Thoughts For The Day~*~ ^*^*^*^*Concepts^*^*^*October 26, 2014

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

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"The word God still aroused a certain antipathy.
When the thought was expressed that there might be a God
personal to me this feeling was intensified.
I didn't like the idea. . .
My friend suggested what then seemed a novel idea.
He said, 'Why don't you choose your own conception of God?'
That statement hit me hard.
It melted the icy intellectual mountain in whose shadow
I had lived and shivered many years.
I stood in the sunlight at last."
Bill W.,
c.1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 12
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Thought to Consider . . .

God seldom becomes a reality
until God becomes a necessity.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
G I F T =  God Is Forever There

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

Force

From "Faith in People":

"In the whole measure of my life, the benefits of the A.A. experience have far outweighed the damages of active alcoholism. What was it that overcame my pride (for the moment) and made me reachable? The best answer I can find is what my father used to call 'the life force.'  It is in all of us, I believe; it animates all living things; it keeps the galaxies wheeling.  New York, New York USA"

1973 AAWS, Inc.; Came to Believe, 30^th printing 2004, pgs. 84-85

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
ONE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY

For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 132

When I am chosen to carry some small responsibility for my fellows, I ask that God grant me the patience, open-minded ness, and willingness to listen to those I would lead.  I must remind myself that I am the trusted servant of others, not their "governor," "teacher," or "instructor."  God guides my words and my actions, and my responsibility is to heed His suggestions.  Trust is my watchword, I trust others who lead.  In the Fellowship of A.A., I entrust God with the ultimate authority of "running the show."

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

As the A.A. groups multiplied, so did anonymity problems. Enthusiastic over the spectacular recovery of a brother alcoholic, we'd sometimes discuss those intimate and harrowing aspects of his case meant for his sponsor's ear alone. The aggrieved victim would then rightly declare that his trust had been broken.
When such stories got into circulation outside of A.A., the loss of confidence in our anonymity promise was severe. It frequently turned people from us. Clearly, every A.A. member's name - and story, too - had to be confidential, if he wished.

<<<>>>

We now fully realize that 100 per cent personal anonymity before the public is just as vital to the life of A.A. as 100 per cent sobriety is to the life of each and every member. This is not the counsel of fear; it is the prudent voice of long experience.

1. TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 185 - 2. A.A COMES OF AGE, p. 293
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"...we have ceased fighting anything or anyone  even alcohol."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 84~

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

Sixth, I have A.A. meetings to go to, thank God.Where would I go without them? Where would I be without them? Where would I find the sympathy, the understanding, the fellowship, the companionship? Nowhere else in the world. I have come home. I have found the place where I belong. I no longer wander alone over the face of the earth. I am at peace and at rest. What a great gift has been given me by A.A.! I do not deserve it. But it is nevertheless mine. I have a home at last. I am content. Do I thank God every day for the A.A. fellowship?

Meditation for the Day

Walk all the way with another person and with God. Do not go part of the way and then stop. Do not push God so far into the background that He has no effect on your life. Walk all the way with Him. Make a good companion of God, by praying to Him often during the day. Do not let your contact with Him be broken for too long a period. Work all the way with God and with other people, along the path of life, wherever it may lead you.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may walk in companionship with God along the way. I pray that I may keep my feet upon the path that leads upward.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~The Group ^*^*^*^*^October 25, 2014

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~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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The Group
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"Over the years, every conceivable deviation
from our Twelve Steps and Traditions have been tried.
That was sure to be, since we are so largely a band
of ego-driven individuals.
Children of chaos, we have defiantly played with
every brand of fire,
only to emerge unharmed and, we think, wiser.
These very deviations created a vast process
of trial and error, which, under the grace of God,
has brought us to where we stand today. . .
We saw that the group, exactly like the individual,
must eventually conform to whatever
tested principles would guarantee survival."
c.1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 146
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Thought to Consider . . .

Working with alcoholics in committees
is like trying to herd cats.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C H A O S  =  Can't Handle Another Overwhelming Situation

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

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"When they heard that the book was making money, some of the cash subscribers, including even Charlie Towns, began to get restless. They wanted to know why all of the profits of the book were being spent to finance a Headquarters for A.A. We replied that there was not any other way; would they like to see all those pleas for help thrown in the wastebasket? But a few still insisted on getting their money back, and something had to be done.

"Therefore Ruth and I set about making Works Publishing's first report to its stockholders. We outlined the history of the book project and painted a rosy picture for the future. From the mass of check stubs, old bills, and receipts we made an approximate accounting. As I remember, the publishing company had shown a profit of about $3,000, which had all been spent on A.A. work at the office."

2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 188

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
A.A.'s HEARTBEAT

Without unity, the heart of A.A. would cease to beat; . . .

AS BILL SEES IT, p. 125

Without unity I would be unable to recover in A.A. on a daily basis.  By practicing unity within my group, with other A.A. members and at all levels of this great Fellowship, I receive a pronounced feeling of knowing that I am a part of a miracle that was divinely inspired.  The ability of Bill W. and Dr. Bob, working together and passing it on to other members, tells me that to give it away is to keep it.  Unity is oneness and yet the whole Fellowship is for all of us.

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

Even the newest of newcomers finds undreamed rewards
as he tries to help his brother alcoholic, the one
who is even blinder than he.
This is indeed the kind of giving that actually demands nothing.
He does not expect his brother sufferer to pay him,
or even to love him.  And then he discovers that through
the divine paradox of this kind of giving
he has found his own reward, whether or not his brother
has yet received anything. His own character may still
be gravely defective, but he somehow knows that God
has enabled him to make a mighty beginning,
and he senses that he stands at the edge of new mysteries, joys, and experiences of which he had never before dreamed.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, pp. 109-110
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"We have begun to comprehend their futility and their fatality. We
have commenced to see their terrible destructiveness. We have begun
to learn tolerance, patience and good will toward all men, even our
enemies, for we look on them as sick people."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, Pg. 70~

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

Fifth, I have learned to live one day at a time. I have finally realized the great fact that all I have is now. This sweeps away all vain regret and it makes my thoughts of the future free of fear. Now is mine. I can do what I want with it. I own it, for better or worse. What I do now, in this present moment, is what makes up my life. My whole life is only a succession of nows. I will take this moment, which has been given to me by the grace of God, and I will do something with it. What I do with each now will make me or break me. Am I living in the now?

Meditation for the Day

We should work at overcoming ourselves, our selfish desires and our self-centeredness. This can never be fully accomplished. We can never become entirely unselfish. But we can come to realize that we are not at the center of the universe and that everything does not revolve around us at the center. I am only one cell in a vast network of human cells. I can at least make the effort to conquer the self-life and seek daily to obtain more and more of this self-conquest. "He that overcomes himself is greater than he who conquers a city."

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may strive to overcome my selfishness. I pray that I may achieve the right perspective of my position in the world.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Traditions ^*^*^*^*^ October 24, 2014

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~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Traditions
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"The Twelve Traditions point straight at many of our
individual defects.
By implication they ask each of us to lay aside
pride and resentment.
They ask for personal as well as group sacrifice.
They ask us never to use the AA name in any quest
for personal power or distinction or money.
The Traditions guarantee the equality of all members
and the independence of all groups.
They show how we may best relate to each other
and to the world outside.
They indicate how we can best function in harmony
as a great whole."
c.1957AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, p. 96
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Thought to Consider . . .

AA is not something you join, it's a way of life.

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

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

How to Live

From: "Stars Don't Fall"  

AA taught me how not to drink. And also, on the twenty-four hour plan, it taught me how to live. I know I do not have to be queen of them all to salve a frightened ego. Through going to meetings and listening, and occasionally speaking, through doing Twelve Step work, whereby in helping others you are both the teacher and the student, by making many wonderful AA friends, I have been taught all the things in life that are worth having. I am no longer interested in living in a palace, because palace living was not the answer for me. Nor were those impossible dreams I used to have the things I really wanted.  

2003, AAWS, Inc., Experience, Strength & Hope, pages 362-363

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
"BY FAITH AND BY WORKS"

On anvils of experience, the structure of our Society was hammered out. . . . Thus has it been with A.A.   By faith and by works we have been able to build upon the lessons of an incredible experience.  They live today in the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, which  -- God willing -- shall sustain us in unity for so long as He may need us.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 131

God has allowed me the right to be wrong in order for our Fellowship to exist as it does today.  If I place God's will first in my life, it is very likely that A.A. as I know it today will remain as it is.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
A Vision of the Whole

"Though many of us have had to struggle for sobriety, never yet has this Fellowship had to struggle for lost unity. Consequently, we sometimes take this one great gift for granted. We forget that, should we lose our unity, the millions of alcoholics who still 'do not know' might never get their chance."

<<<>>>

"We used to be skeptical about large A.A. gatherings like conventions, thinking they might prove too exhibitionistic. But, on balance, their benefit is huge. While each A.A.'s interest should center principally in those about him and upon his own group, it is both necessary and desirable that we all get a larger vision of the whole.
"The General Service Conference in New York also produces this effect upon those who attend. It is a vision-stretching process."

1. LETTER, 1949 - 2. LETTER, 1956
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Life will take on new meaning. To watch people recover, to see them
help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up
about you, to have a host of friends this is an experience you
must not miss."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 89~

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

Fourth, I have turned to a Power greater than myself. Thank God, I am no longer at the center of the universe. All the world does not revolve around me any longer. I am only one among many. I have a Father in heaven and I am only one of His children and a small one at that. But I can depend on Him to show me what to do and to give me the strength to do it. I am on the Way and the whole power of the universe is behind me when I do the right thing. I do not have to depend entirely on myself any longer. With God, I can face anything. Is my life in the hands of God?

Meditation for the Day

The grace of God is an assurance against all evil. It holds out security to the believing soul. The grace of God means safety in the midst of evil. You can be kept unspotted by the world through the power of His grace. You can have a new life of power. But only in close contact with the grace of God is its power realized. In order to renew it and benefit from it, you must have daily quiet communion with God, so that the power of His grace will come unhindered into your soul.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be kept from evil by the grace of God. I pray that henceforth I will try to keep myself more unspotted by the world.

Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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Thoughts For The Day~*~Discipline ^*^*^*^*^October 23, 2014

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~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Discipline
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"Unless each AA member follows to the best of his ability
our suggested Twelve Steps to recovery,
he almost certainly signs his own death warrant.
His drunkenness and dissolution
are not penalties inflicted by people in authority;
they result from his personal disobedience
to spiritual principles. . .
Great suffering and great love are AA's disciplinarians;
we need no others."
c.1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 174
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Thought to Consider . . .
"We alcoholics are undisciplined. 
So we let God discipline us . . ."

*~*~*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!^*~*~*~*~*

No Spiritual Angle

From: "AA and St. Thomas Hospital"

  In later years, the AA ward opened into the gallery of the chapel, which patients could visit at any time in hospital attire. What could be more conducive to the regeneration of the whole person spiritually, mentally, and morally than five to seven days spent in an institution where the spiritual atmosphere prevails? Sister Ignatia said. 

She naturally put more emphasis on the spiritual than many others. However, she felt that Dr. Bob shared her views on this emphasis. There was one thing that always irritated Doctor, she said. Some people who were on the program for a length of time would come up to him and say, I don't get the spiritual angle. I heard him say time and again, There is no spiritual angle. It's a spiritual program.

1980, AAWS, Inc., DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, page 194

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
WHAT WE KNOW BEST

"Shoemaker, stick to thy last!" . . . better do one thing supremely well than many badly. That is the central theme of this Tradition [Five].  Around it our Society gathers in unity.  The very life of our Fellowship requires the preservation of this principle.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 150

The survival of A.A. depends upon unity.  What would happen if a group decided to become an employment agency, a treatment center or a social service agency?  Too much specialization leads to no specialization, to frittering of efforts and, finally, to decline.  I have the qualifications to share my sufferings and my way of recovery with the newcomer.  Conformity to A.A.'s primary purpose insures the safety of the wonderful gift of sobriety, so my responsibility is enormous.  The life of millions of alcoholics is closely tied to my competence in "carrying the message to the still-suffering alcoholic."

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

Often, as we review each day, only the closest scrutiny will reveal what our true motives were. There are cases where our ancient enemy rationalization has stepped in and has justified conduct which was really wrong. The temptation here is to imagine that we had good motives and reasons when we really hadn't.
We "constructively criticized" someone who needed it, when our real motive was to win a useless argument. Or, the person concerned not being present, we thought we were helping others to understand him, when in actuality our true motive was to feel superior by pulling him down.
We hurt those we loved because they needed to be "taught a lesson," but we really wanted to punish. We were depressed and complained we felt bad, when in fact we were mainly asking for sympathy and attention.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 94
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"...the actual or potential alcoholic, with hardly an exception,
will be absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self
knowledge. This is a point we wish to emphasize and re-emphasize, to
smash home upon our alcoholic readers as it has been revealed to us
out of bitter experience."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, pg. 39~

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

Third, I have learned how to be honest. What a relies No more ducking or dodging. No more tall tales. No more pretending to be what I am not. My cards are on the table for all the world to see. "I am what I am," as Popeye used to say in the comics. I have had an unsavory past. I am sorry, yet. But it cannot be changed now. All that is yesterday and is done. But now my life is an open book. Come and look at it, if you want to. I'm trying to do the best I can. I will fail often, but I won't make excuses. I will face things as they are and not run away. Am I really honest?

Meditation for the Day

Though it may seem a paradox, we must believe in spiritual forces which we cannot see more than in material things which we can see, if we are going to truly live. In the last analysis, the universe consists more of thought or mathematical formulas than it does of matter as we understand it. Between one human being and another only spiritual forces will suffice to keep them in harmony. These spiritual forces we know, because we can see their results although we cannot see them. A changed life-a new personality-results from the power of unseen spiritual forces working in us and through us.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may believe in the Unseen. I pray that I may be convinced by the results of the Unseen which I do see.
Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012

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