Thoughts For The Day~*~Change ^*^*^*^*^ January 8, 2012

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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  /AA\
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Change

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., April 1961
c. 1967 AAWS, As Bill Sees It,ÃÆ'ƒâ€š  p. 25
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Thought to Consider . . .

Backsliding begins when knee-bending stops.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C H A N G E =   Can Help Attract New Gifts and Energy

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

When?

Step One: We admitted we were powerless over alcohol , that our lives had become unmanageable.

"Alcoholics who still had their health, their families, their jobs ÃÆ'¢â‚¬Â¦ began to recognize their alcoholism.  They were spared that last ten or fifteen years of literal hell the rest of us had gone through. Since Step One requires an admission that our lives have become unmanageable, how could people such as these take this Step?

"It was obviously necessary to raise the bottom the rest of us had hit to the point where it would hit them. By going back in our own drinking histories, we could show that years before we realized it we were out of control, that our drinking even then was no mere habit, that it was indeed the beginning of a fatal progression."

1952, AAWS, Inc.; Printed 2005; Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pg. 23
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
DO I HAVE A CHOICE?

The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost the power of choice in drink.  Our so called willpower becomes practically nonexistent.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p.  24

My powerlessness over alcohol does not cease when I quit drinking. In sobriety I still have no choice -  I can't drink.

The choice I do have is to pick up and use the "kit of spiritual tools" (Alcoholics Anonymous, p.  25).  When I do that, my Higher Power relieves me of my lack of choice -- and keeps me sober one more day. If I could choose not to pick up a drink today, where then would be my need for A.A. or a Higher Power?

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
A New Life

Is sobriety all that we are to expect of a spiritual awakening? No, sobriety is only a bare beginning; it is only the first gift of the first awakening. If more gifts are to be received, our awakening has to go on. As it does go on, we find that bit by bit we can discard the old life - the one that did not work - for a new life that can and does work under any conditions whatever.
Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps.

GRAPEVINE, DECEMBER 1957
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Yes, there is a substitute and it is vastly more than that. It is a
fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. There you will find release from
care, boredom and worry. Your imagination will be fired. Life will
mean something at last. The most satisfactory years of your
existence lie ahead."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, A Vision For You, pg. 152~

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

Everyone who comes into A.A. knows from bitter experience that he or she can't drink. I know that drinking has been the cause of all my major troubles or has made them worse. Now that I have found a way out, I will hang onto A.A. with both hands. Saint Paul once said that nothing in the world, neither powers nor principalities, life nor death, could separate him from the love of God. Once I have given my drink problem to God, should anything in the world separate me from my sobriety?

Meditation for the Day

I know that my new life will not be immune from difficulties, but I will have peace even in difficulties. I know that serenity is the result of faithful, trusting acceptance of God's will, even in the midst of difficulties. Saint Paul said: "Our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may welcome difficulties. I pray that they may test my strength and build my character.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Sponsors ^*^*^*^*^ January 7, 2012

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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  /AA\
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Sponsors

Every sponsor is necessarily a leader.
The stakes are huge.
A human life, and usually the happiness of a whole family,
hangs in the balance.
What the sponsor does and says,
how well he estimates the reactions of his prospects,
how well he times and makes his presentation,
how well he handles criticisms,
and how well he leads his prospect on
by personal spiritual example ...
well, these attributes of leadership
can make all the difference,
often the difference between life and death.
Thank God that Alcoholics Anonymous is blessed
with so much leadership in each and all of its great affairs!
Bill W., April 1959
c. 1988 AA Grapevine, The Language of the Heart,  p. 292
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Thought to Consider . . .

A recovering alcoholic without a sponsor
is much like a ship without a rudder.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
S P O N S O R  = 
Sober Person Offering Newcomer Support Of Recovery

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

Eternal

From "More About Alcoholism":

"Most of us have believed that if we remained sober for a long stretch, we could thereafter drink normally. But here is a man who at fifty-five years found he was just where he had left off at thirty. We have seen the truth demonstrated again and again: 'Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic.'"

2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 33

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
AT THE TURNING POINT

Half measures availed us nothing.  We stood at the turning point.  We asked His protection and care with complete abandon.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p.  59

Every day I stand at turning points.  My thoughts and actions can propel me toward growth or turn me down the road to old habits and to booze.  Sometimes turning points are beginnings, as when I decide to start praising, instead of condemning someone.  Or when I begin to ask for help instead of going it alone.  At other times turning points are endings, such as when I see clearly the need to stop festering resentments or crippling self-seeking.  Many shortcomings tempt me daily; therefore, I also have daily opportunities to become aware of them.  In one form or another, many of my character defects appear daily: self-condemnation, anger, running away, being prideful, wanting to get even, or acting out of grandiosity.

Attempting half measures to eliminate these defects merely paralyzes my efforts to change.  It is only when I ask God for help, with complete abandon, that I become willing -- and able -- to change.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
The Realm of the Spirit

In ancient times material progress was painfully slow. The spirit of modern scientific inquiry, research, and invention was almost unknown.
In the realm of the material, men's minds were lettered by superstition, tradition, and all sorts of fixed ideas. Some of the contemporaries of Columbus thought a round earth preposterous. Others came near putting Galileo to death for his astronomical heresies.
Are not some of us just as biased and unreasonable about the realm of the spirit as were the ancients about the realm of the material?

<<<>>>

We have found that God does not make too hard terms with those who seek Him. To us, the realm of spirit is broad, roomy, all inclusive, never exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek. It is open, we believe, to all men.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS - 1. p. 51 - 2. p. 46
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"When you discover a prospect for Alcoholics Anonymous, find out all
you can about him. If he does not want to stop drinking, don't
waste time trying to persuade him. You may spoil a later opportunity."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 90

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

When temptation comes, as it does sometimes to all of us, I will say to myself.- "No, my whole life depends on not taking that drink and nothing in the world can make me do it." Besides, I have promised that Higher Power that I wouldn't do it. I know that God doesn't want me to drink and I won't break my promise to, God. I've given up my right to drink and it's not my decision any longer. Have I made the choice once and for all, so that there's no going back on it?

Meditation for the Day

In silence comes God's meaning to the heart. I cannot judge when it enters the heart. I can only judge by results. Go6s word is spoken to the secret places of my heart and, in some hour of temptation, I find that word and realize its value for the first time. when I need it, I find it there. "Thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly."

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may see God's meaning in my life. I pray that I may gladly accept what God has to teach me.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Insecurity ^*^*^*^*^ January 6, 2012

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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  /AA\
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Insecurity

The achievement of freedom from fear
is a lifetime undertaking,
one that can never be wholly completed.
When under heavy attack, acute illness,
or in other conditions of serious insecurity,
we shall all react, well or badly, as the case may be.
Only the vainglorious claim perfect freedom from fear,
though their very grandiosity is really rooted
in the fears they have temporarily forgotten.
Bill W., January 1962
c. 1988 AA Grapevine, The Language of the Heart,  p. 265
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Thought to Consider . . .

Once we clear a hurdle, it doesn't seem so high.

 

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
T R U S T  =  Try Relying Upon Steps and Traditions

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

Action

From "The Shared Gift:"

"A.A. is more than a set of principles;
it is a society of alcoholics in action. 
We must carry the message, else we
ourselves can wither and those who
haven't been given the truth may die."

 

c. 1967, As Bill Sees It, page 13

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
THE VICTORY OF SURRENDER

We perceive that only through utter defeat are we able to take our first steps toward liberation and strength.  Our admissions of personal powerlessness finally turn out to be firm bedrock upon which happy and purposeful lives may be built.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p.  21

When alcohol influenced every facet of my life, when bottles became the symbol of all my self-indulgence and permissiveness, when I came to realize that, by myself, I could do nothing to overcome the power of alcohol, I realized I had no recourse except surrender.  In surrender I found victory -- victory over my selfish self-indulgence, victory over my stubborn resistance to life as it was given to me.  When I stopped fighting anybody or anything, I started on the path to sobriety, serenity and peace.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
All or Nothing?

Acceptance and faith are capable of producing 100 per cent sobriety. In fact, they usually do; and they must, else we could have no life at all. But the moment we carry these attitudes into our emotional problems, we find that only relative results are possible. Nobody can, for example, become completely free from fear, anger, and pride.
Hence, in this life we shall attain nothing like perfect humility and love. So we shall have to settle, respecting most of our problems, for a very gradual progress, punctuated sometimes by very heavy setbacks. Our oldtime attitude of "all or nothing" will have to be abandoned.

GRAPEVINE, MARCH 1962
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"If we are planning to stop drinking, there must be no reservation
of any kind, nor any lurking notion that someday we will be immune to
alcohol."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, pg. 33~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Keeping sober is the most important thing in my life. The most important decision I ever made was my decision to give up drinking. I am convinced that my whole life depends on not taking that first drink. Nothing in the world is as important to me as my own sobriety. Everything I have, my whole life, depends on that one thing. Can I afford ever to forget this, even for one minute?

Meditation for the Day

I will discipline myself. I will do this disciplining now. I will turn out all useless thoughts. I know that the goodness of my life is a necessary foundation for its usefulness. I will welcome this training, for without it God cannot give me His power. I believe that this power is a mighty power when it is used in the right way.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may face and accept whatever discipline is necessary. I pray that I may be fit to receive God's power in my life.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

Thoughts For The Day~*~Resentments ^*^*^*^*^ January 5, 2012

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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(_   /AA\ _)
  /AA\
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Resentments

Few people have been more victimized by resentments
than have we alcoholics.
It mattered little whether our resentments
were justified or not.
A burst of temper could spoil a day,
and a well-nursed grudge could make us
miserably ineffective.
Nor were we ever skillful in separating
justified from unjustified anger.
As we saw it, our wrath was always justified.
Anger, that occasional luxury of more balanced people,
could keep us on an emotional jag indefinitely.
These emotional "dry benders" often led
straight to the bottle.
Other kinds of disturbance -- jealousy, envy,
sef-pity, or hurt pride -- did the same thing.
c. 1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 90
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Thought to Consider . . .

Anger is the hot wind that extinguishes the light of reason.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C A L M =  Can Anger Leave Me.

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

Essentials

From "'Let's Keep It Simple'":

"After years of sobriety I occasionally ask myself: 'Can it be this simple?' Then, at meetings, I see former cynics and skeptics who have walked the A.A. path out of hell by packaging their lives, without alcohol, into twenty-four hour segments, during which they practice a few principles to the best of their individual abilities. And then I know again that, while it isn't always easy, if I keep it simple, it works."

1990 AAWS, Inc.; Daily Reflections, pg. 30
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
TOTAL ACCEPTANCE

He cannot picture life without alcohol. Some day he will be unable to imagine life either with alcohol or without it.  Then he will know loneliness such as few do.  He will be at the jumping-off place.  He will wish for the end.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p.  152

Only an alcoholic can understand the exact meaning of a statement like this one.  The double standard that held me captive as an active alcoholic also filled me with terror and confusion: "If I don't get a drink I'm going to die," competed with "If I continue drinking it's going to kill me." Both compulsive thoughts pushed me ever closer to the bottom.  That bottom produced a total acceptance of my alcoholism -- with no reservations whatsoever -- and one that was absolutely essential for my recovery.  It was a dilemma unlike anything I had ever faced, but as I found out later on, a necessary one if I was to succeed in this program.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Maintenance and Growth

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 worthwhile. But with the alcoholic, whose hope is the maintenance and growth of a spiritual experience, this business of harboring resentment is infinitely grave. For then 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.
If we were to live, we had to be free of anger. The grouch and the sudden rage were not for us. Anger is the dubious luxury of normal men, but for us alcoholics it is poison.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 66
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Next, we decided that hereafter in this drama of life, God was going
to be our Director. He is the Principal; we are His agents. He is
the Father, and we are His children. Most good ideas are simple, and
this concept was the keystone of the new and triumphant arch through
which we passed to freedom."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 62~

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

Have I turned to a Higher Power for help? Do I believe that each man or woman I see in A.A. is a demonstration of the power of God to change a human being from a drunkard into a sober, useful citizen? Do I believe that this Higher Power can keep me from drinking? Am I living one day at a time? Do I ask God to give me the power to stay sober for each twenty-four hours? Do I attend A.A. meetings regularly?

Meditation for the Day

I believe that God's presence brings peace and that peace, like a quiet-flowing river, will cleanse all irritants away. In these quiet times, God will teach me how to rest my nerves. I will not be afraid. I will learn how to relax. When I am relaxed, God's strength will flow into me. I will be at peace.

Prayer for the Day

I pray for that peace which passes all understanding. I pray for that peace which the world can neither give nor take away.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012