Thoughts For The Day~*~Communicate ^*^*^*^*^ May 20, 2012

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

"From the beginning,
communication in AA has been no ordinary transmission
of helpful ideas and attitudes.
It has been unusual and sometimes unique.
Because of our kinship in suffering,
and because our common means of deliverance
are effective for ourselves only when
constantly carried to others,
our channels of contact have always been charged with
the language of the heart."

Bill W., July 1960
1988AAGrapevine, The Language of the Heart, p. 243
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Thought to Consider . . .

To help each other, is to help ourselves.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
Y A N A = You Are Not Alone

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
 

Honesty

STEP FIVE: Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

"More realism and therefore more honesty about ourselves are the great gains we make under the influence of Step Five. As we took inventory, we began to suspect how much trouble self-delusion had been causing us. This had brought a disturbing reflection. If all our lives we had more or less fooled ourselves, how could we now be so sure that we weren't still self-deceived? How could we be certain that we had made a true catalog of our defects and had really admitted them, even to ourselves? Because we were still bothered by fear, self-pity, and hurt feelings, it was probable we couldn't appraise ourselves fairly at all. Too much guilt and remorse might cause us to dramatize and exaggerate our shortcomings. Or anger and hurt pride might be the smoke screen under which we were hiding some of our defects while we blamed others for them. Possibly, too, we were still handicapped by many liabilities, great and small, we never knew we had.

"Hence it was most evident that a solitary self-appraisal, and the admission of our defects based upon that alone, wouldn't be nearly enough. We'd have to have outside help if we were surely to know and admit the truth about ourselves the help of God and another human being."

1952, AAWS, Inc.; Printed 2005; Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pgs. 58-59

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
ONE DAY AT A TIME

Above all, take it one day at a time.

AS BILL SEES IT, p.11

Why do I kid myself that I must stay away from a drink for only one day, when I know perfectly well I must never drink again as long as I live? I am not kidding myself because one day at a time is probably the only way I can reach the long-range objective of staying sober.

If I determine that I shall never drink again as long as I live, I set
myself up. How can I be sure I won't drink when I have no idea what the future may hold?

On a day-at-a-time basis, I am confident I can stay away from a drink for one day. So I set out with confidence. At the end of the day, I have the reward of achievement. Achievement feels good and that makes me want more!

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

More than most people, the alcoholics leads a double life. He is very much the actor. To the outer world he presents his stage character. This is the one he likes his fellows to see. He wants to enjoy a certain reputation, but knows in his heart he doesn't deserve it.
<<<>>>
Guilt is really the reverse side of the coin of pride. Guilt aims at
self-destruction, and pride aims at the destruction of others.
<<<>>>
"The moral inventory is a cool examination of the damages that occurred to us during life and a sincere effort to look at them in a true perspective. This has the effect of taking the ground glass out of us, the emotional substance that still cuts and inhibits."

1. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 73
2. GRAPEVINE, JUNE 1961
3. LETTER, 1957

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

"We alcoholics are sensitive people. It takes some of us a long time
to outgrow that serious handicap."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg. 125~

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

If we get up in a meeting and tell something about ourselves
in order to help the other person, we feel a whole lot better.
It's the old law of the more you give the more you get.
Witnessing and confession are part of keeping sober. You
never know when you may help somebody. Helping others is one
of the best ways to stay sober yourself And the satisfaction
you get out of helping a fellow human being is one of the
finest experiences you can have. Am I helping others?

Meditation for the Day

Without God, no real victory is ever won. All the military
victories of great conquerors have passed into history. The
world might be better off without military conquerors. The
real victories are won in the spiritual realm. "He that
conquers himself is greater than he who conquers a city."
The real victories are victories over sin and temptation,
leading to a victorious and abundant life. Therefore, keep
a brave and trusting heart. Face all your difficulties in
the spirit of conquest. Remember that where God is, there
is the true victory.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that the forces of evil in my life will flee before
God's presence. I pray that with God I will win the real
victory over myself.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Attitudes ^*^*^*^*^ May 19, 2012

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

"We find that our old attitudes toward our instincts
need to undergo drastic revisions.
Our desires for emotional security and wealth,
for personal prestige and power,
for romance, and for family satisfactions -
all these have to be tempered and redirected.
If we place instincts first,
we have got the cart before the horse;
we shall be pulled backward into disillusionment.
But when we are willing to place
spiritual growth first -
then and only then do we have a real chance."
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 114

Thought to Consider . . .

I have learned that my actions are far more important than my thoughts.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
EGO
Easing God Out

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

From "A Vision for You":

"But life among Alcoholics Anonymous is more than attending gatherings and visiting hospitals. Cleaning up old scrapes, helping to settle family differences, explaining the disinherited son to his irate parents, lending money and securing jobs for each other, when justified these are everyday occurrences. No one is too discredited or has sunk too low to be welcomed cordially if he means business. Social distinctions, petty rivalries and jealousies these are laughed out of countenance. Being wrecked in the same vessel, being restored and united under one God, with hearts and minds attuned to the welfare of others, the things which matter so much to some people no longer signify much to them. How could they?"

2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 161

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
GIVING WITHOUT STRINGS

And he well knows that his own life has been made richer, as an extra dividend of giving to another without any demand for a return.

AS BILL SEES IT, p.  69

The concept of giving without strings was hard to understand when I first came into the program.  I was suspicious when others wanted to help me.  I thought, "What do they want in return?"  But I soon learned the joy of helping another alcoholic and I understood why they were there for me in the beginning.  My attitudes changed and I wanted to help others.  Sometimes I became anxious, as I wanted them to know the joys of sobriety, that life can be beautiful.  When my life is full of a loving God of my understanding and I give that love to my fellow alcoholic, I feel a special richness that is hard to explain.

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

Though I still find it difficult to accept today's pain and anxiety with any great degree of serenity - as those more advanced in the spiritual life seem able to do - I can give thanks for present pain nevertheless.

I find the willingness to do this by contemplating the lessons learned from past suffering - lessons which have led to the blessings I now enjoy. I can remember how the agonies of alcoholism, the pain of rebellion and thwarted pride, have often led me to God's grace, and so to a new freedom.

GRAPEVINE, MARCH 1962

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"But my friend sat before me, and he made the pointblank declaration
that God had done for him what he could not do for himself. His
human will had failed. Doctors had pronounced him incurable.
Society was about to lock him up. Like myself, he had admitted
complete defeat. Then he had, in effect, been raised from the dead,
suddenly taken from the scrap heap to a level of life better than
the best he had ever known!"

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Bill's Story, pg. 11~

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

Fellowship is a big part of staying sober. The doctors call it group therapy. We never go to an A.A. meeting without taking something out of it. Sometimes we don't feel like going to a meeting and we think of excuses for not going. But we usually end up by going anyway and we always get some lift out of every meeting. Meetings are part of keeping sober. And we get more out of a meeting if we try to contribute something to it. Am I contributing my share at meetings?

Meditation for the Day

"He brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock and established my goings." The first part, "He brought me up out of a horrible pit," means that by turning to God and putting my problems in His hands, I am able to overcome my sins and temptations. "He set my feet upon a rock" means that when I trust God in all things, I have true security. "He established my goings" means that if I honestly try to live the way God wants me to live, I will have God's guidance in my daily living.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that my feet may be set upon a rock. I pray that I may rely on God to guide my comings and goings.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Sponsor ^*^*^*^*^ May 18, 2012

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

"If we are fooling ourselves,
a competent adviser can see this quickly.
And, as he skillfully guides us away from our fantasies,
we are surprised to find that we have few
of the usual urges to defend ourselves
against unpleasant truths.
In no other way can fear, pride,
and ignorance be so readily melted.
After a time, we realize that we are standing firm
on a brand-new foundation for integrity,
and we gratefully credit our sponsors,
whose advice pointed the way."

Bill W., Box 1980: The AA Grapevine, August 1961.
As Bill Sees It, p. 248

Thought to Consider . . .

A recovering alcoholic without a sponsor is much like leaving Dracula in charge of the blood bank.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C A R D S =
Call your sponsor,
Ask for help from your Higher Power,
Read the Big Book,
Do the Twelve Steps,
Stay active in your group.

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

Roles

From "Action and Patience":

"I heard that we can't keep what we have unless we give it away. And so I found a woman someone a little newer than I was and I shared with her what you had shared with me. Looking back on it, I doubt that I helped this woman very much, but I helped myself beyond measure. I stayed sober, day by day, through sharing my experience, strength, and hope with her, through putting action into the A.A. program while, at the same time, waiting for her, not forcing my action on her. This was patience supporting the action, though I didn't call it patience at the time; the word was not a part of my emotional vocabulary."

1973 AAWS, Inc.; Came to Believe, 30^th printing 2004, pg. 42

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
FREEDOM TO BE ME

If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through.  We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p.  83

My first true freedom is the freedom not to have to take a drink today.  If I truly want it, I will work the Twelve Steps and the happiness of this freedom will come to me through the Steps -- sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly.  Other freedoms will follow, and inventorying them is a new happiness.  I had a new freedom today, the freedom to be me.  I have the freedom to be the best me I have ever been.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Two Roads for the Oldtimer

The founders of many groups ultimately divide into two classes known in A.A. slang as "elder statesmen" and "bleeding deacons."

The elder statesman sees the wisdom of the group's decision to run itself and holds no resentment over his reduced status. His judgment, fortified by considerable experience, is sound; he is willing to sit quietly on the side lines patiently awaiting developments.

The bleeding deacon is just as surely convinced that the group cannot get along without him. He constantly connives for re-election to office and continues to be consumed with self-pity. Nearly every oldtimer in our Society has gone through this process in some degree. Happily, most of them survive and live to become elder statesmen. They become the real and permanent leadership of A.A.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 135

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"The minute we put our work on a service plane, the alcoholic
commences to rely upon our assistance rather than upon God. He
clamors for this or that, claiming he cannot master alcohol until
his material needs are cared for. Nonsense. Some of us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth: Job or no job,  wife or no wife,  we simply do not stop drinking so long as we place dependence upon other people ahead of dependence on God."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 98~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

We're in A.A. for two main reasons: to keep sober ourselves and to help others to keep sober. It's a well known fact that helping others is a big part of keeping sober yourself It's also been proved that it's very hard to keep sober all by yourself. A lot of people have tried it and failed. They come to a few A.A. meetings and then stay sober alone for a few months, but usually they eventually get drunk. Do I know that I can't stay sober successfully alone?

Meditation for the Day

Look by faith into that place beyond space or time where God dwells and whence you came and to which you shall eventually return. "Look unto Him and be saved." To look beyond material things is within the power of everyone's imagination. Faith's took saves you from despair. Faith's look saves you from worry and care. Faith's took brings a peace beyond all understanding. Faith's look brings you all the strength you need. Faith's look gives you a new and vital power and a wonderful peace and serenity.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may have faith's look. I pray that by faith I may look beyond the now to eternal life.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Fear^*^*^*^*^ May 17, 2012

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

"This short word somehow touches
about every aspect of our lives.
It was an evil and corroding thread;
the fabric of our existence was shot through with it.
It set in motion trains of circumstances which
brought us misfortune we felt we didn't deserve.
But did not we, ourselves, set the ball rolling?
Sometimes we think fear
ought to be classed with stealing.
It seems to cause more trouble."
Alcoholics Anonymous, pp. 67-8.

Thought to Consider . . .

Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows,
but only empties today of its strength.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
F E A R = Forever Escaping And Retreating

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

 

Literature

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"My elation was disturbed by disquieting thoughts. Suppose our embryo book were someday to become the chief text for our fellowship. Our principal written asset would then be owned by an outside publisher, a fine and conservative one surely, but nevertheless an outsider.

"Soon afterward, one of the most terrific power-drivers I have ever met got into the act. This was my friend Henry P., one-time Standard Oil executive and the very first alcoholic ever to stay sober even a little while in the New York group. ¦'Why don't we put this proposed book on a business basis and form a stock company? Let's sell shares to our own folks right here in New York.' . . .

"I went back to [Harper's Editor and A.A. friend] Gene Exman and frankly explained to him what was about to happen. To my utter amazement, he agreed, quite contrary to his own interest, that a society like ours ought to control and publish its own literature."

 2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pgs. 154-55

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
. . .  AND FORGIVE

Under very trying conditions I have had, again and again, to forgive others -- also myself.

AS BILL SEES IT, p.  268

Forgiveness of self and forgiveness of others are just two currents in the same river, both hindered or shut off completely by the dam of resentment.  Once that dam is lifted, both currents can flow.  The Steps of A.A. allow me to see how resentment has built up and subsequently blocked off this flow in my life.  The Steps provide a way by which my resentments may -- by the grace of God as I understand Him -- be lifted.  It is as a result of this solution that I can find the necessary grace which enables me to forgive myself and others.

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

Fear somehow touched about every aspect of our lives. It was an evil and corroding thread; the fabric of our existence was shot through with it.
It set in motion trains of circumstances which brought us misfortune we felt we didn't deserve. But did not we often set the ball rolling ourselves?

***  ***

The problem of resolving fear has two aspects. We shall have to try for all the freedom from fear that is possible for us to attain. Then we shall need to find both the courage and the grace to deal constructively with whatever fears remain.

1. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 67-68
2. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Next we launched out on a course of vigorous action, the first step
of which is a personal housecleaning, which many of us had never
attempted. Though our decision was a vital and crucial step, it
could have little permanent effect unless at once followed by a
strenuous effort to face, and to be rid of, the things in ourselves
which had been blocking us. Our liquor was but a symptom. So we had
to get down to causes and conditions.

Therefore, we started upon a personal inventory. This was Step Four."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 63~


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

A lot of well-meaning people treat alcoholics like the priest and the Levite. They pass by on the other side by scorning them and telling them what low people they are, with no willpower. Whereas, they really have fallen for alcohol, in the same way as the man in the story fell among robbers. And the member of A.A. who is working with others is like the Good Samaritan. Am I moved with compassion? Do I take care of another alcoholic whenever I can?

Meditation for the Day

I must constantly live in preparation for something better to come. All of life is a preparation for something better. I must anticipate the morning to come. I must feet, in the night of sorrow, that understanding joy that tells of confident expectation of better things to come. "Sorrow may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Know that God has something better in store for you, as long as you are making yourself ready for it. All your existence in this world is a training for a better life to come.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that when life is over, I will return to an eternal, space-less life with God. I pray that I may make this life a preparation for a better life to come.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 5501 2

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