Daily Recovery Readings - March

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March 11, 2014

Daily Reflections

GOOD ORDERLY DIRECTION

It is when we try to make our will conform with God's
that we begin to use it rightly. To all of us, this
was a most wonderful revelation. Our whole trouble had
been the misuse of willpower. We had tried to bombard
our problems with it instead of attempting to bring it
into agreement with God's intention for us. To make
this increasingly possible is the purpose of A.A.'s
Twelve Steps, and Step Three opens the door.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 40

All I have to do is look back at my past to see where
self-will has led me. I just don't know what's best for
me and I believe my Higher Power does. G.O.D., which I
define as "Good Orderly Direction," has never let me
down, but I have let myself down quite often. Using my
self-will in a situation usually has the same result as
forcing the wrong piece into a jigsaw puzzle--exhaustion
and frustration. Step Three opens the door to the rest of the program.
When I ask God for guidance I know that whatever happens
is the best possible situation, things are exactly as
they are supposed to be, even if they aren't what I want
or expect. God does for me what I cannot do for myself,
if I let Him.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

By having quiet times each morning, we come to depend on
God's help during the day, especially if we should be
tempted to take a drink. And we can honestly thank Him
each night for the strength He has given us. So our faith
is strengthened by these quiet times of prayer. By
listening to other members, by working with other
alcoholics, by times of quiet meditation, our faith in
God gradually becomes strong. Have I turned my drink
problem entirely over to God, without reservations?

Meditation For The Day

It seems as though, when God wants to express to men what
He is like, He makes a very beautiful character. Think of
a personality as God's expression of character attributes.
Be as fit an expression of Godlike character as you can.
When the beauty of a person's character is impressed upon us,
it leaves an image which in turn reflects through our own
actions. So look for beauty of character in those around
you.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may look at great beauty of souls until their
beauty of character becomes a part of my soul. I pray that I
may reflect this character in my own life.

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As Bill Sees It

Truth, the Liberator, p. 70

How truth makes us free is something that we A.A.'s can well
understand. It cut the shackles that once bound us to alcohol. It
continues to release us from conflicts and miseries beyond reckoning;
it banishes fear and isolation. The unity of our Fellowship, the love
we cherish for each other, the esteem in which the world holds us--all
of these are products of the truth which, under God, we have been
privileged to perceive.

<< << << >> >> >>

Just how and when we tell the truth--or keep silent--can often reveal
the difference between genuine integrity and none at all.

Step Nine emphatically cautions us against misusing the truth when it
states: "We made direct amends to such people wherever possible,
except when to do so would injure them or others." Because it points
up the fact that the truth can be used to injure as well as to heal, this
valuable principle certainly has a wide-ranging application to the
problem of developing integrity.

Grapevine, August 1961

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Walk in Dry Places

Living with Bad Vibes____Human Relations
Some of us are sensitive to the feelings we pick up from people in the immediate environment. The feelings we sense from the people around us can be as powerful as odors and sounds. We can feel tense in the presence of domineering people, and we can be uncomfortable around people who seem resentful.
Acceptance and knowledge help us retain mastery of ourselves in these situations. But we don't have to tune in to another person's bad feelings, just as we wouldn't tune in to a radio station whose music bothers us. We can also detach from the situation in thought, just as Al-Anon trained spouses detach from alcoholics in a spirit of love and understanding.
The less we try to resist such a situation, the less power it has to disturb us. And the less involved we become with such situations, the sooner they seem to change. People in Twelve Step programs sometimes report miraculous changes when they adjust their own feelings. One frequently hears of outcomes such as this: "I learned not to let this person bother me, and two weeks later he was transferred to another department."
My own sensitivity makes me vulnerable to good or bad feelings in the atmosphere. Recognizing them for what they are, I'll enjoy the good feelings and refuse to e disturbed or upset by those that seem bad.

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Keep It Simple

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.---AA saying
Before recovery, we never thought we had enough alcohol or other drugs. More would make us feel better, we thought. Sometimes, we are like this in recovery too. We know we need to change, so we want to do it all right now. If we can just change ourselves totally, we'll feel better, we think.
But we can't change all at once. If we ask our Higher Power to take charge of our lives, we'll have the chance to change a little at a time. We'll learn the right things when we need to know them.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me fix what needs fixing today.
Action for the Day: I'll make a list of what is broken. Which things on my list can I fix today?

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Each Day a New Beginning

The influence of a beautiful, helpful, hopeful character is contagious, and may revolutionize a whole town. --Eleanor H. Porter
We have met certain people who inspired laughter, hope, or changes in us, or those close to us. We look forward to seeing them. We leave their presence believing in ourselves, aware that we can tackle whatever problems had us immobilized. That special gift to inspire is ours for the taking, too. The inspiration comes from God.
We can look to God for the strength we need. It will come. We can look also to God for direction, for the steps we need to take today. And then wait. Those persons who inspire us have developed a secure connection to their God. And it's their connection that comes through them to inspire us.
We can take some time today, before the demands overwhelm us, to weave our connection to our higher power. When that contact is secure, we won't have to await inspiration from another person to forge ahead with our plans. The inspiration will live within us, and it will beckon us onward. Our way will be illuminated.
I shall meditate upon this. Conscious contact with God is only a prayer away. My life will be brightened. My burdens will be lifted. My hopes will become realities, whenever I look to God for the gift of inspiration.

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Chapter 8 - TO WIVES

If this kind of approach does not catch your husband’s interest, it may be best to drop the subject, but after a friendly talk your husband will usually revive the topic himself. This may take patient waiting, but it will be worth it. Meanwhile you might try to help the wife of another serious drinker. If you act upon these principles, your husband may stop or moderate.

p. 112

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Tradition Twelve - "Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities."

When the Big Book appeared in 1939, we called it "Alcoholics Anonymous." Its foreword mad this revealing statement: "It is important that we remain anonymous because are too few, at present, to handle the overwhelming number of personal appeals which may result from this publication. Being mostly business or professional folk, we could not well carry on our occupations in such an event." Between these lines, it is easy to read our fear that large numbers of incoming people might break our anonymity wide open.

pp. 184-185

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Sometimes we are so eager to give our children what we didn't have
that we forget to give them what we did have.

If today offers a challenge, be grateful.
Challenges are gifts of awareness and growth.

The more faithfully you listen to the voice within you, the better you hear what is
sounding outside of you.
--Dag Hammarskjold

Nothing hath separated us from God but our own will, or rather
our own will is our separation from God.
--William Law

Never ask the question you don't want to know the answer to.

Pureness in your heart will provide you with fullness in your life.

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

PROFIT

"In freeing people . . . our
country's blessing will also come;
for profit follows righteousness."
-- Senator Albert Beveridge

Profit is more than financial benefit or material well-being. Profit, for
the recovering alcoholic and drug addict, is being aware of life,
feeling feelings and having the capacity for a relationship with God,
self and others.

But a financial benefit is also part of spirituality; the blessing of
money and financial stability are part of God's love and trust. His gift
of freedom involves our responsibility and stewardship of money.

With money and profit we are not only able to have creative
comforts, but we can also make the lives of others creative. A
responsible use of money is part of my recovery program and has
become one of the joys of the "spiritual awakening".

Let Your blessing of money in life help me to bless others.

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When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken."
Psalms 30:6

"And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
Matthew 21:22

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Daily Inspiration

Sometimes we search for God in the wrong places. To help someone in need is the quickest way to touch His hand. Lord, in my ordinary day in my ordinary ways may I come to know and understand You more.

Our words are powerful tools and can influence even when we are not aware. Lord, help me to speak with kindness and sensitivity and to be a positive source of encouragement and support to others.