Daily Recovery Readings - 6/13

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Daily Reflections

LIVING OUR AMENDS

"Years of living with an alcoholic is almost sure to make any
wife or child neurotic. The entire family is to some extent,
ill."
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 122

It is important for me to realize that, as an alcoholic, I not
only hurt myself, but also those around me. Making amends to
my family, and to the families of alcoholics still suffering,
will always be important. Understanding the havoc I created
and trying to repair the destruction, will be a lifelong
endeavor. The example of my sobriety may give others hope,
and faith to help themselves.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

In A.A. we have to reeducate our minds. We have to learn to
think differently. We have to take a long view of drinking
instead of a short view. We have to look through the glass
to what lies beyond it. We have to look through the night
before to the morning after. No matter how good liquor looks
from the short view, we must realize that in the long run it
is poison to us. Have I learned to look through the bottle
to the better life that lies ahead?

Meditation For The Day

If you are honestly trying to live the way you believe God
wants you to live, you can get guidance from God in times of
quiet communion with Him, provided your thoughts are directed
toward God's will and all good things. The attitude of
"Thy will, not mine, be done' leads to clear guidance. Act on
this guidance and you will be led to better things. Your
impulses seem to become less your own and more the leading of
God's spirit acting through your thoughts. Obeyed, they will
bring you the answers to your prayers.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may try to think God's thoughts after Him. I
pray that my thoughts may be guided by His thoughts.

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As Bill Sees It

Community Problem, p. 180

The answer to the problem of alcoholism seems to be in education--education in
schoolrooms, in medical colleges, among clergymen and employers, in families, and in the
public at large. From cradle to grave, the drunk and the potential alcoholic will have to
be completely surrounded by a true and deep understanding and by a continuous barrage
of information.

This means factual education, properly presented. Heretofore, much of this education
has attacked the immortality of drinking rather than the illness of alcoholism.

Now who is going to do all this education? Obviously, it is both a community job and a job
for specialists. Individually, we A.A.'s can help, but A.A. as such cannot, and should not,
get directly into this field. Therefore, we must rely on other agencies, on outside friends
and their willingness to supply great amounts of money and effort.

Grapevine, March 1958

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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 had problems. We all have them, and I thought a little brandy or a little wine now and then could certainly hurt no one. I don't believe, when I started, that I even had in mind the thought that I was drinking. I had to sleep, I had to clear my mind and free it from worry, and I had to relax. But from one or two drinks of an afternoon or evening, my intake mounted, and mounted fast. It wasn't long before I was drinking all day. I had to have that wine. The only incentive that I had, toward the end, for getting dressed in the morning was to get out and get "supplies" to help me get my day started. But the only thing that got started was my drinking.

p. 296

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Tradition One - "Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. Unity."

Those who look closely soon have the key to this strange paradox. The A.A. member has to conform to the principles of recovery. His life actually depends upon obedience to spiritual principles. If he deviates too far, the penalty is sure and swift; he sickens and dies. At first he goes along because he must, but later he discovers a way of life he really wants to live. Moreover, he finds he cannot keep this priceless gift unless he gives it away. Neither he nor anybody else can survive unless he carries the A.A. message. The moment this Twelfth Step work forms a group, another discovery is made - that most individuals cannot recover unless there is a group. Realization dawns that he is but a small part of a great whole; that no personal sacrifice is too great for preservation of the Fellowship. He learns that the clamor of desires and ambitions within him must be silenced whenever these could damage the group. It becomes plain that the group must survive or the individual will not.

p. 130

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A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
--unknown

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of
comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
--Martin Luther King, Jr.

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through
experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision
cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved.
--Helen Keller

Laughter is God's sunshine.
--Anonymous

"A fear faced is a fear erased."
--unknown

When we step off the path it is up to us to step back on it.
--SweetyZee

Faith can take us to a place beyond time and space where God dwells.
--SweetyZee

Faith relieves worry and cares, brings peace and harmony, gives us all
the strength we need.
--SweetyZee

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

WORLD

"We are citizens of the world; and
the tragedy of our time is that we
do not know this."
--Woodrow Wilson

In recovery I have learned to "go home" to who I am - and part of this
involves my understanding my place in this vast universe. I am a child
of God and my "family" is not just my immediate blood relatives, but
also the millions of other people that inhabit this planet.

God did not just make me. God does not just love me. God is
concerned for all His children. As an alcoholic I did not have this
attitude and I was always feeling lost and different. I became selfish
and narrow in my lifestyle. Other people were tolerated.

Today I have a "big" God and He has enabled me to grow not only in
my acceptance of self but also in my acceptance of others. Today I am
a citizen of the world and it feels good.

Lord, today I know what it is to belong to the human family. And with
this awareness comes responsibility.

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"Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a lamp to my path. I have sworn
an oath and confirmed it, to observe thy righteous ordinances."
Psalm 119:105-106

For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to
be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8:18

If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have
fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son,
cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:7

"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in
you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your
mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."
Romans 8:11

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Daily Inspiration

The phrase "Never Again" is too large a commitment and too easily discarded when we stumble. Lord, help me to work on being a better person today, so that in time, my good habits will require little or no effort.

Tragedy and suffering often opens the soul to the heights of spiritual growth. Lord, let the hardships of my life be my prayer and work to draw You closer and closer.

[admin]

You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
Let the gentle bush dig its root deep and spread upward to split one boulder. --Carl Sandburg
There is a fable about the sun and wind having a contest to see who can get the old man to take his coat off first. The wind blows fiercely, but the old man just pulls his coat tighter around him. Finally, the wind gives up and the sun comes out. The sun shines a steady warm light down on the old man, who soon takes his coat off.
More and better things are accomplished in this world by kindness and gentleness than by force. When we find ourselves most frustrated, it is often because we are trying to force certain things to happen. Our own patient and steady desire to grow, fed by the love and kindness of others, will not be stopped by anything or anyone. Our own gentleness is a powerful force in our lives. It is like the gentle bush that grows through granite.
What can I gain by gentleness today?


You are reading from the book Touchstones.
You must fight off a "bad luck" way of thinking as if you were dealing with an invasion of hostile forces for that is precisely what you are dealing with. --Maxwell Maltz
Life is an ongoing experience with two opposing forces. One force is constantly building up, and the other is constantly tearing down. We have successes and accomplishments, and we have failures and defeats. We finally get our house in order, and it immediately begins to become disordered again.
There are forces supporting our self-esteem and forces tearing us down. Friends who wish us well, goodwill and generosity among people, and the momentum of our healthy actions are constructive forces in our lives. Destructive forces are the pull of old habits, bad luck, accidents, and negative thoughts. We must choose on which side we will put our energies. Are we men who hate ourselves, believe in bad luck and despair, and thereby join the forces that would tear us down? Or will we choose to be on the side that builds us up?
Today, by the grace of God, I will join the forces that are on my side. I will stand up for myself and my worth.


You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Everyday . . . life confronts us with new problems to be solved which force us to adjust our old programs accordingly.
--Dr. Ann Faraday
Facing the day straight on is occasionally difficult to do. There are those days we feel like crawling under the covers and staying there, certain that we can't handle whatever might be asked of us. Maybe today is one of those days. Perhaps we feel 12 years old, instead of 42. To consciously behave like a responsible 42-year-old is out of the question. Acting "as if" is the next best thing, the program tells us, and it is.
Acting "as if" also comes in handy when only a minor kink interferes with the day's progression. Most problems don't fit an easy solution or a familiar one. However, most problems are dispensed with by seeing them as opportunities for creative response, calmly seeking guidance and then moving ahead slowly, being aware of the effects of our actions.
Today, and every day, I will have an opportunity to think creatively and to rely on my inner guide. Instead of dreading the unfamiliar, I will be glad for it. It's moving me ever closer to understanding life's mysteries.


You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Hanging on to Old Relationships
We want to travel baggage free on this journey. It makes the trip easier.
Some of the baggage we can let go of is lingering feelings and unfinished business with past relationships: anger, resentments; feelings of victimization, hurt, or longing.
If we have not put closure on a relationship, if we cannot walk away in peace, we have not yet learned our lesson. That may mean we will have to have another go around with that lesson before we are ready to move on.
We may want to do a Fourth Step (a written inventory of our relationships) and a Fifth Step (an admission of our wrongs). What feelings did we leave with in a particular relationship? Are we still carrying those feelings around? Do we want the heaviness and impact of that baggage on our behavior today?
Are we still feeling victimized, rejected, or bitter about something that happened two, five, ten, or even twenty years ago?
It may be time to let it go. It may be time to open ourselves to the true lesson from that experience. It may be time to put past relationships to rest, so we are free to go on to new, more rewarding experiences.
We can choose to live in the past, or we can choose to finish our old business from the past and open ourselves to the beauty of today.
Let go of your baggage from past relationships.
Today, I will open myself to the cleansing and healing process that will put closure on yesterday and open me to the best today, and tomorrow, has to offer in my relationships.


I am open to experience my connection with God and all the people I meet on my path today. There is new joy each time I realize our sameness rather than our separateness. --Ruth Fishel

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A Full Life

"The program works a miracle in our lives....We become free to live."
Basic Text, p. 11

Most of us-if we've been in recovery for any length of time at all-have heard some member complaining in a meeting about being terribly overworked, too busy for meetings or sponsorship or other activities. In fact, we may have been the complaining member. The days seem so full: job, family and friends, meetings, activities, sponsorship, step work. "There just aren't enough hours in the day;" the member complains, "to get everything done and meet everyone's demands on my time!"

When this happens, usually there's soft laughter from some of the other members-probably members who had planned to grumble about the same sort of thing. The laughter stems from our recognition that we are complaining about the miracle of the life that is ours today. Not so long ago, few of us were capable of having any of these "problems" in our life. We devoted all of our energy to maintaining our active addiction. Today we have full lives, complete with all the feelings and problems that go with living in reality.

Just for today: I will remember that my life is a miracle. Instead of resenting how busy I am, I will be thankful my life is so full.
pg. 171

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Wisdom for Today
Learning to share what is really going on in our lives is not always easy. Sometimes it difficult for us to even know what is going on with us. We have kept ourselves and our lives hidden from others. Opening our thinking, feelings, and beliefs about how we see the world can be threatening for many of us. Yet it is in the risk of revealing ourselves to others that we find healing. To discuss our resentment, fears, grief and loss, guilt and shame with others helps us to sort through the layers of pain we all carry inside. In opening up we find that we are not alone. We find healthier ways to let go of the burdens that have weighed us down for so long.
Is this an easy process - no! But it is simple, we simply need to open our mouth and begin to discuss with another in the program what is troubling us. Sometimes, even when we do not know what is bugging us, as we begin to talk with another, we soon sort through whatever it is and gain clarity. In recovery we learn that we need to tell on our disease and on our selves. In the honesty of sharing what troubles us, we find that the load we carry is no longer heavy. We find that new answers are gained. Over time it is this act of sharing that brings us out of isolation and into a new light of community with others. This is how we move from living a life of self-centered fear to a life of ‘WE.” Am “I” moving from isolation to a sense of fellowship?
Meditations for the Heart
I can remember thinking that I was such a loser, that I was no good and worthless. As I began to open up and share my experiences with addiction, I began to see just how silly I sounded. Friends in the program would help me open new doors and turn on new lights so that I could see just how unfairly I was judging myself. No one was harder on me that I was on myself. I began to see that others perceived me very differently than I perceived myself. Simple questions like, “Did you stay clean and sober today?” began to challenge my thinking and beliefs and feelings in such a way as to help me see that at least for today I was not a loser. Friends would point out to me the good that they saw in me. I began to regain a sense of self-esteem. I began to separate the things I did from who I was. I soon realized just how much addiction had controlled my actions and behavior, as well as, my beliefs, thinking and emotions. I could see that what I had done was not what I would have done had I not been in the bondage that addiction creates. Am I gaining a better understanding of who I am?
Petitions to my Higher Power
God,
This program acts like a mirror for me and helps me to see myself more clearly. Thank you for all the people you have placed in my life to listen to me as I sort through all the misperceptions, dishonesty, and insanity that addiction has brought into my life. Give me courage to speak openly as I sort through all the layers of garbage I have accumulated along the way.
Amen

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You are reading from the book Food for Thought.

Research

In OA meetings, we sometimes hear reports of "research" done by a member who breaks abstinence in order to find out whether he or she is still a compulsive overeater. The experiment invariably proves that once a compulsive overeater, always a compulsive overeater. Among the results are remorse, regained weight, and weakened control.

It has been said that we are like someone who has lost a leg. We do not grow a new one. We can, nevertheless, learn to live with our disability if we are willing to abstain and follow the OA program. Most of us find that we cannot go back to eating binge foods moderately, but we can avoid them. We are like the alcoholic who can lead a normal, satisfying life as long as he or she stays away from alcohol.

Further research is not necessary. By accepting our need for a disciplined eating plan, we can benefit from the experience of those who have been in the program longer than we.

May I remember that further research is unnecessary.

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Keep It Simple

The reason why worry kills more people than work is that more people worry than work. ---Robert Frost

Worry---it's a lonely activity. It puts distance between us and others. Our program is full of ideas about what to do with worry. On Step Three, we turn our will and our lives over to God. This includes worry.
Our slogans also suggest what to do with worry. One Day at a Time. Live and Let Live. Easy Does It. Let Go and Let God. Their main message is stop worrying. Trust the program. Trust your Higher Power. Everything will be okay.

Prayer for the Day
Higher Power, I give You my worries. Teach me how to trust again. I want to trust in You, my program, and myself.

Action for the Day
I'll write the program slogans listed above on a piece of paper, and I'll read them over today. I'll let myself live them today.