Saturday, August 16, 2014

Thoughts For The Day~*~Paradox ^*^*^ August 17, 2014


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

(\    ~~  /)
(   \ (
AA)/   )
(_   /
AA
\ _)
  /
AA\

^*^*^*^*^

Paradox
^*^*^
"2. W
e GIVE AWAY TO KEEP.
That seems absurd and untrue.
How can you keep anything if you give it away?
But in order to keep whatever it is we get in AA,
we must go about giving it away to others,
for no fees or rewards of any kind.
When we cannot afford to give away
what we have received so freely in AA,
we had better get ready for our next 'drunk.'
It will happen every time.
We've got to continue to give it away in order to keep it."
The Professor and the Paradox.
1955AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous,
Second Edition, p.
341
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to C
onsider . . .

I
keep my sobriety by giving it away.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*

            H O P E  =  Helping Other People Every day.

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
 
Simple Beauty
From "A Prayer for All Seasons:"
 
"The power of [The Serenity Prayer] is overwhelming in that its simple beauty parallels the A.A. Fellowship.  There are times when I get stuck while reciting it, but if I examine the section which is troubling me, I find the answer to my problem....By accepting life as it is, I gain serenity.  By taking action, I gain courage and I thank God for the ability
to distinguish between those situations I can work on, and those I must turn over.  All that I have now is a gift from God: my life, my usefulness, my contentment, and this program.
 
"Alcoholics Anonymous IS the easier, softer way."
 
1990, Daily Reflections, page 221

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
RIGHTING THE HARM

In many instances we shall find that though the harm done others has
not been great, the emotional harm we have done ourselves has.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 79


Have you ever thought that the harm you did a business associate,
or perhaps a family member, was so slight that it really didn't
deserve an apology because they probably wouldn't remember it anyway?
If that person, and the wrong done to him, keeps coming to mind,
time and again, causing an uneasy or perhaps guilty feeling, then I
put that person's name at the top of my "amends list," and become
willing to make a sincere apology, knowing I will feel calm and
relaxed about that person once this very important part of my
recovery is accomplished.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*

~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Day of Homecoming

"As sobriety means long life and happiness for the individual, so does unity mean exactly the same thing to our Society as a whole. Unified we live; disunited we shall perish."

<<<>>>

"We must think deeply of all those sick ones still to come to A.A. As they
try to 5make their return to faith and to life, we want them to find
everything in A.A. that we have found, and yet more, if that be possible. No care, no vigilance, no effort to preserve A.A.'s constant effectiveness and spiritual strength will ever be too great to hold us in full readiness for the day of their homecoming."

1. LETTER, 1949 - 2. TALK, 1959

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

"We never apologize to anyone for depending upon our Creator. We can
laugh at those who think spirituality the way of weakness.
Paradoxically, it is the way of strength. The verdict of the ages is
that faith means courage. All men of faith have courage. They trust
their God. We never apologize for God. Instead we let Him
demonstrate, through us, what He can do. We ask Him to remove our
fear and direct our attention to what He would have us be. At once,
we commence to outgrow fear."

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

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

"To one who feels he is an atheist or agnostic, a spiritual
experience seems impossible, but to continue as he is means
disaster. To be doomed to an alcoholic death or to live on a
spiritual basis are not always easy alternatives to face. But
we have to face the fact that we must find a spiritual basis of
life-or else. Lack of power is our dilemma. We have to find a
power by which we can live, and it has to be a power greater than
ourselves." Have I found that power by which I can live?

Meditation for the Day

Sunshine is the laughter of nature. Live out in the sunshine.
The sun and air are good medicine. Nature is a good nurse for
tired bodies. Let her have her way with you. God's grace is like
the sunshine. Let your whole being be enwrapped in the Divine
spirit. Faith is the soul's breathing in of the Divine spirit.
It makes glad the hearts of human beings. The Divine spirit heals
and cures the mind. Let it have its way and A will be well.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may live in the sunshine of God's spirit. I pray
that my mind and soul may be energized by it.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012


Friday, August 15, 2014

Thoughts For The Day~*~Friends ^*^*^ August 16, 2014


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

(\    ~~  /)
(   \ (
AA)/   )
(_   /
AA
\ _)
  /
AA\

^*^*^*^*^

Friends
^*^*^
"Y
ou are going to meet these new friends
in your own community. 
Near you, alcoholics are dying helplessly
like people in a sinking ship. 
If you live in a large place, there are hundreds. 
High and low, rich and poor,
these are future fellows of Alcoholics Anonymous.  
Among them you will make lifelong friends. 
You will be bound to them with new and wonderful ties,
for you will escape disaster together and you will
commence shoulder to shoulder your common journey. 
Then you will know what it means to give of yourself
that others may survive and rediscover life. 
You will learn a full meaning of
'Love thy neighbor as thyself.' "
1976 AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, pp. 152-3
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to C
onsider . . .

W
hen we love,
we see in others what we wish to have in ourselves.


*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
B O G G L E  =  Bad Or Good, God Loves Everyone


*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Equals
From "What is sponsorship?"
 
"Alcoholics Anonymous began with sponsorship.  When Bill W., only a few months sober, was stricken with a powerful urge to drink, this thought came to him: 'You need another alcoholic to talk to.  You need another alcoholic just as much as he needs you!'
"He found Dr. Bob, who had been trying desperately and unsuccessfully to stop drinking, and out of their common need A.A. was born.  The word 'sponsor' was not used then; the Twelve Steps had not been written; but Bill carried the message to Dr. Bob, who in turn safeguarded his own sobriety by sponsoring countless other alcoholics."
"In A.A., sponsor and sponsored meet as equals, just as Bill and Dr. Bob did."
 
1983, Questions & Answers on Sponsorship (A.A. Pamphlet P-15), page 7
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
"I HAD DROPPED OUT"

We might next ask ourselves what we mean when we say that we have "harmed" other people.  What kinds of "harm" do people do one another, anyway?  To define the word "harm" in a practical way, we might call it the result of instincts in collision, which cause physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual damage to people.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 80


I had been to Eighth Step meetings, always thinking, "I really haven't harmed many people, mostly myself." But the time came when I wrote my list out and it was not as short as I thought it would be. I either liked you, disliked you, or needed something  from you - it was that simple. People hadn't done what I wanted them to do and intimate relationships were out of hand because of my partners' unreasonable demands. Were these "sins of omission"?  Because of my drinking, I had "dropped out" - never sending cards, returning calls, being there for other people, or taking part in their lives. What a grace it has been to look at these relationships, to make my inventories in quiet, alone with the God of my understanding, and to go forth daily, with a willingness to be honest and forthright in my relationships.

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

The Beginning of True Kinship

When we reached A.A., and for the first time in our lives stood among people who seemed to understand, the sense of belonging was tremendously exciting. We thought the isolation problem had been solved. But we soon discovered that, while we weren't alone any more in a social sense, we still suffered many of the old pangs of anxious apartness. Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn't belong. Step Five was the answer. It was the beginning of true kinship with man and God.


TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 57
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Opinions vary considerably as to why the alcoholic reacts
differently from normal people. We are not sure why, once a certain
point is reached, little can be done for him. We cannot answer the
riddle."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, There Is A Solution, pg. 22~

*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*

A.A. Thought for the Day

"The alcoholic is absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of
self-knowledge. We must admit we can do nothing about it ourselves.
Willpower and self-knowledge will never help in the strange mental
blank spots when we are tempted to drink. An alcoholic mentally is
in a very sick condition. The last flicker of conviction that we can
do the job ourselves must be snuffed out. The spiritual answer and
the program of action are the only hope. Only spiritual principles
will solve our problems. We are completely helpless apart from Divine
help. Our defense against drinking must come from a Higher Power."
Have I accepted the spiritual answer and the program of action?

Meditation for the Day

Rest now until life, eternal life, flowing through your veins and
heart and mind, bids you to bestir yourself. Then glad work will
follow. Tired work is never effective. The strength of God's spirit
is always available to the tired mind and body. He is your physician
and your healer. Look to these quiet times of communion with God for
rest, for peace, for cure. Then rise refreshed in spirit and go out
to work, knowing that your strength is able to meet any problems
because it is reinforced by God's power.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that the peace I have found will make me effective. I pray
that I may be relieved of all strain during this day.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012


Thursday, August 14, 2014

Thoughts For The Day~*~Defiance ^*^*^ August 15, 2014


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

(\    ~~  /)
(   \ (
AA)/   )
(_   /
AA
\ _)
  /
AA\

^*^*^*^*^

Defiance
^*^*^
" 'A
s psychiatrists have often observed,
defiance is the outstanding characteristic
of many an alcoholic. . . 
When we encountered AA,
the fallacy of our defiance was revealed. 
At no time had we asked what God's will was for us;
instead we had been telling Him what it ought to be. 
No man, we saw, could believe in God and defy Him, too. 
Belief meant reliance, not defiance. 
In AA we saw the fruits of this belief:
men and women spared from alcohol's final catastrophe.' "
1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 31
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to C
onsider . . .

God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.


*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*

B I G   B O O K  =  Believing In God Beats Our Old Knowledge


*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
 
The Paradoxes
From: "The Professor and the Paradox"  

1. We SURRENDER TO WIN. On the face of it, surrendering certainly does not seem like winning. But it is in A.A.. Only after we have come to the end of our rope, hit a stone wall in some aspect of our lives beyond which we can go no further; only when we hit "bottom" in despair and surrender, can we accomplish sobriety which we could never accomplish before. We must, and we do, surrender in order to win.  

2. We GIVE AWAY TO KEEP. That seems absurd and untrue. How can you keep anything if you give it away? But in order to keep whatever it is we get in A.A., we must go about giving it away to others, for no fees or rewards of any kind. When we cannot afford to give away what we have received so freely in A.A., we had better get ready for our next "drunk." It will happen every time. We've got to continue to give it away in order to keep it.  

3. We SUFFER TO GET WELL. There is no way to escape the terrible suffering of remorse and regret and shame and embarrassment which starts us on the road to getting well from our affliction. There is no new way to shake out a hangover. It's painful. And for us, necessarily so. I told this to a friend of mine as he sat weaving to and fro on the side of the bed, in terrible shape, about to die for some paraldehyde. I said, "Lost John" - that's his nickname - "Lost John, you know you're going to have to do a certain amount of shaking sooner or later." "Well," he said, "for God's sake let's make it later!" We suffer to get well.   

4. We DIE TO LIVE. That is a beautiful paradox straight out of the Biblical idea of being "born again" or "losing one's life to find it". When we work at our Twelve Steps, the old life of guzzling and fuzzy thinking, and all that goes with it, gradually dies, and we acquire a different and a better way of life. As our shortcomings are removed, one life of us dies, and another life of us lives. We in A.A. die to live.  

2003, AAWS, Inc., Experience, Strength & Hope, pages 155-156 

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
DIDN'T WE HURT ANYBODY?

Some of us, though, tripped over a very different snag. We clung to the claim that when drinking we never hurt anybody but ourselves.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 79


This Step seemed so simple. I identified several people whom I had harmed, but they were no longer available. Still, I was uneasy about the Step and avoided conversations dealing with it. In time I learned to investigate those Steps and areas of my life which made me uncomfortable. My search revealed my parents who had been deeply hurt by my isolation from them; my employer, who worried about my absences, my memory lapses, my temper; and the friends I had shunned, without explanation. As I faced the reality of the harm I had done, Step Eight took on new meaning.  I am no longer uncomfortable and I feel clean and light.

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

Is Sobriety Enough?

The alcoholic is like a tornado roaring his way through the lives of others. Hearts are broken. Sweet relationships are dead. Affections have been uprooted. Selfish and inconsiderate habits have kept the home in turmoil. We feel a man is unthinking when he says that sobriety is enough. He is like the farmer who came up out of his cyclone cellar to find his home ruined. To his wife, he remarked, "Don't see anything the matter here, Ma. Ain't it grand the wind stopped blowin'?"

<<<>>>

We ask ourselves what we mean when we say that we have "harmed" other people. What kinds of "harm" do people do one another, anyway? To define the word "harm" in a practical way, we might call it the result of instincts in collision, which cause physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual damage to those about us.


1. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 82 - 2. TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 80
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"...we then look at Step Six. We have emphasized willingness as
being indispensable. Are we now ready to let God remove from us all
the things which we have admitted are objectionable? Can He now take
them all-every one? If we still cling to something we will not let
go, we ask God to help us be willing."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 76~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

"Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic. Commencing to drink after
a period of sobriety, we are in a short time as bad as ever. If we
have admitted we are alcoholics, we must have no reservations of any
kind, nor any lurking notion that someday we will be immune to
alcohol. What sort of thinking dominates an alcoholic who repeats
time after time the desperate experiment of the first drink?
Parallel with sound reasoning, there inevitably runs some insanely
trivial excuse for taking the first drink. There is little thought
of what the terrific consequences may be." Have I given up all
excuses for taking a drink?

Meditation for the Day


"Where two or three are banded together, I will be there in the
midst of them." When God finds two or three people in union, who
only want His will to be done, who want only to serve Him, He has
a plan that can be revealed to them. The grace of God can come to
people who are together in one place with one accord. A union like
this is miracle-working. God is able to use such people. Only good
can come through such consecrated people, brought together in
unified groups for a single purpose and of a single mind.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be part of a unified group. I pray that I may
contribute my share to its consecrated purpose.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012


Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Thoughts For The Day~*~Hangovers ^*^*^ August 14, 2014


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

(\    ~~  /)
(   \ (
AA)/   )
(_   /
AA
\ _)
  /
AA\

^*^*^*^*^

Hangovers
^*^*^
"W
hen a drunk has a terrific hangover because
he drank heavily yesterday, he cannot live well today.
But there is another kind of hangover which we all experience
whether we are drinking or not.
That is the emotional hangover,
the direct result of yesterday's and sometimes today's
excesses of negative emotion -
anger, fear, jealousy, and the like.
If we would live serenely today and tomorrow,
we certainly need to eliminate these hangovers."
1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 88
^*^*^*^*^*

Thought to C
onsider . . .

I'd rather be better than bitter.


*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A A  =  Altered Attitudes


*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Joker in the Glass
"Chapter XXIII: His prescriptions for sobriety

You know, Dan, he [Dr. Bob] told me, many people coming into A.A. get the wrong conception of "Easy Does It, and I hope you don't. It doesn't mean that you sit on your fanny, stay home from meetings and let other people work the program for you. It doesn't mean you have an easy life without drinking. Easy Does It means you take it a day at a time.

He told me that before I could be honest with him or my sponsor or anyone else, I had to get honest with that joker in the glass.  

I didn't know what he meant by that joker in the glass. He told me that was the man in the looking glass. When you shave tomorrow, get honest with the man who looks back at you from the looking glass.

1980, AAWS, Inc., Dr. Bob and the Good Oldtimers, page 282

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
REPAIRING THE DAMAGE

We attempt to sweep away the debris which has accumulated out of our effort to live on self-will and run the show ourselves.  If we haven't the will to do this, we ask until it comes. Remember it was agreed at the beginning we would go to any lengths for victory over alcohol.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 76


Making a list of people I had harmed was not a particularly difficult thing to do. They had showed up in my Fourth Step inventory:  people towards whom I had resentments, real or imagined, and whom I had hurt by acts of retaliation. For my recovery to be thorough, I believed it was not important for those who had legitimately harmed me to make amends to me. What is important in my relationship with God is that I stand before Him, knowing I have done what I can to repair the damage I have done.

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

Humility for the Fellowship, Too

We of A.A. sometimes brag of the virtues of our Fellowship. Let us remember that few of these are actually earned virtues. We were forced into them, to begin with, by the cruel lash of alcoholism. We finally adopted them, not because we wished to, but because we had to.
Then, as time confirmed the seeming rightness of our basic principles, we began to conform because it was right to do so. Some of us, notably myself, conformed even then with reluctance. But at last we came to a point where we stood willing to conform gladly to the principles which experience, under the grace of God, had taught us.


A.A. COMES OF AGE, p. 224
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

Let no alcoholic say he cannot recover unless he has his family back. His recovery is not dependent upon people. It is dependent upon his relationship with God, however he may define him.

Alcoholics Anonymous  p. 99,100

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

"None of us like to think that we are bodily and mentally different from
others. Our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain
attempts to prove that we could drink like other people. This delusion that we are like other people has to be smashed. It has been definitely proved that no real alcoholic has ever recovered contrl. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better. There is no such thing as making a normal drinker out of an alcoholic." Am I convinced that I can never drink again normally?

Meditation for the Day

We should have life and have it more abundantly spiritual, mental, physical, abundant life-joyous, powerful life. This we can have if we follow the right way. Not all people will accept from God the gift of an abundant life, a gift held out free to all. Not all people care to stretch out a hand and take it. God's gift, the richest He has to offer, is the precious gift of abundant life. People often turn away from it, reject it, and will have none of it. Do not let this be true of you.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may hasten to accept the gift of abundant spiritual life. I
pray that I my live the good life to the best of my ability.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012