Daily Recovery Readings - 8/27

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Daily Reflections

CENTERING OUR THOUGHTS
When World War II broke out, our A.A. dependence on a Higher
Power had its first major test. A.A.'s entered the services and
were scattered all over the world. Would they be able to take the
discipline, stand up under fire, and endure . . . ?
As Bill Sees It, p.200

I will center my thoughts on a Higher Power. I will surrender all to
this power within me. I will become a soldier for this power, feeling
the might of the spiritual army as it exists in my life today. I will
allow a wave of spiritual union to connect me through my
gratitude, obedience and discipline to this Higher Power. Let me allow
this power to lead me through the orders of the day. May the
steps I take today strengthen my words and deeds, may I know
that the message I carry is mine to share, given freely by this power
greater than myself.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

"We must be willing to make amends to all the people we have
harmed. We must do the best we can to repair the damage done in
the past. When we make amends, when we say: ‘I'm sorry,' the
person is sure at least to be impressed by our sincere desire to set
right the wrong. Sometimes people we are making amends to admit
their own faults, so feuds of long standing melt away. Our most
ruthless creditors will sometimes surprise us. In general, we must
be willing to do the right thing, no matter what the consequences
may be for us." Have I made a sincere effort to make amends to
the people I have harmed?

Meditation For The Day

The grace of God cures disharmony and disorder in human
relationships. Directly you put your affairs, with their confusion
and their difficulties, into God's hands. He begins to effect a cure
of all the disharmony and disorder. You can believe that He will cause
you no more pain in the doing of it than a physician that knows
how to effect a cure would cause a patient. You can have faith that
God will do all that is necessary as painlessly as possible. But you
must be willing to submit to His treatment, even if you cannot now
see the meaning or purpose of it.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may willingly submit to whatever spiritual discipline
is necessary. I pray that I may accept whatever it takes to live a
better life.

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As Bill Sees It

"Perfect" Humility, p. 106

For myself, I try to seek out the truest definition of humility that I
can. This will not be the perfect definition, because I shall always be
imperfect.

At this writing, I would choose one like this: "Absolutely humility
would consist of a state of complete freedom from myself, freedom
from all the claims that my defects of character now lay so heavily
upon me. Perfect humility would be a full willingness, in all times and
places, to find and to do the will of God."

When I meditate upon such a vision, I need not be dismayed because I
shall never attain it, nor need I swell with presumption that one of
these days its virtues shall all be mine.

I only need to dwell on the vision itself, letting it grow and ever more
fill my heart. This done, I can compare it with my last-taken personal
inventory. Then I get a sane and healthy idea of where I stand on the
highway to humility. I see that my journey toward God has scarce
begun.

As I thus get down to my right size and stature, my self-concern and
importance become amusing.

Grapevine, June 1961

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Keep It Simple

Things do not change, we do. ---Henry David Thoreau
There are still as many bars as there were when we were drinking. There are still lots of drugs around. The world hasn’t changed. What’s changed is that we now live a different way of life.
We’ve learned that, for us, alcohol and other drugs are poison.
For us, there are now two worlds: the world we left behind, and our new world of recovery. In our old world, we’d try to get everyone else to change. We had the right. In our new world, we look for ways we can change for the better. In our new life, we’re willing to change.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I may be like a mighty river, always changing.
Action for the Day: I will list changes I need to make in my new life.

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Student Of Life

Living at home with her parents, she tried using willpower to beat the obsession to drink. But it wasn't until she met another alcoholic and went to an A.A. meeting that sobriety took hold.

When I discovered alcohol, everything changed. I took my first real drink my first night of college. I attended what was to be the first of many, many fraternity parties. I didn't care for the beer, so I went for the vat of innocuous-looking punch. I was told it was laced with grain alcohol. I don't remember how many drinks I had, and my recollections of the actual events of the rest of the night are fuzzy, but I do remember this much: When I was drinking, I was okay. I understood. Everything made sense. I could dance, talk, and enjoy being in my own skin. It was as if I had been an unfinished jigsaw puzzle with one piece missing; as soon as I took a drink, the last piece instantly and effortlessly snapped into place.

p. 320

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Tradition Seven - "Every A.A. group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions."

There is another story about money. One night in 1948, the trustees of the Foundation were having their quarterly meeting. The agenda discussion included a very important question. A certain lady had died. When her will was read, it was discovered she had left Alcoholics Anonymous in trust with the Alcoholic Foundation a sum of ten thousand dollars. The question was: Should A.A. take the gift?

pp. 163-164

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"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by
people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all."
--Dale Carnegie

Sometimes lack of thought is a very good sign. It means you are totally
relaxed and have control of your mind.
--unknown

Getting the job done requires doing your work, not just talking about
it.
--unknown

When we take things for granted we forget life is a gift.
--unknown

Love is a gift to your self.
--unknown

In quiet meditation I listen to my own Higher Power.
I connect with my personal spirituality in my own time and place.
--Ruth Fishel

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

PURPOSE

"I have never doubted that God
created man for great purposes .
. . "
-- Preston Bradley

I am special today. I know that there is a purpose for my life and that
it is essentially good and creative. I know that beauty is not just in
things that I can see . . . beauty is also in me. Today I affirm my great
purpose in this world . . . to be the best that I can be.

For too many years I gave my God-given power away; I gave it to
alcohol, I gave it to people, I gave it to a belief system that did not
make sense to me. Today I am discovering the power that God has
given to me, and I feel good about myself. Today I reclaim my divinity.

Creator of this wonderful universe, make me an instrument of Your
peace.

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"If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit."
Galatians 5:25

"On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried
out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. "He who
believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow
rivers of living water."
John 7:37-38

"I will praise the name of God with a song, And will magnify Him with
thanksgiving."
Psalm 69:30

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His
own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who
called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."
1 Peter 2:9

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Daily Inspiration

When children speak, listen. They freely share the joys of life that we are often too preoccupied to remember. Lord, help me bring back those qualities that I had as a child that would allow me to be more lighthearted, more playful and more determined to live happy.

Enthusiasm keeps the mind young and the spirit growing. Lord, may I always see wonder in the ordinary happenings of my day.

[admin]

You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
If you have butterflies in your stomach ask them into your heart. --Cooper Edens
We've all had butterflies in our stomachs. It happens on the first day of school or the first day on a new job. It happens most anytime we try something new or risky. These butterflies are nervous and fluttery and sometimes we wish we could just go back to bed.
But the best thing we can do, and sometimes the only thing, is go right ahead and walk into that new situation with head held high. We will probably feel awkward at first, but that is natural and it will pass.
Our nervousness can change into excitement and joy for what we are doing. We can begin to feel proud when we walk through our fear. It is a true accomplishment when we don't let our fear stop us--when, instead, we let the butterfly in our hearts unfold.
When I have the butterflies today, will I enjoy their beauty?


You are reading from the book Touchstones.
One cannot always be a hero, but one can always be a man. --Goethe
In our all or nothing and grandiose lifestyles, many of us have had a lot of experience being heroes and being failures. Until we had achieved some sanity we didn't have much experience with being ordinary, genuine men. Many of us thought there was something fundamentally wrong with us. We tried to be great, and when we failed we felt less than human. Our shame in those experiences seemed to say we would never be normal again.
We are learning that being genuine is far more fulfilling than being great. We no longer have to swing between the opposite extremes of hero and coward. When we become honest with ourselves, we develop an internally respectful relationship with ourselves. That is when we become true men. The courage it has taken for us and others on this journey to become honest is heroic in the deepest sense of the word.
As I find the courage to be honest, I will become more genuine.


You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Acceptance is not submission; it is acknowledgment of the facts of a situation. Then deciding what you're going to do about it. --Kathleen Casey Theisen
Recovery offers us courage to make choices about the events of our lives. Passive compliance with whatever is occurring need no longer dominate our pattern of behavior. Powerlessly watching our lives go by was common for many of us, and our feelings of powerlessness escalated the more idle we were.
Today, action is called for, thoughtful action in response to the situations begging for our attention. Recovery's greatest gift is the courage to take action, to make decisions that will benefit us as well as the people who are close to us. Courage is the byproduct of our spiritual progress, courage to accept what we cannot change, believing that all will be well, courage to change in ourselves what we do have control over.
An exhilaration about life accompanies the taking of action. The spell that idleness casts over us is broken, and subsequent actions are even easier to take. Clearly, making a choice and acting on it is healthful. The program has given us the tools to do both.
Decisions will be called for today. I will be patient with myself, and thoughtful. I will listen closely to the guidance that comes from those around me.


You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Procrastination
Procrastination - not acting when the time is right - is a self-defeating behavior. It produces anxiety, guilt, disharmony, and a nagging consciousness of the task that life is telling us it's time to do.
We are not always procrastinating when we put off doing something. Sometimes, doing a thing before the time is right can be as self-defeating as waiting too long.
We can earn to discern the difference. Listen to yourself. Listen to the Universe. What is past due and creating anxiety and prodding within you?
Is there something in your life you are avoiding because you don't want to face it? Is there a building anxiety from putting this off?
Sometimes anger, fear, or feeling helpless can motivate procrastination. Sometimes, procrastination has simply become habitual.
Trust and listen to yourself, your Higher Power, and the Universe. Watch for signs and signals. If it is time to do something, do it now. If it is not yet time, wait until the time is right.
God, help me learn to be on time and in harmony with my life. Help me tune in to and trust Divine Timing and Order.


Today I am discovering who I am. Today I am becoming my person, worthy of developing all of me. Today I am beginning to know that I am okay just the way I am. --Ruth Fishel

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Choosing Life

"Change from self-destructive patterns of life became necessary"
Basic Text p.16

Active addiction is a smoldering death-wish. Each of us courted death every time we used. Our lifestyles, too, put us at risk. The life of an addict is sold cheaply with every day and every dose.

In recovery, the first pattern we change is the pattern of using. Staying clean is the start of our journey into life. But our self-destructive behavior usually went far deeper than just our using. Even in recovery, we may still treat ourselves as if we are worthless. When we treat ourselves badly, we feel badly. And when we feel badly, we seek relief-maybe even in our old solution, drugs.

Choosing recovery means choosing life. We decide each day that we want to live and be free. Each time we avoid self-destructive behavior, we choose recovery.

Just for today: I will choose life by choosing recovery. I will take care of myself.

[admin]

Wisdom for Today
When I was most action in my addiction to alcohol and drugs, I would joke around and tell others and myself that I liked being “abnormal.” Being normal was not something I desired. This was a part of my own denial and dishonesty with myself. As my disease progresses I became more and more abnormal. It became quite frightening.

When I started the recovery process, not drinking or using seemed abnormal to me. As time went by recovery began to seem more and more normal to me. I began to enjoy life, even when there were bumps in the road. I found a healthy humility that provided me with courage and wisdom I did not know I had. Do I believe that being “normal” is okay?
Meditations for the Heart
In recovery I have been given many gifts. I have also experienced some difficult situations. Over time I have learned that all things I experience in life are for me to draw in closer contact with my Higher Power. When I experience the good things in life and receive the “gifts” of recovery, I need to have gratitude for the Grace that my Higher Power has offered me. When I am walking through great struggles, and there are those, I need to know that my Higher Power is right there with me each step of the way. In these times He provides me with strength, courage, and wisdom. The very things I need most in my struggle. Do I live life as an example to others? Do I express gratitude for the help I receive?
Petitions to my Higher Power
God,

Sometimes I forget to be grateful for all that you have done in my life. I know that I would not even be in this world had you not protected me from myself. Let me be reminded of all that you do in my life today. Help me to trust that you will continue to help me when I need it.

Amen

[admin]

You are reading from the book Food for Thought.

Accepting Reality

Failure, death, divorce, disease, and betrayal - these are all part of the world we live in. We agonizingly search our minds to figure out why, but are unable to come up with any satisfying answers. We pray for the serenity to accept the reality of life.

Previously, we tried to deny reality by overeating. What that did was make reality worse for us. Abstaining from compulsive overeating and working the steps of the OA program give us the strength to cope with reality and accept the things we cannot change. We often feel as though we are on a long uphill climb. Let's not forget that if it were not for abstinence and our Higher Power, we would be rapidly sliding downhill.

Whatever our situation, it is better to face it squarely than to delude ourselves with excess food. None of us escapes pain and suffering. By turning them over to our Higher Power, we are strengthened by our hardships, rather than destroyed.

May we have the courage and strength to accept life as it is.

[admin]

Finding our Real Selves
Building Self-esteem
Many of us sold ourselves short while we were drinking. We wanted approval and
acceptance, but often felt unworthy of it, even accepting the unfavorable
opinions others had toward us. We resented such opinions, but secretly feared that our critics were right.
In the Twelve Step program, however, we discover a higher and better self
that hadn't found expression during active drinking. We no longer have to impress anybody, we no longer need applause, and we no longer crave the false camaraderie that passes for friendship among problem drinkers. We can, in many ways, become new people.
When we experience such change and growth, we may come to wonder how we
ever could have been so deluded by the sick self of our drinking years. We feel relief when we realize that we no longer have to live and think that way.... if we continue in the program and make sobriety our highest priority. We will realize too that the self we find in sobriety is the
real self.... a person who was there all along but was crowded out and suppressed by
the demands of our sick nature. This real self is what we were created to be, and sobriety brought its discovery.
................... I'll go about my affairs today knowing that my real self is what God wants me to be. Being sober, I can now find answers and opportunities that were beyond my reach when I was still drinking.