admin
09-21-2008, 08:17 AM
Wisdom for Today
Early in my recovery process I was frequently tempted to put myself in high-risk situations. I wanted to see old friends. I was lonely. I wanted to have a good time. I was bored. I would get angry, or I would find myself living in the pain. I even found myself making things worse and sabotaging my recovery. I would relapse back into old behaviors. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that just because I stopped drinking and using did not mean I was cured. I was still behaving like an alcoholic and an addict.
I also had a lot of evidence that I could not trust my judgment. I was impulsive and always wanted to act without thinking things through. In times like this I needed others that I could trust to help me. I needed help to make healthy decisions. I found this help at meetings. I was my own worst enemy, and it would take time to learn how to be my own friend. I had to learn to truly care for myself. Being honest and talking about what was really going on in my life at meetings did help me to learn the things that did not come naturally to me. Am I willing to be honest and ask for help when I need it?
Meditations for the Heart
Being very self-centered makes it hard to ask others for help. I perceived this as a sign of weakness. Asking for help meant I was not successful in managing my own life. I had to admit that my life was unmanageable. Then my sponsor asked me a question, “ If you cut yourself, would you stitch yourself up; or would you go to the emergency room?” His question was valid. I certainly would not do something I didn’t know how to do, and I certainly didn’t know how to stay clean and sober. I needed help, and I had to ask for help when I needed it. Fortunately God put people in my life that I could turn to for help. I learned from those who had a few more twenty-four hours than I did. I got the guidance I needed. Am I too proud to ask for help when I need it?
Petitions to my Higher Power
God,
Today let me be humble and not proud and arrogant. Let me be willing to ask for help when I need it. Give me the courage to do the footwork necessary to change the things I can. Help me learn how to really care for myself and make healthy decisions.
Amen.
-----
NA Just For Today
Prayer
"Prayer takes practice, and we should remind ourselves that skilled people were not born with their skills."
Basic Text, p.45
Many of us came into recovery with no experience in prayer and worried about not knowing the "right words!" Some of us remembered the words we'd learned in childhood but weren't sure we believed in those words anymore. Whatever our background, in recovery we struggled to find words that spoke truly from our hearts.
Often the first prayer we attempt Is a simple request to our Higher Power asking for help in staying clean each day. We may ask for guidance and courage or simply pray for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry that out. If we find ourselves stumbling in our prayers, we may ask other members to share with us about how they learned to pray. No matter whether we pray in need or pray in joy, the important thing is to keep making the effort.
Our prayers will be shaped by our experience with the Twelve Steps and our personal understanding of a Higher Power. As our relationship with that Higher Power develops, we become more comfortable with prayer. In time, prayer becomes a source of strength and comfort. We seek that source often and willingly.
Just for today: I know that prayer can be simple. I will start where I am and practice.
pg. 275
-----
September 21 - Daily Feast
Can there be anything more beautiful than the seasons of a tree? A tree stands in beauty from year to year and keeps its grace and dignity. Its secrets are at its center and it tells nothing of people and their passing events. We learn when we watch a tree. It constantly prunes itself, continually sheds any excess. When it is growing in a difficult place it sends down deep roots to grapple for a firm footing. Every leaf is unique and beautiful - but they also serve to remove toxic poisons from the atmosphere, and send out a clean fragrance to shade us from heat. To sit beneath a tree, or to lie on the earth beneath an oak is the essence of pleasure. But to see the topmost leaves that no human hand has ever touched is to see a common miracle - a miracle with a message that says to get a firm footing in everything that is good and stand tall with our eye on the sky.
~ It may be that some little root of the sacred tree still lives. ~
BLACK ELK
"A Cherokee Feast of Days" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler
*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*
Elder's Meditation of the Day - September 21
"Everything is laid out for you. Your path is straight ahead of you. Sometimes it's invisible but it's there. You may not know where it's going, but still you have to follow that path. It's the path to the Creator. That's the only path there is."
--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA
Everything on the earth has a purpose and a reason for its existence. Every human being is a warrior and every warrior has a song written in his/her heart and that song must be sung or the soul forever remains restless. This song is always about serving the Great Spirit and helping the people. This song is always sung for the people. Many times I need to learn much about the difficulties of life. I need to know this, so I must experience it. Then I can be of use to the people. Because I am experiencing difficulty does not mean I have left the path or that I have done something wrong. It means I'm doing the will of the Great Spirit during these times of testing. I need to pray constantly to keep a good attitude.
Great Spirit, this I know - You will never leave me, only my doubting makes it seem like You do. This I know - Your love is always dependable, only my doubting makes it seem like You do. Today remove the doubts from my belief system and allow me to stand straight and see You with straight eyes.
*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*
THINK ON THESE THINGS
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler
The first day of fall brings with it the promise of quiet and peace. A stillness permeates the woods and about the only sounds are woodpeckers drumming on a hollow tree and blue jays squawking at squirrels they cannot tolerate. A sweet peace that connects with us and helps us relax.
The hills are rose-beige and rounded on top with horses grazing quietly along the sides. Deep ravines where water has eroded the dirt are dark marks such as a child would make with a crayon, and most likely have housed a bobcat or two.
This is the season when we do not hunker down and endure but we enjoy to the utmost. The color, the fresh air, the fall fruit and vegetables and smell of earth turned up by the plow. If something is not right, fix it, and don't let this pleasant time go to waste!
-----
Daily Relationship Reading
If someone asked me to carry a 200 lb sack of potatoes for them, what would my first reaction likely be? I'd probably say no, because such a heavy load would be more than I was willing to lift. It would be much easier to say yes however, if the 200 lb. sack were split up into 10 lb. bags. It might take me a bit longer, but certainly it would be more than manageable.
How often do I try to tackle big problems in our relationship the same way? I look at the whole problem, and the weight of it seems overwhelming. Yet if I take the time to break it into smaller parts, I can see that it might take longer to find solutions, but at least it's within my power to handle.
Often I discover there are little things I can do to make small but noticeable changes. Something as simple as a short walk in the fresh air can have a wonderful effect on my perspective. Talking to my SO about one small aspect of the problem - and limiting my talk to that for now - can also produce surprising results. Before I know it, each small step I have taken has brought me further than the biggest leap I could ever make.
Just for Today
Today I'll look at a problem I'm facing, and see how many smaller pieces I can break it into. By handling one small part at a time, I'll have plenty of strength left to deal with the normal challenges of the day, while making at least some progress on a major difficulty. Before I know it, I might be surprised to see all these small steps have taken me to a real solution.
An avalanche can be started with a snowball.
-----
You are reading from the book Food for Thought.
Trusting Gut Reactions
Since we could not trust ourselves where food was concerned, we had trouble trusting ourselves in all aspects of life. We became divided internally and unsure of what we thought or how we felt or how we should act. We may have depended on other people to tell us what we liked, what to do, and how to do it.
It is with a great sense of joy that we become aware of our own individuality and preferences. If we experience a negative gut reaction to a certain person or activity, then we need to examine our reasons for continuing the relationship or activity. We do not have to like everyone, nor do we have to do everything. The sooner we become selective, the more we develop as individuals and the more integrity we possess. If we continually force ourselves to do things, which violate our inner integrity, then we are frustrated and growth is slow.
Gut reactions need to be examined calmly and intelligently. They are there to tell us something about ourselves.
Give me a healthy respect for my gut reactions.
-----
You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
Silently one by one
in the infinite meadows of heaven
Blossomed the lovely stars,
the forget-me-nots of angels.
--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Tales told about the stars reflect a lot about the people who tell them. The constellation now called Orion was once called Hippolyta. Hippolyta was one of the Amazon queens. The Amazons were women warriors who had four leaders instead of one: two older women and two younger women. Everyone could benefit from the experience and wisdom of the older and the strength and vigor of the younger.
After Hippolyta died, they named this constellation for her to honor her and remind themselves of her wisdom and bravery.
We can draw a good lesson from the value the Amazons placed on the contribution each one could make, no matter how young or old. When we remain alert to the possibility of learning from people we hadn't seriously considered as teachers, we are reminded of our often forgotten value to others.
What can I offer in wisdom or strength to others today?
You are reading from the book Touchstones.
He underwent a nine and a half hour operation. On the eighth day his wife picked him up from the hospital and said, "You want to go home?" to which he replied, "No, I want to go to the office." --Herb Goldberg
What is it that drives us men to such extremes in our work? Are we afraid of the intimacy we could develop with those who love us and whom we love? Are we driven to prove over and over that some old painful self-doubt is untrue? Is this how we feel masculine? Or are we trying to control our addictive problems by constant work? Perhaps we still have more to learn about surrender and powerlessness.
It is especially common to recovering men that the excesses of work unconsciously replace the excesses of addiction and codependency. This too is an unhealthy escape. We must confront our relationship to work if we are to continue on our path of spiritual awakening. It is good to have some unplanned, unstructured time in each day.
Today, help me remember that being good at my work is only one of my qualities.
You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Praise and an attitude of gratitude are unbeatable stimulators . . . we increase whatever we extol. --Sylvia Stitt Edwards
What outlook are we carrying forth into the day ahead? Are we feeling fearful about the circumstances confronting us? Do we dread a planned meeting? Are we worried about the welfare of a friend or lover? Whatever our present outlook, its power over the outcome of our day is profound. Our attitude in regard to any situation attracting our attention influences the outcome. Sometimes to our favor, often to our disfavor if our attitude is negative.
Thankfulness toward life guarantees the rewards we desire, the rewards we seek too often from an ungrateful stance. The feeling of gratitude is foreign to many of us. We came to this program feeling worthless, sometimes rejected, frequently depressed. It seemed life had heaped problems in our laps, and so it had. The more we lamented what life "gave us," the more reasons we were given to lament. We got just what we expected. We still get just what we expect. The difference is that the program has offered us the key to higher expectations. Gratitude for the good in our lives increases the good.
I have the personal power to influence my day; I will make it a good one.
You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Letting Go of Urgency
One thing at a time.
That's all we have to do. Not two things at once, but one thing done in peace.
One task at a time. One feeling at a time. One day at a time. One problem at a time. One step at a time.
One pleasure at a time.
Relax. Let go of urgency. Begin calmly now. Take one thing at a time.
See how everything works out?
Today, I will peacefully approach one thing at a time. When in doubt, I will take first things first.
Today I am taking whatever comes in my stride. Today I know I can handle any change, any surprise, anything as long as I remember that my Higher Power is with me and I am never alone. --Ruth Fishel
God help me to stay sober and clean today!
http://www.meditationsforwomen.com/dailys/111146.html
-----
Each day a new beginning
We can never go back again, that much is certain. ~ Daphne DuMaurier
~~ Yesterday is gone, but its experiences will be reflected in those of today. We learned from both the good and the bad situations of yesterday. Where we travel today, likewise, will influence our direction tomorrow. We can't do over what has gone before, but we can positively incorporate all that life is offering us from this moment forth.
We are moving toward greater understanding of life's mysteries with each experience. As today unfolds, we can be moved by the adventures. What we experience is ours alone and will contribute to the unfolding of our special destiny. We move forward, only forward. The doors behind us are closed forever.
Facing what comes to us, with strength, is a gift from this program we share. Letting go of the yesterdays and the last years is another gift offered by this program. And trust that what we face along with what we let go will weave the pattern of our rightful unfolding.... that is the ultimate gift give to us by this program.
............I need never go back again. I am spared that. My destiny lies in the future. And I can be certain it will bring me all that I desire, and more.
Early in my recovery process I was frequently tempted to put myself in high-risk situations. I wanted to see old friends. I was lonely. I wanted to have a good time. I was bored. I would get angry, or I would find myself living in the pain. I even found myself making things worse and sabotaging my recovery. I would relapse back into old behaviors. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that just because I stopped drinking and using did not mean I was cured. I was still behaving like an alcoholic and an addict.
I also had a lot of evidence that I could not trust my judgment. I was impulsive and always wanted to act without thinking things through. In times like this I needed others that I could trust to help me. I needed help to make healthy decisions. I found this help at meetings. I was my own worst enemy, and it would take time to learn how to be my own friend. I had to learn to truly care for myself. Being honest and talking about what was really going on in my life at meetings did help me to learn the things that did not come naturally to me. Am I willing to be honest and ask for help when I need it?
Meditations for the Heart
Being very self-centered makes it hard to ask others for help. I perceived this as a sign of weakness. Asking for help meant I was not successful in managing my own life. I had to admit that my life was unmanageable. Then my sponsor asked me a question, “ If you cut yourself, would you stitch yourself up; or would you go to the emergency room?” His question was valid. I certainly would not do something I didn’t know how to do, and I certainly didn’t know how to stay clean and sober. I needed help, and I had to ask for help when I needed it. Fortunately God put people in my life that I could turn to for help. I learned from those who had a few more twenty-four hours than I did. I got the guidance I needed. Am I too proud to ask for help when I need it?
Petitions to my Higher Power
God,
Today let me be humble and not proud and arrogant. Let me be willing to ask for help when I need it. Give me the courage to do the footwork necessary to change the things I can. Help me learn how to really care for myself and make healthy decisions.
Amen.
-----
NA Just For Today
Prayer
"Prayer takes practice, and we should remind ourselves that skilled people were not born with their skills."
Basic Text, p.45
Many of us came into recovery with no experience in prayer and worried about not knowing the "right words!" Some of us remembered the words we'd learned in childhood but weren't sure we believed in those words anymore. Whatever our background, in recovery we struggled to find words that spoke truly from our hearts.
Often the first prayer we attempt Is a simple request to our Higher Power asking for help in staying clean each day. We may ask for guidance and courage or simply pray for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry that out. If we find ourselves stumbling in our prayers, we may ask other members to share with us about how they learned to pray. No matter whether we pray in need or pray in joy, the important thing is to keep making the effort.
Our prayers will be shaped by our experience with the Twelve Steps and our personal understanding of a Higher Power. As our relationship with that Higher Power develops, we become more comfortable with prayer. In time, prayer becomes a source of strength and comfort. We seek that source often and willingly.
Just for today: I know that prayer can be simple. I will start where I am and practice.
pg. 275
-----
September 21 - Daily Feast
Can there be anything more beautiful than the seasons of a tree? A tree stands in beauty from year to year and keeps its grace and dignity. Its secrets are at its center and it tells nothing of people and their passing events. We learn when we watch a tree. It constantly prunes itself, continually sheds any excess. When it is growing in a difficult place it sends down deep roots to grapple for a firm footing. Every leaf is unique and beautiful - but they also serve to remove toxic poisons from the atmosphere, and send out a clean fragrance to shade us from heat. To sit beneath a tree, or to lie on the earth beneath an oak is the essence of pleasure. But to see the topmost leaves that no human hand has ever touched is to see a common miracle - a miracle with a message that says to get a firm footing in everything that is good and stand tall with our eye on the sky.
~ It may be that some little root of the sacred tree still lives. ~
BLACK ELK
"A Cherokee Feast of Days" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler
*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*
Elder's Meditation of the Day - September 21
"Everything is laid out for you. Your path is straight ahead of you. Sometimes it's invisible but it's there. You may not know where it's going, but still you have to follow that path. It's the path to the Creator. That's the only path there is."
--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA
Everything on the earth has a purpose and a reason for its existence. Every human being is a warrior and every warrior has a song written in his/her heart and that song must be sung or the soul forever remains restless. This song is always about serving the Great Spirit and helping the people. This song is always sung for the people. Many times I need to learn much about the difficulties of life. I need to know this, so I must experience it. Then I can be of use to the people. Because I am experiencing difficulty does not mean I have left the path or that I have done something wrong. It means I'm doing the will of the Great Spirit during these times of testing. I need to pray constantly to keep a good attitude.
Great Spirit, this I know - You will never leave me, only my doubting makes it seem like You do. This I know - Your love is always dependable, only my doubting makes it seem like You do. Today remove the doubts from my belief system and allow me to stand straight and see You with straight eyes.
*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*
THINK ON THESE THINGS
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler
The first day of fall brings with it the promise of quiet and peace. A stillness permeates the woods and about the only sounds are woodpeckers drumming on a hollow tree and blue jays squawking at squirrels they cannot tolerate. A sweet peace that connects with us and helps us relax.
The hills are rose-beige and rounded on top with horses grazing quietly along the sides. Deep ravines where water has eroded the dirt are dark marks such as a child would make with a crayon, and most likely have housed a bobcat or two.
This is the season when we do not hunker down and endure but we enjoy to the utmost. The color, the fresh air, the fall fruit and vegetables and smell of earth turned up by the plow. If something is not right, fix it, and don't let this pleasant time go to waste!
-----
Daily Relationship Reading
If someone asked me to carry a 200 lb sack of potatoes for them, what would my first reaction likely be? I'd probably say no, because such a heavy load would be more than I was willing to lift. It would be much easier to say yes however, if the 200 lb. sack were split up into 10 lb. bags. It might take me a bit longer, but certainly it would be more than manageable.
How often do I try to tackle big problems in our relationship the same way? I look at the whole problem, and the weight of it seems overwhelming. Yet if I take the time to break it into smaller parts, I can see that it might take longer to find solutions, but at least it's within my power to handle.
Often I discover there are little things I can do to make small but noticeable changes. Something as simple as a short walk in the fresh air can have a wonderful effect on my perspective. Talking to my SO about one small aspect of the problem - and limiting my talk to that for now - can also produce surprising results. Before I know it, each small step I have taken has brought me further than the biggest leap I could ever make.
Just for Today
Today I'll look at a problem I'm facing, and see how many smaller pieces I can break it into. By handling one small part at a time, I'll have plenty of strength left to deal with the normal challenges of the day, while making at least some progress on a major difficulty. Before I know it, I might be surprised to see all these small steps have taken me to a real solution.
An avalanche can be started with a snowball.
-----
You are reading from the book Food for Thought.
Trusting Gut Reactions
Since we could not trust ourselves where food was concerned, we had trouble trusting ourselves in all aspects of life. We became divided internally and unsure of what we thought or how we felt or how we should act. We may have depended on other people to tell us what we liked, what to do, and how to do it.
It is with a great sense of joy that we become aware of our own individuality and preferences. If we experience a negative gut reaction to a certain person or activity, then we need to examine our reasons for continuing the relationship or activity. We do not have to like everyone, nor do we have to do everything. The sooner we become selective, the more we develop as individuals and the more integrity we possess. If we continually force ourselves to do things, which violate our inner integrity, then we are frustrated and growth is slow.
Gut reactions need to be examined calmly and intelligently. They are there to tell us something about ourselves.
Give me a healthy respect for my gut reactions.
-----
You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
Silently one by one
in the infinite meadows of heaven
Blossomed the lovely stars,
the forget-me-nots of angels.
--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Tales told about the stars reflect a lot about the people who tell them. The constellation now called Orion was once called Hippolyta. Hippolyta was one of the Amazon queens. The Amazons were women warriors who had four leaders instead of one: two older women and two younger women. Everyone could benefit from the experience and wisdom of the older and the strength and vigor of the younger.
After Hippolyta died, they named this constellation for her to honor her and remind themselves of her wisdom and bravery.
We can draw a good lesson from the value the Amazons placed on the contribution each one could make, no matter how young or old. When we remain alert to the possibility of learning from people we hadn't seriously considered as teachers, we are reminded of our often forgotten value to others.
What can I offer in wisdom or strength to others today?
You are reading from the book Touchstones.
He underwent a nine and a half hour operation. On the eighth day his wife picked him up from the hospital and said, "You want to go home?" to which he replied, "No, I want to go to the office." --Herb Goldberg
What is it that drives us men to such extremes in our work? Are we afraid of the intimacy we could develop with those who love us and whom we love? Are we driven to prove over and over that some old painful self-doubt is untrue? Is this how we feel masculine? Or are we trying to control our addictive problems by constant work? Perhaps we still have more to learn about surrender and powerlessness.
It is especially common to recovering men that the excesses of work unconsciously replace the excesses of addiction and codependency. This too is an unhealthy escape. We must confront our relationship to work if we are to continue on our path of spiritual awakening. It is good to have some unplanned, unstructured time in each day.
Today, help me remember that being good at my work is only one of my qualities.
You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Praise and an attitude of gratitude are unbeatable stimulators . . . we increase whatever we extol. --Sylvia Stitt Edwards
What outlook are we carrying forth into the day ahead? Are we feeling fearful about the circumstances confronting us? Do we dread a planned meeting? Are we worried about the welfare of a friend or lover? Whatever our present outlook, its power over the outcome of our day is profound. Our attitude in regard to any situation attracting our attention influences the outcome. Sometimes to our favor, often to our disfavor if our attitude is negative.
Thankfulness toward life guarantees the rewards we desire, the rewards we seek too often from an ungrateful stance. The feeling of gratitude is foreign to many of us. We came to this program feeling worthless, sometimes rejected, frequently depressed. It seemed life had heaped problems in our laps, and so it had. The more we lamented what life "gave us," the more reasons we were given to lament. We got just what we expected. We still get just what we expect. The difference is that the program has offered us the key to higher expectations. Gratitude for the good in our lives increases the good.
I have the personal power to influence my day; I will make it a good one.
You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Letting Go of Urgency
One thing at a time.
That's all we have to do. Not two things at once, but one thing done in peace.
One task at a time. One feeling at a time. One day at a time. One problem at a time. One step at a time.
One pleasure at a time.
Relax. Let go of urgency. Begin calmly now. Take one thing at a time.
See how everything works out?
Today, I will peacefully approach one thing at a time. When in doubt, I will take first things first.
Today I am taking whatever comes in my stride. Today I know I can handle any change, any surprise, anything as long as I remember that my Higher Power is with me and I am never alone. --Ruth Fishel
God help me to stay sober and clean today!
http://www.meditationsforwomen.com/dailys/111146.html
-----
Each day a new beginning
We can never go back again, that much is certain. ~ Daphne DuMaurier
~~ Yesterday is gone, but its experiences will be reflected in those of today. We learned from both the good and the bad situations of yesterday. Where we travel today, likewise, will influence our direction tomorrow. We can't do over what has gone before, but we can positively incorporate all that life is offering us from this moment forth.
We are moving toward greater understanding of life's mysteries with each experience. As today unfolds, we can be moved by the adventures. What we experience is ours alone and will contribute to the unfolding of our special destiny. We move forward, only forward. The doors behind us are closed forever.
Facing what comes to us, with strength, is a gift from this program we share. Letting go of the yesterdays and the last years is another gift offered by this program. And trust that what we face along with what we let go will weave the pattern of our rightful unfolding.... that is the ultimate gift give to us by this program.
............I need never go back again. I am spared that. My destiny lies in the future. And I can be certain it will bring me all that I desire, and more.