Thoughts For The Day~*~Fear ^*^*^ August 21, 2011

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Fear
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"The practice of AA's Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
in our personal lives also brought incredible releases
from fear of every description,
despite the wide prevalence of formidable personal problems.
When fear did persist, we knew it for what it was,
and under God's grace we became able to handle it.
We began to see each adversity as a God-given
opportunity to develop the kind of courage
which is born of humility, rather than bravado.
Thus we were enabled to accept ourselves,
our circumstances, and our fellows."
Bill W., January 1962
1988AAGrapevine, The Language of the Heart, p. 268
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Thought to Consider . . .

Courage is the willingness to accept fear
and act anyway.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
F E A R  =  Fools Every Alcoholic Repeatedly

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
 

Bill's Adolescent Depression

From: "Chapter One" 

With the onset of depression, his academic performance dropped. The upshot was that I failed German and, for that reason, could not graduate. Here I was, president of my senior class  and they wouldn't give me a diploma! My mother arrived, extremely angry, from Boston. A stormy scene took place in the principal's office. Still, I didn't get that diploma. 

He failed to graduate with his class (although school records now list him with the group). Following a summer of agonizing depression, he went to live with his mother near Boston and completed makeup work that qualified him for college. 

What had caused Bill to change from high achiever to a helpless depressive? As he saw it, the major problem was the he could no longer be Number One. I could not be anybody at all. I could not win, because the adversary was death. So my life, I thought, had ended then and there.

1984, AAWS, Inc., Pass It On The story of Bill Wilson and how the AA message reached the world, pages 36-37

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
WE JUST TRY

My stability came out of trying to give, not out of demanding that I receive.

THE BEST OF BILL, p. 46-47

As long as I try, with all my heart and soul, to pass along to others what has been passed along to me, and do not demand anything in return, life is good to me. Before entering this program of Alcoholics Anonymous I was never able to give without demanding something in return. Little did I know that, once I began to give freely of myself, I would begin to receive, without ever expecting or demanding anything at all. What I receive today is the gift of "stability", as Bill did; stability in my A.A. program; within myself; but most of all, in my relationship with my Higher Power, whom I choose to call God.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Everyday Living

The A.A. emphasis on personal inventory is heavy because a great many of us have never really acquired the habit of accurate self-appraisal.
Once this healthy practice has become a habit, it will prove so interesting and profitable that the time it takes won't be missed. For these minutes and often hours spent in self-examination are bound to make all the other hours of our day better and happier. At length, our inventories become a necessity of everyday living, rather than something unusual or set apart.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, pp. 89-90
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"In dealing with resentments, we set them on paper. We listed
people, institutions or principles with whom we were angry. We asked
ourselves why we were angry. In most cases it was found that our
self-esteem, our pocketbooks, our ambitions, our personal
relationships,(including sex) were hurt or threatened."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 64~

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

"Who are you to say there is no God? This challenge comes to all of us. Are we capable of denying that there is a design and purpose in all of life as we know it? Or are we willing to admit that faith in some kind of Divine Principle is a part of our make-up, just as much as the feeling we have for a friend? We find a great Reality deep down within us, if we face ourselves as we really are. In the last analysis, it is only there that God may be found. When we find this Reality within us, we are restored to our right minds." Have I found the great Reality?

Meditation for the Day

"Behold, I make all things new." When you change to a new way of life, you leave many things behind you. It is only the earth-bound spirit that cannot soar. Loosen somewhat the strands that tie you to the earth. It is only the earthly desires that bind you. Your new freedom will depend on your ability to rise above earthly things. Clipped wings can grow again. Broken wings can regain a strength and beauty unknown before. if you will, you can be released and free.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be freed from things that hold me down. I pray that my spirit may soar in freedom.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Newcomers ^*^*^ August 20, 2011

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Newcomers
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"Abandon yourself to God as you understand God.
Admit your faults to Him and your fellows.
Clear away the wreckage of your past.
Give freely of what you find and join us.
We shall be with you in the Fellowship of the Spirit,
and you will surely meet some of us
as you trudge the Road of Happy Destiny.
May God bless you and keep you - until then."
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 164
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Thought to Consider . . .

Newcomers are the lifeblood of the program. 
But our oldtimers are the arteries.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A B C  =  Acceptance, Belief, Change

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

Impatient

From: "Gutter Bravado" 

Still very impatient, I wanted the whole deal right away. That's why I related so well to the story about a wide-eyed new person and an oldtimer. When the newcomer approached the oldtimer, envying his accomplishments and many years of sobriety, the oldtimer slapped down his hand like a gavel and said, "I'll trade you even! My thirty years for your thirty days - right now!" He knew what the newcomer had yet to find out: that true happiness is found in the journey, not the destination.

2001, AAWS, Inc., Alcoholics Anonymous, pages 510-511

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
TOWARD EMOTIONAL FREEDOM

Since defective relations with other human beings have nearly always been the immediate cause of our woes, including our alcoholism, no field of investigation could yield more satisfying and valuable rewards than this one.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p.80

Willingness is a peculiar thing for me in that, over a period of time, it seems to come, first with awareness, but then with a feeling of discomfort, making me want to want to take some action.  As I reflected on taking the Eighth Step, my willingness to make amends to others came as a desire for forgiveness, of others and myself.  I felt forgiveness toward others after I became aware of my part in the difficulties of relationships. I wanted to feel the peace and serenity described in the Promises.  From working the first seven Steps, I became aware of whom I had harmed and that I had been my own worst enemy.  In order to restore my relationships with my fellow human beings, I knew I would have to change.  I wanted to learn to live in harmony with myself and others so that I could also live in emotional freedom.  The beginning of the end to my isolation - from my fellows and from God - came when I wrote my Eighth Step list.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
The Value of Human Will

Many newcomers, having experienced little but constant deflation, feel a growing conviction that human will is of no value whatever. They have become persuaded, sometimes rightly so, that many problems besides alcohol will not yield to a headlong assault powered only by the individual's will. However, there are certain things which the individual alone can do. All by himself, and in the light of his own circumstances, he needs to develop the quality of willingness. When he acquires willingness, he is the only one who can then make the decision to exert himself along spiritual lines. Trying to do this is actually an act of his own will. It is a right use of this faculty. Indeed, all of A.A.'s Twelve Steps require our sustained and personal exertion to conform to their principles and so, we trust, to God's will.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 40
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Once more: The alcoholic at certain times has no effective mental
defense against the first drink. Except in a few rare cases, neither
he nor any other human being can provide such a defense. His defense
must come from a Higher Power."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, pg. 43

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

"When many hundreds of people are able to say that the consciousness
of the presence of God is today the most important fact of their
lives, they present a powerful reason why one should have faith.
When we see others solve their problems by simple reliance upon
some Spirit of the universe, we have to stop doubting the power of
God. Our ideas did not work, but the God-idea does. Deep down in
every man, woman, and child is the fundamental idea of God. Faith
in a Power greater than ourselves and miraculous demonstrations of
that power in our lives are facts as old as the human race." Am I
willing to rely on the Spirit of the universe?

Meditation for the Day

You should not dwell too much on the mistakes, faults, and failures
of the past. Be done with shame and remorse and contempt for
yourself. With God's help, develop a new self-respect. Unless you
respect yourself, others will not respect you. You ran a race, you
stumbled and fell, you have risen again, and now you press on
toward the goal of a better life. Do not stay to examine the spot
where you fell, only feel sorry for the delay, the shortsightedness
that prevented you from seeing the real goal sooner.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may not look back. I pray that I may keep picking
myself up and making a fresh start each day.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Progress ^*^*^ August 19, 2011

 ~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Progress
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"Many of us exclaimed,
'What an order!  I can't go through with it.'
Do not be discouraged.
No one among us has been able to maintain
anything like perfect adherence to these principles.
We are not saints.
The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines.
The principles we have set down are guides to progress.
We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection."
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 60
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Thought to Consider . . .

Progress always involves risk.
You can't steal second base with your foot on first.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
S T E P S  =  Solutions To Every Problem in Sobriety

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

Things We Dreamed

Tradition Six: An AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.

Here are some of the things we dreamed. Hospitals didn't like alcoholics, so we thought we'd build a hospital chain of our own. People needed to be told what alcoholism was, so we'd educate the public, even rewrite school and medical textbooks. We'd gather up derelicts from skid rows, sort out those who could get well, and make it possible for the rest to earn their livelihood in a kind of quarantined confinement. Maybe these places would make large sums of money to carry on our other good works. We seriously thought of rewriting the laws of the land, and having it declared that alcoholics are sick people. No more would they be jailed; judges would parole them in our custody. We'd spill AA into the dark regions of dope addiction and criminality. We'd form groups of depressive and paranoid folks; the deeper the neurosis, the better we'd like it. It stood to reason that if alcoholism could be licked, so could any problem.

1981, AAWS, Inc., Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pages 155-156

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
A FRAME OF REFERENCE

Referring to our list [inventory] again. Putting out of our minds the wrongs others had done, we resolutely looked for our own mistakes. Where had we been selfish, dishonest, self-seeking  and frightened?

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 67

There is a wonderful freedom in not needing constant approval from colleagues at work or from the people I love.  I wish I had know about this Step before, because once I developed a frame of reference, I felt able to do the next right thing, knowing that the action fit the situation and this it was the correct thing to do.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Privileged to Communicate

Everyone must agree that we A.A.'s are unbelievably fortunate people;
fortunate that we have suffered so much; fortunate that we can know,
understand, and love each other so supremely well.
These attributes and virtues are scarcely of the earned variety. Indeed, most of us are well aware that these are rare gifts which have their true origin in our kinship born of a common suffering and a common deliverance by the grace of God. Thereby we are privileged to communicate with each other to a degree and in a manner not very often surpassed among our nonalcoholic friends in the world around us.
<<<>>>

"I used to be ashamed of my condition and so didn't talk about it. But
nowadays I freely confess I am a depressive, and this has attracted other depressives to me. Working with them has helped a great deal."

1. GRAPEVINE, OCTOBER 1959 - 2. LETTER, 1954 - * Bill added that he had no
depression after 1955.
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has
to be smashed."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, Page 30~

"Perhaps there is a better way--we think so. For we are now on a
different basis; the basis of trusting and relying upon God. We
trust infinite God rather than our finite selves. We are in the
world to play the role He assigns. Just to the extent that we do as
we think He would have us, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to match calamity with serenity."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 68~

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

"People of faith have a logical idea of what life is au about.
There is a wide variation in the way each one of us approaches and
conceives of the Power greater than ourselves. Whether we agree with
a particular approach or conception seems to make little difference.
There are questions for each of us to settle for ourselves. But in
each case the belief in a Higher Power has accomplished the
miraculous, the humanly impossible. There has come a revolutionary
change in their way of living and thinking." Has there been a
revolutionary change in me?

Meditation for the Day

Worship is consciousness of God's divine majesty. As you pause to
worship, God will help you to raise your humanity to His divinity.
The earth is a material temple to enclose God's divinity. God brings
to those who worship Him a divine power, a divine love, and a divine
healing. You only have to open your mind to Him and try to absorb
some of His divine spirit. Pausing quietly in the spirit of worship,
turn your inward thoughts upward and realize that His divine power
may be yours, that you can experience His love and healing.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may worship God by sensing the eternal Spirit. I pray
that I may experience a new power in my life.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Anonymity ^*^*^ August 18, 2011

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Anonymity
^*^*^
"And finally, we of Alcoholics Anonymous believe
that the principle of anonymity
has an immense spiritual significance. 
It reminds us that we are to place
principles before personalities;
that we are actually to practice a genuine humility.
This to the end that our great blessings may never spoil us;
that we shall forever live in thankful contemplation
of Him who presides over us all."
Tradition Twelve - the Long Form
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, pp. 567-8
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Thought to Consider . . .

Walk softly and carry a Big Book.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A N O N Y M O U S  =  
Actions, Not Our Names, Yield Maintenance Of Unity and Service.

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

Fatal

From: "How It Works" 

It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to futility and unhappiness. To the precise extent that we permit these, do we squander the hours that might have been worth while. But with the alcoholic, whose hope is the maintenance and growth of a spiritual experience, this business of resentment is infinitely grave. We found that it is fatal. For when harboring such feelings we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the Spirit. The insanity of alcohol returns and we drink again. And with us, to drink is to die. 

2001, AAWS, Inc., Alcoholics Anonymous, page 66
 *~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
GETTING WELL

Very deep, sometimes quite forgotten, damaging emotional conflicts persist below the level of consciousness.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 79 - 80

Only through positive action can I remove the remains of guilt and shame brought on by alcohol. Throughout my misadventures when I drank, my friends would say, "Why are you doing this? You're only hurting yourself." Little did I know behavior caused grave wounds to my soul. Step Eight provides me with a way of forgiving myself.
I alleviate much of the hidden damage when I made my list of those I have hurt. In making amens, I free myself of burdens, thus contributing to my healing.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Love Everybody?

Not many people can truthfully assert that they love everybody.
Most of us must admit that we have loved but a few;
that we have been quite indifferent to the many.
As for the remainder - well, we have really disliked or hated them.
We A.A.'s find we need something much better than this
in order to keep our balance.
The idea that we can be possessively loving of a few,
can ignore the many, and can continue to
fear or hate anybody at all,
has to be abandoned, if only a little at a time.
We can try to stop making unreasonable demands
upon those we love.
We can show kindness where we had formerly shown none.
With those we dislike we can at least begin to
practice justice and courtesy,
perhaps going out of our way at times
to understand and help them.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, pp. 92-93

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

"We needed to ask ourselves but one short question. 'Do I now
believe, or am I even willing to believe, that there is a Power
greater than myself?' As soon as a man can say that he does believe,
or is willing to believe, we emphatically assure him that he is on
his way. It has been repeatedly proven among us that upon this
simple cornerstone a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be
built."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, We Agnostics, pg. 47
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

"We of agnostic temperament have found that as soon as we were able to lay aside prejudice and express a willingness to believe in a Power greater than our selves, we commenced to get results, even though it was impossible for any of us to fully define or comprehend that Power, which we call God. As soon as you can say that you do believe or are willing to believe, you are on your way. Upon this simple cornerstone a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be built." Am I willing to depend on a Power that I cannot fully define or comprehend?

Meditation for the Day

We seek God's presence and "they who seek shall find." It is not a question of searching so much as an inner consciousness of the Divine spirit in your heart. To realize God's presence you must surrender to His will in the small as well as in the big things of life. This makes God's guidance possible. Some things separate you from God-a false word, a fear-inspired failure, a harsh criticism, a stubborn resentment. These are the things that put a distance between your mind and God. A word of love, a selfless reconciliation, a kind act of helpfulness-these bring God closer.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may think and say and do the things that bring God
closer to me. I pray that I may find Him in a sincere prayer, a
kind word, or an unselfish deed.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012