in pain. God is alive in the principles of life. Help me to practice the principles I believe in. ************************************************** ********* "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained." Philippians 3:12-16 "Your life will be brighter than the noonday....And you will have confidence, because there is hope." Job 11:17-18 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Reach higher than you think possible for all that you want and you find that often you attain even more. Lord, I rely on Your promises made to each of us and especially on Your love. Be patient with others, but mostly be patient with yourself. Lord, help me to keep a smile on my face and to realize my goodness and refuse to dwell on my imperfections. |
“When you wholeheartedly adopt a 'with all your heart'
attitude and go all out with the positive principle,you can do incredible things." Norman Vincent Peale. W.W.W:D:101 |
"Do not be awe struck by other people and try to copy
them. Nobody can be you as efficiently as you can.” Norman Vincent Peale. W.W.W:170:101 |
December 13
Daily Reflections THINKING OF OTHERS Our very lives, as ex-problem drinkers, depend upon our constant thought of others and how we may help meet their needs. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 20 Thinking of others has never come easily to me. Even when I try to work the A.A. program, I'm prone to thinking, "How do I feel today. Am I happy, joyous and free?" The program tells me that my thoughts must reach out to those around me: "Would that newcomer welcome someone to talk to?" "That person looks a little unhappy today, maybe I could cheer him up." It is only when I forget my problems, and reach out to contribute something to others that I can begin to attain the serenity and God-consciousness I seek. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day We come now to A.A. fellowship. It is partly group therapy. It is partly spiritual fellowship. But it is even more. It is based on a common illness, a common failure, a common problem. It goes deep down into our personal lives and our personal needs. It requires a full opening up to each other of our inner most thoughts and most secret problems. All barriers between us are swept aside. They have to be. Then we try to help each other get well. The A.A. fellowship is based on a sincere desire to help the other person. In A.A. we can be sure of sympathy, understanding and real help. These things make the A.A. fellowship the best that we know. Do I fully appreciate the depth of the A.A. fellowship? Meditation For The Day The Higher Power can guide us to the right decisions if we pray about them. We can believe that many details of our lives are planned by God and planned with a wealth of forgiving love for the mistakes we have made. We can pray today to be shown the right way. We can choose the good, and when we choose it, we can feel that the whole power of the universe is behind us. We can achieve a real harmony with God's purpose for our lives. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may choose aright today. I pray that I may be shown the right way to live today. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Compelling Love, p.273 The life of each A.A. and of each group is built around our Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. We know that the penalty for extensive disobedience to these principles is death for the individual and dissolution for the group. But an even greater force for A.A.'s unity is our compelling love for our fellow members and for our principles. ******************************** You might think the people at A.A.'s headquarters in New York would surely have to have some personal authority. But, long ago, trustees and secretaries alike found they could do no more than make very mild suggestions to the A.A. groups. They even had to coin a couple of sentences which still go into half the letters they write: "Of course you are at perfect liberty to handle this matter any way you please. But the majority experience in A.A. does seem to suggest . . ." A.A. world headquarters is not a giver of orders. It is, instead, our largest transmitter of the lessons of experience. 1. Twelve Concepts, p.8 2. 12 & 12, pp. 173-174 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Visualizing Success Optimistic Thinking Some people insist that we must visualize ourselves enjoying success if we ever hope to achieve it. AA says virtually the same about sobriety; in fact, "A Vision for You" is the name of a chapter in Alcoholics Anonymous. There is a lot of talk in AA about projecting into the future and "seeing the worst." It takes far less energy.... and it's far more constructive..... to see ourselves doing our best, in sobriety and in all things. We have rich imaginative powers. Quite often, we used gifts wrongly when we were drinking... we would create dark pictures of our future troubles, particularly in the depressed periods between drinking bouts. In AA., we learn to use those same powers to see ourselves enjoying happy sobriety as well as a secure place in the world. I'm confident that I'm growing in sobriety and building healthy relationships in all of my activities. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Live and Let Live--AA slogan In our addiction, we didn't car. We didn't care about other people, even though we wanted to. We just didn't come through for them in ways that mattered. We didn't care for ourselves. We let bad things happen to us. We didn't care about living. We set no goals, had no fun, smelled no flowers. In our recovery, we do care. We care about others, ourselves, and life. Our spirits are on the move again. There's life in our hearts. Our bodies are getting well. And we're daring to dream. We're living! Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, put some life and energy into me today. Help me love my new life. Action for the Day: Today, I'll focus on being alive. As I breathe in, I'll gather more and more life energy from nature. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Across the fields I can see the radiance of your smile and I know in my heart you are there. But the anguish I am feeling makes the distance so very far to cross. --Deidra Sarault Looking down the hallway of our lives, we sense many uncomfortable corners. And they are there. But through the discomfort comes the ease of understanding. The security that we long for, we discover has been ours all along. All we needed to do was move into the corner--with trust. As we stand before any problems, any new task, any unfamiliar environment, dread may overwhelm us. We stand there alone. But the choice available to us now and always is to invite the spirit of God to share the space we're in. In concert with God's Spirit, no problem or task can be greater than our combined abilities to handle it. Our lives will be eased in direct proportion to our faith that God is there, caring for our every concern, putting before us the experiences we need to grow on. We can let go of our anguish, our doubts and fears. Eternal triumph is ours for the asking. The smiling faces I encounter today--I will let them assure me that all is well. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it. Unless one’s family expresses a desire to live upon spiritual principles we think we ought not to urge them. We should not talk incessantly to them about spiritual matters. They will change in time. Our behavior will convince them more than our words. We must remember that ten or twenty years of drunkenness would make a skeptic out of anyone. p. 83 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." The elders led Ed aside. They said firmly, "You can't talk like this around here. You'll have to quit it or get out." With great sarcasm Ed came back at them. "Now do tell! Is that so?" He reached over to a bookshelf and took up a sheaf of papers. On top of them lay the foreword to the book "Alcoholics Anonymous," then under preparation. He read aloud, "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Relentlessly, Ed went on, "When you guys wrote that sentence, did you mean it, or didn't you?" Dismayed, the elders looked at one another, for they knew he had them cold. So Ed stayed. pp. 143-144 ************************************************** ********* Everything I experience serves a purpose. Today, my past is healed; I am alive, awake, and free. I have the courage to change. --Glad Day by Joan Larkin "We live by admiration, hope and love." --William Wordsworth If you judge people, you have no time to love them. --Mother Teresa Every morning you are handed 24 golden hours. They are one of the few things in this world that you get free of charge. If you had all the money in the world, you couldn't buy an extra hour. What will you do with this priceless treasure? --Anonymous An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory. --Friedrich Engels Work like you don't need the money, love like you've never been hurt, and dance like you do when nobody's watching. --Anonymous ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation SUFFERING "Man cannot remake himself without suffering. For he is both the marble and the sculptor." -- Alexis Carrel I know that I have grown through my sufferings. I know that I am able to understand and forgive other people because I have been there, too. I know that I am patient and considerate because of my sufferings. My anguish keeps me "earthed". It stops me from playing God; it teaches me the reality of life that life hurts! It is wonderful, joyous, loving and eventful, but it also hurts. For many years I hid my sufferings and pretended they were not there; the result was loneliness and hypocrisy. God, may my sufferings keep me real. ************************************************** ********* Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be his counselor? Romans 11:33-34 May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, each with the attitude of Christ Jesus toward the other. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:5-6 For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. 1 Corinthians 1:25 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration If we focus too much on ourselves and the troubles in our lives, it is very difficult to be happy. Lord, refresh my spirit, help me let go of longing to become something I am not and show me how to be the best of who I am. Open your mind and empty your heart of fears so that you can know and experience God to the fullest. Lord, You are my peace, my assurance and the love that I hold on to. |
December 14
Daily Reflections REACHING OUT Never talk down to an alcoholic from any moral or spiritual hilltop; simply lay out the kit of spiritual tools for his inspection. Show him how they worked with you. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 95 When I come into contact with a newcomer, do I have a tendency to look at him from my perceived angle of success in A.A.? Do I compare him with the large number of acquaintances I have made in the Fellowship? Do I point out to him in a magisterial way the voice of A.A.? What is my real attitude toward him? I must examine myself whenever I meet a newcomer to make sure that I am carrying the message with simplicity, humility and generosity. The one who still suffers from the terrible disease of alcoholism must find in me a friend who will allow him to get to know the A.A. way, because I had such a friend when I arrived in A.A. Today it is my turn to hold out my hand, with love, to my sister or brother alcoholic, and to show her or him the way to happiness. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The way of A.A. is the way of service. Without that, it would not work. We have been "on the wagon" and hated it. We have taken the pledge and waited for the time to be up with impatience. We have tried in all manner of ways to help ourselves. But not until we begin to help other people do we get full relief. It is an axiom that the A.A. program has to be given away in order to be kept. A river flows into the Dead Sea and stops. A river flows into a clear pool and flows out again. We get and then we give. If we do not give, we do not keep. Have I given up all ideas of holding A.A. for myself alone? Meditation For The Day Try to see the life of the spirit as a calm place, shut away from the turmoil of the world. Think of your spiritual home as a place full of peace, serenity, and contentment. Go to this quiet, meditative place for the strength to carry you through today's duties and problems. Keep coming back here for refreshment when you are weary of the hubbub of the outside world. From this quietness and communion comes our strength. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may keep this resting place where I can commune with God. I pray that I may find refreshment in meditation on the Eternal. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It After the "Honeymoon", p. 216 "For most of us, the first years of A.A. are something like a honeymoon. There is a new and potent reason to stay alive, joyful activity aplenty. For a time, we are diverted from the main life problems. That is all to the good. "But when the honeymoon has worn off, we are obliged to take our lumps, like other people. This is where the testing starts. Maybe the group has pushed us onto the side lines. Maybe difficulties have intensified at home, or in the world outside. Then the old behavior patterns reappear. How well we recognize and deal with them reveals the extent of our progress." ******************************** The wise have always known that no one can make much of his life until self-searching becomes a regular habit, until he is able to admit and accept what he finds, and until he patiently and persistently tries to correct what is wrong. 1. Letter, 1954 2. 12 & 12, p. 88 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places The best of the Past Living today. We're told that we should forget the past when we come into AA. Since we can't change it, we should not waste time and energy reliving it. Let's be careful, however, not to take this advice too literally. There was much in our past that was good, even when we were drinking. We have a right and a need to treasure these important things. The real dangers of living in the past come either from brooding about its mistakes or from thinking that our best days are already behind us. We can think of the past as a foundation for the good we expect today and in all the days ahead. I'll preserve the best in my memories of the past, knowing that these helped bring me to my present state of recovery. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Hold fast to dreams for if dreams die, life is broken winged bird that cannot fly. --Langston Hughes Many of our dreams died as our addiction got worse. We felt the loss but couldn't speak it. With recovery, we regain our ability to dream. Dreams of sharing our lives with family and friends return. They push out thoughts of getting high. Dreams of pride and self-respect reappear. They replace the awful feeling of shame. Like the quote above says, "Hold fast to dreams...." Our dreams are our wishes for the future. They hold a picture of who we want to be. In our dreams, we let our spirits soar. Often, we fell close to God, others and ourselves. Thanks God, we can dream again. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, thanks to you, my wings have been mended. Guide me as I fly. Action for the Day: Today, I'll take time out to dream and share my dream with those I love. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning A theme may seem to have been put aside, but it keeps returning--the same thing modulated, somewhat changed in form. --Muriel Rukeyser No struggle we have is really new. It's another shade of the struggle that plagued us last week or perhaps last year. And we'll stumble again and again until we learn to quit struggling. The trying situations at work, or the personality type that irritates us, will always exist. But when we've come to accept as good and growth-enhancing all situations and all persons, we'll sense the subtle absence of struggle. We'll realize that the person we couldn't tolerate has become a friend. The situation we couldn't handle is resolved, forever. The lessons we need to learn keep presenting themselves, until we've finished the homework. If we sense a struggle today, we can look at it as an assignment, one that is meant for our growth. We can remember that our struggles represent our opportunities to grow. Fortunately, the program has given us a tutor. We have a willing teacher to help us. We need to move on, to be open to other assignments. No problem will be too much for us to handle. I will enjoy my role as student today. I will be grateful for all opportunities to grow. They make possible my very special contribution in this life. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION There may be some wrongs we can never fully right. We don’t worry about them if we can honestly say to ourselves that we would right them if we could. Some people cannot be seen--we sent them an honest letter. And there may be a valid reason for postponement in some cases. But we don’t delay if it can be avoided. We should be sensible, tactful, considerate and humble without being servile or scraping. As God’s people we stand on our feet; we don’t crawl before anyone. p. 83 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Ed not only stayed, he stayed sober - month after month. The longer he kept dry, the louder he talked - against God. The group was in anguish so deep that all fraternal charity had vanished. "When, oh when," groaned members to one another, "will that guy get drunk?" p. 144 ************************************************** ********* In order to keep a true perspective of one's importance, everyone should have a dog that will worship him and a cat that will ignore him. --Dereke Bruce "Life is short, and we have never too much time for gladdening the hearts of those who are traveling the dark journey with us. Oh, be swift to love, make haste to be kind." --Henri Frederic Amiel "The human spirit rings with hope at the sound of an encouraging word. --unknown "Many a good man has failed because he had his wishbone where his backbone should have been." --Unknown The first step identifies the problem, the remaining eleven steps are the solution. The first tradition identifies the problem, the remaining eleven traditions are how we do that. --unknown "Every situation can be a positive situation if you look upon it as an opportunity for growth and self-improvement." --Brian Tracy "Step into a new you each day. Reach out to greater health, happiness, fitness, friendship, love and greater pride in yourself." --Mark Victor Hansen Every recovery from alcoholism began with one sober hour. Life didn't end when I got sober -- it started. H E A L = Helping Every Alcoholic Live. Take a walk with God. He will meet you at the Steps. ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation GOD "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me." -- Jesus (Matthew 27:46) In my sickness I was often angry at God. Angry that He did not do what I wanted Him to do when I wanted Him to do it. I was a spoiled child. I refused to understand that suffering could be an important part of my spiritual growth. Today I know this to be true. The biggest part of my suffering, then and today, is the feeling of isolation. Not knowing for certain that He hears me. Not understanding completely what His will is for me. Not getting clear answers to my daily confusion. The doubt is part of the faith. The "not knowing" is the answer. Lord, may the daily doubts lead to a creative faith. ************************************************** ********* "All things work together for good to them that love God." Romans 8:28 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9 "Seek the LORD and live." Amos 5:6a ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Laughter is a speedy way to bring people together, build friendships and reduce stresses. Lord, help me participate in the many opportunities to feel the calming effect of laughter. God gives abundantly to those who pass His gifts on to others. Lord, let Your blessings flow in to me and then out from me. I will neither be selfish nor let my gifts stagnate. |
“Start each day by affirming peaceful, contented, and happy attitudes and your days
will tend to be pleasant and successful. Such attitudes are active and definite factors in creating satisfactory conditions. Watch your manner of speech then if you wish to develop a peaceful state of mind.” Norman Vincent Peale W.O.W:170:101 |
December 15
Daily Reflections DOING ANYTHING TO HELP Offer him [the alcoholic] friendship and fellowship. Tell him that if he wants to get well you will do anything to help. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 95 I remember how attracted I was to the two men from A.A. who Twelfth-Stepped me. They said I could have what they had, with no conditions attached, that all I had to do was make my own decision to join them on the pathway to recovery. When I start convincing a newcomer to do things my way, I forget how helpful those two men were to me in their open-minded generosity. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Service to others makes the world a good place. Civilization would cease if all of us were always and only for ourselves. We alcoholics have a wonderful opportunity to contribute to the well-being of the world. We have a common problem. We find a common answer. We are uniquely equipped to help others with the same problem. What a wonderful world it would be if everybody took their own greatest problem and found the answer to it and spent the rest of their lives helping others with the same problem, in their spare time. Soon we would have the right kind of a world. Do I appreciate my unique opportunity to be of service? Meditation For The Day Today can be lived in the consciousness of God's contact, upholding you in all good thoughts, words and deeds. If sometimes there seems to be a shadow on your life and you feel out of sorts, remember that this is not the withdrawal of God's presence, but only your own temporary unwillingness to realize it. The quiet gray days are the days for doing what you must do, but know that the consciousness of God's nearness will return and be with you again, when the gray days are past. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may face the dull days with courage. I pray that I may have faith that the bright days will return. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It A.A. In Two Words, p.271 "All A.A. progress can be reckoned in terms of just two words: humility and responsibility. Our whole spiritual development can be accurately measured by our degree of adherence to these magnificent standards. "Ever deepening humility, accompanied by an ever greater willingness to accept and to act upon clear-cut obligations--these are truly our touchstones for all growth in the life of the spirit. They hold up to us the very essence of right being and right doing. It is by them that we are enabled to find and to do God's will." Talk, 1965 (Printed In Grapevine, January 1966) ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Watching our boundaries. Personal relationships Setting boundaries in personal relationships is how we manage actions that could otherwise get out of control. One firm boundary in AA, for example, is maintaining other members' anonymity, as well as our own. We are always overstepping boundaries if we disclose another's AA membership without permission. It's wise, too, not to expect the easy familiarity of the meetings to carry over into all other activities. One member who was employed by another AA member apparently wondered why his boss was so easygoing and cordial at AA meetings and so remote and businesslike in the factory. It made perfect sense, however; their relationship in the plant was different from their AA relationship and required another set of boundaries. We can protect ourselves and others by being careful to establish proper boundaries for all relationships. This means that what's appropriate for one setting may not be for another. I'll check to be sure that I'm observing proper boundaries, for myself and others. I must not violate others' rights any more than I want my own violated. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple As ass is beautiful to an ass, and a pig to a pig.-- English proverb. When we see someone drunk and out of control, can we see the beautiful person inside them? If we can't, who will? Step Twelve reminds us that we have to help the alcoholic or other drug addict who suffers. This task has been given to us because we, most of all, should be able to look past the drunkenness and see the person. We were there. We know what it's like to be trapped in a world without meaning. If these memories have faded, we may need to go back over Step One. We may find ourselves angry with the practicing drunk or other drug addict. This is a sign that we have gotten too far from our past. Remember, "But for the grace of God..." Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, Help me remember my past and what it's like now. This helps me care about the person who still suffers. Action for the Day: Today, I'll respect my illness. I'll look for the beauty inside every drunk and other drug addict. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Happiness is a form of freedom, and of all people I should be the freest. I've earned this happiness and this freedom. --Angela L. Wozniak Life is a process, and we are progressing beautifully. We are no longer abusing our bodies and minds with drugs. We are taking special time, daily, to look for guidance. We are working the Steps of the program, better and better as the abstinent days add up. We are free from past behaviors. And we can be free from our negative attitudes too. Making a decision to look for the good in our experiences and in our friends and acquaintances frees us from so much frustration. It ushers in happiness, no only for us but for the others we are treating agreeably. Happiness is a byproduct of living the right kind of life. We can take a moment today, each time an action is called for, to consider our response. The one that squares with our inner selves and feels good, is the right one. Happiness will accompany it. Happiness is always within my power. My attitude is at the helm. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. pp. 83-84 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Quite a while later, Ed got a sales job which took him out of town. At the end of a few days, the news came in. He'd sent a telegram for money, and everybody knew what that meant! Then he got on the phone. In those days, we'd go anywhere on a Twelfth Step job, no matter how unpromising. But this time nobody stirred. "Leave him alone! Let him try it by himself for once; maybe he'll learn a lesson!" p. 144 ************************************************** ********* Too often we under estimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. --Leo Buscaglia He who speaks sows, and he who listens harvests. --Argentinean Proverb God is my compass, may I follow direction. --Shelley "Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer." --Denis Waitley "The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem." --Theodore Rubin ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation POVERTY "The poor you always have with you." -- Jesus (John 12:8) Whoever said that life was going to be easy? A great number of people are placed in circumstances that are beyond their control and they die in helpless poverty. The poor are always with us. I cannot understand this dilemma and I have few answers for most of the world's suffering. However, I have a faith in God's love being realized beyond the grave for everyone. But many of "the poor" are spiritually destitute by their own making. They choose to live lives that are consistently destructive and they refuse to change. Alcoholics and drug addicts are committing suicide by their lifestyle! I know because for years I was one. This produces a spiritual poverty that need not remain. This is a poverty that can be overcome. Recovery is finding the hidden treasure that is within. Let me find Your treasure in the loving care I give myself. ************************************************** ********* Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ." 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." I Corinthians 10:13 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Add excitement to the day by meeting everything as though it is your very first time. Lord, give me the ability to change the ordinary into something special, to do more than just slide through the moments of the day and take time to notice that my life really is terrific most of the time. We have two ends; one for sitting and one for thinking. My success depends on which one I use more. Lord, grant me the determination and the necessary energy that I need to accomplish my goals for today and for my future. |
Growth means change and changes involves
risk, stepping from the known to the unknown. We don't have to fear the unknown, but take what we know and grow. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 16
Daily Reflections PARTNERS IN RECOVERY . . . nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics . . . Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress. . . . Follow the dictates of a Higher Power and you will presently live in a new and wonderful world, no matter what your present circumstances! ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 89, 100 Doing the right things for the right reasons -- this is my way of controlling my selfishness and self-centeredness. I realize that my dependency on a Higher Power clears the way for peace of mind, happiness and sobriety. I pray each day that I will avoid my previous actions, so that I will be helpful to others. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The way of A.A. is the way of faith. We don't get the full benefit of the program until we surrender our lives to some Power greater than ourselves and trust that Power to give us the strength we need. There is no better way for us. We can get sober without it. We can stay sober for some time without it. But if we are going to truly live, we must take the way of faith in God. That is the path for us. We must follow it. Have I taken the way of faith? Meditation For The Day Life is not a search for happiness. Happiness is a by-product of living the right kind of a life, of doing the right thing. Do not search for happiness, search for right living and happiness will be your reward. Life is sometimes a march of duty during dull, dark days. But happiness will come again, as God's smile of recognition of your faithfulness. True happiness is always the by-product of a life well lived. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may not seek happiness but seek to do right. I pray that I may not seek pleasure so much as the things that bring true happiness. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Two Roads for the Oldtimer, p. 138 The founders of many groups ultimately divide into two classes known in A.A. slang as "elder statesmen" and "bleeding deacons." The elder statesman sees the wisdom of the group's decision to run itself and holds no resentment over his reduced status. His judgment, fortified by considerable experience, is sound; he is willing to sit quietly on the side lines patiently awaiting developments. The bleeding deacon is just as surely convinced that the group cannot get along without him. He constantly connives for re-election to office and continues to be consumed with self-pity. Nearly every oldtimer in our Society has gone through this process in some degree. Happily, most of them survive and live to become elder statesmen. They become the real and permanent leadership of A.A. 12 & 12, p. 135 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Others must not define us. Self-image The thoughtless practice of lumping people into categories can be destructive. Some of us still seethe with resentment over the roles we were given in our families while growing up. We realize that this way of being defined was a put-down. As adults living sober, we must now make sure that we define ourselves in ways that contribute to our success and happiness. If others attempt to attach labels to us, we must not accept this... at least not in our own minds. If others are attempting to define us in this way, we must always ask whether we've invited such labeling. Did your behavior somehow give them this impression? Did we mask our true feelings to present an image with which we don't really want to live? Whatever the answer, we must take charge of defining who we are and what we want to be. If I don't like the way people have been viewing me, I'll change the signals I've been sending out. Any signals I send should fit the way I really want to be known. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Charity sees the need, not the cause.--German proverb. Charity is not just giving money to good causes. Charity is having a heart that's ready to give. Charity is helping a friend at two in the morning. Charity is going early to the meeting to put on coffee without being asked. Service is how Twelve Step programs refer to "Charity". Service and charity are a lifestyle. We see a need, so we try to help. Our values and our heart will guide us in how we help. Service is a big part of our program. Service helps us think of others, not just of ourselves. We stop asking, "What's in it for me?" The act of helping others is what's in it for us. Sobriety is what's in it for us. Serenity is what's in it for us. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, You have given me many talents. Help me see how my talents can make the world a better place. Giving of myself is believing in You and myself. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list my talents and I'll think of ways I can use them to help others. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning To have someone who brings out the colors of life and whose very presence offers tranquility and contentment enriches my being and makes me grateful for the opportunity to share. --Kathleen Tierney Crilly Loneliness and isolation are familiar states to most of us. We often protected our insecurities by hiding out, believing that we'd survive if others didn't know who we really were. But we discovered that our insecurities multiplied. The remedy is people--talking to people, exposing our insecurities to them, risking, risking, risking. Sharing our mutual vulnerabilities helps us see how fully alike we are. Our most hated shortcoming is not unique, and that brings relief. It's so easy to feel utterly shamed in isolation. Hearing another woman say "I understand. I struggle with jealousy too," lifts the shame, the dread, the burden of silence. The program has taught us that secrets make us sick, and the longer we protect them, the greater are our struggles. The program promises fulfillment, serenity, achievement when we willingly share our lives. Each day we can lighten our burdens and help another lighten hers, too. I will be alert today to the needs of others. I will risk sharing. I will be a purveyor of tranquility. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. Are these extravagant promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us--sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them. pp. 83-84 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." About two weeks later, Ed stole by night into an A.A. member's house, and unknown to the family, went to bed. Daylight found the master of the house and another friend drinking their morning coffee. A noise was heard on the stairs. To their consternation, Ed appeared. A quizzical smile on his lips, he said, "Have you fellows had your morning meditation?" They quickly sensed that he was quite in earnest. In fragments, his story came out. p. 144 ************************************************** ********* The secret of what life's all about, Was answered by the sages: Life's about one day at a time, No matter what your age is. --Robert Half "In discussing an approach to bringing about positive changes within oneself, learning is only the first step. There are other factors as well: conviction, determination, action and effort." --Dalai Lama "If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm, you'll never enjoy the sunshine." --Morris West "It is a defining moment when someone in authority finally reaches the conclusion that leadership is not about using people ~ it's about serving them." --Neil Eskelin "Until you have learned to be tolerant with those who do not always agree with you; until you have cultivated the habit of saying some kind word of those whom you do not admire; until you have formed the habit of looking for the good instead of the bad there is in others, you will be neither successful nor happy." --Napoleon Hill "Everyone Smiles in the same language." --Proverb "Pain comes like the weather, but joy is a choice." --Rodney Crowell, Singer, Songwriter God can bring showers of blessing out of storms of adversity. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation GENEROSITY "Liberty is the one thing you can't have unless you give it to others." -- William Allen White Spirituality is rooted in a respect for self that demands an equal respect for others. I can expect to be treated with dignity if I afford dignity to others. In the one is the key to the many. For years I lived a compulsive life that only made me self-centered and spoiled, and it didn't work! I was unhappy, lonely and resentful. Today I find that the more I give to others the more I receive. Less is more. In this sense it is much easier to be good than bad because "goodness" works! Spirit of generosity, may I always reflect the gratitude that gives. ************************************************** ********* "I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever." Psalm 52:8 "The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me." Psalm 116:6 "Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content" 1 Timothy 6:6-8 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Do that which is right and learn to do it for the right reason. Lord, give us strength as we stand up to temptation and spiritual power as we resist the pressures and stresses that bear down on us. You cannot ask too much if you use your blessings ceaselessly. Lord, help me to reflect on and live in Your spirit. |
“How you think about a problem is more important
than the problem itself – so always think positively. Believe it is possible to solve your problem. Tremendous things happen to the believer. So believe the answer will come. It will.” Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
Thank you for sharing. It took me a long time to realize it was my thinking that got me into trouble. Just because I had a thought, I didn`t have to act on it. It was what I did wrong most of my life. Thought, react, act, with no thought of consequences or where the thought would take me.
We remember the good times and forget the price it cost or where it took us in the long run. Where did that fun take me? I can think positive and say I won`t, I will never, but without my God's Help, I can't. My sister said to me once, “You were never known for your will power.” I replied, “Oh I had lots of will, maybe not the right kind, but what I didn`t have was won`t power.” |
December 17
Daily Reflections A PRICELESS REWARD . . . . work with other alcoholics. . . . It works when other activities fail. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 89 "Life will take on a new meaning," as the Big Book says (p. 89) This promise has helped me to avoid self-seeking and self-pity. To watch others grow in this wonderful program, to see them improve the quality of their lives, is a priceless reward for my effort to help others. Self-examination is yet another reward for an ongoing recovery, as are serenity, peace and contentment. The energy derived from seeing others on a successful path, of sharing with them the joys of the journey, gives to my life a new meaning. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The way of faith is of course not confined to A.A. It is the way for everybody who wants to really live. But many people can go through life without much of it. Many are doing so, to their own sorrow. The world is full of lack of faith. Many people have lost confidence in any meaning in the universe. Many are wondering if it has any meaning at all. Many are at loose ends. Life has no goal for many. They are strangers in the land. They are not at home. But for us in A.A. the way of faith is the way of life. We have proved by our past lives that we could not live without it. Do I think I could live happily without faith? Meditation For The Day "He maketh His sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends the rain on the just and the unjust." God does not interfere with the working of natural laws. The laws of nature are unchangeable, otherwise we could not depend on them. As far as natural laws are concerned, God makes no distinction between good and bad people. Sickness or death may strike anywhere. But spiritual laws are also made to be obeyed. On our choice of good or evil depends whether we go upward to true success and victory in life or downward to loss and defeat. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may choose today the way of the spiritual life. I pray that I may live today with faith and hope and love. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It WHEN CONFLICTS MOUNT, p. 289 Sometimes I would be forced to look at situations where I was doing badly. Right away, the search for excuses would become frantic. "These," I would exclaim, "are really a good man's faults." When that pet gadget broke apart, I would think, "Well, if those people would only treat me right, I wouldn't have to behave the way I do." Next was this: "God well knows that I do have awful compulsions. I just can't get over this one. So He will have to release me." At last came the time when I would shout, "This, I positively will not do! I won't even try." Of course, my conflicts went right on mounting, because I was simply loaded with excuses, refusals, and outright rebellion. ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Looking For Protectors Self-Reliance Many of us managed to survive while drinking by finding protectors we could lean on. Sometimes the protector wasn't a very strong person---only someone who was willing to support us in some way. A protector could even be a person who gave us flattery or companionship when we wanted it. Such alliances are usually unhealthy and have no lasting place in society. We cannot depend on protectors who will eventually betray us or fail us through no fault of their own. In sobriety, we must grow into a satisfactory form of self-reliance. This is not reliance on our own resources; rather, it is really a way of relying on our Higher Power, the group, our sponsors, and the higher understanding we've found in the program. If we're still looking for people willing to protect us, we need more growth in sobriety. I've been given tools for understanding myself and my life. I can use those tools effectively as I go through the day. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The rose and the thorn, and sorrow and gladness are linked together. --Saadi. When we were drinking and drugging, we didn't have to deal much with feelings. We turned them off. Then, when we let go of the alcohol and other drugs, we started to come back to life. Now--we have feelings again! But, even now, in recovery, we're scared of too much happiness. It's true--we don't want sadness and pain at all. Yet, feelings--the good and the bad--keep on coming. And we have to handle them. We are learning to handle our feelings. We're getting strong enough to deal with them. With the help of our friends in the program, and our Higher Power, we're ready for life. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I want to be fully alive, but I'm a little scared. Help me know what to do with my feelings today. Action for the Day: Today, I'll be open to feelings. I'll enjoy my good feelings and share them. I'll ask for help with hard feelings by praying, and by calling my sponsor. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Give to the world the best you have, and the best will come back to you. --Madeline Bridge We do reap, in some measure, at some time, what we sow. Our respect for others will result in kind. Our love expressed will return tenfold. The kindness we greet others with will ease their relations with us. We get from others what we give, if not at this time and place, at another. We can be certain that our best efforts toward others do not go unnoticed. And we can measure our due by what we give. A major element of our recovery is the focus we place on our behavior, the seriousness with which we tackle our inventories. We can look at ourselves and how we reach out and act toward others; it is a far cry from where we were before entering this program. Most of us obsessed on "What he did to me," or "What she said." And then returned their actions in kind. How thrilling is the knowledge that we can invite loving behavior by giving it! We have a great deal of control over the ebb and flow of our lives. In every instance we can control, our behavior. Thus never should we be surprised about the conditions of our lives. What goes around comes around. I will look for the opportunities to be kind and feel the results. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION This thought brings us to Step Ten, which suggests we continue to take personal inventory and continue to set right any new mistakes as we go along. We vigorously commenced this way of living as we cleaned up the past. We have entered the world of the Spirit. Our next function is to grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter. It should continue for our lifetime. Continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear. When these crop up, we ask God at once to remove them. We discuss them with someone immediately and make amends quickly if we have harmed anyone. Then we resolutely turn our thoughts to someone we can help. Love and tolerance of others is our code. p. 84 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." In a neighboring state, Ed had holed up in a cheap hotel. After all his pleas for help had been rebuffed, these words rang in his fevered mind. "They have deserted me. I have been deserted by my own kind. This is the end . . . Nothing is left." As he tossed on his bed, his hand brushed the bureau near by, touching a book. Opening the book, he read. It was a Gideon Bible. Ed never confided any more of what he saw and felt in that hotel room. It was the year 1938. He hasn't had a drink since. pp. 144-145 ************************************************** ********* "Enthusiastic people experience life from the inside out." --Nido Qubein There are two days about which nobody should ever worry, and these are yesterday and tomorrow. --Robert J. Burdette What people really need is a good listening-to. --Mary Lou Casey When I have done all the footwork I know to do and things are still not working out, I know today that it is time to meditate. I have faith that my answer is still to come. --Ruth Fishel No one else's opinion about me can determine my worth. --Mary Manin Morrissey "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow." --Melody Beattie ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation FEAR "Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood." -- Marie Curie God is on my side. Today I really believe and understand this truth, and it helps me cope with my fears. Now I am beginning to understand that I was the only real enemy in my life. With this new understanding of God I have the power of choice back in my life. I do not have to stay in a sick process. I do not need sick and negative people in my life. I do not have to place myself in destructive relationships or in fearful situations. God is alive in my life and I am discovering the spiritual power of choice. God, give me the courage to confront my fear and be willing to make changes in my life. ************************************************** ********* "Behold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6:2 "Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Proverbs 30:5 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Treat your family as you would treat a best friend. Lord, help me to treasure my family with all of their imperfections as well as my own and cherish the time we have together. Let nothing that others do alter how you treat them. Lord, may I treat all with love and consideration. |
“Resentment or grudges do no harm to the person
against whom you hold these feelings but every day and every night of your life, they are eating at you.” Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 18
Daily Reflections HONESTY WITH NEWCOMERS Tell him exactly what happened to you. Stress the spiritual feature freely. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 93 The marvel of A.A. is that I tell only what happened to me. I don't waste time offering advice to potential newcomers, for if advice worked, nobody would get to A.A. All I have to do is show what has brought me sobriety and what has changed my life. If I fail to stress the spiritual feature of A.A.'s program, I am being dishonest. The newcomer should not be given a false impression of sobriety. I am sober only through the grace of my Higher Power, and that makes it possible for me to share with others. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Unless we have the key of faith to unlock the meaning of life, we are lost. We do not choose faith because it is one way for us, but because it is the only way. Many have failed and will fail. For we cannot live victoriously without faith; we are at sea without a rudder or an anchor, drifting on the sea of life. Wayfarers without a home. Our souls are restless until they find rest in God. Without faith, our lives are a meaningless succession of unrelated happenings, without rhyme or reason. Have I come to rest in faith? Meditation For The Day This vast universe around us, including this wonderful earth on which we live, was once perhaps only a thought in the mind of God. The nearer the astronomers and the physicists get to the ultimate composition of all things, the nearer the universe approaches a mathematical formula, which is thought. The universe may be the thought of the Great Thinker. We must try to think God's thoughts after Him. We must try to get the guidance from the Divine Mind as to what His intention is for the world and what part we can have in carrying out that intention. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may not worry over the limitations of the human mind. I pray that I may live as though my mind were a reflection of the Divine Mind. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Those Other People, p.268 "Just like you, I have often thought myself the victim of what other people say and do. Yet every time I confessed the sins of such people, especially those whose sins did not correspond exactly with my own, I found that I only increased the total damage. My own resentment, my self-pity would often render me well-nigh useless to anybody. "So, nowadays, if anyone talks of me so as to hurt, I first ask myself if there is any truth at all in what they say. If there is none, I try to remember that I too have had my periods of speaking bitterly of others; that hurtful gossip is but a symptom of our remaining emotional illness; and consequently that I must never be angry at the unreasonableness of sick people. "Under very trying conditions I have had, again and again, to forgive others--also myself. Have you recently tried this?" Letter, 1946 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places The Fear Of Loneliness Raising Self-Esteem The fear of being alone brings strange results. It may cause us to cling to arrangements and relationships that are unsatisfactory or destructive. Some of us become enablers for loved ones who are still drinking; quite often this can involve putting up with abuse we shouldn't have to endure. We endure such relationships because we fear we'll be alone and defenseless without them. We may even put up with friends who are manipulative or treacherous because we can't visualize having happier, healthier friendships. When we recognize that we are holding on to unsatisfactory relationships for such reasons, we need to apply the program more diligently in our own lives. Usually, we need more self-esteem--a belief that we deserve satisfactory relationships. We do not have to be alone, but neither do we have to endure what amounts to abuse and rejection. WhetherI'm with people or alone today, I'll know that all of my relationships should be satisfactory for everybody involved. I'll let my Higher Power guide me to the relationships that are right for me. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."Franklin D. Roosevelt As addicts, we had lots of fear. Some of us were afraid of failure. So we didn't try to do much. Or else we tried too hard all the time. We used alcohol and other drugs to forget our fear, but it didn't go away. It got worse. Now we know we don't have to be afraid. When our lives are in the care of our Higher Power, we're safe. Faith is the cure for out fear. But still, fear keeps creeping back inside us. That's okay. It's normal. There is so much that's new in our sober life! We don't know what will happen next. It's hard to always remember to trust our Higher Power. It's hard to always do what our Higher Power says. It's hard to always have faith. We have to practice turning our fear over to our Higher Power. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, be with me when I'm afraid. Help me remember to have faith to believe in You, even when my fear tells me not to. Action for the Day: Today, I'll notice my fear and pray each time get afraid. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Destruction. Crashing realities exploding in imperfect landings. Ouch. It's my heart that's breaking, for these have been my fantasies and my world. --Mary Casey We frequently aren't given what we want--whether it's a particular job, a certain relationship, a special talent. But we are always given exactly what we need at the moment. None of us can see what tomorrow is designed to bring, and our fantasies are always tied to a future moment. Our fantasies seldom correlate with the real conditions that are necessary to our continued spiritual growth. Fantasies are purposeful. They give us goals to strive for, directions to move in. They are never as far-sighted as the goals our higher power has in store for us, though. We have far greater gifts than we are aware of, and we are being pushed to develop them at the very times when it seems our world is crashing down. We can cherish our fantasies--but let them go. Our real purpose in life far exceeds our fondest dreams. The Steps have given us the tools to make God's plan for us a reality. How limited is my vision, my dreams. If one of mine is dashed today, I will rest assured that an even better one will present itself, if I but let it. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION And we have ceased fighting anything or anyone--even alcohol. For by this time sanity will have returned. We will seldom be interested in liquor. If tempted, we recoil from it as from a hot flame. We react sanely and normally, and we will find that this has happened automatically. We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been given us without any thought or effort on our part. It just comes! That is the miracle of it. We are not fighting it, neither are we avoiding temptation. We feel as though we had been placed in a position of neutrality--safe and protected. We have not even sworn off. Instead, the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us. We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is how we react so long as we keep in fit spiritual condition. pp. 84-85 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Three - "The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking." Nowadays, when oldtimers who know Ed foregather, they exclaim, "What if we had actually succeeded in throwing Ed out for blasphemy? What would have happened to him and all the others he later helped?" So the hand of Providence early gave us a sign that any alcoholic is a member of our Society when he says so. p. 145 ************************************************** ********* Thought is the blossom; language the bud; action the fruit behind it. --Ralph Waldo Emerson "Let me tell thee, time is a very precious gift of God; so precious that it is only given to us moment by moment." --Amelia Barr Pain is never permanent. --Saint Theresa of Avila Meetings: A checkup from the neck up. --unknown Don't give up before the miracle happens. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation FREEDOM "You are free and that is why you are lost." -- Franz Kafka Part of my understanding of spirituality is that we have many choices and we live in moments of "not knowing". Part of being human is that we have feelings of being lost. These feelings can lead to fear and loneliness or they can be seen as the essence of man's risk and adventure. With freedom comes daily uncertainties; nothing is predestined or made to happen God is in the choice. Herein lies true greatness. The fact is that we do not have all the answers. We are not sure of the results. The joys are mingled with the pain and sorrows such is the divinity of life. And yet still we choose to live! Sobriety is accepting the reality of this uncertain life. My responsibility is accepting this freedom and making a daily choice not to drink. May I accept my "lostness" until I return home to You. ************************************************** ********* "...behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Luke 1:20-21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love, and His wonderful deeds for men. Psalm 107:15 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. Psalm 107:19 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration If you are not happy with what you have, how will you be happy with what you want to have? Lord, may I appreciate the good things in my life and refuse to feel sorry for myself or compare myself to others. Many joys come from the simple things. Lord, open my eyes that I may see the wonders in my life and take the time to enjoy them. |
“Drop the idea that you are Atlas carrying
the world on your shoulders. The world would go on even without you. Don't take yourself so seriously.” Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
December 19
Daily Reflections UNDERSTANDING THE MALADY When dealing with an alcoholic, there may be a natural annoyance that a man could be so weak, stupid and irresponsible. Even when you understand the malady better, you may feel this feeling rising. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 139 Having suffered from alcoholism, I should understand the illness, but sometimes I feel annoyance, even contempt, toward a person who cannot make it in A.A. When I feel that way, I am satisfying my false sense of superiority and I must remember, but for the grace of God, there go I. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day The skeptic and the agnostic say it is impossible for us to find the answer to life. Many have tried and failed. But many have put aside intellectual pride and have said to themselves: Who am I to say there is no God? Who am I to say there is no purpose in life? The atheist makes a declaration: "The world originated in a cipher and aimlessly rushes nowhere." Others live for the moment and do not even think about why they are here or where they are going. They might as well be clams on the bottom of the ocean, protected by their hard shells of indifference. They do not care. Do I care where I am going? Meditation For The Day We may consider the material world as the clay which the artist works with, to make of it something beautiful or ugly. We need not fear material things, which are neither good nor bad in the moral sense. There seems to be no active force for evil--outside of human beings themselves. Humans alone can have either evil intentions--resentments, malevolence, hate and revenge--or good intentions--love and good will. They can make something ugly or something beautiful out of the clay of their lives. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may make something beautiful out of my life. I pray that I may be a good artisan of the materials which I have been given to use. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Behind Our Excuses, p.267 As excuse-makers and rationalizers, we drunks are champions. It is the business of the psychiatrist to find the deeper causes for our conduct. Though uninstructed in psychiatry, we can, after a little time in A.A., see that our motives have not been what we thought they were, and that we have been motivated by forces previously unknown to us. Therefore we ought to look, with the deepest respect, interest, and profit, upon the example set us by psychiatry. ******************************** "Spiritual growth through the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps, plus the aid of a good sponsor, can usually reveal most of the deeper reasons for our character defects, at least to a degree that meets our practical needs. Nevertheless, we should be grateful that our friends in psychiatry have so strongly emphasized the necessity to search for false and often unconscious motivations." 1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p.236 2. Letter, 1966 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places Deadlines Facing delays The procrastination of our drinking years caused some of us to become compulsive and fearful about meeting deadlines. We fret and stew if we're unable to get things done when we think they should be completed. Without being careless or irresponsible, we should remember that we're really living in a spiritual world on a spiritual basis. There are times when a delay even turns out to be beneficial because additional information or assistance turns up later on to ensure the success of a project. It is part of mature living to keep promises and to meet the proper deadlines. Let's be sure, however, that we're not simply meeting unrealistic deadlines of our own making. We don't have to do this to atone for any failures of the past. I'll look over my plans today to make sure that I haven't set any unrealistic deadlines for myself. I may be trying too much, too soon. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The truth is more important than the facts. --Frank Lloyd Wright. Before recovery, we relied on false facts about addiction. We said things like, "I can quit anytime I want." "If you had my family, you'd drink too." The truth is, we were out of control. We couldn't manage our lives. We were sick. We were scared. When others pointed out this truth to us, we denied it. Honesty, the backbone of our program, is about truth. We even start our meetings with the truth about who we are. "Hi, my name is ___________, and I'm an alcoholic," or "Hi, my name is _______________, and I'm a drug addict." The truth frees us from our addiction. The truth heals us and gives us comfort. It's like a blanket on a cold winter night. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me be an honest person. I pray for the strength to face the truth and speak it. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list 3 ways I have used facts in a dishonest way. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning My singing is very therapeutic. For three hours I have no troubles--I know how it's all going to come out. --Beverly Sills Have we each found an activity that takes us outside of ourselves? An activity that gives us a place to focus our attention? Being self-centered and focused on ourselves accompanies the illness we're struggling to recover from. The decision to quit preoccupying on ourselves, our own struggles with life, is not easy to maintain. But when we have an activity that excites us, on which we periodically concentrate our attention, we are strengthened. And the more we get outside of ourselves, the more aware we become that "all is well." It seems our struggles are intensified as women. So often we face difficult situations at work and with children, alone. The preoccupation with our problems exaggerates them. And the vicious cycle entraps us. However, we don't have to stay trapped. We can pursue a hobby. We can take a class, join a health club. We can dare to follow whatever our desire--to try something new. We need to experience freedom from the inner turmoil in order to know that we deserve even more freedom. Emotional health is just around the corner. I will turn my attention to the world outside myself. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe. We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition. Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God’s will into all of our activities. “How can I best serve Thee--Thy will (not mine) be done.” These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. We can exercise our will power along this line all we wish. It is the proper use of the will. p. 85 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Tradition Four - "Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole." AUTONOMY is a ten-dollar word. But in relation to us, it means very simply that every A.A. group can manage its affairs exactly as it pleases, except when A.A. as a whole is threatened. Comes now the same question raised in Tradition One. Isn't such liberty foolishly dangerous? Over the years, every conceivable deviation from our Twelve Steps and Traditions has been tried. That was sure to be, since we are so largely a band of ego-driven individualists. Children of chaos, we have defiantly played with every brand of fire, only to emerge unharmed and, we think, wiser. These very deviations created a vast process of trial and error which, under the grace of God, has brought us to where we stand today. p. 146 ************************************************** ********* "Keep your head and your heart going in the right direction and you will not have to worry about your feet." --Unknown Reputation is what you are in the light; character is what you are in the dark. --American Proverb Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes of which all men have some. --Charles Dickens The mere sense of living is joy enough. --Emily Dickinson Learn to get in touch with silence within yourself, And know that everything in this life has purpose. There are no mistakes, No coincidences, All events are blessings given to us to learn from. --Elizabeth Kubler-Ross ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation INDIVIDUALITY "The People, though we think a great entity when we use the word, means nothing more than so many --- millions of individual men (and women)." James Bryce I am an individual. I am unique. I am special. Today I am able to enjoy my difference. I do not need to hide in alcohol, food or drugs. I do not have to put energy into being the same as friends or neighbors. I do not need to please people in order to feel good about myself. Today I am my own person. God made us varied and different in so many ways, and yet so many of us spend our time trying to be the same. The effort exerted to achieve the lowest common denominator is exactly that: the lowest. My spiritual program demands that I be honest with who I am and what I feel. My self-worth is rooted in my individuality. In my difference is my soul. May I always remain true to my individuality. ************************************************** ********* "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30 For anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Hebrews 4:10 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Through the power of God within me, I am stronger than any of my circumstances. Lord, I seek, I knock and I ask and You are always there and ready to give me the miracles that I need. The first and most powerful commandment is love. Through love we unite ourselves together with God and with each other and bring ourselves closer to our desired goal. Lord, I love You with all my heart and soul and mind. |
“The world in which you live is not primarily determined by outward conditions and circumstances but by the thoughts that habitually occupy your mind.”
Norman Vincent Peale. W.O.W:170:101 |
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