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06-15-2006, 03:35 PM
Daily Reflections
OPEN-MINDEDNESS
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.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 7
Open-mindedness to concepts of a Higher Power can open doors
to the spirit. Often I find the human spirit in various dogmas
and faiths. I can be spiritual in the sharing of myself. The
sharing of self joins me to the human race and brings me closer
to God, as I understand Him.
************************************************** *********
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
But even faith is not the whole story. There must be service.
We must give this thing away if we want to keep it. The Dead
Sea has no outlet and it is stagnant and full of salt. The Sea
of Galilee is clear and clean and blue, as the Jordan River
carries it out to irrigate the desert. To be of service to
other people makes our lives worth living. Does service to
others give me a real purpose in life?
Meditation For The Day
Seek God early in the day, before He gets crowded out by life's
problems, difficulties, or pleasures. In that early quiet time
gain a calm, strong confidence in the goodness and purpose in
the universe. Do not seek God only when the world's struggles
prove too much and too many for you to bear or face alone.
Seek God early, when you can have a consciousness of God's
spirit in the world. People often only seek God when their
difficulties are too great to be surmounted in any other way,
forgetting that if they sought God's companionship before
they need it, many of their difficulties would never arise.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may not let God be crowded out by the hurly-burly
of life. I pray that I may seek God early and often.
************************************************** *********
As Bill Sees It
Money--Before and After, p. 177
In our drinking time, we acted as if the money supply were inexhaustible, though between
binges we'd sometimes go to the other extreme and become miserly. Without realizing it,
we were just accumulating funds for the next spree. Money was the symbol of pleasure
and self-importance. As our drinking became worse, money was only an urgent
requirement which could supply us with the next drink and the temporary comfort of
oblivion it brought.
<< << << >> >> >>
Although financial recovery is on the way for many of us, we find we cannot place
money first. For us, material well-being always follows spiritual progress; it never
precedes.
1. 12 & 12, p. 120
2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 127
************************************************** *********
Walk In Dry Places
Solving our common problem
Recovery
Twelve Step programs bring together people who admit certain behaviors that society often views with pity or contempt. Some of these behaviors, such as alcoholism and gambling, are heavily stigmatized.
Though we often talk about "our common problem", the thing we have most in common with each other is that we're human beings who share the human condition. No one is really immune from the similar problems that beset us.
That's why somebody once remarked, only in half-jest, that "alcoholics are like normal people, only more so." We have to remember that the people around us are no different from us in that they are subject to such feelings as pride, resentment, self-pity, and discouragement.
Our common problem is really that we're human beings who need a spiritual life in order to become our true selves. This can turn a problem into a new life if we accept the program.
Today I'll look upon all people with understanding and acceptance. Everyone shares the same feelings that drive me, and everyone deserves my warmth and understanding.
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
The Housewife Who Drank At Home
She hid her bottles in clothes hampers and dresser drawers. In A.A., she discovered she had lost nothing and had found everything.
I never knew which came first, the thinking or the drinking. If I could only stop thinking, I wouldn't drink. If I could only stop drinking, maybe I wouldn't think. But they were all mixed up together, and I was all mixed up inside. And yet I had to have that drink. You know the deteriorating effects, the disintegrating effects, of chronic wine-drinking. I cared nothing about my personal appearance. I didn't care what I looked like; I didn't care what I did. To me, taking a bath was just being in a place with a bottle where I could drink in privacy. I had to have ti with me at night, in case I woke up and needed that drink.
p. 297
************************************************** *********
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Tradition One - "Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. Unity."
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.
p. 131
************************************************** *********
"The secret of self-confidence and courage hinges on the kind of
thoughts you think. In the long run, your subconscious will send
up to you what you send down to it. Take charge of your mind and
begin to fill it with healthy thoughts."
--Norman Vincent Peale
Act on God's will, and you will be led to better things.
--SweetyZee
Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he
learned in school.
--Albert Einstein
"Don't talk about what you have done or what you are going to do
--do it and let it speak for itself."
--Martin Vanbee
Thank God For What You Have,
TRUST GOD For What You Need.
If every man would sweep before his own doors, the city would soon be
clean.
-- Italian Proverb
Those who dance are thought to be quite insane by those who cannot
hear music.
-- Maggie Erotokritou
***********************************************
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
LEARNING
"Anyone who stops learning is old,
whether at twenty or eighty.
Anyone who keeps learning stays
young. The greatest thing in life is
to keep your mind young."
--Henry Ford
My life is exciting today because I am learning and creating so much in
recovery. Even things that I thought I understood have a new "ring".
Words, ideas, relationships and the awareness of God are forever
changing - usually for the better.
Sobriety is not boring. It is not stuffy, rigid or restrictive - and
discussions (not arguments) within the fellowship of recovering people
produces fresh insights. Today I am involved in the life of God. I am
creating, healing and forever learning more about the mystery of love.
O Teacher of the Universe, let me seek beyond that which I
understand.
************************************************** *********
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in
Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but
according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1-2
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:43-48
************************************************** *********
Daily Inspiration
Nothing is more important than your own peace of mind and ability to be happy. Lord, help me to remember that I must take care of myself because only then can I care for others.
Confront your problems so they don't gather like weights upon your back. Lord, help me to handle my concerns of today and lay them to rest.
OPEN-MINDEDNESS
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.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 7
Open-mindedness to concepts of a Higher Power can open doors
to the spirit. Often I find the human spirit in various dogmas
and faiths. I can be spiritual in the sharing of myself. The
sharing of self joins me to the human race and brings me closer
to God, as I understand Him.
************************************************** *********
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
But even faith is not the whole story. There must be service.
We must give this thing away if we want to keep it. The Dead
Sea has no outlet and it is stagnant and full of salt. The Sea
of Galilee is clear and clean and blue, as the Jordan River
carries it out to irrigate the desert. To be of service to
other people makes our lives worth living. Does service to
others give me a real purpose in life?
Meditation For The Day
Seek God early in the day, before He gets crowded out by life's
problems, difficulties, or pleasures. In that early quiet time
gain a calm, strong confidence in the goodness and purpose in
the universe. Do not seek God only when the world's struggles
prove too much and too many for you to bear or face alone.
Seek God early, when you can have a consciousness of God's
spirit in the world. People often only seek God when their
difficulties are too great to be surmounted in any other way,
forgetting that if they sought God's companionship before
they need it, many of their difficulties would never arise.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may not let God be crowded out by the hurly-burly
of life. I pray that I may seek God early and often.
************************************************** *********
As Bill Sees It
Money--Before and After, p. 177
In our drinking time, we acted as if the money supply were inexhaustible, though between
binges we'd sometimes go to the other extreme and become miserly. Without realizing it,
we were just accumulating funds for the next spree. Money was the symbol of pleasure
and self-importance. As our drinking became worse, money was only an urgent
requirement which could supply us with the next drink and the temporary comfort of
oblivion it brought.
<< << << >> >> >>
Although financial recovery is on the way for many of us, we find we cannot place
money first. For us, material well-being always follows spiritual progress; it never
precedes.
1. 12 & 12, p. 120
2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 127
************************************************** *********
Walk In Dry Places
Solving our common problem
Recovery
Twelve Step programs bring together people who admit certain behaviors that society often views with pity or contempt. Some of these behaviors, such as alcoholism and gambling, are heavily stigmatized.
Though we often talk about "our common problem", the thing we have most in common with each other is that we're human beings who share the human condition. No one is really immune from the similar problems that beset us.
That's why somebody once remarked, only in half-jest, that "alcoholics are like normal people, only more so." We have to remember that the people around us are no different from us in that they are subject to such feelings as pride, resentment, self-pity, and discouragement.
Our common problem is really that we're human beings who need a spiritual life in order to become our true selves. This can turn a problem into a new life if we accept the program.
Today I'll look upon all people with understanding and acceptance. Everyone shares the same feelings that drive me, and everyone deserves my warmth and understanding.
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
The Housewife Who Drank At Home
She hid her bottles in clothes hampers and dresser drawers. In A.A., she discovered she had lost nothing and had found everything.
I never knew which came first, the thinking or the drinking. If I could only stop thinking, I wouldn't drink. If I could only stop drinking, maybe I wouldn't think. But they were all mixed up together, and I was all mixed up inside. And yet I had to have that drink. You know the deteriorating effects, the disintegrating effects, of chronic wine-drinking. I cared nothing about my personal appearance. I didn't care what I looked like; I didn't care what I did. To me, taking a bath was just being in a place with a bottle where I could drink in privacy. I had to have ti with me at night, in case I woke up and needed that drink.
p. 297
************************************************** *********
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Tradition One - "Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. Unity."
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.
p. 131
************************************************** *********
"The secret of self-confidence and courage hinges on the kind of
thoughts you think. In the long run, your subconscious will send
up to you what you send down to it. Take charge of your mind and
begin to fill it with healthy thoughts."
--Norman Vincent Peale
Act on God's will, and you will be led to better things.
--SweetyZee
Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he
learned in school.
--Albert Einstein
"Don't talk about what you have done or what you are going to do
--do it and let it speak for itself."
--Martin Vanbee
Thank God For What You Have,
TRUST GOD For What You Need.
If every man would sweep before his own doors, the city would soon be
clean.
-- Italian Proverb
Those who dance are thought to be quite insane by those who cannot
hear music.
-- Maggie Erotokritou
***********************************************
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
LEARNING
"Anyone who stops learning is old,
whether at twenty or eighty.
Anyone who keeps learning stays
young. The greatest thing in life is
to keep your mind young."
--Henry Ford
My life is exciting today because I am learning and creating so much in
recovery. Even things that I thought I understood have a new "ring".
Words, ideas, relationships and the awareness of God are forever
changing - usually for the better.
Sobriety is not boring. It is not stuffy, rigid or restrictive - and
discussions (not arguments) within the fellowship of recovering people
produces fresh insights. Today I am involved in the life of God. I am
creating, healing and forever learning more about the mystery of love.
O Teacher of the Universe, let me seek beyond that which I
understand.
************************************************** *********
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in
Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but
according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1-2
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:43-48
************************************************** *********
Daily Inspiration
Nothing is more important than your own peace of mind and ability to be happy. Lord, help me to remember that I must take care of myself because only then can I care for others.
Confront your problems so they don't gather like weights upon your back. Lord, help me to handle my concerns of today and lay them to rest.