Daily Recovery Readings - August 3

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God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
and Wisdom to know the difference.
Thy will, not mine, be done.

August 3

Daily Reflections

. . .TO BE OF SERVICE

Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God
and the people about us.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 77

It is clear that God's plan for me is expressed through love. God loved
me enough to take me from alleys and jails so that I could be made a
useful participant in His world. My response is to love all of His
children through service and by example. I ask God to help me imitate
His love for me through my love for others.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

We in A.A. must remember that we are offering something intangible.
We are offering a psychological and spiritual program. We are not
offering a medical program. If people need medical treatment, we call
in a doctor. If they need a medical prescription, we let the doctor
prescribe for them. If they need hospital treatment, we let the hospital
take care of them. Our vital A.A. work begins when a person is
physically able to receive it. Am I willing to leave medical care to the
doctors?

Meditation For The Day

Each moment of your day which you devote to this new way of life is a
gift to God. The gift of the moments. Even when your desire to serve
God is sincere, it is not an easy thing to give Him many of these
moments: the daily things you had planned to do, given up gladly so
that you can perform a good service or say a kind word. If you can see
Gods purpose in many situations, it will be easier to give Him many
moments of your day. Every situation has two interpretations -- your
own and God's. Try to handle each situation in the way you believe
God would have it handled.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may make my day count somewhat for God. I pray that I
may not spend it all selfishly.

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As Bill Sees It

Constructive Workouts, p. 215

There are those in A.A. whom we call "destructive" critics. They
power-drive, they are "politickers," they make accusations to
gain their ends--all for the good of A.A., of course! But we have
learned that these folks need not be really destructive.

We ought to listen carefully to what they say. Sometimes they are
telling the whole truth; at other times, a little truth. If we are
within their range, the whole truth, the half-truth, or no truth at all
can prove equally unpleasant to us. If they have got the whole truth,
or even a little truth, then we had better thank them and get on
with our respective inventories, admitting we were wrong. If they
are talking nonsense, we can ignore it, or else try to persuade them.
Failing this, we can be sorry they are too sick to listen, and we can
try to forget the whole business.

There are few better means of self-survey and of developing patience
than the workouts these usually well-meaning but erratic members so
often afford us.

Twelve Concepts, p. 40

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Walk In Dry Places

Watch out for peer pressure
Maintaining Sobriety
It's said that peer pressure often draws young people into alcoholism and drug addition. As adults following a recovery program, we also are susceptible to peer pressure.
At a cocktail reception, for example, some people may express mild pity that we're having "only soft drinks," as if we're doing a form of penance. Or they may express exaggerated admiration for our success in recovery. Even this can make us feel different.
We need not be critical of such reactions. The fact is that we are somewhat different when we're staying sober in situations where excessive drinking is normal.
We should not, however, make this our problem if others draw attention to it. This is peer pressure, but we should be mature enough to dismiss it.
Whatever situation I'm in today, if I know I'm on the right path, I'll not be swayed by the opinions and comments of others. Their opinions cannot affect me if I know I'm doing the right thing.

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Keep It Simple

Alcoholism isn't a spectator sport. Eventually the whole family gets to play.
---Joyce Rebeta-Burditt
One of the biggest lies addicts can tell themselves is, "I'm not hurting
anyone but myself."
This is just another way we don't see how important we are to others.
During our using, love was a burden. When anyone showed love for us, we turned away. They hurt. And we hurt.
In recovery, when ready, we try and help our families heal. We listen as
they speak of how our illness has hurt them. We comfort them as they tell their stories. Remember, our illness hurt them. Remember, our recovery will help them heal.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me face the pain my illness has brought to others. Let me know their pain.
Let it help me stay sober.
Action for the Day: I will list all persons my illness has hurt. I will say a prayer for them,
even if they have harmed me.

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Each Day a New Beginning

All that is necessary to make this world a better place to live is to love - to love as Christ loved, as Buddha loved. --Isadora Duncan
To be unconditionally loved is our birthright, and we are so loved by God. We desire just such a love from one another, and we deserve it; yet, it's a human quality to look for love before giving it. Thus many of us search intently for signs of love.
Too many of us are searching, rather than loving. Truly loving another means letting go of all expectations. It means full acceptance, even celebration of another's personhood. Not easy, but so rewarding, to ourselves as well as to the one who is the focus of our love.
Love is a balm that heals. Loving lightens whatever our burdens. It invites our inner joy to emerge. But most of all, it connects us, one with another. Loneliness leaves. We are no longer alienated from our environment. Love is the mortar that holds the human structure together. Without the expression of love, it crumbles. This recovery program has offered us a plan for loving others, as well as ourselves. Love will come to us, just as surely as we give it away.
Each and every expression of love I offer today will make smooth another step I take in this life.

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION

In nine cases out of ten the unexpected happens. Sometimes the man we are calling upon admits his own fault, so feuds of years’ standing melt away in an hour. Rarely do we fail to make satisfactory progress. Our former enemies sometimes praise what we are doing and wish us well. Occasionally, they will offer assistance. It should not matter, however, if someone does throw us out of his office. We have made our demonstration, done our part. It’s water over the dam.

p. 78

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Stories

WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY - This young alcoholic stepped out a second-story window and into A.A.

I got sober while I was still in college. Once, outside of a meeting, I overheard a conversation between another sober student and a woman who lived in the town where I went to school. She was explaining why so many local residents disliked the students. She described the common perception of students as arrogant and self-centered, and went on to tell the following story.
"I am a nurse and I work in the emergency room. Two years ago a student was brought in by ambulance in the middle of the night. He had gotten drunk, walked through a second-story window, and fallen twenty feet headfirst into a concrete window well. He was brought in covered with blood. His head had swollen the size of a watermelon. He kept swearing at the nurses and doctors, telling them to keep their hands of of him, and threatening to sue them. He was, without a doubt, the single most obnoxious person I have ever met."
At that point I interrupted her. "That was me," I said. "That was my last drunk." I had walked through that window when I was nineteen years old.

p. 421

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Tradition Ten - "Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy."

NEVER since it began has Alcoholics Anonymous been divided by a major controversial issue. Nor has our Fellowship ever publicly taken sides on any question in an embattled world. This, however, has been no earned virtue. It could almost be said that we were born with it, for, as one old-timer recently declared, "Practically never have I heard a heated religious, political, or reform argument among A.A. members. So long as we don't argue these matters privately, it's a cinch we never shall publicly."

p. 176

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Life is a gift ... open it every day.
--Unknown

When I live in the past, I live in regret.
When I live in the future, I live in fear.
When I stay in the NOW, everything's always okay.
--Joan T.

Be grateful for spiritual community. None of us are smart enough or
sufficiently sensitive to notice every subtle sign that something is
amiss before it becomes a large problem. Through community,
through those who hold the energy that keeps us awake, we can
tune in and ask God for guidance. No individual knows everything,
but God does. Spiritual community reminds us that we are connected.
--Mary Manin Morrissey

"I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the
length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well."
--Diane Ackerman

Courage, it would seem, is nothing less than the power to overcome
danger, misfortune, fear, injustice, while continuing to affirm inwardly
that life with all its sorrows is good; that everything is meaningful
even if in a sense beyond our understanding; and that there is always
tomorrow.
--Dorothy Thompson

There is no personal history or past experience that is bigger or more
powerful than the great God that resides within us.
--Mary Manin Morrissey

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

UNDERSTANDING

"Man --- a being in search of
meaning."
-- Plato

Today I am on my way. With my sobriety has come a desire to
understand --- understand life, understand me, understand my
relationships and understand God. Meaning --- what is true? What is
noble? What is spiritual? These are important to me today.

I no longer wish to hurt, damage, ridicule, destroy, fight, lie or cheat
in my life. I've had enough of being negative. I've had enough of
being lost and isolated in my arrogance. I've had enough of
standing on the outside of life, feeling resentful and afraid.

Sobriety, for me today, involves my search for meaning ---
knowing full well that my understanding will always be imperfect
and I can never comprehend fully. The ultimate answer is in living
with confusion. I am not God . . . but I still intend to reach for the
stars.

Lord, my cry for self-awareness is answered in the journey and
not the destination.

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"But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere."
James 3:17

"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
Hebrews 4:16

"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up
against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought
to make it obedient to Christ."
II Corinthians 10:5

"Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain
strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels
without knowing it."
Hebrews 13:1-2

"Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because
you know they produce quarrels."
II Timothy 2:23

"Do everything without complaining or arguing."
Philippians 2:14

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Daily Inspiration

Begin every day as if it were your very first because you really are always at the beginning. Lord, thank you for the constant ability to stop any offensive behaviors that I have and the gift of being forgiven and being able to forgive myself.

When your world turns upside down and everything seems so frightening, thank God for His unchanging and constant love. Lord, Your love is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. In You I am safe and cared for.

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NA Just For Today

Trusting People

"Many of us would have had nowhere else to go if we could not have trusted NA groups and members."
Basic Text, p.81

Trusting people is a risk. Human beings are notoriously forgetful, unreliable, and imperfect. Most of us come from backgrounds where betrayal and insensitivity among friends were common occurrences. Even our most reliable friends weren't very reliable. By the time we arrive at the doors of NA, most of us have hundreds of experiences bearing out our conviction that people are untrustworthy. Yet our recovery demands that we trust people. We are faced with this dilemma: People are not always trustworthy, yet we must trust them. How do we do that, given the evidence of our pasts?

First, we remind ourselves that the rules of active addiction don't apply in recovery. Most of our fellow members are doing their level best to live by the spiritual principles we learn in the program. Second, we remind ourselves that we aren't 100% reliable, either. We will surely disappoint someone in our lives, no matter how hard we try not to. Third, and most importantly, we realize that we need to trust our fellow members of NA. Our lives are at stake, and the only way we can stay clean is to trust these well-intentioned folks who, admittedly, aren't perfect.

Just for today: I will trust my fellow members. Though certainly not perfect, they are my best hope.
pg. 225

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You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. --Alex Osborn
A garden of flowers blooming is a beautiful sight to see. Through the green leaves surrounding a tulip we see hints of yellow or pink or red. Each day the flowers greet us with their radiant color. Yet, a sudden frost would wilt and fade the flowers.
Each time we create something new with our talents we are like a young flower opening. Whether we draw or write or sew or play a musical instrument, all creativity has this in common. Appreciation from those around us is like sunshine for the flowers. Harsh criticism, however, is like the cold air--it wilts and deadens our desire to create.
We all need warm encouragement for our endeavors, and we can give as well as receive it. In this way, creativity can bloom in our homes and our friendships, bringing a garden full of color and delight into our lives.
What encouragement can I offer to someone near me?


You are reading from the book Touchstones.
To live a spiritual life we must first find the courage to enter into the desert of loneliness and to change it by gentle and persistent efforts into a garden of solitude. --Henri J. M. Nouwen
Knowing our loneliness and admitting it to us is the beginning of a spiritual path for many men. Today we are on a spiritual journey. We already have the means to translate the pain of our loneliness into a deeper spiritual dimension. Most men in this program came in deeply aware of their feelings of isolation. Now, with the companionship of our Higher Power, we can spend time alone and use it for spiritual growth. As we develop a relationship with ourselves and deepen our knowledge of our Higher Power, our loneliness transforms into solitude.
In this quiet moment today, we can be more accepting of ourselves than we were in the past. We admit loneliness has caused us pain, but now we can see that it also can lead us to our deeper self where we find serene solitude. This change is a movement into the spiritual world.
Thanks to God for the solitude I have found in my life.


You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
All that is necessary to make this world a better place to live is to love - to love as Christ loved, as Buddha loved. --Isadora Duncan
To be unconditionally loved is our birthright, and we are so loved by God. We desire just such a love from one another, and we deserve it; yet, it's a human quality to look for love before giving it. Thus many of us search intently for signs of love.
Too many of us are searching, rather than loving. Truly loving another means letting go of all expectations. It means full acceptance, even celebration of another's personhood. Not easy, but so rewarding, to ourselves as well as to the one who is the focus of our love.
Love is a balm that heals. Loving lightens whatever our burdens. It invites our inner joy to emerge. But most of all, it connects us, one with another. Loneliness leaves. We are no longer alienated from our environment. Love is the mortar that holds the human structure together. Without the expression of love, it crumbles. This recovery program has offered us a plan for loving others, as well as ourselves. Love will come to us, just as surely as we give it away.
Each and every expression of love I offer today will make smooth another step I take in this life.


You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Owning Our Power in Relationships
So much of what I call my codependency is fear and panic because I spent so much of my life feeling abused, trapped, and not knowing how to take care of myself in relationships. --Anonymous
No matter how long we have been recovering, we may still tend to give up our power to others, whether they be authority figures, a new love, or a child.
When we do this, we experience the set of emotions and thoughts we call "the codependent crazies." We may feel angry, guilty, afraid, confused, and obsessed. We may feel dependent and needy or become overly controlling and rigid. We may return to familiar behaviors during stress. And for those of us who have codependency and adult children issues, relationships can mean stress.
We don't have to stay stuck in our codependency. We don't have to shame or blame ourselves, or the other person, for our condition. We simply need to remember to own our power.
Practice. Practice. Practice using your power to take care of yourself, no matter who you are dealing with, where you are, or what you are doing. This is what recovery means. This does not mean we try to control others; it does not mean we become abrasive or abusive. It means we own our power to take care of ourselves.
The thought of doing this may generate fears. That's normal! Take care of yourself anyway. The answers, and the power to do that, are within you now.
Start today. Start where you are. Start by taking care of who you are, at the present moment, to the best of your ability.
Today, I will focus on owning my power to take care of myself. I will not let fears, or a false sense of shame and guilt; stop me from taking care of myself.


Today I will take enough time to do something good for myself only. I will buy myself a gift or spend worthwhile time doing something pleasant and fulfilling. I have enough time today and I deserve this time for myself. --Ruth Fishel

*****

Overcoming Fear
From the Overcoming Fear On-line Course by Debbie Ford

We can control the quality of our lives if we are willing to face our fears rather than burying, suppressing or avoiding them. Confronting our deepest fears, our terror, is a way out of the agony of our ongoing stories and into the glorious world of empowerment. Almost all of us were terrorized in some way when we were young. For you, maybe it was when you were bullied in school or when one of your siblings locked you in the closet. Something happened to activate the feeling of fear, of sheer terror, and at some point you rejected your fear and made a decision that this was a bad way to feel because you associated it with some negative event.

Now it is time for you to be the adult and take charge of your internal world. You have to be the one to take back your power, even if you're scared. When you are in fear, it's because you believe in that darkness more than you believe in the light. You might believe that if you do enough, read enough, pray enough or chat enough, you can obliterate your fear, but I am here to tell you that it's impossible to make the fear happy. You might think that if you listen to it long enough, it will go away. But it won't. You must confront it. You must take back your power. You say, "Yes Debbie but how?" Well here is the antidote for your fear: LOVE IT. Don't try to discard or rid yourself of your fear, because you probably aren't strong enough. But what you can do is bring the light to the darkness. That light is love. When faced with your fear, you can ask yourself, "How can I love myself even when I'm in the middle of my fear? You can turn around and face your fear. You can stop te! rrorizing yourself further for being scared and instead find out how old that fear is. You can ask yourself, "How many years, months, weeks, days and minutes have I been terrorized by the same thing?" Count it out and write it down. And then find some sweet compassion for the kid in you that is scared to death.

The greatest way to take on your fear is to create safety for yourself. Safety is the key to courage. And action is your way of showing yourself that you are safe and that you can take care of yourself.. For example, if you hold a secret fear that you could become a bag lady but have no financial plan, then you're going to be continuously terrorized. Get a money mentor. Find out how much money you need to put away and then start on that path. If you're afraid that someone is going to attack you, get trained in self-defense. If you're afraid your business partner is going to extort you, have an agreement drawn up that protects you. If you're fearful that your partner is going to leave you, find out what you would need to do to know that, even if they did leave, you're a desirable and extraordinary person? If you're scared that you're going to pass your limiting beliefs and issues on to your kids, what transformational class would you have to attend or what coaching could you ! participate in to ensure that you're giving them your highest? If you're scared you're going to get sick, what measures could you take right now to nurture your well-being? Add tai chi or yoga classes to your weekly schedule and seek out an integrative healthcare practitioner (such as an acupuncturist or body worker) to mitigate stress and keep your body in balance.

Since ultimately you are the one that can make you feel safe, what environment do you need to create around you? What support structures could you put in place? Ask yourself where in your life are you not protecting yourself - not taking care of yourself. What subtle adjustment or quantum step can you take this week to put in a measure of safety somewhere in your life where you are fearful? Whether it's adding antioxidants to your daily regimen, putting money in savings, having an alarm system installed, getting insurance, or praying to the divine, do what it takes to ease your heart and mind. Make a commitment this week. Find an area where you have fear and take it on! Published with permission from Daily OM

*****

Journey to the Heart
Learn to Be Present

"I haven't been able to give you much materially," he said. "Not jewelry, diamonds, gold. But the gift I've given you, what I've had to offer, is staying fully present for you."

Presence is a gift-- staying fully present for friends, family, ourselves, our lives. Staying in the moment, with our hearts open, will change other people's lives and ours.

So often we've learned, out of habit or fear, to be only partially present, partially conscious, for ourselves, others, and our lives. We aren't certain what we're feeling; our attention and energy are diverted to the next place, the next person. We're there, kind of.

There's another way, a better way. One where we keep our hearts open and know what we feel. We take the risk of being vulnerable enough to share who we really are and to allow others to do the same. We become fully present for each moment and each person on our path.

Yes, there are times when it isn't safe to be open, when the energy of a circumstance isn't right for us. But that usually reveals a lesson and dictates a choice. It may be time to learn, time to leave, time to feel, time to choose.

Learn to release all that stands in the way of you and the present moment. Learn to let go of all that blocks you from being fully present for yourself and others.

Give the gift of presence to yourself and to the world.

*****

more language of letting go
Push against the wind

One day at the drop zone, I began working with a new skydiving coach, John. We were on the ground, rehearsing the moves we were going to make during free-fall time. He knew that I was having trouble controlling my body during free fall.

John noticed something about me, then suggested we try an exercise.

We stood up.

He pushed me, on the shoulder.

Instead of pushing back, I let my body go where he pushed it. I was practicing nonresistance, the skill I had acquired in martial arts. He pushed me again. Again I demonstrated nonresistance. I let my body naturally move in the direction it was pushed. This act of not resisting had served me well, both on the mats and off the mats. Not resisting people when they wanted to argue-- learning to say, "Hmmm," instead of engaging in battle-- kept my life and environment calm. Not resisting when problems or experiences came into my life enabled me to go with the flow and be calm and centered enough to tackle these problems much more efficiently than if I was resisting them.

I explained this to John.

"Nonresistance is good to practice many times in your life," he said. "But sometimes you need to fight back. You need to assertively push against what's pushing on you if you want to get where you want to go.Pushing against the wind-- directing your body assertively-- is what you need to do if you want to learn to fly."

Practicing nonresistance is good in our lives. Surrendering is an invaluable tool. Both these activities take us immediately into the flow of life. When we're relaxed, we tune into God and our inner selves. Once we surrender, we automatically know what to do next, and when to do it.

But sometimes we need to assert ourselves, too. Surrendering and practicing nonresistance don't mean we turn into pieces of paper being blown about by every wind. Sometimes we need to push against the resistance coming our way.

That's how we assert ourselves, that's how we guide and direct our course. That's how our Higher Power guides and directs us,too.

We've learned to surrender. Now it's time to learn to assert ourselves,too. Have you surrendered so much that you've stopped asserting and expressing yourself? Assert yourself. Make the moves your heart leads you to do. Know where you want to go and what you want to say.

Once you've admitted powerlessness, learn to connect with your power. Learn when it's time to practice nonresistance, and learn when it's time to push against the wind.

God, help me align with your power in my life. Teach me to express and assert that power as I go through my day.

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A Day At A Time

Reflection For The Day

The Twelve Steps were designed specifically for people like us — as a short cut to God. The Steps are very much like strong medicine which can heal us of the sickness of despair, frustration and self-pity. Yet we’re sometimes unwilling to use The Steps. Why? Perhaps because we have a deep-down desire for martyrdom. Consciously and intellectually, we think we want help; on a gut level, though, some hidden sense of guilt makes us crave punishment more than relief from our ills. Can I try to be cheerful when everything seems to be leading me to despair? Do I realize that despair is very often a mask for self-pity?

Today I Pray

May I pull out the secret guilt inside that makes me want to punish myself. May I probe my despair and discover whether it is really an imposter — self-pity with a mask on. Now that I know that the Twelve Steps can bring relief, may I please use them instead of wallowing in my discomforts.

Today I Will Remember

The Twelve Steps are God’s Stairway.

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One More Day

Somewhere along the line of development we discover what we really are, and then we make our real decision for which we are responsible.
– Eleanor Roosevelt

Many of us have begun to reexamine our lives and our values. Am I proud of how I act? Of what I do? Will this decision be in my best interest? Do I have strong, interacting relationships?

A likely result of this might be that we fool ourselves less now and that we don’t try to fool others. The discovery of what we really are and of what is important to us urges us toward greater honesty. We are freer to make amends to friends and family members for things we’ve said or done. We hesitate less in asking for help and in telling others when we feel wronged. best of all, we’ve rid ourselves of our old victim mentality and have taken responsibility for our lives.

I will begin happily to make responsible decisions today.

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In God’s Care

Only trust, perfect trust can keep one calm.
~~God Calling, May 10th

For many of us, developing trust as we work our program has been painstakingly difficult. Perhaps we grew up in families where trust was betrayed. Many of us experienced friendships and marriages that turned sour when we learned our companion had not been trustworthy. And we, too, often failed to lie up to the trust someone special had placed in us.

Learning to trust that our Higher Power cares for us, always, will relieve our anxious moments and restore our trust. In time we will come to know that when we’re with God, all is well.

The calm of knowing our well-being is guaranteed comes when we willingly relinquish our frenzied attempts to control all the events in our frenzied attempts to control all the events in our life. One way we can learn to do this is by practicing quietness and breathing in calmness each time we feel anxiety over an outcome. This will allow us to trust – a bit more every day – that God is at the helm and our life is on course.

I will be calm as often as possible today, and a peaceful, trusting feeling will fill me up.

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Day By Day

Preserving and affirming our lives

Some people seem to have no problems using mood-altering durugs, but for us, they are highly destructive. When we used drugs, we lost our lives – physically and spiritually – and barely regained them through the Twelve Step program.

We who are chemically dependent, must never use them again – or we risk relapse to full-blown addiction. Our path is one of total abstinence through the program.

Am I preserving and affirming my life?

Higher Power, help me to preserve my life by staying clean and sober.

I will affirm my life and practice my program today by…

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Food For Thought

Speaking from the Heart

Through the OA fellowship, we offer each other mutual support. Since we believe that the Higher Power works through the group, what one of us is prompted to say is probably just what another member needs to hear.

Sometimes we are reluctant to speak of what is in our heart for fear of being embarrassed, belittled, or betrayed. We are so accustomed to masking our true feelings that we often lose touch with them. In OA, we are assured that what we say will be received in a spirit of acceptance and love. We do not need to be afraid of revealing our deeper selves.

It is a healing experience to belong to a group, which is dedicated to honest communication with a minimum of game playing. When we make a genuine attempt to describe where we are in our program, we are met with a warm and supportive response. Our Higher Power opens the way for meaningful communication and mutual love.

Open our hearts to You and to each other.

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One Day At A Time

WORKING IT
“For the things we have to learn
before we can do them, we learn by doing them.”
Aristotle

When I walked into my first Twelve Step meeting I had absolutely no idea what was going on. I knew nothing about the program, the Steps, or how to work them. But I listened, asked questions, and I learned.

One of the most important lessons I learned was that I couldn't just sit around waiting for recovery to take place. I couldn't just ask God for help and do nothing else. I had to put feet to my prayers, as they say. I had to do something. So … slowly, with the help of my sponsor, I took the first Step. And then the second.

I found that I could talk a good game around program folks because I'd learned the lingo. But the saying, “you've got to walk the talk” tells me that I have to do it. I can't just speak my recovery into existence. I found I didn't have recovery until I began working the Steps. It was only when I started “the doing” that the real learning -- and the real recovery -- began.

One Day at a Time . . .
I will take what I learn about recovery
and put it into practice ... I'll work the program.
~ jar

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AA 'Big Book' - Quote

In the first few chapters a number of sudden revolutionary changes are described. Though it was not our intention to create such an impression, many alcoholics have nevertheless concluded that in order to recover they must acquire an immediate and overwhelming 'God-consciousness' followed at once by a vast change in feeling and outlook.
Among our rapidly growing membership of thousands such transformations, though frequent, are by no means the rule. Most of our experiences are what the psychologist William James calls the''educational variety' because they develop slowly over a period of time. Quite often friends of the newcomer are aware of the difference long before he is himself. He finally realizes that he has undergone a profound alteration in his reaction to life; that such a change could hardly have been brought about by himself alone. - Pg. 567 - 4th. Edition - Appendices II - Spiritual Experience

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

We have many worries: economic, marital, parental, employment, religious, and legal. Some ill-trained people may try to pick one or two of these areas and act as if working on that will 'cure' us. We mustn't see our recovery as connected to a good marriage, job, or socialization. We know it isn't true.

I want to know that my recovery is connected to principle--not people places or things!

Living with Ambiguity

When I know peace is at the center of my being and I can tap into it whenever I want to, I can tolerate living with the mystery, the unknown. Understanding that knowing fully is probably never truly possible. When I experience the soothing body chemicals that love or meditation induce in me, I have the ability to sink into the moment, knowing that the moment is all I really have and that it is sufficient onto itself. Knowing that if I allow it just to be there, it will fill me up. When I reach out and touch, literally touch someone I want to participate in the world because I am naturally drawn to what is joyful or meaningful or what allows me to live with a sense of connection. When I have peace within, I trust my intuition. I rely on a part of me that doesn't need everything to be pinned down and predictable in order to feel safe, I can tolerate the vicissitudes of life because I have an emotional center that is steady and secure. I gain my security from within

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Our feelings don't define us, our actions do. We are not bad because we have a quick temper--but we learn that expressing that anger hurts others. The longer we keep our temper the more it improves.

I am only as big as the smallest thing that makes me angry.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Every day is perfect. The problem is, you don't know until tomorrow.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I will take enough time to do something good for myself only. I will buy myself a gift or spend worthwhile time doing something pleasant and fulfilling. I have enough time today and I deserve this time for myself.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Courage is fear in action.
( or Courage is fear that has said it's prayers ) - Anon.

*****************************************

AA Thought for the Day

August 3

Action
Action is the magic word!
With a positive, helpful attitude and regular AA 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!
- Daily Reflections, p. 161 320

Thought to Ponder . . .
The Three A's .. Awareness, Acceptance, Action.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
A A = Accountable Actions.

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~

Vigilance
"Now that we're in AA and sober,
and winning back the esteem of our friends
and business associates,
we find that we still need to exercise special vigilance.
As an insurance against 'big-shot-ism'
we can often check ourselves by remembering
that we are today sober only by the grace of God
and that any success we may be having
is far more His success than ours."
1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 92

Thought to Consider . . .
The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing ...
my sobriety.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
P U T = Patience, Understanding, Tolerance

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*

Change
>From "A New Man":
"But the real miracle was what happened to him in the next ten years. He began helping people. I mean helping! No call

has been too hard, too inconvenient, too 'hopeless.' He founded the A.A. group in his town, and he is embarrassed if

you mention this to others or comment on the amount of A.A. work he is doing.
"He is not the same man I was trying to twelfth-step. I failed in all my efforts to help the man I knew. And then Someone

else provided a new man. - Bernardsville, New Jersey, USA"
1973 AAWS, Inc.; Came to Believe, 30th printing 2004, pg. 15

*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"Our alcoholism is a sickness we no longer fear to discuss."
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., January 1946
"A Tradition Born of Our Anonymity"
The Language of the Heart

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*

"Life will take on new meaning. To watch people recover, to see them
help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up
about you, to have a host of friends ,this is an experience you
must not miss."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 89~

"Much has already been said about receiving strength, inspiration,
and direction from Him who has all knowledge and power. If we have
carefully followed directions, we have begun to sense the flow of
His Spirit into us. To some extent we have become God-conscious. We
have begun to develop this vital sixth sense. But we must go further
and that means more action."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 85~

"Offer him friendship and fellowship."
-Alcoholics Anonymous p. 95 (Working With Others)

"The intense relief on my friend's face warmed my heart."
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p. 162 (Tradition Seven)

Misc. AA Literature - Quote

There are those in A.A. whom we call 'destructive' critics. They power-drive, they are 'politickers,' they make
accusations to gain their ends - all for the good of A.A., of course! But we have learned that these folks need not be
really destructive.
We ought to listen carefully to what they say. Sometimes they are telling the whole truth; at other times, a little truth. If
we are within their range, the whole truth, the half-truth, or no truth at all can prove equally unpleasant to us. If they
have got the whole truth, or even a little truth, then we had better thank them and get on with our respective inventories,
admitting we were wrong. If they are talking nonsense, we can ignore it, or else try to persuade them. Failing this, we
can be sorry they are too sick to listen, and we can try to forget the whole business.
There are few better means of self-survey and of developing patience than the workouts these usually well-meaning
but erratic members so often afford us.

Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, allow me to be friendly toward all those I meet today.

Ask and you shall receive,
Seek and ye shall find,
Knock and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7