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Daily Recovery Readings - June
June 1
Daily Reflections A CHANGED OUTLOOK Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84 When I was drinking, my attitude was totally selfish, totally self-centered; my pleasure and my comfort came first. Now that I am sober, self-seeking has started to slip away. My whole attitude toward life and other people is changing. For me, the first "A" in our name stands for attitude. My attitude is changed by the second "A" in our name, which stands for action. By working the Steps, attending meetings, and carrying the message, I can be restored to sanity. Action is the magic word! With a positive, helpful attitude and regular A.A. action, I can stay sober and help others to achieve sobriety. My attitude now is that I am willing to go to any length to stay sober! ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Some things I do not miss since becoming dry: that overall awful feeling physically, including the shakes, a splitting headache, pains in my arms and legs, bleary eyes, fluttering stomach, droopy shoulders, weak knees, a three-day beard, and a flushed complexion. Also, facing my loved one at breakfast. Also, composing the alibi and sticking to it. Also, trying to shave or put on make-up with a shaky hand. Also, opening up my wallet to find it empty. I don't miss these things, do I? Meditation For The Day You were born with a spark of the Divine within you. It had been all but smothered by the life you were living. That celestial fire has to be tended and fed so that it will grow eventually into a real desire to live the right way. By trying to do the will of God, you grow more and more in the new way of life. By thinking of God, praying to Him, and having communion with Him, you gradually grow more like Him. The way of your transformation from the material to the spiritual is the way of Divine Companionship. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may tend the spark of the Divine within me so that it will grow. I pray that I may be gradually transformed from the old life to the new life. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Miraculous Power, p. 152 Deep down in every man, woman, and child is the fundamental idea of God. It may be obscured by calamity, by pomp, by worship of other things, but in some form or other it is there. For faith in a Power greater than ourselves, and miraculous demonstrations of that Power in human lives are facts as old as man himself. << << << >> >> >> "Faith may often be given through inspired teaching or a convincing personal example of its fruits. It may sometimes be had through reason. For instance, many clergymen believe that St. Thomas Aquinas actually proved God's existence by sheer logic. But what can one do when all these channels fail? This was my own grievous dilemma. "It was only when I came fully to believe I was powerless over alcohol, only when I appealed to God who just might exist, that I experienced a spiritual awakening. This freedom-giving experience came first, and then faith followed afterward--a gift indeed!" 1. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 55 2. Letter, 1966 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Selfish is always wrong Inventory It's unfortunate that members sometimes refer to the Twelve step idea as a SELFISH program. If selfishness is considered a human shortcoming, why should we describe our wonderful program as selfish? What we're really trying to say, it seems, is that our true self-interest lies in the direction of helping others and sharing our experience and strength with them. To do this is to lose the "bondage of self" that is so destructive in the life of every compulsive person. In this process, we'll probably also discover that too much self-concern has made us unhappy and ill. Selfish, we're likely to learn, is always bad. When people say that ours is a selfish program, they really intend to convey the idea that it's a "self-improvement" program. It's our concern about others that leads to the higher forms of self-improvement. Though exercising prudence and good judgment, I'll take a healthy interest in helping others and sharing with them today. I know that my Higher Power will be with me in all my actions. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple We're entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.---Step Six Character defects include being stubborn, feeling self-pity, and wanting to always be in control. We must be ready to give up these defects, or they will hurt us. Being ready is our part of Step Six. Our Higher Power will remove these defects. We don't need to know how. We just need to be ready to give them up when God asks for them. We don't need to know when. We just have to be ready. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, take away my self-pity, fears, anger, and anything else that hurts my recovery. Help me make room for peace. Action for the Day: Today, I'll get ready to have my character defects removed. I will list them and ask myself, "What do I get from keeping them?" ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach; one can collect only a few, and they are more beautiful if they are few. --Anne Morrow Lindbergh Being selective in choosing activities, in choosing friends, in choosing material possessions fosters unexpected appreciation. Too much of any one thing negates whatever specialness might have been realized. If we surround ourselves with acquaintances, we never fully share in knowing a few people well. If we surround ourselves with "toys," we never learn how we really want to spend our time. When we don't take life slowly, piece by piece (one shell at a time), we avoid the greatest discovery of all, the person within. When our attention to persons, places, things is deliberate and steady, the beauty within the object of our focus shines forth, and we, too, are made more beautiful in the process. Today, I will take time to smell the flowers. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY With ministers, and the worlds religions, I parted right there. When they talked of a God personal to me, who was love, superhuman strength and direction, I became irritated and my mind snapped shut against such a theory. p. 10 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." So intense, though, is our fear and reluctance to do this, that many A.A.'s at first try to bypass Step Five. We search for an easier way--which usually consists of the general and fairly painless admission that when drinking we were sometimes bad actors. Then, for good measure, we add dramatic descriptions of that part of our drinking behavior which our friends probably know about anyhow. p. 55 ************************************************** ********* Two step formula for handling stress: 1. Don't sweat the small stuff. 2. Remember that it's all small stuff. --Anthony Robbins People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges. --Joseph Fort Newton The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything, they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. --unknown "God does not ask your ability or your inability. He asks only your availability." --Mary Kay Ash When I find myself exhausted, I can rest, in knowing God is unlimited strength. --SweetyZee Life's most rewarding gifts are those that don't look like presents at all. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation OLD "Old age is when you realize other people's faults are no worse than your own." --Edgar Shoaff Age is a great leveler! I am on a journey to God and this involves many stages of experience - some good and some bad, some painful and some exceedingly joyful, some confusing and others understandable. These experiences will take me into a period of life called "old age". Many people fear this period of life because it is connected with poor health, helplessness and death. I was afraid of age because a part of me feared the "mystery" of death. The "uncertainty" of death brought with it a lack of control! I am sure that guilt and fear of God were also involved. Today I realize that we all have similar fears and concerns. Mystery brings with it a sense of awe! Today I have a loving God. Today God is involved in my life. Today, in my recovery, I have a perspective in my life - I am not all bad! Age is bringing balance. Thank You for the balance that comes with personal forgiveness. ************************************************** ********* A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. Proverbs 15:1 "Love is patient." I Corinthians 13:4a "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." Ephesians 4:2 "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31 Rekindle the gift of God that is within you. 2 Timothy 1:6 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration You will be more effective and get to the next thing that you want to do if you concentrate on what you are doing right now. Lord, help me recognize when my mind is jumping forward so that I can refocus. Do not act as though you are watching a parade because we are each one of the marchers. Lord, things change so quickly. Help me to celebrate the constant newness of my life. |
June 2
Daily Reflections THE UPWARD PATH Here are the steps we took. . . . . ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 59 These are the words that lead into the Twelve Steps. In their direct simplicity they sweep aside all psychological and philosophical considerations about the rightness of the Steps. They describe what I did: I took the Steps and sobriety was the result. These words do not imply that I should walk the well-trodden path of those who went before, but rather that there is a way for me to become sober and that it is a way I shall have to find. It is a new path, one that leads to infinite light at the top of the mountain. The Steps advise me about the footholds that are safe and about chasms to avoid. They provide me with the tools I need during the many parts of the solitary journey of my soul. When I speak of this journey, I share my experience, strength and hope with others. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Some more things I do not miss since becoming dry: wondering if the car is in the garage and how I got home; struggling to remember where I was and what I did since my last conscious moment; trying to delay getting off to work, and wondering how I will look when I get there; dreading the day ahead of me. I'm quite sure that I don't miss these things, am I not? Meditation For The Day You cannot believe in God and keep your selfish ways. The old self shrivels up and dies, and upon the reborn soul God's image becomes stamped. The gradual elimination of selfishness in the growth of love for God and your fellow human beings is the goal of life. At first, you have only a faint likeness to the Divine, but the picture grows and takes on more and more of the likeness of God until those who see you can see in you some of the power of God's grace at work in a human life. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may develop that faint likeness I have to the Divine. I pray that others may see in me some of the power of God's grace at work. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Without Anger, p. 153 Suppose A.A. falls under sharp public attack or heavy ridicule, having little or no justification in fact. Our best defense in these situations would be no defense whatever--namely, complete silence at the public level. If in good humor we let unreasonable critics alone, they are apt to subside more quickly. If their attacks persist and it is plain that they are misinformed, it may be wise to communicate with them privately in a temperate and informative way. If, however, a given criticism of A.A. is partly or wholly justified, it may well be to acknowledge this privately to the critics, together with our thanks. But under no conditions should we exhibit anger or any punitive intent. << << << >> >> >> What we must recognize is that we exult in some of our defects. Self-righteousness anger can be very enjoyable. In a perverse way we can actually take satisfaction from the fact that many people annoy us; it brings a comfortable feeling of superiority. 1. Twelve Concepts, p. 69 2. 12 & 12, pp. 66-67 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Why admitting we're wrong is right Right action Sometimes it's painful or almost impossible to admit that we've been wrong. This means we'll probably go on making the same mistakes until we're forced to face the truth. Why does this happen? The problem lies with what we call the EGO in our Twelve step program discussions. We commit ourselves in defending this ego at al times, especially around people who seem to put us down. Far from being a minor correction, any admissions of wrong feels like total defeat, at least in our warped way of looking at things. We can release ourselves from this bondage simply by coming to see that admitting and facing our wrongs is essential to growth. A store manager who overstocks a certain item "admits" the mistake by putting the goods on a clearance sale and getting rid of them. We can cut any loss in the same way by admitting a mistake and going on to a better course of action. I'll not plan to make any mistakes today, but I'll hold myself in readiness to admit them if they occur. This is no threat to my ego. I am much more than my mistakes. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning I have come to realize that all my trouble with living has come from fear and smallness within me. --Angela L. Wozniak We create problems for ourselves because we think we need to be more than we are. We fear that we are inadequate to the task before us, fear that another woman is more attractive, fear that the friends around us are bored by our presence. Fear hinders us; it prevents full involvement with the experiences we are given to grow on. When we withdraw from a situation in order to save ourselves from failure, we have chosen instead another kind of failure: failure to take all we can from life; failure to be all that we can be. Every experience can move us forward in the understanding of ourselves. When we withdraw, we stay stuck in a world we need to leave behind. I will not fear whatever looks like trouble today. Nothing I can't handle, in fact, nothing I can't grow from will come my way today. My inner strength can see me through. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.---Eleanor Roosevelt Most of us want to be happy. We just don't know how. We aren't sure what happiness is. We've learned the hard way that some things we wanted didn't make us happy. We're learning that happiness comes when we live the way our Higher Power wants us to live. That's when we’re honest. When we do our best work. When we are a true friend. We make happiness; we don't find it. Sometimes we don't even know we're happy. We're too busy with our work, our recovery program, our friends and family. We need to slow down and know that when we do what we need to, happiness comes. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me know that I'm most happy when I listen to You and do Your will. You know better than I do what makes me happy. Action for the Day: What parts of my program am I most happy about? Today I'll think of these and enjoy myself. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY To Christ I conceded the certainty of a great man, not to closely followed by those who claimed Him. His moral teaching--most excellent. For myself, I had adopted those parts which seemed convenient and not too difficult; the rest I disregarded. p. 11 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." But of the things which really bother and burn us, we say nothing. Certain distressing or humiliating memories, we tell ourselves, ought not be shared with anyone. These will remain our secret. Not a soul must ever know. We hope they'll go to the grave with us. pp. 55-56 ************************************************** ********* Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn whatever state I may be in, therein to be content. --Helen Keller I came to this program to save my butt and found out it was attached to my soul. --Anonymous "How things look on the outside of us depends on how things are on the inside of us." --Park Cousins "I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve." --Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) "What we do in these rooms is we share our experience, strength, and hope. The worse it gets, the more we laugh and the better it gets, the more we cry. We call it Alcoholics Anonymous." --thanks to Norm A. for this wonderful quote In this world, nothing is permanent except change. --American Proverb All things change, and we with them. --American Proverb ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation TIME "Everything one does enough of eventually generates its own interest and one then begins to believe in it. " --Alan Dunn I never thought that I could stay sober. For years I tried to abstain with no success. It was not the act of stopping that was different ( I could stop three times in one week!). It was staying stopped. Then a man said, "Try stopping for twenty-four hours. If that proves too long, try stopping until the morning or for one hour or even for one minute . . . If the cravings gets too severe, call me but don't take that first drink!" My abstinence began in periods of twenty-four hours. Life is made up of days and we live in periods of twenty-four hours, so I live a day at a time. I was successful. I am successful. Today I have a number of years that are based on the simplicity of "don't drink today ". I believe in it. I believe in me. And it gets better. Lord of time, thank you for giving me the simplicity of days, hours and minutes. ************************************************** ********* You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3 He saved us, not because of the good things we did, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins and gave us a new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us because of what Jesus Christ our Savior did. Titus 3:5-6 You aren't alone in your trials and struggles. God is your help and strength in time of need. Hebrews 4:16 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Sometimes it is better to remove things from your "to do" list rather than adding to it. Lord, give me the courage to say no to the things that cause me to feel overwhelmed. Imagine that you were paid for every kindness and charged for every unkindness. Would you be rich or poor? Lord, I often pray for material wealth. Let me not neglect my soul by now praying for the ability to build my spiritual wealth also. |
June 3
Daily Reflections ON A WING AND A PRAYER . . . . we then look at Step Six. We have emphasized willingness as being indispensable. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 76 Steps Four and Five were difficult, but worthwhile. Now I was stuck on Step Six and, in despair, I picked up the Big Book and read this passage. I was outside, praying for willingness, when I raised my eyes and saw a huge bird rising in the sky. I watched it suddenly give itself up to the powerful air currents of the mountains. Swept along, swooping and soaring, the bird did things seemingly impossible for mortal birds to do. It was an inspiring example of a fellow creature "letting go" to a power greater than itself. I realized that if the bird "took back his will" and tried to fly with less trust, on its power alone, it would spoil its apparent free flight. That insight granted me the willingness to pray the Seventh Step prayer. It's not easy to know God's will in each circumstance. I must search out and be ready for the currents, and that's where prayer and meditation help! Because I am, of myself, nothing, I ask God to grant me the knowledge of His will and the power and courage to carry it out - today. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Some more things I do not miss since becoming dry: running all over town to find a bar open to get that "pick-me-up"; meeting my friends and trying to cover up that I feel awful; looking at myself in a mirror and calling myself a dam* fool; struggling with myself to snap out of it for two or three days; wondering what it is all about. I'm positive I don't miss these things, am I not? Meditation For The Day Love is the power that transforms your life. Try to love your family and your friends and then try to love everybody that you possibly can, even the "sinners and publicans" everybody. Love for God is an even greater thing. it is the result of gratitude to God and it is the acknowledgment of the blessing that God has sent you. Love for God acknowledges His gifts and leaves the way open for God to shower yet more blessings on your thankful heart. Say "Thank you, God," until it becomes a habit. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may try to love God and all people. I pray that I may continually thank God for all His blessings. ************************************************** ********* 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 Self-help or Mutual Aid? Assisting others. The Twelve step movement is sometimes called a self-help program. This falls short of describing what it really is. Mutual Aid might be a better term. Self-help implies that an individual will help himself or herself. Mutual aid is a much different sort of thing. With mutual aid, we do help ourselves, but we hve found that the best way to do this is by helping each other. Self-help says, "I can do it," where as mutual aid says... "WE can do it." We should not dismiss the idea of self-help or of doing one's best in achieving self-improvement. We must know, however, that we need the assistance and loving help of others for our highest growth. There are times when we will feel helpless and alone. That's when mutal aid will carry the day for us and perhaps even save our lives. I'll realize today that I have a bond with others and that I can achieve my highest good only in mutual service with them. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple When I have listened to my mistakes, I have grown.---Hugh Prather Everyone makes mistakes. We all know that. So why is it so hard to admit out own? We seem to think we have to be prefect. We have a hard time looking at our mistakes. But our mistakes can be very good teachers. Our Twelve Step program helps us learn and grow from our mistakes. In Step Four, half of our work is to think of our mistakes. In step Five, we admit our mistakes to God, ourselves, and another person. We learn, we grow and become whole. All by coming to know our mistakes The gift of recovery is not being free from mistakes. Instead, we do the Steps to claim our mistakes and talk about them. We find the gift of recovery when we learn from our mistakes. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me to see my mistakes as changes to get to know myself better. Action for the Day: Today I'll talk to a friend about what my mistakes taught me. Today I'll feel less shame. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Follow your dream . . . take one step at a time and don't settle for less, just continue to climb. --Amanda Bradley Dreams are common to us all. Dreams are special as well. We probably keep to ourselves many of our dreams for fear of derision or misunderstanding. Oftentimes we may have selectively shared some dreams, those we figured would get approval. The ones closest and dearest to us, the ones we feel most vulnerable about, we may choose to treasure to our hearts only, sometimes thinking, "If only you knew," sometimes wondering if we are being silly. We are coming to believe that our dreams are spirit-filled. They are gifts to encourage us. Like a ship at sea needing a "heading" to move forward, our dreams lend direction to our lives. Our frustration may be that we can't realize a dream without many steps and much time. But life is a process of steps. Success in anything comes inch by inch, stroke by stroke, step after step. My dreams today are meant to guide me. I will take a first step toward making the dream a reality. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY The wars which had been fought, the burnings and chicanery that religious dispute had facilitated, made me sick. I honestly doubted whether, on balance, the religions of mankind had done any good. Judging from what I had seen in Europe and since, the power of God in human affairs was negligible, the Brotherhood of Man a grim jest. If there was a Devil, he seemed the Boss of the Universal, and he certainly had me. p. 11 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Yet if A.A.'s experience means anything at all, this is not only unwise, but is actually a perilous resolve. Few muddled attitudes have caused us more trouble than holding back on Step Five. Some people are unable to stay sober at all; others will relapse periodically until they really clean house. Even A.A. old timers, sober for years, often pay dearly for skimping this Step. They will tell how they tried to carry the load alone; how much they suffered of irritability, anxiety, remorse, and depression; and how, unconsciously seeking relief, they would sometimes accuse even their best friends of the very character defects they themselves were trying to conceal. They always discovered that relief never came by confessing the sins of other people. Everybody had to confess his own. p. 56 ************************************************** ********* What we give to others, we give to ourselves. What we withhold from others, we withhold from ourselves. In any moment, when we choose fear instead of love, we deny ourselves the experience of Paradise. --Marianne Williamson When we're facing challenges, the ego is very seductive in trying to get us to think thoughts about "look what's happening to me." It is our spiritual work to keep returning again and again to God and asking, "Is my heart clear? Can I see this with love? I want to go through this with God's presence." And over time, Spirit can make any mess into a miracle. --Mary Manin Morrissey Many of us grew up in dysfunctional families, because modern society is a dysfunctional place. But the spiritual journey, the path of recovery and personal growth, is a detoxification process in which we bring up and out the negative beliefs we have carried with us from the past and that now poison the present. --Marianne Williamson "Don't just do something, sit there! Sit there long enough each morning to decide what is really important during the day ahead." --Richard Eyre You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lips. --Oliver Goldsmith ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation DREAMS "I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past." --Thomas Jefferson I am an optimist. I believe that things are getting better day by day. Today I believe that what happened yesterday need not happen today or tomorrow. Dreams can come true. I know this to be true. Today I have dreams. Today I have a hope for my life and on a daily basis it is coming true. My life is becoming more meaningful. Today my dreams have coincided with God's dream for me. Now I love myself enough to speak out for me - and it feels good. Now my decision to embrace the spiritual life is not dependent upon others. Today I can dream to be me. Help me to dream with my feet firmly on the ground. ************************************************** ********* Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up. James 4:10 "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 He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. Job 8:21 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration The more peaceful you become, the easier time you will have living. Lord, bring my life back into perspective. You can never sincerely help others without also helping yourself. Lord, Your generosity touches every part of my life even when I least expect it. May I not let it go unnoticed and not give thanks. |
June 4
Daily Reflections LETTING GO OF OUR OLD SELVES Carefully reading the first five proposals we ask if we have omitted anything, for we are building an arch through which we shall walk a free man at last. . . . Are we now ready to let God remove from us all the things which we have admitted are objectionable? ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 75, 76 The Sixth Step is the last "preparation" Step. Although I have already used prayer extensively, I have made no formal request of my Higher Power in the first Six Steps. I have identified my problem, come to believe that there is a solution, made a decision to seek this solution, and have "cleaned house." I now ask: Am I willing to live a life of sobriety, of change, to let go of my old self? I must determine if I am truly ready to change. I review what I have done and become willing for God to remove all my defects of character; for in the next Step, I will tell my Creator I am willing and will ask for help. If I have been thorough in the preparation of my foundation and feel that I am willing to change, I am then ready to continue with the next Step. "If we still cling to something we will not let go, we ask God to help us be willing." (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 76) ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Some things I like since becoming dry: feeling good in the morning; full use of my intelligence; joy in my work; the love and trust of my children; lack of remorse; the confidence of my friends; the prospect of a happy future; the appreciation of the beauties of nature; knowing what it is all about. I'm sure that I like these things, am I not? Meditation For The Day Molding your life means cutting and shaping your material into something good, something that can express the spiritual. All material things are the clay out of which we mold something spiritual. You must first recognize the selfishness in your desires and motives, actions and words, and then mold that selfishness until it is sublimated into a spiritual weapon for good. As the work of molding proceeds, you see more and more clearly what must be done to mold your life into something better. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may mold my life into something useful and good. I pray that I may not be discouraged by the slow progress that I make. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Built by the One and the Many, p. 155 We give thanks to our Heavenly Father, who, through so many friends and through so many means and channels, has allowed us to construct this wonderful edifice of the spirit in which we are now dwelling--this cathedral whose foundations already rest upon the corners of the earth. On its great floor we have inscribed our Twelve Steps of recovery. On the side walls, the buttresses of the A.A. Traditions have been set in place to contain us in unity for as long as God may will it so. Eager hearts and hands have lifted the spire of our cathedral into its place. That spire bears the name of service. May it ever point straight upward toward God. << << << >> >> >> "It is not only to the few that we owe the remarkable developments in our unity and in our ability to carry A.A.'s message everywhere. It is to the many, indeed, it is to the labors of all of us that we owe these prime blessings." 1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 234 2. Talk, 1959 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Needing to receive credit Humility "Is it wrong to want credit for the good things I do?" a person asked at a 12 Step meeting. "Why do people say my ego is showing just because I feel I should get proper credit?" We should, indeed, receive the right amount of praise and recognition for the good things we do. We have to remember, however, that we're trying to get this from human beings... many of whom are poorly informed or indifferent. Whatever credit we receive will be influenced by others perceptions. Sometimes we will be praised too lavishly: at other times, insufficiently. But the real question is not whether others give us the right amount of praise or credit. The question we should really ask is why we need such recognition. If we are doing a good thing or have made progress, isn't that sufficient reward? What can receiving credit do for us that we do not already have? I'll take as my guide today the belief that right action is its own reward. I do not need credit or recognition from others, although I'll appreciate it if it comes. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple We cannot solve life's problems except by solving them.---M. Scott Peck Before getting into the program, we ran from problems at all costs. As time went on, we had more problems. As our problems grew, we became afraid of life. The program---the Twelve Steps---teaches us how to face and solve our problem. We stop running and stand up to problems. That way, life's problems scare us less and less over time. In fact, life's problems help us better know our Higher Power and ourselves. We now know our Higher Power is with us every step of the way. Prayer for the Day: I pray for the courage to stand and face life's problems. I pray for the wisdom to ask my Higher Power for help. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list all problems I now have. I will talk about them with friends and with my Higher Power. I will make plans to solve them (sometimes solving problems means accepting them). ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same. --Anne Frank Happiness feels so close and yet so far away. Perhaps we look to a person for it, or to a job, or a new winter coat. We deserve happiness, we know. Yet, we learn so slowly that happiness can only be found within. The person leaves; the job goes sour; the new coat is quickly out of style. Elusive, all of them. But the happiness that comes from knowing who we are and how our lives fit in the grand design of the Creator, never eludes us. We are one of a kind. And there is no other who can offer to the world of friends just what each of us can. We are needed, and knowing that, really knowing it, brings happiness. Before we found this program, we no doubt failed to realize our worth. We can celebrate it now. We can glory in our worth, our specialness, and we can cherish the design. We can cherish our parts and cherish the part each other person plays. Combined, we are as one big orchestra. The conductor reads the music and directs the movements. Being in tune with the conductor feels good. I can call it happiness. All I need do is play my part. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY But my friend sat before me, and he made the point blank declaration that God had done for him what he could not do for himself. His human will had failed. Doctors had pronounced him incurable. Society was about to lock him up. Like myself, he had admitted complete defeat. Then he had, in effect, been raised from the dead, suddenly taken from the scrap heap to a level of life better than the best he had ever known! p. 11 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." This practice of admitting one's defects to another person is, of course, very ancient. It has been validated in every century, and it characterizes the lives of all spiritually centered and truly religious people. But today religion is by no means the sole advocate of this saving principle. Psychiatrists and psychologists point out the deep need every human being has for practical insight and knowledge of his own personality flaws and for a discussion of them with an understanding and trustworthy person. So far as alcoholics are concerned, A.A. would go even further. Most of us would declare that without a fearless admission of our defects to another human being we could not stay sober. It seems plain that the grace of God will not enter to expel our destructive obsessions until we are willing to try this. pp. 56-57 ************************************************** ********* You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one. Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of its own. It's just a matter of paying attention to this miracle. --Paulo Coelho You're never fully dressed without a smile! --Anon God gets our attention in a lot of different ways. For a great many of us, it was through accident or illness, coming close to death. All of us come to this program frightened for our life or our sanity or both. God has our attention. And now we are learning about the spiritual aspect of our life, the one we had so long neglected. Now we are partaking of God's love---soul food---and discovering that the spiritual life is fuller and more rewarding than anything we thought possible. Nothing we do to please our body can compare to the joy of unconditional love. When we lend a loving hand to anyone, we realize once again that the pain we suffered was worth it to bring us to this awareness. Today I will look for ways to help others----and bless my soul! --Passing It On "We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do; and probably he who never made a mistake never made a discovery." --Samuel Smiles Some tension is necessary for the soul to grow, and we can put that tension to good use. We can look for every opportunity to give and receive love, to appreciate nature, to heal our wounds and the wounds of others, to forgive, and to serve. --Joan Borysenko A life lived in love, goodness, and oneness with God is a life full of joy. A soul that lives such a life is a soul that grows ever more beautiful. May your life be joyous then and may your soul’s beauty shine on forever. --Joseph J. Mazzella The soul is made of love and must ever strive to return to love. Therefore, it can never find rest nor happiness in other things. It must lose itself in love. By its very nature it must seek God, who is love. --Mechthild of Magdenburg ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation PROFIT "What is a man to profit if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" --Jesus (Mt. 16:26) Spirituality brings with it a sense of priority in my life: first things first. Unless I discover me and have a love and respect for me, I have nothing to offer in this world. I am the center of my universe and through my life God is radiated. I am a part of God's creative plan and the pleasures of this world must be seen as secondary to my developing a right relationship with God. My disease of obsession and compulsion wants me to place other things at the center of my life: food, alcohol, drugs, people, money, success, achievement and ego. My spiritual program reminds me that my love of self is shown in my refusal of the first drink. If I am healthy, I can have the world; without me, I can have nothing! Let me find Your Kingdom that is within. ************************************************** ********* Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1 I will exalt you, O Lord, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. O Lord, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. 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. Psalm 30:1-3;10-12 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration The more you think about the little difficulties in life, the bigger they become and still nothing is resolved. Lord, may I let go of those problems that I cannot solve and resolve quickly those things that I can. It is important to remember that different can be better. Lord, as I resist change and cling to the familiar, help me to remember that Your plan is perfect and will truly make me happy. |
June 5
Daily Reflections ENTIRELY READY? "This is the Step that separates the men from the boys.". . . the difference between "the boys and the men" is the difference between striving for a self determined objective and for the perfect objective which is of God. . . . It is suggested that we ought to become entirely willing to aim toward perfection. . . . The moment we say, "No, never!" our minds close against the grace of God. . . . This is the exact point at which we abandon limited objectives, and move toward God's will for us. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 63, 68, 69 Am I entirely ready to have God remove these defects of character? Do I know at long last that I cannot save myself? I have come to believe that I cannot. If I am unable, if my best intentions go wrong, if my desires are selfishly motivated and if my knowledge and will are limited -- then I am ready to embrace God's will for my life. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day We alcoholics are fortunate to be living in a day and age when there is such a thing as Alcoholics Anonymous. Before A.A. came into being, there was very little hope for the alcoholic. A.A. is a great rebuilder of human wreckage. It takes men and women whose personality problem expresses itself in alcoholism and offers them a program that, if they are willing to accept it, allows them not only to get sober, but also to find a much better way of living. Have I found a better way of living? Meditation For The Day Very quietly God speaks through your thoughts and feelings. Heed the Divine voice of your conscience. Listen for this and you will never be disappointed in the results in your life. Listen for this small, still voice and your tired nerves will become rested. The Divine voice comes to you as strength as well as tenderness, as power as well as restfulness. Your moral strength derives its effectiveness from the power that comes when you listen patiently for the still, small voice. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may listen for the still, small voice of God. I pray that I may obey the leading of my conscience. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Perception of Humility, p. 156 An improved perception of humility starts a revolutionary change in our outlook. Our eyes begin to open to the immense values which have come straight out of painful ego-puncturing. Until now, our lives have been largely devoted to running from pain and problems. Escape via the bottle was always our solution. Then, in A.A., we looked and listened. Everywhere we saw failure and misery transformed by humility into priceless assets. << << << >> >> >> To those who have made progress in A.A., humility amounts to a clear recognition of what and who we really are, followed by a sincere attempt to become what we could be. 12 & 12 1. pp. 74-75 2. p. 58 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Looking at the long term. Living Today. Though we’re encouraged to live one day at a time, we must also be aware of the future. We should not knowingly do anything today that creates unneeded risks and penalties further down the road. We should not, for example, take on unreasonable debt simply to live well today. We should not put off things that will get worse with time. We should not avoid unpleasant decisions that will have to be made sooner or later. Living one day at a time really means planning to do our best each day. While we cannot predict or control the future, we do have a responsibility to act so that our tomorrows will also be good days for living. I'll face today with the confidence that all my actions will be good for the long term as well as for today. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Life is only this place, this time, and these people right here and now.---Vincent Collins Staying in the present can be hard. This busy world pulls our focus from the present. We often wonder if the future will bring good times or bad times. Life is right before us. Look around. Life is happening---now! The more we live in the moment, the better we feel. Why? Because we can do something about the present. We can't do anything about the future. We have choices in the present, and we can do something with our lives. Addiction ran our lives before. Now with the help of others and our Higher Power, we run our lives again. This give us peace of mind. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, thank-you for giving back my life. Teach me how to run my life. Have me seek others when I need help. It's okay to ask for it. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list five things I do well. Then I'll list three things I don't do well. I'll think of people who can help me, and I'll call them. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning The level of anxiety I feel when an attractive woman enters the room is the cue informing me of my closeness to God at that moment. --Anonymous Our security lies now and always in our relationship with God. When we are spiritually connected, we don't lack confidence, self-assurance. We don't doubt our value to those around us. Having an active friendship with our God keeps us ever aware that whatever is right for each of us at this time will be given us, that each other person in our life is also on a divinely ordained path going somewhere special to her growth. It's unfortunate, but true, that many of us had painful experiences with other women earlier in our lives. Maybe we lost a lover or a husband to someone we knew. And it's difficult to believe that what is right for us will come to us, that we need never fear another woman. The program offers us daily opportunities to take stock of our assets in order to know that we count. And more importantly, it promises security and serenity if each day we invite our higher power to be our companion. We need never fear someone else's presence. Nor need we fear any new situation. With God at our side, all is well. And we'll know it! I will make God my friend today and enjoy the ease of living. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY Had this power originated in him? Obviously it had not. There had been no more power in him than there was in me at that minute; and this was none at all. That floored me. It began to look as though religious people were right after all. Here was something at work in a human heart which had done the impossible. My ideas about miracles were drastically revised right then. Never mind the musty past; here sat a miracle directly across the kitchen table. He shouted great tidings. p. 11 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." What are we likely to receive from Step Five? For one thing, we shall get rid of that terrible sense of isolation we've always had. Almost without exception, alcoholics are tortured by loneliness. Even before our drinking got bad and people began to cut us off, nearly all of us suffered the feeling that we didn't quite belong. Either we were shy, and dared not draw near others, or we were apt to be noisy good fellows craving attention and companionship, but never getting it--at least to our way of thinking. There was always that mysterious barrier we could neither surmount nor understand. It was as if we were actors on a stage, suddenly realizing that we did not know a single line of our parts. That's one reason we loved alcohol too well. It did let us act extemporaneously. But even Bacchus boomeranged on us; we were finally struck down and left in terrified loneliness. p. 57 ************************************************** ********* People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway. If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway. What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway. The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway. Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've got anyway. You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; It was never between you and them anyway. --Mother Teresa "The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right place but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment." --Dorothy Nevill God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way. --unknown When you feel down because you didn't get what you want, just sit tight and be happy, because God is thinking of something better to give you. --unknown Five rules to be happy. 1. Free your heart from hatred. 2. Free your mind from worries. 3. Live simply. 4. Give more. 5. Expect less. --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation REASON "I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us to forego their use." --Galileo Galilei An essential part of being human is the ability to think, reflect and reason. Spirituality is involved in our ideas and perceptions because that is historically how man has grown and been able to change. As Descarte said, "Cogito ergo sum - I think therefore I am." The tragedy is that few people experience the freedom to think and create because of the stifling addictions that are epidemic in our society: food, alcohol, drugs, religion, work, money and sex. We are so afraid of what others might think or say that we never fully experience our spiritual selves and everybody suffers. It is the "risks" in life that make man great. Help me to challenge what I do not believe in order to discover what I do believe. ************************************************** ********* "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. So we may boldly say: The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me? Hebrews 13:5-6 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Much stress comes from focusing on things over which you have no control. Lord, may I let go of useless worry and enjoy today. Regret nothing, not even your failures. Take in the richness of only today because to carry any more will only weigh you down. Lord, You have promised to help me with the burdens of today. I will not look backwards. |
June 6
Daily Reflections ALL WE DO IS TRY Can He now take them all -- every one? ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 76 In doing Step Six it helped me a lot to remember that I am striving for "spiritual progress." Some of my character defects may be with me for the rest of my life, but most have been toned down or eliminated. All that Step Six asks of me is to become willing to name my defects, claim them as my own, and be willing to discard the ones I can, just for today. As I grow in the program, many of my defects become more objectionable to me than previously and, therefore, I need to repeat Step Six so that I can become happier with myself and maintain my serenity. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Drinking is the way we alcoholics express our maladjustment's to life. I believe that I was a potential alcoholic from the start. I had an inferiority complex. I didn't make friends easily. There was a wall between me and other people. And I was lonely. I was not well adjusted to life. Did I drink to escape from myself? Meditation For The Day According to the varying needs of each person, so does each person think of God. It is not necessary that you think of God as others think of Him, but it is necessary that you think of Him as supplying what you personally need. The weak need God's strength. The strong need God's tenderness. The tempted and fallen need God's saving grace. The righteous needs God's pity for sinners. The lonely need God as a friend. The fighters for righteousness need a leader in God. You may think of God in any way you wish. We usually do not turn to God until we need Him. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may think of God as supplying my needs. I pray that I will bring all my problems to Him for help in meeting them. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Imagination Can Be Constructive, p. 157 We recall, a little ruefully, how much store we used to set by imagination as it tried to create reality out of bottles. Yes, we reveled in that sort of thinking, didn't we? And, though sober nowadays, don't we often try to do much the same thing? Perhaps our trouble was not that we used our imagination. Perhaps the real trouble was our almost total inability to point imagination toward the right objectives. There's nothing the matter with truly constructive imagination; all sound achievement rests upon it. After all, no man can build a house until he first visions a plan for it. 12 & 12, p. 100 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places My opportunities are in change Personal Growth. It’s common to hear a recovering person voice apprehensions about an impending change. This apprehension only results from our fear that change will mean loss. There can never be any permanent loss if we are solidly anchored in our spiritual program. Our Higher Power is the guiding force in all change and will make all things right as events unfold. We should also remember that change brought us to our present situation. Any good we now enjoy came to us by a certain process. Even painful experiences have been valuable lessons. There is no way we can avoid change; it is a built-in condition of life. We can accept it more gracefully if we view it as God’s way of bringing us opportunity. Any change that I sense today is just a signal for the arrival of new opportunities. Even if changes seem uncomfortable, I'll welcome all such change. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Fortunate are the people whose roots are deep.---Agnes Meyer A tree's roots seek water and minerals. Though the roots can't be seen easily seen, they are there. The life of the tree depends on them. The stronger a tree's roots, the higher a tree can grow. We need to set deep roots into the soil of recovery. The soil of recovery is made up of the Twelve Steps, fellowship, and service to others. We'll have to get through storms and high winds in our return to health. In so doing, we'll become beautiful, strong, and spiritual. We'll be able to live with both the gentle breezes and the heavy winds of life. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me believe in what I can't see. Just as I believe that the roots of a tree are there because I can see the leaves. I believe in a Higher Power because I can see the results. Action for the Day: I will ask myself, "Which Step do I need to work on the most right now?" I will volunteer to give a meeting on that Step. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning >From early infancy onward we all incorporate into our lives the message we receive concerning our self-worth, or lack of self-worth, and this sense of value is to be found beneath our actions and feelings as a tangled network of self-perception. --Christina Baldwin Lifting our self-esteem is not a particularly easy task for most of us. It's probable that again and again our confidence wavered before we sought help from the program. It's also probable that our confidence still wanes on occasion. The old fears don't disappear without effort. But each day we can do some one thing that will help us to feel better about ourselves. All it takes is one small act or decision, each day. The program can give us the strength we need each day to move forward one step. Today, I will do one thing I've been putting off. A whole collection of "one days" will lay the groundwork for the person I'm building within. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY I saw that my friend was much more than inwardly reorganized. He was on a different footing. His roots grasped a new soil. Despite the living example of my friend there remained in me the vestiges of my old prejudice. The word God still aroused a certain antipathy. When the thought expressed that there might be a God personal to me this feeling was intensified. I didn't like the idea. I could go for such conceptions as Creative Intelligence, Universal Mind or Spirit of Nature but I resisted the thought of a Czar of the Heavens, however loving His sway might be. I have since talked with scores of men who felt the same way. pp. 11-12 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." When we reached A.A., and for the first time in our lives stood among people who seemed to understand, the sense of belonging was tremendously exciting. We thought the isolation problem had been solved. But we soon discovered that while we weren't alone any more in a social sense, we still suffered many of the old pangs of anxious partners. Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn't belong. Step Five was the answer. It was the beginning of true kinship with man and God. p. 57 ************************************************** ********* Live to learn and you will learn to live. --Portuguese Proverb It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities. --Sir Josiah Stamp You cannot raise a man up by calling him down. --William Boetcker "Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is like expecting a bull not to attack you because you are a vegetarian." --Dennis Wholey Don't let yesterday use up too much of today. --Will Rogers Realize the acts of others are not for or against you. They are experiences in his or her life. --unknown We do not have to be perfect, self assured, and untarnished, to be accepted and loved. --SweetyZee Anxiety separates us from experiencing a great life. So caught up are we in our worry, we may even cut ourselves off from giving and receiving love. God invites us into a fuller life in which we recognize that there is no anxiety that our Creator cannot handle, if we only remember to ask. --Mary Manin Morrissey Nothing can separate us from God's love. --Luis Aramayo ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation SCIENCE "As long as men are free to ask what they must - free to say what they think - free to think what they will - freedom can never be lost and science can never regress." --J. Robert Oppenheimer We need to press on in this wonderful journey of life because new discoveries await us in our tomorrows. Spirituality always brings joy in the journey. In the traveling is the fun for we will never reach our destination in this life. The freedom to question is the discipline of science, and science is involved in the treatment and recovery of addiction. We must always be looking for better ways of treatment, more vivid ways of teaching and creative aids to recovery. Science, and every other creative discipline, should be used in the treatment of addictions: God is to be found in the many. Lord, let us remember that You gave mankind a scalpel and a prayer book. ************************************************** ********* "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." 1 Corinthians 10:13 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 whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything. 1 John 3:18-20 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Even the most difficult of trials is God's way of preparing us for something else. Lord, may I view my challenges as an opportunity to grow rather than as an opportunity to fail. Jesus said, "Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.". Lord, I pray, I believe, and I thank you even before it is fulfilled. |
June 7
Daily Reflections LONG-TERM HOPE Since most of us are born with an abundance of natural desires, it isn't strange that we often let these far exceed their intended purpose. When they drive us blindly, or we willfully demand that they supply us with more satisfactions or pleasures than are possible or due us, that is the point at which we depart from the degree of perfection that God wishes for us here on earth. That is the measure of our character defects, or, if you wish, of our sins. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 65 This is where long-term hope is born and perspective is gained, both of the nature of my illness and the path of my recovery. The beauty of A.A. lies in knowing that my life, with God's help, will improve. The A.A. journey becomes richer, the understanding becomes truth, the dreams become realities and today becomes forever. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Alcoholism is a progressive illness. We go through the three stages of social drinking, trouble drinking, and merry-go-round drinking. We land in hospitals and jails. We eventually lose our homes, our families, and our self-respect. Yes, alcoholism is a progressive illness and there are only three ends to it--the insane asylum, the morgue, or total abstinence. Will I choose not to take the first drink? Meditation For The Day You not only can live a new life but you also can grow in grace and power and beauty. Reach ever forward and upward after the things of the spirit. In the animal world, the very form of an animal changes to enable it to reach that upon which it delights to feed. Your whole character changes as you reach upward for the things of the spirit for beauty, for love, for honesty, for purity, and for unselfishness. Reaching after these things of the spirit, your whole nature becomes changed so that you can best receive and delight in the wonders of the abundant life. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may reach forward and upward. I pray that my character may be changed by this reaching upward for the things of the spirit. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Tolerance in Practice, p. 158 "We found that the principles of tolerance and love had to be emphasized in actual practice. We can never say (or insinuate) to anyone that he must agree to our formula or be excommunicated. The atheist may stand up in an A.A. meeting still denying the Deity, yet reporting how vastly he has been changed in attitude and outlook. Much experience tells us he will presently change his mind about God, but nobody tells him he must do so. "In order to carry the principles of inclusiveness and tolerance still further, we make no religious requirement of anyone. All people having an alcoholic problem who wish to get rid of it and so make a happy adjustment with the circumstances of their lives, become A.A. members by simply associating with us. Nothing but sincerity is needed. But we do not demand even this. "In such an atmosphere the orthodox, the unorthodox, and the believer mix happily and usefully together. An opportunity for spiritual growth is open to all." Letter, 1940 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Deciding outcomes Guidance No matter how limited our opportunities may be, we always have choices and decisions to make. With any choice or decision, it’s only good sense to make the one that seems likely to have the best outcome. If we’re following our program, however, we should not be dismayed when outcomes turn out to be unfavorable or take turns that disappoint us. We can see only dimly into the future, and we have no way of knowing what will eventually come about as a result of our choices. We do know that the meeting of the first two AA members actually came about as a result of a business disappointment. We can always find other examples of disappointing outcomes that proved to be good breaks as time passed. This is not an attempt to rationalize bad situations, if God is in charge of our lives, we need not fear what each outcome might be. Though I will choose and decide as sensibly as possible, I'll not be excessively concerned about outcomes. My long-term good is assured as I follow God's plan in my life. "For those who love God, all things work together for good." ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Forgiveness is the way to true health and happiness.---Gerald Jampolsky We can't afford to hold grudges. We have all felt hurt by others at times. But when we stay angry at another person, it hurts us. It keeps our wounds open. It takes our energy away from healing. We can forgive now. We know that living our program of honesty and love make us safe. We don't have to be afraid. We don't have to be angry. We don't have to let old hurts stand in our way. We let them go. We empty the angers from the hearts to clear the way for love. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me forgive the people I'm still angry with. Help me see that each of those people taught me something about myself. Action for the Day: Am I holding on to anger and resentment? If so, I'll make a list today, and I'll talk with my sponsor about ways to let go of them. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Without discipline, there's no life at all. --Katharine Hepburn Procrastination is habitual. It's perhaps a habit we've struggled with over the years, and not one that can be willed away. It eats at us, no doubt. How many times have we gone to bed at night depressed, discouraged, angry with ourselves for not finishing a job we promised ourselves, or someone else, we'd do! Sometimes it feels hopeless. The tasks awaiting our attention pile up, seem impossible to complete. But there is hope. The program has offered us an easy solution. We have only this day to concern ourselves with. We can break the spell of procrastination, lethargy, immobility, if we choose. We can pick a task that needs attention, any task, preferably a small one for today. Maybe it's writing a letter, or fixing a hem, or making an appointment to see a doctor. Deciding to do something, and then doing it, breaks through the barriers that have caged us. Immediately we will sense the surge of freedom. In this moment we can always act. And any act will free us. When procrastination blocks us, our senses are dead to the friends close to us. It's as though we have stepped outside of the circle of life. The real gifts of sobriety are beyond our reach when we choose inaction. I will get free. I will tackle a small task today. It will bless me in special ways. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY My friend suggested what then seemed a novel idea. He said, "Why don't you choose your own conception of God?" That statement hit me hard. It melted the icy intellectual mountain in whose shadow I had lived and shivered many years. I stood in the sunlight at last. It was only a matter of being willing to believe in a power greater than myself. Nothing more was required of me to make my beginning. I saw that growth could start from that point. Upon a foundation of complete willingness I might build what I saw in my friend. Would I have it? Of course I would! p. 12 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." This vital Step was also the means by which we began to get the feeling that we could be forgiven, no matter what we had thought or done. Often it was while working on this Step with our sponsors or spiritual advisers that we first felt truly able to forgive others, no matter how deeply we felt they had wronged us. Our moral inventory had persuaded us that all-round forgiveness was desirable, but it was only when we resolutely tackled Step Five that we inwardly knew we'd be able to receive forgiveness and give it, too. pp. 57-58 ************************************************** ********* God's gracious gifts can be experienced by all who believe, and we can fully enjoy its blessings without diminishing their enjoyment by others. Knowing God and His limitless provisions, we are never deprived, even though others are drawing on them, too. Joy, assurance, peace and the awareness of God's presence are just a few of the many benefits that are given without measure for everyone to enjoy. We need only accept our gifts. Remember, the well of God's blessings will never run dry. --Our Daily Bread We must be the change we wish to see in the world. --Mahatma Gandhi Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. --Confucius (551 - 479 B.C.) Philosopher Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart. --Khalil Gibbon (1883 – 1931) Poet Our greatest glory consists not in never falling but in rising every time we fall. --Oliver Goldsmith "We learn the magical lesson that making the most of what we have turns it into more." --Codependent No More ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation GREED "One of the weakness of our age is our apparent inability to distinguish our needs from our greeds." --Don Robinson I was a greedy drunk. A greedy man. Spoiled, selfish and demanding. I felt that the world owed me a living and if I did not get my way, I sulked, cried or tried to hurt people. And this greedy attitude to life only made me sad, dull and boring. Greed, in this sense, could not work because what I was craving would never satisfy me. Then I learned how to "let go". Instead of demanding, I learned how to wait. Instead of consuming large amounts of alcohol, I practiced abstinence. Instead of expecting life on my terms, I went with the natural flow of life. I became happy, joyous and free. A miracle? Yes. I accepted my "needs" and with the acceptance came the satisfaction. Lord, only when I accept my hunger for You am I truly satisfied. ************************************************** ********* Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain. Philippians 2:14-16 "From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another." John 1:16 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Your thoughts can be your worst enemy if you let them run away with you. Lord, free me to enjoy each moment of my day no matter what circumstances surround me. Be honest with yourself in every situation. Lord, help me recognize that my needs, feelings and my being are important just as they are in all others. |
June 8
Daily Reflections OPENING UP TO CHANGE Self-searching is the means by which we bring new vision, action, and grace to bear upon the dark and negative side of our natures. With it comes the development of that kind of humility that makes it possible for us to receive God's help. . . . we find that bit by bit we can discard the old life -- the one that did not work -- for a new life that can and does work under any conditions whatever. AS BILL SEES IT, pp. 10, 8 I have been given a daily reprieve contingent upon my spiritual condition, provided I seek progress, not perfection. To become ready for change, I practice willingness, opening myself to possibilities of change. If I realize there are defects that hinder my usefulness in A.A. and toward others, I become ready by meditating and receiving direction. "Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas and the result was nil until we let go absolutely" (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 58). To let go and let God, I need only surrender my old ways to Him; I no longer fight nor do I try to control, but simply believe that, with God's help, I am changed and affirming this belief makes me ready. I empty myself to be full of awareness, light, and love, and I am ready to face each day with hope. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic. We always get worse, never better. We are never cured. Our alcoholism can only be arrested. No matter how long we have been sober, if we try liquor again, we're as bad or worse than we ever were. There is no exception to this rule in the whole history of A.A. We can never recapture the good times of the past. They are gone forever. Will I try to recapture them? Meditation For The Day Your life has been given to you mainly for the purpose of training your soul. This life we live is not so much for the body as for the soul. We often choose the way of life that best suits the body, not the way that best suits the soul. God wants you to choose what suits the soul as well as the body. Accept this belief and a wonderful molding of character is the result. Reject it and God's purpose for your life is frustrated, and your spiritual progress is delayed. Your soul is being trained by the good you choose. Thus the purpose of your life is being accomplished. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may choose what is good for my soul. I pray that I may realize God's purpose for my life. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Between the Extremes, p. 159 "The real question is whether we can learn anything from our experiences upon which we may grow and help others to grow in the likeness and image of God. "We know that if we rebel against doing that which is reasonably possible for us, then we will be penalized. And we will be equally penalized if we presume in ourselves a perfection that simply is not there. "Apparently, the course of relative humility and progress will have to lie somewhere between these extremes. In our slow progress away from rebellion, true perfection is doubtless several millennia away." Letter, 1959 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Quality Of Sobriety Self-Improvement There is such a thing as length---or quantity---of sobriety, and there is also quality. It's generally accepted that sobriety ought to be something more than the single process of staying free from alcohol or drugs. We're on shaky ground, however, when we begin passing judgment on another person's quality of sobriety. We only have responsibility for the quality of our own sobriety, and it is not for us to decide how another should think or live. We may not be able to avoid noticing others' actions that we consider to be wrong, but we can keep our thoughts and opinions to ourselves. If we do wish to voice any opinions, it should be in terms of our own inventory---not the other person's. Some old-timers in Twelve Step programs develop crankiness that borders on resentment. Out of this crankiness come complaints about the way newcomers work the program. Our only responsibility is to treat these complaints with good humor and to avoid becoming cranky ourselves. Recovery alcoholics must continue to have the freedom to select any quality of sobriety they choose. Today I'll strive for a high-quality sobriety that includes cheerfulness, confidence, patience, and good humor. I won't be responsible for monitoring another's sobriety. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple It's not enough to talk to plants, you also have to listen.---David Bergman Sometimes, we find ourselves doing all the talking. When this happens, we need to stop, think, and listen. When we do all the talking, we're trying to control what happens. But when we listen, we get better results. No one has to be in control. What a relief! And we're learning to listen better every day. It's great---the care, love, and help we find---just by listening. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me learn the "give-and-take" of talking and listening. Action for the Day: Today, I'll focus on listening, not only to other people but to my Higher Power's voice. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning The process of living, for each of us, is pretty similar. For every gain there is a setback. For every success, a failure. For every moment of joy, a time of sadness. For every hope realized, one is dashed. --Sue Atchley Ebaugh The balance of events in our lives is much like the balance of nature. The pendulum swings; every extreme condition is offset by its opposite, and we learn to appreciate the gifts . . . of the bad times as well as the periods of rest. On occasion we'll discover that our course in life has changed direction. We need not be alarmed. Step Three has promised that we are in caring hands. Our every concern, every detail of our lives will be taken care of, in the right way, at the right time. We can develop gratitude for all conditions, good or bad. Each has its necessary place in our development as healthy, happy women. We need the sorrows along with the joys if we are to gain new insights. Our failures keep us humble; they remind us of our need for the care and guidance of others. And for every hope dashed, we can remember, one will be realized. Life is a process. I will accept the variations with gratitude. Each, in its own way, blesses me. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY Thus was I convinced that God is concerned with us humans when we want Him enough. At long last I saw, I felt, I believed. Scales of pride and prejudice fell from my eyes. A new world came into view. p. 12 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Another great dividend we may expect from confiding our defects to another human being is humility--a word often misunderstood. To those who have made progress in A.A., it amounts to a clear recognition of what and who we really are, followed by a sincere attempt to become what we could be. Therefore, our first practical move toward humility must consist of recognizing our deficiencies. No defect can be corrected unless we clearly see what it is. But we shall have to do more than see. The objective look at ourselves we achieved in Step Four was, after all, only a look. All of us saw, for example, that we lacked honesty and tolerance, that we were beset at times by attacks of self-pity or delusions of personal grandeur. But while this was a humiliating experience, it didn't necessarily mean that we had yet acquired much actual humility. Though now recognized, our defects were still there. Something had to be done about them. And we soon found that we could not wish or will them away by ourselves. p. 58 ************************************************** ********* "Love does not measure; it just gives." --Mother Teresa We do not let things change us, we change things. --Joyce Meyer Well done is better than well said. --Benjamin Franklin "Worry is rehearsing fear about a made-up, fabricated event in the future that most of the time never happens." --Jeff Alexander "Forget regret, or life is yours to miss." --Jonathan Larson "When a man points a finger at someone else, he should remember that four of his fingers are pointing at himself." --Louis Nizer ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation DOUBT "I respect faith but doubt is what gets you an education." --Wilson Mizner It is okay to question things. It is okay to say that I do not agree. Today I have the freedom to doubt opinions and attitudes. In my childhood I was never allowed to do this. I had to accept the Bible because the preacher said it was God's word. I had to accept that only Christians went to Heaven because Grandma said so! I had to believe that Jews and Blacks were "inferior" because family and friends said so - and to doubt them was to be different. I was dependent upon an attitude towards life that I was uncomfortable with. It brought me pain, anger, loneliness and guilt in later life. Then I learned that growth comes to those who are prepared to doubt or disagree with an existing system. God is to be found in the questions. Spirituality is discovered in the shades of life. O God, part of Your glory and splendor is Your unending mystery. ************************************************** ********* My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work. John 4:34 My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1:19-20 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Little acts of kindness throughout the day will make your life so much better and bring a little sunshine to others as well. Lord, may I make a habit of being gentle and loving with those around me. Everything we need to deal with life's problems lies within us. Our trials are tests to see if we can discover the solution. Lord, I call out Your name when I face my difficulties and together we will overcome them. |
June 9
Daily Reflections LIVING IN THE NOW First, we try living in the now just in order to stay sober -- and it works. Once the idea has become a part of our thinking, we find that living life in 24 hour segments is an effective and satisfying way to handle many other matters as well. LIVING SOBER, p. 7 "One Day At A Time." To a newcomer this and other one-liners of A.A. may seem ridiculous. The passwords of the A.A. Fellowship can become lifelines in moments of stress. Each day can be like a rose unfurling according to the plan of a Power greater than myself. My program should be planted in the right location, just as it will need to be groomed, nourished, and protected from disease. My planting will require patience, and my realizing that some flowers will be more perfect than others. Each stage of the petals' unfolding can bring wonder and delight if I do not interfere or let my expectations override my acceptance -- and this brings serenity. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day We finally came to the bottom. We did not have to be financially broke, although many of us were. But we were spiritually bankrupt. We had a soul-sickness, a revulsion against ourselves and against our way of living. Life had become impossible for us. We had to end it all or do something about it. Am I glad I did something about it? Meditation For The Day Faith is not seeing, but believing. I am in a box of space and time and cannot see spacelessness or eternity. But God is not within the shell of time and space. He is timeless and spaceless. He cannot be fully comprehended by our finite minds. But we must try to make a union between our purposes and the purposes of God. By trying to merge our minds with the mind of God, a oneness of purpose results. This oneness of purpose puts us in harmony with God and others. Evil comes from being in disharmony with God and good comes from being in harmony with Him. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may be in harmony with God. I pray that I may get into the stream of goodness in the universe. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It The Rationalizers and the Self-Effacing, p. 160 We alcoholics are the biggest rationalizers in the world. Fortified with the excuse that we are doing great things for A.A., we can, through broken anonymity, resume our old and disastrous pursuit of personal power and prestige, public honors, and money--the same implacable urges that, when frustrated, once caused us to drink. << << << >> >> >> Dr. Bob was essentially a far more humble person than I, and anonymity came rather easily to him. When it was sure that he was mortally afflicted, some of his friends suggested that there should be a monument erected in honor of him and his wife, Anne--befitting a founder and his lady. Telling me about this, Dr. Bob grinned broadly and said, "God bless 'em. They mean well. But let's you and me get buried just like other folks." In the Akron cemetery where Dr. Bob and Anne lie, the simple stone says not a word about A.A. This final example of self-effacement is of more permanent worth to A.A. than any amount of public attention or any great monument. A.A. Comes Of Age 1. pp. 292-293 2. pp. 136-137 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Do I feel uneasy? Serenity When facing difficult situations, we can expect to feel a certain amount of discomfort. What's more often a problem for compulsive people is being tense and apprehensive even when things seem to be going well. Although many explanations are offered for this unpleasant feeling, the solution is to be found in the 12 Steps. The more secure we feel in our program, the less apprehension we'll have in facing the problems of living. With the program as our foundation, we will continue to develop more self-assurance as we go along. We may not immediately find this self-assurance, yet we should not hold back from normal duties and responsibilities. Most of the world's work and accomplishments are undertaken by people who do not necessarily feel confident and self-assured all the time. Why should it be any different for us? Whether I feel confident or not, I'll do my best today. I know that my fellowship, my program, and my Higher Power are fully supporting me. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Anyone can blame; it takes a specialist to praise.---Konstantin Stanislawski Are we blamers? We sure were blamers when we were using alcohol and other drugs. Then everything was someone's fault. Some of us did our blaming out loud. And some of us blamed others silently. It's harder to praise than to blame people. Faults stand out like street signs, but the good things about people may be harder to see. We can see the good in people when we slow down, watch, and listen. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me pay attention to people around me. Help me praise them. Action for the Day: Today, I'll list three people who mean a lot to me. I'll write what I like about each of them. I'll talk to them and tell them what I wrote. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning The process of living, for each of us, is pretty similar. For every gain there is a setback. For every success, a failure. For every moment of joy, a time of sadness. For every hope realized, one is dashed. --Sue Atchley Ebaugh The balance of events in our lives is much like the balance of nature. The pendulum swings; every extreme condition is offset by its opposite, and we learn to appreciate the gifts . . . of the bad times as well as the periods of rest. On occasion we'll discover that our course in life has changed direction. We need not be alarmed. Step Three has promised that we are in caring hands. Our every concern, every detail of our lives will be taken care of, in the right way, at the right time. We can develop gratitude for all conditions, good or bad. Each has its necessary place in our development as healthy, happy women. We need the sorrows along with the joys if we are to gain new insights. Our failures keep us humble; they remind us of our need for the care and guidance of others. And for every hope dashed, we can remember, one will be realized. Life is a process. I will accept the variations with gratitude. Each, in its own way, blesses me. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY The real significance of my experience in the Cathedral burst upon me. For a brief moment, I had needed and wanted God. There had been a humble willingness to have Him with me---and He came. But soon the sense of His presence had been blotted out by worldly clamors, mostly those within myself. And so it had been ever since. How blind had I been. pp. 12-13 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." More realism and therefore more honesty about ourselves are the great gains we make under the influence of Step Five. As we took inventory, we began to suspect how much trouble self-delusion had been causing us. This had brought a disturbing reflection. If all our lives we had more or less fooled ourselves, how could we now be so sure that we weren't still self-deceived? How could we be certain that we had made a true catalog of our defects and had really admitted them, even to ourselves? Because we were still bothered by fear, self-pity, and hurt feelings, it was probable we couldn't appraise ourselves fairly at all. Too much guilt and remorse might cause us to dramatize and exaggerate our shortcomings. Or anger and hurt pride might be the smoke screen under which we were hiding some of our defects while we blamed others for them. Possibly, too, we were still handicapped by many liabilities, great and small, we never knew we had. pp. 58-59 ************************************************** ********* Love should never be a conditional emotion. It should be a gift where you expect nothing in return. --unknown Take the program seriously, not yourself. --unknown We all have within us the capacity to be happy and to suffer. It all depends on which one our mind chooses to feed. --unknown Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced." --James Baldwin "There is no greater treasure than the respect and love of a true friend." --Anonymous "Until you make peace with who you are, you'll never be content with what you have." --unknown ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation IDEALS "Every dogma has its day, but ideals are eternal." --Israel Zangwill For too long I lived in a box of rules and dogma. Life had to have definable answers and everything needed to be structured. Then the answers didn't seem to work. Nobody seemed interested in the answers I was giving. The world had moved on! I realized that life had to be lived, not simply talked about. Having the answers to questions that nobody was asking (including myself) seemed a waste of time. I was uncomfortable. I was living in the past. Spirituality is reality. It is okay to benefit from a tradition and then move on. I was not disloyal or a traitor because I had changed my mind. God and truth live in a changing world and if we are to grow, our perception of ourselves and life must change. Today I can accept this. Give me the willingness to change in my life. ************************************************** ********* I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1-2 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28 "I will save you; you will not fall by the sword but will escape with your life, because you trust in me, declares the LORD." Jeremiah 39:18 "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:37-39 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Seek God's guidance, but know that the responsibility to act on it is yours. Lord, may I not be lazy because I have prayed and expect You to do everything for me. It is a bigger mistake to fear making a mistake than to actually make one. Lord, give me the confidence to live a full life and the ability to try again if I stumble. |
June 10
Daily Reflections IMPATIENT? TRY LEVITATING We reacted more strongly to frustrations than normal people. AS BILL SEES IT, p. 111 Impatience with other people is one of my principal failings. Following a slow car in a no-passing lane, or waiting in a restaurant for the check, drives me to distraction. Before I give God a chance to slow me down, I explode, and that's what I call being quicker than God. That repeated experience gave me an idea. I thought if I could look down on these events from God's point of view, I might better control my feelings and behavior. I tried it and when I encountered the next slow driver, I levitated and looked down on the other car and upon myself. I saw an elderly couple driving along, happily chatting about their grandchildren. They were followed by me--bug eyed and red of face--who had no time schedule to meet anyway. I looked so silly that I dropped back into reality and slowed down. Seeing things from God's angle of vision can be very relaxing. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day If we have had some moral, religious, or spiritual training, we're better prospects for A.A. When we reach the bottom, at this crucial moment when we're thoroughly licked, we turn instinctively to whatever decency is left in us. We call upon whatever reserves of morality and faith are left down deep in our heart. Have I had this spiritual experience? Meditation For The Day The world wonders when it sees a person who can unexpectedly draw large and unsuspected sums from the bank for some emergency. But what the world has not seen are the countless small sums paid into that bank, earned by faithful work over a long time. And so is the bank of the spirit. The world sees the person of faith make a demand on God's stores of power and the demand is met. The world does not see what that person has been putting in, in thanks and praise, in prayer and communion, in small good deeds done faithfully, steadily over the years. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may keep making deposits in God's bank. I pray that in my hour of need, I may call upon these. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Whose Inventory?, p. 161 We do not relate intimate experiences of another member unless we are sure he would approve. We find it better, when possible, to stick to our own stories. A man may criticize or laugh at himself and it will affect others favorably, but criticism or ridicule aimed at someone else often produces the contrary effect. << << << >> >> >> A continuous look at our assets and liabilities, and a real desire to learn and grow by this means are necessities for us. We alcoholics have learned this the hard way. More experienced people, of course, in all times and places have practiced unsparing self-survey and criticism. 1. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 125 2. 12 & 12, p. 88 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Expecting quick results Acceptance Most human progress comes slowly, though we see exciting breakthroughs at various times. The same is true in the lives of individuals. Though a few people do make exciting leaps forward, most of us must be content with gradual, steady improvements. Our problem as compulsive people is in wanting quick results all the time. In fact, one of the things that reinforced our addition was the continuous need for a quick fix. We saw life as something that should be taken in frantic gulps. When a sudden break or advantage appeared, it never really satisfied us. There was always the hunger for more. We can find real satisfaction, however, in accepting progress in small stages. If we are having small gains here and there, we are on the road to improvement. A surprising amount can be accomplished when we are moving continuously ahead, one small step at a time. The old fable of the tortoise and the hare still applies in human affairs. If we continue to move ahead, even at a slow speed, we will reach our goals. I'll be content today with whatever progress I can make. If I'm expecting too many quick results, I might be setting myself up for disappointment. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Never grow a wishbone, daughter, where your backbone ought to be.---Clementine Pappleford At meetings, we meet people who have what we want. Our old way is to think these people are better or luckier than us. Our old way is to wish we were like them. But our program tells us how to work to change, not just wish for it. There is a big difference! There are many ways to work for recovery. We practice the Steps. We attend meetings, and we help out at meetings. We welcome new members. We call our sponsor often. And we sponsor others when we're ready. It takes more than a wishbone. It takes courage and hard work, with the help of our Higher Power. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me know that wishing is lost energy. I must work at recovery. As I do today's work, guide me. Action for the Day: Today, I'll do an extra bit of work on my recovery. I'll call a group member. I'll read. I'll spend extra time in prayer and meditation. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning When we start at the center of ourselves, we discover something worthwhile extending toward the periphery of the circle. We find again some of the joy in the now, some of the peace in the here, some of the love in me and thee which go to make up the kingdom of heaven on earth. --G. F. Sear Perhaps we have feared discovering our center; perhaps we have feared finding nothing there. The struggle to believe in ourselves, to know we have an important part to play in the circle of life, the circle encompassing all life, is a hard-fought struggle for many of us. But we are learning. We are finding treasures within ourselves. Others are helping us to find those treasures. Sharing special moments in time with loved ones and ones we are learning to love reveals many treasures. All we have is here--now--us. We are all we ever need to be--here and now. We are, at every moment, what we need to be if only we'd trust revealing our true selves, our centers, to one another. Our centers each need that of another. This program needs each of us for what we add to it. The worthiness of the program, of the whole circle, is enhanced by the inclusion of our centers. I will share my center today with you. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY At the hospital I was separated from alcohol for the last time. Treatment seemed wise, for I showed signs of delirium tremens. There I humbly offered myself to God, as I then understood Him, to do with me as He would. I placed myself unreservedly under His care and direction. I admitted for the first time that of myself I was nothing; that without Him I was lost. I ruthlessly faced my sins and became willing to have my new-found Friend take them away, root and branch. I have not had a drink since. p. 13 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Hence it was most 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 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. p. 59 ************************************************** ********* The quieter we become, the more we hear. --unknown There are glimpses of heaven in every act, or thought, or word that raises us above ourselves. --Arthur Stanley When everything seems to go wrong, just P.U.S.H.! When the job gets you down, just P.U.S.H.! When people don't react the way you think they should, just P.U.S.H.! When your money looks funny and the bills are due, just P.U.S.H.! When you want to give up because it looks hopeless, just P.U.S.H.! P.U.S.H - Pray Until Something Happens!!!!! --Randy Walker "Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are." --Marianne Williamson "I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in Gods hands, that I still possess." --Martin Luther ************************************************** ********* Father Leo's Daily Meditation LAUGHTER "God cannot be solemn, or he would not have blessed man with the incalculable gift of laughter." --Sydney Harris I think the way to understand God is to begin to understand man! Sometimes we forget that we bear the "image" of God - and this is not so much physical as emotional, our inner selves, the soul. So much of what I feel, what hurts me, what causes me distress and pain I believe also affects God. Also the gifts, the creative intelligence and spiritual sacrifice that has characterized so many people in history reflects something of God. Involved in this is "laughter". I believe that laughter is derived from God and is part of the spiritual gift He has bequeathed to every one of us: we need only discover it. "Let go - and let God." Sometimes we need to get out of our own way so that we can begin to laugh. You gave the gift of laughter to be used. May it be used in the precious art of healing. ************************************************** ********* "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1 The joy of the LORD is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration It is not as significant to have a good life, but rather to do good things with your life. Lord, I am grateful for the talents with which You have blessed me and I pray that they will not go unused. Gossip betrays trust. The harm done is often irreparable. Lord, may I never be responsible for hurting anyone through my conversations. |
June 11
Daily Reflections FAMILY OBLIGATIONS . . . a spiritual life which does not include . . . family obligations may not be so perfect after all. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 129 I can be doing great in the program--applying it at meetings, at work, and in service activities--and find that things have gone to pieces at home. I expect my loved ones to understand, but they cannot. I expect them to see and value my progress, but they don't--unless I show them. Do I neglect their needs and desire for my attention and concern? When I'm around them, am I irritable or boring? Are my "amends" a mumbled "Sorry," or do they take the form of patience and tolerance? Do I preach to them, trying to reform or "fix" them? Have I ever really cleaned house with them? "The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it." (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 83). ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day We alcoholics have to believe in some Power greater than ourselves. Yes, we have to believe in God. Not to believe in a Higher Power drives us to atheism. Atheism, it has been said before, is blind faith in the strange proposition that this universe originated in a cipher and aimlessly rushes nowhere. That's practically impossible to believe. So we turn to that Divine Principle in the universe that we call God. Have I stopped trying to run my own life? Meditation For The Day "Lord, we thank Thee for the great gift of peace, that peace which passeth all understanding, that peace which the world can neither give nor take away." That is the peace that only God can give in the midst of a restless world and surrounded by trouble and difficulty. To know that peace is to have received the stamp of the kingdom of God. When you have earned that peace, you are fit to judge between true and false values, between the values of the kingdom of God and the values of all that the world has to offer. Prayer For The Day I pray that today I may have inner peace. I pray that today I may be at peace with myself. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It "Let's Keep It Simple", p. 162 "We need to distinguish sharply between spiritual simplicity and functional simplicity." "When we say that A.A. advocates no theological proposition except God as we understand Him, we greatly simplify A.A. life by avoiding conflict and exclusiveness. "But when we get into questions of action by groups, by areas, and by A.A. as a whole, we find that we must to some extent organize to carry the message--or else face chaos. And chaos is not simplicity." << << << >> >> >> I learned that the temporary or seeming good can often be the deadly enemy of the permanent best. When it comes to survival for A.A., nothing short of our best will be good enough. 1. Letter, 1966 2. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 294 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places What can we change ? Handling limitations. There's always danger that resignation will masquerade as acceptance. In 12 Step programs, we must learn the difference between the two. Resignation refers to putting up with conditions that we should actually change; it regards self-imposed limitation. Acceptance meansx recognizing reality and becoming comfortable with it. We might resign ourselves to bad treatment that is unacceptable, or we might put up with personal shortcomings that we could change. When someone points this out, we defend ourselves by asserting points this out., we defend ourselves by asserting that we're practicing acceptance. As human beings and children of God, we are entitled to live with dignity and to receive fair treatment. We should never resign ourselves to anything that robs us of this basic humanity. Our Higher Power will show us how to eliminate resignation if we have been practicing it. The message of the program is that we never have to accept the things we can and should change. Today if I am uncomfortable with something, I'll ask myself if I've been practicing resignation instead of acceptance. There may be many things in my life that can and should be changed. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Who is the bravest hero? He who turns his enemy into a friend. --- Hebrew Proverb In recovery we take our worst enemy, addiction, and turn it around. We were ashamed of our addiction. Over time we become proud of our recovery. We were our own worst enemy. Now we're our own best friend. We are brave people. Being brave is about facing our fears. Often we think brave people don't get afraid, but this isn't true. Brave people learn to stay put, even when their knees are shaking. Many times in recovery, we will want to run when we should stay put. We may even think about using chemicals again. We need to remember our bravery and how we turned our worst enemy into a friend. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, teach me when to run and when to stay put. Help me be brave. Action for the Day: I will claim bravery today. I'll hold my head up high and be proud of how far I've come. I now have nothing to be ashamed of. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning My lifetime listens to yours. --Muriel Rukeyser Our experiences educate us to help show each other the way. Others' experiences, likewise, will help still others. We need to share our histories. And the program offers us the way. There is no greater honor we can give one another than rapt attention. We each want to be heard, to be special, to be acknowledged. And recognition may will be the balm that will heal someone's hurt today. A new day faces us, a day filled with opportunities to really listen to someone who needs to be heard. And the surprise is that we will hear a message just right for us, where we are now. A message that may well point us in a new, better direction. Guidance is always at hand, if only we listen for it. But when we are trapped in our own narrow world of problems and confusion, we scramble whatever messages are trying to reach us. And we miss the many opportunities to make another person feel special and necessary to our lives. My growth is enhanced every time I give my attention fully to another person. And this process is multiplied over and over and over. I will be there for someone today. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY My schoolmate visited me, and I fully acquainted him with my problems and deficiencies. We made a list of people I had hurt or toward whom I felt resentment. I expressed my entire willingness to approach these individuals, admitting my wrong. Never was I to be critical of them. I was to right all such matters to the utmost of my ability. p. 13 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Yet many of us still hung back. We said, "Why can't 'God as we understand Him' tell us where we are astray? If the Creator gave us our lives in the first place, then He must know in every detail where we have since gone wrong. Why don't we make our admissions to Him directly? Why do we need to bring anyone else into this?" p. 59 ************************************************** ********* "No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens." --Abraham Lincoln "Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense." --Ralph Waldo Emerson The right time for the journey is when you begin it. Why not today? God, motivate me to live a fuller, richer life. --An excerpt from Melody Beattie - (More Language of Letting Go) "There is a very little difference between people; it is called attitude; and it makes a really big difference. The big difference is whether it's positive or negative." --W. Clement Stone "Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind." --Eric Hoffer Look past the body, past the personality, past the behavior, into the window of one another's souls. There we make a connection. The God in me recognizes and honors the God in you. --Mary Manin Morrissey God, grant me the serenity to not try to force outcomes and solutions too soon. --Melody Beattie Wish not so much to live long, as to live well. -- Benjamin Franklin It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows. --Epictetus *********************************************** Father Leo's Daily Meditation SOLITUDE "Everyone should try to find a spot to be alone." --Queen Juliana (Netherlands) Greta Garbo was reported to have said, "I want to be alone." Life brings its pressures, but we all need to find a place where we can be "alone". Alone - not to "think" or "do" - simply to be. We need time to simply rest in our lives. A time in the day which we can call our own, to have a visit with the most important person we have got in our lives - ourselves. To rest in self is to experience "spiritual selfishness" - the joy of self-love. And how much we look forward to setting aside a time just for heart and mind to center on the pathway to listening to God. ************************************************** ********* And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21:4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright, for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man. Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice. Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever. He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes. He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor, his righteousness endures forever; his horn will be lifted high in honor. Psalm 112:4-9 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration It is laughter that helps us cope with the upsets and chaos of everyday living. Lord, lighten my spirit so that I will not take myself so seriously and be able to find more moments to laugh. 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. |
June 12
Daily Reflections FORMING TRUE PARTNERSHIPS But it is from our twisted relations with family, friends, and society at large that many of us have suffered the most. We have been especially stupid and stubborn about them. The primary fact that we fail to recognize is our total inability to form a true partnership with another human being. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 53 Can these words apply to me, am I still unable to form a true partnership with another human being? What a terrible handicap that would be for me to carry into my sober life! In my sobriety I will meditate and pray to discover how I may be a trusted friend and companion. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day When we came into A.A., we made a tremendous discovery. We found that we were sick persons rather than moral lepers. We were not such odd ducks as we thought we were. We found other people who had the same illness that we had, who had been through the same experiences that we had been through. They had recovered. if they could do it, we could do it. Was hope born in me the day I walked into A.A.? Meditation For The Day "He that heareth these sayings and doeth them is like unto a man who built his house upon a rock and the rain descended and the floods came and the wind blew and beat upon that house and it fell not for it was founded upon a rock." When your life is built upon obedience to God and upon doing His will as you understand it, you will be steadfast and unmovable even in the midst of storms. The serene, steadfast, unmovable life - the rock home - is laid stone by stone - foundation, walls, and roof - by acts of obedience to the heavenly vision. The daily following of God's guidance and the daily doing of His will shall build your house upon a rock. Prayer For The Day I pray that my life may be founded upon the rock of faith. I pray that I may be obedient to the heavenly vision. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Release and Joy, p. 163 Who can render an account of all the miseries that once were ours, and who can estimate the release and joy that later years have brought to us? Who can possibly tell the vast consequences of what God's work through A.A. has already set in motion? And who can penetrate the deeper mystery of our wholesale deliverance from slavery, a bondage to a most hopeless and fatal obsession which for centuries possessed the minds and bodies of men and women like ourselves? << << << >> >> >> We think cheerfulness and laughter make for usefulness. Outsiders are sometimes shocked when we burst into merriment over a seemingly tragic experience out of the past. But why shouldn't we laugh? We have recovered, and have helped others to recover. What greater cause could there be for rejoicing than this? 1. A.A. Comes Of Age, pp. 44-45 2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 132 ************************************************** ********* Walk in Dry Places Being right or wrong____ Honesty Step Ten advises us to promptly admit it when we're wrong. Perhaps there should be another Step warning us not to be too confident when we're sure we're right. It's true that there are many times when we are right. It's also possible, however, that we might be only 99 percent right, and that tiny fractions of error could mean our downfall. Something is also wrong when we find ourselves vigorously asserting that we're right. We don't have to "admit it" when we're right because being right speaks for itself. In the long run, truth and right action don't really have to be defended. Part of being right is the willingness to believe that we may be wrong, however hard that is to accept. If I'm wrong today, I'll admit it. If I'm right, I'll refrain from announcing it with too much assurance. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The lust for power is not rooted in strength, but to weakness. We believed Alcohol or other drugs could help us control our happiness. But now we’re learning to rely on faith for our happiness. Faith is about leaving things to our Higher Power's control. Instead of wanting the control ourselves, we trust our Higher Power will help us handle things that come along. In recovery, we work at having more faith. Faith in a Higher Power. Faith in the Steps. Faith in our groups. Faith that our lives will get better, if we don't use chemicals and we work an honest recovery program. Faith makes life a lot easier. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning If people only knew the healing power of laughter and joy, many of our fine doctors would be out of business. Joy is one of nature's greatest medicines. Joy is always healthy. A pleasant state of mind tends to bring abnormal conditions back to normal. --Catherine Ponder Feeling joy may not come naturally to us most of the time. We may, in fact, have to act "as if" with great effort. We may not even recognize genuine joy in the beginning. A technique for finding it is living fully in the present and with gratitude for all we can see, touch, and feel. The open and honest expression of gratitude for the presence of the ones closest to us now creates a rush within our breasts, a rush that will be shared by our friends, too. Joy is contagious. Joy is freeing. Joy brings into focus our distorted perceptions. Greeting life with joy alters every experience for us and for those we share it with. I will bring joy wherever I go today. I will give the gift of joy to everyone I meet. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY I was to test my thinking by the new God-consciousness within. Common sense would thus become uncommon sense. I was to sit quietly when in doubt, asking only for direction and strength to meet my problems as He would have me. Never was I to pray for myself, except as my requests bore on my usefulness to others. Then only might I expect to receive. But that would be in great measure. p. 13 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." At this stage, the difficulties of trying to deal rightly with God by ourselves are twofold. Though we may at first be startled to realize that God knows all about us, we are apt to get used to that quite quickly. Somehow, being alone with God doesn't seem as embarrassing as facing up to another person. Until we actually sit down and talk aloud about what we have so long hidden, our willingness to clean house is still largely theoretical. When we are honest with another person, it confirms that we have been honest with ourselves and with God. pp. 59-60 ************************************************** ********* It is not enough to love those who are near and dear to us. We must show them that we do so. --Lord Eric Avebury Never say more than is necessary. --Richard Brinsley Sheridan "The power behind me is greater than the problem in front of me." --unknown The surest sign of wisdom is constant cheerfulness. --Montaigne Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, but only saps today of its strength. --A. J. Cronin "... when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present--love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature, and personal pursuits that bring us pleasure--the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience heaven on earth." --Sarah Ban Brethnach *********************************************** Father Leo's Daily Meditation POTENTIAL "There is no meaning to life except the meaning man gives his life by the unfolding of his powers." --Eric Fromm My life was powerless when I was drinking. The drug alcohol stopped me from reaching my full potential - I was depressed, tired, angry, lonely and confused. Incredible as it may sound, I was the enemy to my life. By drinking alcohol, I fed the disease and made my life unmanageable. Then I had a "moment" when I saw what I was doing to my life. The pain caused by drinking outweighed any advantages. I had hit my bottom. I began to change my life by refusing the first drink, and I began to experience a new vitality and potential. A new and creative life dawned. Friendships and relationships were possible again. God became understandable in His world. My power as a human being was unleashed in my sobriety. Master, may I discover my potential in the loving decisions I undertake. ************************************************** ********* "For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Luke 18:25 Don't repay evil for evil. Don't retaliate when people say unkind things about you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God wants you to do, and he will bless you for it. 1 Peter 3:9 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 The LORD will continually guide you. Isaiah 58:11 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration The more generous and kind we are, the more thoughtful and forgiving, the closer we come to awareness of God's powerful love. Lord, let Your love take over in me and lead and guide me to goodness. You cannot ask too much if you use your blessings ceaselessly. Lord, help me to reflect on and live in Your spirit. |
June 13
Daily Reflections LIVING OUR AMENDS "Years of living with an alcoholic is almost sure to make any wife or child neurotic. The entire family is to some extent, ill." ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 122 It is important for me to realize that, as an alcoholic, I not only hurt myself, but also those around me. Making amends to my family, and to the families of alcoholics still suffering, will always be important. Understanding the havoc I created and trying to repair the destruction, will be a lifelong endeavor. The example of my sobriety may give others hope, and faith to help themselves. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day In A.A. we have to reeducate our minds. We have to learn to think differently. We have to take a long view of drinking instead of a short view. We have to look through the glass to what lies beyond it. We have to look through the night before to the morning after. No matter how good liquor looks from the short view, we must realize that in the long run it is poison to us. Have I learned to look through the bottle to the better life that lies ahead? Meditation For The Day If you are honestly trying to live the way you believe God wants you to live, you can get guidance from God in times of quiet communion with Him, provided your thoughts are directed toward God's will and all good things. The attitude of "Thy will, not mine, be done' leads to clear guidance. Act on this guidance and you will be led to better things. Your impulses seem to become less your own and more the leading of God's spirit acting through your thoughts. Obeyed, they will bring you the answers to your prayers. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may try to think God's thoughts after Him. I pray that my thoughts may be guided by His thoughts. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It A Saving Principle, p. 164 The practice of admitting one's defects to another person is, of course, very ancient. It has been validated in every century, and it characterizes the lives of all spiritually centered and truly religious people. But today religion is by no means the sole advocate of this saving principle. Psychiatrists and psychologists point out the deep need every human being has for practical insight and knowledge of his own personal flaws and a discussion of them with an understanding and trustworthy person. So far as alcoholics are concerned, A.A. would go even further. Most of us would declare that without a fearless admission of our defects to another human being, we could not stay sober. It seems plain that the grace of God will not enter to expel our destructive obsessions until we are willing to try this. 12 & 12, pp. 56-57 ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple The reason why worry kills more people than work is that more people worry than work. ---Robert Frost Worry---it's a lonely activity. It puts distance between us and others. Our program is full of ideas about what to do with worry. On Step Three, we turn our will and our lives over to God. This includes worry. Our slogans also suggest what to do with worry. One Day at a Time. Live and Let Live. Easy Does It. Let Go and Let God. Their main message is stop worrying. Trust the program. Trust your Higher Power. Everything will be okay. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I give You my worries. Teach me how to trust again. I want to trust in You, my program, and myself. Action for the Day: I'll write the program slogans listed above on a piece of paper, and I'll read them over today. I'll let myself live them today. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning Everyday . . . life confronts us with new problems to be solved which force us to adjust our old programs accordingly. --Dr. Ann Faraday Facing the day straight on is occasionally difficult to do. There are those days we feel like crawling under the covers and staying there, certain that we can't handle whatever might be asked of us. Maybe today is one of those days. Perhaps we feel 12 years old, instead of 42. To consciously behave like a responsible 42-year-old is out of the question. Acting "as if" is the next best thing, the program tells us, and it is. Acting "as if" also comes in handy when only a minor kink interferes with the day's progression. Most problems don't fit an easy solution or a familiar one. However, most problems are dispensed with by seeing them as opportunities for creative response, calmly seeking guidance and then moving ahead slowly, being aware of the effects of our actions. Today, and every day, I will have an opportunity to think creatively and to rely on my inner guide. Instead of dreading the unfamiliar, I will be glad for it. It's moving me ever closer to understanding life's mysteries. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY My friend promised when these things were done I would enter upon a new relationship with my Creator; that I would have the elements of a way of living which answered all my problems. Belief in the power of God, plus enough willingness, honesty and humility to establish and maintain the new order of things, were the essential requirements. Simple, but not easy; a price had to be paid. It meant destruction of self-centeredness. I must turn in all things to the Father of Light who presides over us all. These were revolutionary and drastic proposals, but the moment i fully accepted them, the effect was electric. There was a sense of victory, followed by such a peace and serenity as I had ever known. There was utter confidence. I felt lifted up, as though the great clean wind of a mountain top blew through and through. God comes to most men gradually, but His impact on me was sudden and profound. pp. 13-14 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." The second difficulty is this: what comes to us alone may be garbled by our own rationalization and wishful thinking. The benefit of talking to another person is that we can get his direct comment and counsel on our situation, and there can be no doubt in our minds what that advice is. 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 all too plain that they were sorely mistaken. Lacking both practice and humility, they had deluded themselves and were able to justify the most arrant nonsense on the ground that this was what God had told them. It is worth noting that 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 in this fashion. While the comment or advice of others may be by no means infallible, it is likely to be far more specific than any direct guidance we may receive while we are still so inexperienced in establishing contact with a Power greater than ourselves. p. 60 ************************************************** ********* A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. --unknown The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. --Martin Luther King, Jr. Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved. --Helen Keller Laughter is God's sunshine. --Anonymous "A fear faced is a fear erased." --unknown When we step off the path it is up to us to step back on it. --SweetyZee Faith can take us to a place beyond time and space where God dwells. --SweetyZee Faith relieves worry and cares, brings peace and harmony, gives us all the strength we need. --SweetyZee *********************************************** Father Leo's Daily Meditation WORLD "We are citizens of the world; and the tragedy of our time is that we do not know this." --Woodrow Wilson In recovery I have learned to "go home" to who I am - and part of this involves my understanding my place in this vast universe. I am a child of God and my "family" is not just my immediate blood relatives, but also the millions of other people that inhabit this planet. God did not just make me. God does not just love me. God is concerned for all His children. As an alcoholic I did not have this attitude and I was always feeling lost and different. I became selfish and narrow in my lifestyle. Other people were tolerated. Today I have a "big" God and He has enabled me to grow not only in my acceptance of self but also in my acceptance of others. Today I am a citizen of the world and it feels good. Lord, today I know what it is to belong to the human family. And with this awareness comes responsibility. ************************************************** ********* "Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a lamp to my path. I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to observe thy righteous ordinances." Psalm 119:105-106 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:18 If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:7 "And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you." Romans 8:11 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration The phrase "Never Again" is too large a commitment and too easily discarded when we stumble. Lord, help me to work on being a better person today, so that in time, my good habits will require little or no effort. Tragedy and suffering often opens the soul to the heights of spiritual growth. Lord, let the hardships of my life be my prayer and work to draw You closer and closer. |
June 14
Daily Reflections WHEN THE GOING GETS ROUGH It is a design for living that works in rough going. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 15 When I came to A.A., I realized that A.A. worked wonderfully to help keep me sober. But could it work on real life problems, not concerned with drinking? I had my doubts. After being sober for more than two years I got my answer. I lost my job, developed physical problems, my diabetic father lost a leg, and someone I loved left me for another - and all of this happened during a two-week period. Reality crashed in, yet A.A. was there to support, comfort, and strengthen me. The principles I had learned during my early days of sobriety became a mainstay of my life for not only did I come through, but I never stopped being able to help newcomers. A.A. taught me not to be overwhelmed, but rather to accept and understand my life as it unfolded. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day In A.A. we have to learn that drink is our greatest enemy. Although we used to think that liquor was our friend, the time came when it turned against us and became our enemy. We don't know just when this happened, but we know that it did because we began to get into trouble - jails and hospitals. We realize now that liquor is our enemy. Is it still my main business to keep sober? Meditation For The Day It is not your circumstances that need altering so much as yourself. After you have changed, conditions will naturally change. Spare no effort to become all that God would have you become. Follow every good leading of your conscience. Take each day with no backward look. Face the day's problems with God, and seek God's help and guidance as to what you should do in every situation that may arise. Never look back. Never leave until tomorrow the thing that you are guided to do today. Prayer For The Day I pray that God will help me to become all that He would have me be. I pray that I may face today's problem as with good grace. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It "Success" in Twelfth-Stepping, p. 165 "We now see that in twelfth-stepping the immediate results are not so important. Some people start out working with others and have immediate success. They are likely to get cocky. Those of us who are not so successful at first get depressed. "As a matter of fact, the successful worker differs from the unsuccessful only in being lucky about his prospects. He simply hits newcomers who are ready and able to stop at once. Given the same prospects, the seemingly unsuccessful person would have produced almost the same results. You have to work on a lot of newcomers before the law of averages commences to assert itself." << << << >> >> >> All true communications must be founded on mutual need. We saw that each sponsor would have to admit humbly his own needs as clearly as those of his prospect. 1. Letter, 1942 2. A.A. Today, p. 10 ************************************************** ********* Walk In Dry Places True Satisfaction Contentment True satisfaction never comes from feeding addition. Nothing is ever enough. The only possible outcomes for those who do not seek recovery from their additions will be complete breakdown and untimely death. St. Augustine explained why it’s impossible for humans to find true satisfaction in pursuing pleasure. “Thou hast made us for thyself and our hearts are restless until they repose in thee,” he wrote, with reference to the Divine. As we come to understand that true satisfaction comes from the Spirit, we will, surprisingly, receive more satisfaction from the worldly things we use. We will begin to look upon our possessions for the service they give rather than as things that should make us happy. A new car should give us comfortable satisfactory transportation, but it cannot give us peace and true self-esteem. New clothes can please us, but they will not do anything for our spiritual depression. Why didn't we know this all along? Probably because we falsely believed that certain possessions would bring fulfillment. They can't do that, but when we are thinking right, our appreciation of everything should increase. I'll not expect true satisfaction in this world, although I'll get more out of it if I put things in right order. ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple Time is nature's way of keeping everything from happening at once.---unknown Time always seems to pass too slowly or too quickly for us. .We want the fun times to last longer. We want the boring or painful times to go faster. But times goes at just the right pace. Any faster, and we wouldn't have enough time to learn as we go. Any slower, and we'd lose interest. In our program, we learn to respect the pace of time. We let go, and we let time go at it's own pace. We call this patience. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, thank-you for patience. Help me look forward to the future without rushing. Help me live fully in the here and now. Help me make today a good one by doing Your will. Action for the Day: I'll list five ways I can use time to be more healthy---in body, mind and spirit. Which of these five things can I do today? ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning All of us have unique talents and gifts. No obstacle, be it physical, mental or emotional, has the power to destroy our innate creative energies. --Liane Cordes Believing this fully is difficult at times; for some of us, most of the time. But it is true. What each of us can contribute to the world is unlike every other contribution. Each talent is slightly different from every other talent. And they are all needed. We are all needed. Creativity--any kind--writing, photography, cooking, child care, weaving, managing, woodworking--nourishes the self that feels isolated and worthless. And as the self is nourished, it grows; it recovers. Recovery means changing our lifestyle. It means reaching out to others and being there for one another. It means rejoining the human race by giving of ourselves. Our talents are the gifts the human race awaits, needs, in fact. Do we know our talents? I will search out my secret dreams today. In them lie my talents. I will develop them. Help awaits me. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY For a moment I was alarmed, and called my friend, the doctor, to ask if I were still sane. He listened in wonder as I talked. Finally he shook his head saying, "Something has happened to you I don't understand. But you had better hang on to it. Anything is better than the way you were." The good doctor now sees many men who have such experiences. He knows that they are real. p. 14 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Five - "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Perhaps, though, your relation to him is such that you would care to reveal only a part of your story. If this is the situation, by all means do so, for you ought to make a beginning as soon as you can. It may turn out, however, that you'll choose someone else for the more difficult and deeper revelations. This individual may be entirely outside of A.A.--for example, your clergyman or your doctor. For some of us, a complete stranger may prove the best bet. p. 61 ************************************************** ********* The memories of tomorrow depend on your attitude today. --Dave Weinbaum "Make sure the thing you're living for is worth dying for." --Charles Mayes "I have a special purpose!" --Steve Martin "When we become aware of our humility, we've lost it." --Anonymous We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. --Joseph Campbell Injure others, injure yourself. --Chinese Proverb "I am only one; but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do." --Helen Keller "I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline... I firmly believe that any man's finest hour - this greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear – is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle, victorious." --Vince Lombardi *********************************************** Father Leo's Daily Meditation LIFE "To be free is to have achieved your life." --Tennessee Williams Yesterday's tapes: I need a drink. I can't exist without a fix. How will I get through the morning without taking something? Do people see me shake? Are people watching me? Where can I get money? The prison of addiction! Today I am free because I took courage and asked for help. Today I am free because I still ask for help. Today I have learned to say "no" to the first drink and life is more comfortable and less painful. Freedom is a precious spiritual gift that I work for on a daily basis. God is involved - but so am I. The freedom from alcoholism is only guaranteed by the creative choices I make and in the choice is the freedom. God, my memory is the key to today's freedom; may I continue to remember. ************************************************** ********* "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your inquiry, who heals all your diseases." Psalm 103:1-3 "For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39 "I will praise You, O LORD, among the peoples, And I will sing praises to You among the nations." Psalms 108:3 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration To be successful in the projects you undertake today, you must believe in yourself and your abilities even if you are walking on new ground. Lord, guide me in my endeavors and open my mind to new solutions if things aren't going as I have planned. The smallest kindness is worth more than the greatest intention. Lord, help me not to overlook the opportunities that I have to enrich the lives of others or think I am too busy to reach out with a word or even a smile. |
June 15
Daily Reflections MAKING A. A. YOUR HIGHER POWER ". . . . . You can . . . make A. A. itself your 'higher power.' Here's a very large group of people who have solved their alcohol problem. . . . .many members . . . . have crossed the threshold just this way. . . . .their faith broadened and deepened. . . . transformed, they came to believe in a Higher Power. . . . ." TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 27-28 No one was greater than I, at least in my eyes, when I was drinking. Nevertheless, I couldn't smile at myself in the mirror, so I came to A.A. where, with others, I heard talk of a Higher Power. I couldn't accept the concept of a Higher Power because I believed God was cruel and unloving. In desperation I chose a table, a tree, then my A.A. group, as my Higher Power. Time passed, my life improved, and I began to wonder about this Higher Power. Gradually, with patience, humility and a lot of questions, I came to believe in God. Now my relationship with my Higher Power gives me the strength to live a happy, sober life. ************************************************** ********* Twenty-Four Hours A Day A.A. Thought For The Day In A.A. we have three things: fellowship, faith, and service. Fellowship is wonderful, but its wonder lasts just so long. Then some gossip, disillusionment, and boredom may come in. Worry and fear come back at times and we find that fellowship is not the whole story. Then we need faith. When we're alone, with nobody to pat us on the back, we must turn to God for help. Can I say "Thy will be done" - and mean it? Meditation For The Day There is beauty in a God-guided life. There is wonder in the feeling of being led by God. Try to realize God's bounty and goodness more and more. God is planning for you. Wonderful are His ways - they are beyond your knowledge. But God's leading will enter your consciousness more and more and bring you ever more peace and joy. Your life is being planned and blessed by God. You may count all material things as losses if they prevent your winning your way to the consciousness of God's guidance. Prayer For The Day I pray that I may earn the rewards of God's power and peace. I pray that I may develop the feeling of being led by God. ************************************************** ********* As Bill Sees It Fear No Evil, p. 166 Though we of A.A. find ourselves living in a world characterized by destructive fears as never before in history, we see great areas of faith, and tremendous aspirations toward justice and brotherhood. Yet no prophet can presume to say whether the world outcome will be blazing destruction or the beginning, under God's intention, of the brightest era yet known to mankind. I am sure we A.A.'s will comprehend this scene. In microcosm, we have experienced this identical state of terrifying uncertainty, each in his own life. In no sense pridefully, we can say that we do not fear the world outcome, whichever course it may take. This is because we have been established to deeply feel and say, "We shall fear no evil--Thy will, not ours, be done." Grapevine, January 1962 ************************************************** ********* Keep It Simple He who laughs, last.---Mary Pettibone Poole It feels good to laugh again! Our disease took away our sense of humor. Recovery gives it back. That's why there's so much laughter at our meetings. By seeing the funny side of things, we ease up. A person in treatment was talking about the Higher Power he had come to believe in. The counselor asked, “Does God have a sense of humor?" The group had fun talking about this idea for a while. The next day, the counselor came to work and found a note on her door. It read: “Of course God has a sense of humor. He made you, didn't He? Laughter helps us heal. Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me ease up today. Let me see the funny side of things. Action for the Day: I'll let myself laugh today. ************************************************** ********* Each Day a New Beginning For many years I was so flexible I didn't know who I was, and now that I'm discovering who I am, I think "OK, I know where I stand on that issue. Now on to the next one." But I have to remind myself that all issues are interrelated--no one is separate. --Kathleen Casey Theisen Today flows from yesterday, the day before, the day before that. Tomorrow repeats the pattern. What we are given on any one day will have its beginning in the past and its finale in the future. No incident is isolated entirely; no issue is self-contained. Maturity is being able to let go of outgrown attitudes, stifling opinions, no matter how good and right they were at one time. Our egos often get too attached to some of our opinions, and new ideas can't filter in. Some will try to get our attention today. We are ready for new growth. The choice not to hamper it is ours to make. The opinions we held certain yesterday may not be adequate to the problems of today. They need not be. They served us well. They are not for naught. Today's issues need today's fresh responses. I will be unafraid. Today flows from yesterday, the day before, and the day before that. Tomorrow follows suit. ************************************************** ********* Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition BILL'S STORY While I lay in the hospital the thought came that there were thousands of hopeless alcoholics who might be glad to have what had been so freely given me. Perhaps I could help some of them. They in turn might work with others. My friend had emphasized the absolute necessity of demonstrating these principles in all my affairs. Particularly was it imperative to work with others as he had worked with me. Faith without works was dead, he said. And how appallingly true for the alcoholic! For if an alcoholic failed to perfect and enlarge his spiritual life through work and self-sacrifice for others, he could not survive the certain trials and low spots ahead. If he did not work, he would surely drink again, and if he drank, he would surely die. Then faith would be dead indeed. With us it is just like that. pp. 14-15 ************************************************** ********* Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Step Six - "Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character." Let's dispose of what appears to be a hazardous open end we have left. It is suggested that we ought to become entirely willing to aim toward perfection. We note that some delay, however, might be pardoned. That word, in the mind of a rationalizing alcoholic, could certainly be given a long term meaning. He could say, "How very easy! Sure, I'll head toward perfection, but I'm certainly not going to hurry any. Maybe I can postpone dealing with some of my problems indefinitely." Of course, this won't do. Such a bluffing of oneself will have to go the way of many another pleasant rationalization. At the very least, we shall have to come to grips with some of our worst character defects and take action toward their removal as quickly as we can. p. 69 ************************************************** ********* Adventure is not outside a man. It is within. --David Grayson "Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it." --William Arthur Ward "When fate hands you a lemon, make lemonade." --Dale Carnegie Very little is needed to make a happy life. It is all within yourself, in your way of thinking. --Marcus Aurelius Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it." --Groucho Marx *********************************************** Father Leo's Daily Meditation FEAR "Nothing is so much to be feared as fear. " --Henry David Thoreau Fear is a killer. It stops the God-given spirituality in our lives from taking shape and making life enjoyable. Fear is connected with doubt - doubt of self. Low self-esteem develops along with fear and in order for confidence to develop, the fear must be faced, confronted and talked about. Fear is not going to go away because we wish it away or hope it sway or even pray it away. Fear needs to be identified, located and seen for what it is - or, as in most cases, what it isn't. Fear of people, things, tomorrow or life itself grows so long as we forge that we are creatures of God. There is nothing that cannot be faced or overcome - as long as we remain drug-free. God is on our side - but we need also to be on our side. Fear is never stronger than our spirituality. We need to bring our fear into the light; then it can be overcome. I ask to stay in the light of sobriety, not the darkness of alcoholism. ************************************************** ********* "The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy." Psalms 145:8 "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed." I Peter 2:24 ************************************************** ********* Daily Inspiration Ask yourself if what you are spending your thoughts and energy on will matter in a week, a month, or a year. Lord, help me select my priorities wisely and use my time in ways that will make my life and those around me better and happier. The more cheer you give, the more that remains. Lord, may I show my love for You through a happy face and may my presence be a joyful experience to all that I encounter. |
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