Thoughts For The Day~*~Growing Up ^*^*^*^*^ June 6, 2009

  ~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
^*^*^*^*^
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Growing Up

"How many of us would presume to declare,
'Well, I'm sober and I'm happy.
What more can I want, or do?
I'm fine the way I am.'
We know that the price of such
self-satisfaction is an inevitable backslide,
punctuated at some point
by a very rude awakening.
We have to grow or else deteriorate.
For us, the status quo can only be for today,
never for tomorrow.
Change we must;
we cannot stand still."
Bill W., Box 1980: The AA Grapevine, June 1961
As Bill Sees It, p. 25

Thought to Consider....

The program has helped me grow up enough
to be a kid again.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
WISDOM
When Into Self, Discover Our Motives

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

Commitment

From "Destinations":

"That first step is very important, whether it is the first step of a beloved child learning to walk or the First Step, taken by a man on his way to a new life. Looking into my little ones' faces, I can see the same qualities that we need for the Twelve Steps of A.A.: daring, to stake everything on the attempt; a sense of direction, to be followed with no swerving, no detour; decision, to move forward with out hesitation or reservation; determination, to make it all the way. Destination: a full life, a free life, a serene life.  Albany, Australia"

1973 AAWS, Inc.; Came to Believe, 30^th printing 2004, pg. 93

*~*~*~*~*^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.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
No Personal Power

"At first, the remedy for my personal difficulties seemed so obvious that I
could not imagine any alcoholic turning the proposition down were it properly presented to him. Believing so firmly that Christ can do anything, I had the unconscious conceit to suppose that He would do everything through me--right then and in the manner I chose. After six long months, I had to admit that not a soul had surely laid hold of the Master--not excepting myself.
"This brought me to the good healthy realization that there were plenty of
situations left in the world over which I had no personal power--that if I
was so ready to admit that to be the case with alcohol, so I must make the
same admission with respect to much else. I would have to be still and know
that He, not I, was God."

LETTER, 1940

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"Remember that we deal with alcohol, cunning, baffling, powerful!
Without help it is too much for us. But there is One who has all
power that One is God. May you find Him now!"

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, Page 58~

*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Drinking is the way we alcoholics express our maladjustments 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 need 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.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Carry the Message^*^*^*^*^ June 5, 2009

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
^*^*^*^*^
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(   \ (AA)/   )
(_   /AA\ _)
  /AA\
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Carry the Message

"We sit at AA meetings and listen,
not only to receive something,
but to give reassurance and support
which our presence can bring.
If our turn comes to speak at a meeting,
we again try to carry AA's message.
Whether our audience is one or many,
it is still Twelfth Step work."

Bill W., Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 110

Thought to Consider....

That light at the end of the tunnel may be you.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
T R U S T =Teaching Recovery Using Steps and Traditions

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
 

Development

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"As the [Big Book] chapters were slowly roughed out I read them to the New York group at its weekly meeting in our parlor at Clinton Street, and copies were sent to Dr. Bob for checking and criticisms in Akron, where we had nothing but the warmest support. But in the New York meeting the chapters got a real mauling. I redictated them and Ruth retyped them over and over. In spite of the heated arguments, the New York group's criticisms did help a lot, and to some extent the enthusiasm and confidence increased."

2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 159

*~*~*~*~*^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.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Suffering Transmuted, p. 35

"A.A. is no success story in the ordinary sense of the word. It is a story
of suffering transmuted, under grace, into spiritual progress."

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

For Dr. Bob, the insatiable craving for alcohol was evidently a physical
phenomenon which bedeviled several of his first years in A.A., a time when only days and nights of carrying the message to other alcoholics could cause him to forget about drinking. Although his craving was hard to withstand, it doubtless did account for some part of the intense incentive that went into forming Akron's Group Number One.
Bob's spiritual release did not come easily; it was to be painfully slow. It always entailed the hardest kind of work and the sharpest vigilance.

1. Letter, 1959
2. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 69
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"We feel as though we had been placed in a position of neutrality
safe and protected. We have not even sworn off. Instead, the problem
has been removed. It does not exist for us. We are neither cocky nor
are we afraid. That is our experience. That is how we react so long
as we keep in fit spiritual condition."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, Page 85~

*~*~*~*^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 quiedy God speaks through your thoughts and feelings. Heed the Divine voice of your conscience. Listen for this and you will never be disappointed in i 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 patiendy 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.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Instincts^*^*^*^*^ June 4, 2009

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Instincts
^*^*^
"The idea keeps persisting that the instincts
are primarily bad and are the roadblocks
before which all spirituality falters.
I believe that the difference between good and evil
is not the difference between spiritual
and instinctual man;
it is the difference between proper and improper
use of the instinctual.
Recognition and right channeling of the instinctual
are the essence of achieving wholeness."
Bill W., Letter, 1954
1967AAWS, As Bill Sees It, p. 287
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to Consider . . .

When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
G R A C E  =  Gently Releasing All Conscious Expectations

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

Model

From "The Man Who Mastered Fear":

"Poor health and a complete lack of money necessitated my remaining with Dr. Bob and Anne for very close to a year. It would be impossible for me to pass over this year without mentioning my love for, and my indebtedness to, these two wonderful people who are no longer with us. They made me feel as if I were a part of their family, and so did their children. The example that they and Bill W., whose visits to Akron were fairly frequent, set for me of service to their fellow men imbued me with a great desire to emulate them."

2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pgs. 251-52

*~*~*~*~*^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)

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Built by the One and the Many

We give thanks to our Heavenly Father, who through so many friends and through 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 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.
<<<>>>
"Its 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 owe these prime
blessings."

1. A.A. COMES OF AGE, P. 234
2. TALK, 1959   

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"Let no alcoholic say he cannot recover unless he has his family
back. This just isn't so. In some cases the wife will never come
back for one reason or another. Remind the prospect that his
recovery is not dependent upon people. It is dependent upon his
relationship with God. We have seen men get well whose families have
not returned at all. We have seen others slip when the family came
back too soon."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 99~
*~*~*~*^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.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Why Worry?^*^*^*^*^ June 3, 2009

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Why Worry?
^*^*^
"There are many short phrases and expressions in AA
which make sound sense.
'First Things First':  solving our immediate problems
before we try to solve all the others . . .
'Easy Does it.'  Relax a little.
Try for inner contentment.  No one individual
can carry all the burdens of the world.
Everyone has problems.  Getting drunk won't solve them.
'Twenty-four hours a day.'
Today is the day.  Doing our best,
living each day to the fullest is the art of living.
Yesterday is gone, and we don't know whether
we will be here tomorrow.
If we do a good job of living today,
and if tomorrow comes for us,
then the chances are we will do a good job when it arrives -
so why worry about it?"
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 382
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to Ponder . . .

Every day is a gift.
That is why we call it the present.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
S  I  T   =   Stay In Today

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

Question

Step Six: Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

"It is plain for everybody to see that each sober A.A. member has been granted a release from this very obstinate and potentially fatal obsession. So in a very complete and literal way, all A.A.'s have 'become entirely ready' to have God remove the mania for alcohol from their lives. And God has proceeded to do exactly that.

"Having been granted a perfect release from alcoholism, why then shouldn't we be able to achieve by the same means a perfect release from every other difficulty or defect? This is a riddle of our existence, the full answer to which may be only in the mind of God."

1952, AAWS, Inc.; Printed 2005; Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pg. 64

*~*~*~*~*^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 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.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Relapses--and the Group

An early fear was that of slips or relapses. At first nearly every alcoholic we approached began to slip, it 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, through 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

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"Suppose we fall short of the chosen ideal and stumble?  Does thismean we are going to get drunk. Some people tell us so. But this isonly a half-truth. It depends on us and on our motives."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, Page 70~


*~*~*^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 damn 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.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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