EssentialsOfRecovery
Created to carry the message of recovery to all addicts. Whether the addiction is alcohol, drugs, food or any other addiction the program of recovery is the same. I am a recovering alcoholic of over twenty-seven years, a day at a time of course and I believe my primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve recovery. Remember seven days without a meeting makes one weak. Sign up to get emails.This Blog is NOT IN ANY WAY affiliated to either A.A. or N.A. Help to stop drinking.
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Monday 31 August 2015
Carl G. OA Speaker 12-Step "Eating Disorder Treatment" #essentialsofrec #Recovery #OA
31
August
August
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On Cultivating Tolerance #essentialsofrec #Recovery #DrBob #Tolerance
31
August
On Cultivating Tolerance
by Dr. Bob S.
Copyright © AA Grapevine, Inc July 1944
During nine years in AA, I have observed that those who follow the Alcoholics Anonymous program with the greatest earnestness and zeal not only maintain sobriety but often acquire finer characteristics and attitudes as well. One of these is tolerance. Tolerance expresses itself in a variety of ways: in kindness and consideration toward the man or woman who is just beginning the march along the spiritual path; in the understanding of those who perhaps have been less fortunate in education advantages; and in sympathy toward those whose religious ideas may seem to be at great variance with our own.
I am reminded in this connection of the picture of a hub with its radiating spokes. We all start at the outer circumference and approach our destination by one of many routes. To say that one spoke is much better than all the other spokes is true only in the sense of its being best suited to you as an individual. Human nature is such that without some degree of tolerance, each one of us might be inclined to believe that we have found the best or perhaps the shortest spoke. Without some tolerance, we might tend to become a bit smug or superior - which, of course, is not helpful to the person we are trying to help and may be quite painful or obnoxious to others. No one of us wishes to do anything that might act as a deterrent to the advancement of another - and a patronizing attitude can readily slow up this process.
Tolerance furnishes, as a by-product, a greater freedom from the tendency to cling to preconceived ideas and stubbornly adhered-to opinions. In other words, it often promotes an open-mindedness that is vastly important - is, in fact, a prerequisite to the successful termination of any line of search, whether it be scientific or spiritual.
These, then, are a few of the reasons why an attempt to acquire tolerance should be made by each one of us.
August
On Cultivating Tolerance
by Dr. Bob S.
Copyright © AA Grapevine, Inc July 1944
During nine years in AA, I have observed that those who follow the Alcoholics Anonymous program with the greatest earnestness and zeal not only maintain sobriety but often acquire finer characteristics and attitudes as well. One of these is tolerance. Tolerance expresses itself in a variety of ways: in kindness and consideration toward the man or woman who is just beginning the march along the spiritual path; in the understanding of those who perhaps have been less fortunate in education advantages; and in sympathy toward those whose religious ideas may seem to be at great variance with our own.
I am reminded in this connection of the picture of a hub with its radiating spokes. We all start at the outer circumference and approach our destination by one of many routes. To say that one spoke is much better than all the other spokes is true only in the sense of its being best suited to you as an individual. Human nature is such that without some degree of tolerance, each one of us might be inclined to believe that we have found the best or perhaps the shortest spoke. Without some tolerance, we might tend to become a bit smug or superior - which, of course, is not helpful to the person we are trying to help and may be quite painful or obnoxious to others. No one of us wishes to do anything that might act as a deterrent to the advancement of another - and a patronizing attitude can readily slow up this process.
Tolerance furnishes, as a by-product, a greater freedom from the tendency to cling to preconceived ideas and stubbornly adhered-to opinions. In other words, it often promotes an open-mindedness that is vastly important - is, in fact, a prerequisite to the successful termination of any line of search, whether it be scientific or spiritual.
These, then, are a few of the reasons why an attempt to acquire tolerance should be made by each one of us.
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Daily Reflections #essentialsofrec #Recovery #AA
31
August
A UNIQUE PROGRAM
Alcoholics Anonymous will never have a professional class. We have gained some understanding of the ancient words “Freely ye have received, freely give.” We have discovered that at the point of professionalism, money and spirituality do not mix.
August
A UNIQUE PROGRAM
Alcoholics Anonymous will never have a professional class. We have gained some understanding of the ancient words “Freely ye have received, freely give.” We have discovered that at the point of professionalism, money and spirituality do not mix.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 166
I believe that Alcoholics Anonymous stands alone in the treatment of alcoholism because it is based solely on the principle of one alcoholic sharing with another alcoholic. This is what makes the program unique. When I decided that I wanted to stay sober, I called a woman who I knew was a sober member of A.A., and she carried the message of Alcoholics Anonymous to me. She received no monetary compensation, but rather was paid by staying sober another day herself. Today I could ask for no payment other than another day free from alcohol, so in that respect, I am generously paid for my labor.
I believe that Alcoholics Anonymous stands alone in the treatment of alcoholism because it is based solely on the principle of one alcoholic sharing with another alcoholic. This is what makes the program unique. When I decided that I wanted to stay sober, I called a woman who I knew was a sober member of A.A., and she carried the message of Alcoholics Anonymous to me. She received no monetary compensation, but rather was paid by staying sober another day herself. Today I could ask for no payment other than another day free from alcohol, so in that respect, I am generously paid for my labor.
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Just For Today #essentialsofrec #Recovery #NA
31
August
Gratitude
“Hopeless living problems have become joyously changed. Our disease has been arrested, and now anything is possible.” Basic Text p.102
The NA program has given us more freedom than we ever dreamed possible. Sometimes, though, in the daily routine, we lose track of how much we’ve been given. How, exactly, have our lives changed in Narcotics Anonymous?
The bottom line of recovery, of course, is freedom from the compulsion to use. No longer must we devote all our resources to feeding our addiction. No longer must we endanger, humiliate, or abuse ourselves or others just to get the next “fix”. Abstinence itself has brought great freedom to our lives.
Narcotics Anonymous has given us much more than simple abstinence-we’ve been given a whole new life. We’ve taken our inventory and have identified the defects of character that bound us for so long, keeping us from living and enjoying life. We’ve surrendered those shortcomings, taken responsibility for them, and sought the direction and power we need to live differently. Our home group has given us the personal warmth and support that helps us continue living in recovery. And topping all this off, we have the love, care, and guidance of the God we’ve come to understand in NA.
In the course of day-to-day recovery, we sometimes forget how much our lives have changed in Narcotics Anonymous. Do we fully appreciate what our program has given us?
Just for today: Recovery has given me freedom. I will greet the day with hope, grateful that anything is possible today.
August
Gratitude
“Hopeless living problems have become joyously changed. Our disease has been arrested, and now anything is possible.” Basic Text p.102
The NA program has given us more freedom than we ever dreamed possible. Sometimes, though, in the daily routine, we lose track of how much we’ve been given. How, exactly, have our lives changed in Narcotics Anonymous?
The bottom line of recovery, of course, is freedom from the compulsion to use. No longer must we devote all our resources to feeding our addiction. No longer must we endanger, humiliate, or abuse ourselves or others just to get the next “fix”. Abstinence itself has brought great freedom to our lives.
Narcotics Anonymous has given us much more than simple abstinence-we’ve been given a whole new life. We’ve taken our inventory and have identified the defects of character that bound us for so long, keeping us from living and enjoying life. We’ve surrendered those shortcomings, taken responsibility for them, and sought the direction and power we need to live differently. Our home group has given us the personal warmth and support that helps us continue living in recovery. And topping all this off, we have the love, care, and guidance of the God we’ve come to understand in NA.
In the course of day-to-day recovery, we sometimes forget how much our lives have changed in Narcotics Anonymous. Do we fully appreciate what our program has given us?
Just for today: Recovery has given me freedom. I will greet the day with hope, grateful that anything is possible today.
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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Newcomers
31
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“Call on new prospects while they are still jittery. They may be more receptive when depressed. See them alone if possible. Tell them enough about your drinking habits and experiences to encourage them to speak of themselves. If they wish to talk, let them do so. If they are not communicative, talk about the troubles liquor has caused you, being careful not to moralize or lecture. When they see you know all about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself as an alcoholic and tell them how you learned you were sick.” Am I ready to talk about myself to new prospects?
Meditation For The Day
Try not to give way to criticism, blame, scorn, or judgment of others, when you are trying to help them. Effectiveness in helping others depends on controlling yourself. You may be swept away by a temporary natural urge to criticize or blame, unless you keep a tight rein on your emotions. You should have a firm foundation of spiritual living which makes you truly humble, if you are going to really help other people. Go easy on them and be hard on yourself. That is the way you can be used most to uplift a despairing spirit. And seek no personal recognition for what you are used by God to accomplish.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may try to avoid judgment and criticism. I pray that I may always try to build up others instead of tearing them down.
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“Call on new prospects while they are still jittery. They may be more receptive when depressed. See them alone if possible. Tell them enough about your drinking habits and experiences to encourage them to speak of themselves. If they wish to talk, let them do so. If they are not communicative, talk about the troubles liquor has caused you, being careful not to moralize or lecture. When they see you know all about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself as an alcoholic and tell them how you learned you were sick.” Am I ready to talk about myself to new prospects?
Meditation For The Day
Try not to give way to criticism, blame, scorn, or judgment of others, when you are trying to help them. Effectiveness in helping others depends on controlling yourself. You may be swept away by a temporary natural urge to criticize or blame, unless you keep a tight rein on your emotions. You should have a firm foundation of spiritual living which makes you truly humble, if you are going to really help other people. Go easy on them and be hard on yourself. That is the way you can be used most to uplift a despairing spirit. And seek no personal recognition for what you are used by God to accomplish.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may try to avoid judgment and criticism. I pray that I may always try to build up others instead of tearing them down.
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As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Experience
31
August
Let Go Absolutely, p.242
After failure on my part to dry up any drunks, Dr. Silkworth reminded me of Professor William James’s observation that truly transforming spiritual experiences are nearly always founded on calamity and collapse. “Stop preaching at them,” Dr. Silkworth said, “and give them the hard medical facts first. This may soften them up at depth so that they will be willing to do anything to get well. Then they may accept those spiritual ideas of yours, and even a Higher Power.”
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
We beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start. Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas, and the result was nil–until we let go absolutely.
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p.13
2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p.58
August
Let Go Absolutely, p.242
After failure on my part to dry up any drunks, Dr. Silkworth reminded me of Professor William James’s observation that truly transforming spiritual experiences are nearly always founded on calamity and collapse. “Stop preaching at them,” Dr. Silkworth said, “and give them the hard medical facts first. This may soften them up at depth so that they will be willing to do anything to get well. Then they may accept those spiritual ideas of yours, and even a Higher Power.”
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
We beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start. Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas, and the result was nil–until we let go absolutely.
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p.13
2. Alcoholics Anonymous, p.58
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Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrec #Action #Honesty
31
August
HONESTY IS NOT ENOUGH
Action AA tells us that we must be honest about our problems if we hope to overcome them.
Some people seem quite w11ling to do this. But an honest admission alone does not solve our problems. We have to go beyond honesty by taking needed action to correct what’s wrong in our lives.
For example, we would not believe that any- thing had been corrected simply because a doctor diagnosed a physical problem. We know that such diagnosis is only a preliminary step that must lead to treatment to be effective. In the same way, an honest admission of our alcoholism does not lead to sobriety unless we take further action to ad- dress the problem.
We should also be careful about becoming prideful in announcing our shortcomings. If we are recovering from alcoholism but excuse a bad temper as one of our “alcoholic defects,” are we attempting to correct our behavior? The more prideful we are about any fault, the more difficult it will be to change it.
Having become honest about my shortcomings, I’ll look for opportunities today to make needed corrections in my behavior. If I find myself using my “alcoholic nature” as an excuse for unacceptable behavior, I’ll take action to do something about it.
August
HONESTY IS NOT ENOUGH
Action AA tells us that we must be honest about our problems if we hope to overcome them.
Some people seem quite w11ling to do this. But an honest admission alone does not solve our problems. We have to go beyond honesty by taking needed action to correct what’s wrong in our lives.
For example, we would not believe that any- thing had been corrected simply because a doctor diagnosed a physical problem. We know that such diagnosis is only a preliminary step that must lead to treatment to be effective. In the same way, an honest admission of our alcoholism does not lead to sobriety unless we take further action to ad- dress the problem.
We should also be careful about becoming prideful in announcing our shortcomings. If we are recovering from alcoholism but excuse a bad temper as one of our “alcoholic defects,” are we attempting to correct our behavior? The more prideful we are about any fault, the more difficult it will be to change it.
Having become honest about my shortcomings, I’ll look for opportunities today to make needed corrections in my behavior. If I find myself using my “alcoholic nature” as an excuse for unacceptable behavior, I’ll take action to do something about it.
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Keep It Simple #essentialsofrec #recovery
29
September
Al didn’t smile for forty years. You’ve got to admire a man like that.
–From the TV show, “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman”
Remember how we used to live? We were always trying to cover up some lie or mistake.
We were all like Al. Our energy was going into our illness, not into living.
Gratitude is the key word in the program. Gratitude is being thankful for the getting to know our Higher Power. Remember what it was like to not smile for all those years?
Recovery has given us back our smiles. What a relief! We can relax and enjoy our new life.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I’ll always remember what is was like when I was using. I pray that I’ll not take my recovery for granted. I prayer for gratitude.
Action For the Day: I will list all the things the program and recovery have given me. I will smile about them today.
September
Al didn’t smile for forty years. You’ve got to admire a man like that.
–From the TV show, “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman”
Remember how we used to live? We were always trying to cover up some lie or mistake.
We were all like Al. Our energy was going into our illness, not into living.
Gratitude is the key word in the program. Gratitude is being thankful for the getting to know our Higher Power. Remember what it was like to not smile for all those years?
Recovery has given us back our smiles. What a relief! We can relax and enjoy our new life.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I’ll always remember what is was like when I was using. I pray that I’ll not take my recovery for granted. I prayer for gratitude.
Action For the Day: I will list all the things the program and recovery have given me. I will smile about them today.
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Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Spirituality
31
August
STYLE
“Style is the man himself.”
– Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
Style is involved in Spirituality — especially when it concerns the recovering addict. Sobriety and serenity are not just seen in what we say or do or in our ability to keep away from the first drink or pill — they are seen in our creative styles. How we feel about ourselves should be seen in the confidence of our gait and the concern for personal appearance. Personal hygiene is important because it reflects a love of self. Physical health and exercise reveal a desire and interest in life, fitness and energy.
Style may not make the man but it certainly reveals the man!
May I seek to reveal the beauty You gave me with my appearance and style.
August
STYLE
“Style is the man himself.”
– Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
Style is involved in Spirituality — especially when it concerns the recovering addict. Sobriety and serenity are not just seen in what we say or do or in our ability to keep away from the first drink or pill — they are seen in our creative styles. How we feel about ourselves should be seen in the confidence of our gait and the concern for personal appearance. Personal hygiene is important because it reflects a love of self. Physical health and exercise reveal a desire and interest in life, fitness and energy.
Style may not make the man but it certainly reveals the man!
May I seek to reveal the beauty You gave me with my appearance and style.
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A Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Prayer
31
August
Reflection For The Day
From time to time, I begin to think I know what God’s will is for other people, I say to myself, “This person ought to be cured of his terminal illness,” or “That one ought to be freed from the torment she’s going through,” and I begin to pray for those specific things. My heart is in the right place when I pray in such fashion, but those prayers are based on the supposition that I know God’s will for the person for whom I pray, I out to pray that God’s will — whatever it is — be done for others as well as for myself. Will I remember that God is ready to befriend me, but only to the degree that I trust him?
Today I Pray
I praise God for the chance to help others. I thank God also for making me want to help others, for taking me out of my tower of self so that I can meet and share with and care about people. “Teach me to pray that “Thy Will be done” in the spirit of love, which God inspires in me.
Today I Pray
I will put my trust in the will of God.
August
Reflection For The Day
From time to time, I begin to think I know what God’s will is for other people, I say to myself, “This person ought to be cured of his terminal illness,” or “That one ought to be freed from the torment she’s going through,” and I begin to pray for those specific things. My heart is in the right place when I pray in such fashion, but those prayers are based on the supposition that I know God’s will for the person for whom I pray, I out to pray that God’s will — whatever it is — be done for others as well as for myself. Will I remember that God is ready to befriend me, but only to the degree that I trust him?
Today I Pray
I praise God for the chance to help others. I thank God also for making me want to help others, for taking me out of my tower of self so that I can meet and share with and care about people. “Teach me to pray that “Thy Will be done” in the spirit of love, which God inspires in me.
Today I Pray
I will put my trust in the will of God.
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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Addiction #OA #Recovery
31
August
SERVICE
“Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.”
–John Fitzgerald Kennedy
At one of the first program functions I ever attended, there were a large number of pots and pans that needed to be washed in the kitchen. My sponsor told me that we were going to go in there and wash all those dirty pans. When I asked why, she said, “Because this stuff keeps us abstinent.” That was good enough for me. Service is essential to my recovery. As our primary purpose states, “we carry the message to the compulsive overeater who still suffers.” The essence of my program is that of committing to service.
Since then my service in program has been of paramount importance to me, so I sponsor and serve at the group and Intergroup levels, I attend all events I can, and I am in service at most of the meetings I attend. I encourage sponsees to serve their fellow sufferers also and ask them to sponsor newcomers as soon as they have worked Steps One through Three. This action gets them working on Step Four as well.
One of my favorite ways to give service is to be available to talk to newcomers by telephone. As our responsibility pledge states, “Always to lend the heart and hand to all who share my compulsion, for this I am responsible.” A commitment to service is as vital to my recovery as are my commitments to abstinence, working the Steps and a daily food plan. These components mesh together and give me purpose I never had before.
One Day at a Time . . .
I will find a way to be helpful to others in program.
~ Jill C.
August
SERVICE
“Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.”
–John Fitzgerald Kennedy
At one of the first program functions I ever attended, there were a large number of pots and pans that needed to be washed in the kitchen. My sponsor told me that we were going to go in there and wash all those dirty pans. When I asked why, she said, “Because this stuff keeps us abstinent.” That was good enough for me. Service is essential to my recovery. As our primary purpose states, “we carry the message to the compulsive overeater who still suffers.” The essence of my program is that of committing to service.
Since then my service in program has been of paramount importance to me, so I sponsor and serve at the group and Intergroup levels, I attend all events I can, and I am in service at most of the meetings I attend. I encourage sponsees to serve their fellow sufferers also and ask them to sponsor newcomers as soon as they have worked Steps One through Three. This action gets them working on Step Four as well.
One of my favorite ways to give service is to be available to talk to newcomers by telephone. As our responsibility pledge states, “Always to lend the heart and hand to all who share my compulsion, for this I am responsible.” A commitment to service is as vital to my recovery as are my commitments to abstinence, working the Steps and a daily food plan. These components mesh together and give me purpose I never had before.
One Day at a Time . . .
I will find a way to be helpful to others in program.
~ Jill C.
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Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Shawnee
31
August
“Our Creator makes available to us all that we need.
It is an honor to go out and gather it.
We must remember to say ‘Thank You.’
It is honorable to give away, to show our gratitude… and to let the children see this.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
So many times we forget to say “thank You” to the Creator. He made for us an abundant universe. He built the Mother Earth to reproduce plenty of everything. It is an honor to be a part of the Great Spirit’s world. The Creator always gives us what we need. When we are given things, we should be willing to share it with others. Whenever we give to others, this makes us feel good inside. The more we give, the better we feel. The better we feel, the more we want to give. We need to teach this to our children. The children learn by our behavior.
My Creator, thank you for today. Thank you for the sun. Thank you for the earth. Thank you for my life. Thank you for……
August
“Our Creator makes available to us all that we need.
It is an honor to go out and gather it.
We must remember to say ‘Thank You.’
It is honorable to give away, to show our gratitude… and to let the children see this.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
So many times we forget to say “thank You” to the Creator. He made for us an abundant universe. He built the Mother Earth to reproduce plenty of everything. It is an honor to be a part of the Great Spirit’s world. The Creator always gives us what we need. When we are given things, we should be willing to share it with others. Whenever we give to others, this makes us feel good inside. The more we give, the better we feel. The better we feel, the more we want to give. We need to teach this to our children. The children learn by our behavior.
My Creator, thank you for today. Thank you for the sun. Thank you for the earth. Thank you for my life. Thank you for……
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Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Dignity #Respect #Recovery
31
August
Differences
. . . with no hidden cutting edge.
The respect and dignity a couple shows each other set the table from which they are nourished for all other activities in their lives. Any feeling can be expressed in respectful or disrespectful ways. Anger is one of the most difficult to express respectfully. Everyone feels frustrated and angry at times. The crucial thing to learn is how to be angry and still be respectful – how to deal with our impatience without blame or put-downs. Many of us have to learn how to love without being possessive, how to be playful in a lighthearted way with no hidden cutting edge. When we treat our partner with disrespect, we pour poison into our own well. It may feel satisfying at first, but the long-term consequences are not good to live with.
When we are committed to respect in our relationship, we continue to learn at even deeper levels what respect truly means. We find that simply listening to each other – and letting in our differences – is a form of respect that nourishes us.
Name a difference between you and your mate that you respect.
August
Differences
. . . with no hidden cutting edge.
The respect and dignity a couple shows each other set the table from which they are nourished for all other activities in their lives. Any feeling can be expressed in respectful or disrespectful ways. Anger is one of the most difficult to express respectfully. Everyone feels frustrated and angry at times. The crucial thing to learn is how to be angry and still be respectful – how to deal with our impatience without blame or put-downs. Many of us have to learn how to love without being possessive, how to be playful in a lighthearted way with no hidden cutting edge. When we treat our partner with disrespect, we pour poison into our own well. It may feel satisfying at first, but the long-term consequences are not good to live with.
When we are committed to respect in our relationship, we continue to learn at even deeper levels what respect truly means. We find that simply listening to each other – and letting in our differences – is a form of respect that nourishes us.
Name a difference between you and your mate that you respect.
From the book:
The More We Find in Each Other by Merle Fossum and Mavis Fossum. © 1992 by Hazelden Foundation
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Step by Step #essentialsofrec #Step11 #Prayer
31
August
Today, I focus on Step 11 to answer honestly if I have “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve (my) conscious contact with God as (I) understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for (me) and the power to carry that out.” In my own Program, simply acknowledging a Higher Power and looking to Him to guide me through my recovery is not enough; I must also seek what He requires of me and the knowledge and power to do what He wants of me. But why is the 11th Step important to both the early and later stages of recovery? In seeking our Higher Power’s will for us, we are getting away from one of our addiction’s most dangerous and contributory spiritual afflictions – selfishness. I dare not risk what progress I have made or seek by holding on to those poisonous character and spiritual defects like selfishness, anger, hate and bitterness that will undermine either the quality of my recovery or my recovery itself. Today, I seek through prayer and meditation the will of my Higher Power, not mine, to repay and maintain the gift of recovery the Program has given me. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
August
Today, I focus on Step 11 to answer honestly if I have “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve (my) conscious contact with God as (I) understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for (me) and the power to carry that out.” In my own Program, simply acknowledging a Higher Power and looking to Him to guide me through my recovery is not enough; I must also seek what He requires of me and the knowledge and power to do what He wants of me. But why is the 11th Step important to both the early and later stages of recovery? In seeking our Higher Power’s will for us, we are getting away from one of our addiction’s most dangerous and contributory spiritual afflictions – selfishness. I dare not risk what progress I have made or seek by holding on to those poisonous character and spiritual defects like selfishness, anger, hate and bitterness that will undermine either the quality of my recovery or my recovery itself. Today, I seek through prayer and meditation the will of my Higher Power, not mine, to repay and maintain the gift of recovery the Program has given me. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
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The Eye Opener #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Message
31
August
It is a constant source of amazement to some of the Old-Timers to answer a call for help from some alcoholic and to find that the person in trouble is a neighbor, relative, friend or fellow employee or a member of AA.
It sometimes happens that the new man preferred it that way as he would rather discuss the matter with a stranger than someone near him.
It is also true that some of us are not quick to grasp the opportunities to pass the Message along. If you see a man is beyond his depth and can’t swim, why should you wait for him to yell for help? He might be deaf and dumb.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
August
It is a constant source of amazement to some of the Old-Timers to answer a call for help from some alcoholic and to find that the person in trouble is a neighbor, relative, friend or fellow employee or a member of AA.
It sometimes happens that the new man preferred it that way as he would rather discuss the matter with a stranger than someone near him.
It is also true that some of us are not quick to grasp the opportunities to pass the Message along. If you see a man is beyond his depth and can’t swim, why should you wait for him to yell for help? He might be deaf and dumb.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
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Daily Tao / 243 – Dialogue #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Zen #Tao #Taoism
31
August
I still talk in my sleep.
I still dream.
How can there be perfect stillness
When my brain’s so noisy?
We carry on a constant dialogue within ourselves. This is the origin of our problems.
The very word ‘dialogue’ means talking between two sides. We could not have an inner dialogue unless there was a split in our minds. We all have two sides; as long as they are not united, we cannot attain the wholeness that spirituality requires.
Even with years of self-cultivation, it is not easy to tame the wild mind. One might appear to have attained perfect control in all waking situations, only to find endless turbulence during meditation and sleep. This is a sign of incomplete attainment. Perfection must be total.
The process of perfection is long and must be methodical. Although our efforts must be to the utmost, we must never risk repressing ourselves. Indeed, rather than shutting away the unpleasant or unruly aspects of ourselves, we must take them all out and examine them. Daily introspection brings harmony to all our facets. Those aspects that are bad can be dissolved. Those that are of advantage can be cultivated. This effort will take many years, but in this gradual way, we resolve ourselves with our subconscious mind and free ourselves from the struggle and conflict.
August
I still talk in my sleep.
I still dream.
How can there be perfect stillness
When my brain’s so noisy?
We carry on a constant dialogue within ourselves. This is the origin of our problems.
The very word ‘dialogue’ means talking between two sides. We could not have an inner dialogue unless there was a split in our minds. We all have two sides; as long as they are not united, we cannot attain the wholeness that spirituality requires.
Even with years of self-cultivation, it is not easy to tame the wild mind. One might appear to have attained perfect control in all waking situations, only to find endless turbulence during meditation and sleep. This is a sign of incomplete attainment. Perfection must be total.
The process of perfection is long and must be methodical. Although our efforts must be to the utmost, we must never risk repressing ourselves. Indeed, rather than shutting away the unpleasant or unruly aspects of ourselves, we must take them all out and examine them. Daily introspection brings harmony to all our facets. Those aspects that are bad can be dissolved. Those that are of advantage can be cultivated. This effort will take many years, but in this gradual way, we resolve ourselves with our subconscious mind and free ourselves from the struggle and conflict.
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Sunday 30 August 2015
Polly P. - AA Speaker - "Inner Healing and Inner Peace" #essentialsofrec #PollyP #Speakers #Recovery
30
August
August
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Daily Reflections #essentialsofrec #Tradition3 #Membership
30
August
THE ONLY REQUIREMENT. . .
“At one time. . .every A.A. group had many membership rules. Everybody was scared witless that something or somebody would capsize the boat. . .The total list was a mile long. If all those rules had been in effect everywhere, nobody could have possibly joined A.A. at all. . .
August
THE ONLY REQUIREMENT. . .
“At one time. . .every A.A. group had many membership rules. Everybody was scared witless that something or somebody would capsize the boat. . .The total list was a mile long. If all those rules had been in effect everywhere, nobody could have possibly joined A.A. at all. . .
” TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 139-40
I’m grateful that the Third Tradition only requires of me a desire to stop drinking. I had been breaking promises for years. In the Fellowship I didn’t have to make promises, I didn’t have to concentrate. It only required my attending one meeting, in a foggy condition, to know I was home. I didn’t have to pledge undying love. Here, strangers hugged me. “It gets better,” they said, and “One day at a time, you can do it.” They were no longer strangers, but caring friends. I ask God to help me to reach out to people desiring sobriety, and to, please, keep me grateful!
I’m grateful that the Third Tradition only requires of me a desire to stop drinking. I had been breaking promises for years. In the Fellowship I didn’t have to make promises, I didn’t have to concentrate. It only required my attending one meeting, in a foggy condition, to know I was home. I didn’t have to pledge undying love. Here, strangers hugged me. “It gets better,” they said, and “One day at a time, you can do it.” They were no longer strangers, but caring friends. I ask God to help me to reach out to people desiring sobriety, and to, please, keep me grateful!
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Just For Today #essentialsofrec #Recovery #NA #Addiction
30
August
Doing Good, Feeling Good
“We examine our actions, reactions, and motives. We often find that we’ve been doing better than we've been feeling.”
August
Doing Good, Feeling Good
“We examine our actions, reactions, and motives. We often find that we’ve been doing better than we've been feeling.”
Basic Text p.42
The way we treat others often reveals our own state of being. When we are at peace, we’re most likely to treat others with respect and compassion. However, when we’re feeling off center; we’re likely to respond to others with intolerance and impatience. When we take regular inventory, we’ll probably notice a pattern: We treat others badly when we feel bad about ourselves.
What might not be revealed in an inventory, however, is the other side of the coin. When we treat others well, we feel good about ourselves. When we add this positive truth to the negative facts we find about ourselves in our inventory, we begin to behave differently.
When we feel badly, we can pause to pray for guidance and strength. Then, we make a decision to treat those around us with kindness, gentleness, and the same concern we’d like to be shown. A decision to be kind may nurture and sustain the happiness and peace of mind we all wish for. And the joy we inspire may lift the spirits of those around us, in turn fostering our own spiritual well-being.
Just for today: I will remember that if I change my actions, my thoughts will follow.
The way we treat others often reveals our own state of being. When we are at peace, we’re most likely to treat others with respect and compassion. However, when we’re feeling off center; we’re likely to respond to others with intolerance and impatience. When we take regular inventory, we’ll probably notice a pattern: We treat others badly when we feel bad about ourselves.
What might not be revealed in an inventory, however, is the other side of the coin. When we treat others well, we feel good about ourselves. When we add this positive truth to the negative facts we find about ourselves in our inventory, we begin to behave differently.
When we feel badly, we can pause to pray for guidance and strength. Then, we make a decision to treat those around us with kindness, gentleness, and the same concern we’d like to be shown. A decision to be kind may nurture and sustain the happiness and peace of mind we all wish for. And the joy we inspire may lift the spirits of those around us, in turn fostering our own spiritual well-being.
Just for today: I will remember that if I change my actions, my thoughts will follow.
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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Message #Service
30
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as extensive work with other alcoholics. Carry the message to other alcoholics. You can help when no one else can. You can secure their confidence when others fail. Life will take on new meaning for you. To watch people recover, to see them help others in turn, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow about you, to have a host of friends, this is an experience you must not miss.” Am I always ready and willing to help other alcoholics?
Meditation For The Day
One secret of abundant living is the art of giving. The paradox of life is that the more you give, the more you have. If you loose your life in the service of others, you will save it. You can give abundantly and still live abundantly. You are rich in one respect – you have a spirit that is inexhaustible. Let no mean or selfish thought keep you from sharing this spirit. Of love, of help, of understanding, and of sympathy, give and keep giving. Give your personal ease and comfort, your time, your money, and most of all, yourself. And you will be living abundantly.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may live to give. I pray that I may learn this secret of abundant living.
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as extensive work with other alcoholics. Carry the message to other alcoholics. You can help when no one else can. You can secure their confidence when others fail. Life will take on new meaning for you. To watch people recover, to see them help others in turn, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow about you, to have a host of friends, this is an experience you must not miss.” Am I always ready and willing to help other alcoholics?
Meditation For The Day
One secret of abundant living is the art of giving. The paradox of life is that the more you give, the more you have. If you loose your life in the service of others, you will save it. You can give abundantly and still live abundantly. You are rich in one respect – you have a spirit that is inexhaustible. Let no mean or selfish thought keep you from sharing this spirit. Of love, of help, of understanding, and of sympathy, give and keep giving. Give your personal ease and comfort, your time, your money, and most of all, yourself. And you will be living abundantly.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may live to give. I pray that I may learn this secret of abundant living.
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As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Anonymity #BillW
30
August
Middle of the Road, p.241
“In some sections of A.A., anonymity is carried to the point of real absurdity. Members are on such a poor basis of communication that they don’t even know each other’s last names or where each lives. It’s like the cell of an underground.
“In other sections, we see exactly the reverse. It is difficult to restrain A.A.’s from shouting too much before the whole public, by going on spectacular ‘lecture tours’ to play the big shot.
“However, I know that from these extremes we slowly pull ourselves onto a middle ground. Most lecture-giving members do not last too long, and the superanonymous people are apt to come out of hiding respecting their A.A. friends, business associates, and the like. I think the long-time trend is toward the middle of the road–which is probably where we should be.”
Letter, 1959
August
Middle of the Road, p.241
“In some sections of A.A., anonymity is carried to the point of real absurdity. Members are on such a poor basis of communication that they don’t even know each other’s last names or where each lives. It’s like the cell of an underground.
“In other sections, we see exactly the reverse. It is difficult to restrain A.A.’s from shouting too much before the whole public, by going on spectacular ‘lecture tours’ to play the big shot.
“However, I know that from these extremes we slowly pull ourselves onto a middle ground. Most lecture-giving members do not last too long, and the superanonymous people are apt to come out of hiding respecting their A.A. friends, business associates, and the like. I think the long-time trend is toward the middle of the road–which is probably where we should be.”
Letter, 1959
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Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Family
30
August
THE MASKS ARE FALLING
Openness Individuals and families can be quite successful at masking personal problems and feelings. This doesn’t always work very well with alcoholics, though some of us did manage to conceal our problem for long periods before our lives began to break down.
However, it is becoming more acceptable to admit to such problems, and it is no longer surprising to read that a prominent person is being treated for an addiction.
This new openness has also made it possible to abandon the masks we’ve been wearing to hide our feelings. When people learn they can be more open with their problems and need for help, it also becomes easier to admit that they are angry. fearful. unhappy, or even frightened.
Removing our masks and letting others see us as we are is only the first phase in the real honesty we’re seeking. After expressing ourselves authentically, do we find we like who we are?
Now that we know and admit the truth about ourselves, what are we going to do to make needed changes?
I will face who and what I really am today. I will use my strengths and not let any shortcomings keep me from being effective.
August
THE MASKS ARE FALLING
Openness Individuals and families can be quite successful at masking personal problems and feelings. This doesn’t always work very well with alcoholics, though some of us did manage to conceal our problem for long periods before our lives began to break down.
However, it is becoming more acceptable to admit to such problems, and it is no longer surprising to read that a prominent person is being treated for an addiction.
This new openness has also made it possible to abandon the masks we’ve been wearing to hide our feelings. When people learn they can be more open with their problems and need for help, it also becomes easier to admit that they are angry. fearful. unhappy, or even frightened.
Removing our masks and letting others see us as we are is only the first phase in the real honesty we’re seeking. After expressing ourselves authentically, do we find we like who we are?
Now that we know and admit the truth about ourselves, what are we going to do to make needed changes?
I will face who and what I really am today. I will use my strengths and not let any shortcomings keep me from being effective.
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Keep It Simple #essentialsofrec #Recovery #love #Service
30
August
Love is something if you give away, you end up having more.
— Malvina Reynolds
Service is how we give love away. It’s the “self” of self-help. Service is not a duty; a gift that’s been given to us. We help ourselves by helping others. It’s how we make sure the program will be here tomorrow. We “carry the message.” It’s just one way we see how important we are to others. The world needs us. The world needs our love.
Prayer for the Day: I pray for help in making service a big part of my program. Higher Power, help me to “carry the message.”
Action for the Day: Which people could use a kind word and a little love? I will go visit them or give them a call.
August
Love is something if you give away, you end up having more.
— Malvina Reynolds
Service is how we give love away. It’s the “self” of self-help. Service is not a duty; a gift that’s been given to us. We help ourselves by helping others. It’s how we make sure the program will be here tomorrow. We “carry the message.” It’s just one way we see how important we are to others. The world needs us. The world needs our love.
Prayer for the Day: I pray for help in making service a big part of my program. Higher Power, help me to “carry the message.”
Action for the Day: Which people could use a kind word and a little love? I will go visit them or give them a call.
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Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Listening
30
August
LISTENING
“If other people are going to talk, conversation becomes impossible.”
— James McNeill Whistler
Part of my addiction was never listening to what people were saying. This was part arrogance, part denial, part fear, part control, part ego — the bottom line was that I did not listen. I was bored and unhappy with my life because I was a prisoner of my own thoughts.
My spiritual awakening — which I consider a process rather than an event, a process that is still going on in my life on a daily basis — was in allowing some new information into my life that led to admittance and acceptance. The day that I was able to admit that I was an alcoholic was the day I took a step towards acceptance.
Today I receive immense help and comfort from other people, especially recovering alcoholics. Two people experiencing an honest conversation are part of God’s promised love for His world.
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A Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Prayer
30
August
Reflection For The Day
I’ll begin today with prayer — prayer in my heart, prayer in my mind, and words of prayer on my lips. Through prayer, I’ll stay tuned to God today, reaching forward to become that to which I aspire. Prayer will redirect my mind, helping me rise in consciousness to the point where I realize that there’s no separation between God and me. As I let the power of God flow through me, all limitations will fall away. Do I know that nothing can overcome the power of God?
Today I Pray
Today may I offer to my Higher Power a constant prayer, not just a “once-in-the-morning-does-it” kind. May I think of my Higher Power at coffee breaks, lunch, tea time, during a quiet evening — and at all times in between. May my consciousness expand and erase the lines of separation, so that the Power is a part of me and I am a part of the Power.
Today I Will Remember
To live an all-day Prayer.
August
Reflection For The Day
I’ll begin today with prayer — prayer in my heart, prayer in my mind, and words of prayer on my lips. Through prayer, I’ll stay tuned to God today, reaching forward to become that to which I aspire. Prayer will redirect my mind, helping me rise in consciousness to the point where I realize that there’s no separation between God and me. As I let the power of God flow through me, all limitations will fall away. Do I know that nothing can overcome the power of God?
Today I Pray
Today may I offer to my Higher Power a constant prayer, not just a “once-in-the-morning-does-it” kind. May I think of my Higher Power at coffee breaks, lunch, tea time, during a quiet evening — and at all times in between. May my consciousness expand and erase the lines of separation, so that the Power is a part of me and I am a part of the Power.
Today I Will Remember
To live an all-day Prayer.
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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #OA #Disease
30
August
STAYING PRESENT
“First you need only look.”
Anne Hillman
My disease of compulsive overeating is fueled by my regrets of the past and my fears of the future. The more I try to rewrite the past, (which of course I cannot do); the more I try to devise a future plan, (which usually does not come to pass), the less I am present for my life.
I learn much from my three-year-old son. Sometimes when running to get a ball, he suddenly stops to look at an unusual insect he sees on the ground. His life flows and he abides by this pattern. He follows his heart and is “there” for life.
When I consciously stay present for life — when I savor each moment and stay with my feelings — I am alive and living. In the present there is no worry, no fear, no regrets.
One Day at a Time . . .
I ask my Higher Power to help me to stay present for my life, to stay with whatever is happening at any given moment. I feel feelings. I am spontaneous and life is exciting and inspired.
~ Melissa S. ~
August
STAYING PRESENT
“First you need only look.”
Anne Hillman
My disease of compulsive overeating is fueled by my regrets of the past and my fears of the future. The more I try to rewrite the past, (which of course I cannot do); the more I try to devise a future plan, (which usually does not come to pass), the less I am present for my life.
I learn much from my three-year-old son. Sometimes when running to get a ball, he suddenly stops to look at an unusual insect he sees on the ground. His life flows and he abides by this pattern. He follows his heart and is “there” for life.
When I consciously stay present for life — when I savor each moment and stay with my feelings — I am alive and living. In the present there is no worry, no fear, no regrets.
One Day at a Time . . .
I ask my Higher Power to help me to stay present for my life, to stay with whatever is happening at any given moment. I feel feelings. I am spontaneous and life is exciting and inspired.
~ Melissa S. ~
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Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrec #SHAWNEE #NativeAmerican
30
August
“I started drinking more seriously, seeking refuge, seeking death actually, from a world that was feeling more and more unnatural to me. Following a painful accident related to drinking, I finally realized that I must decide whether I want to follow my grandparents or truly take up this life. Circumstances that followed led me to choose life.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
My life is run by choices and decisions. Every choice I make today will carry with it the consequences of that choice. Every decision I make today will carry with it the consequences of that decision. The question I will ask myself today is, “Do I want to be happy or do I want to be right?” Which ever one I choose will have a lot to do with the consequences I will experience today. If today was the last day of my life, what choices and what decisions would I make?
Oh Great Spirit, guide my path today and help me see the value of choosing the Red
August
“I started drinking more seriously, seeking refuge, seeking death actually, from a world that was feeling more and more unnatural to me. Following a painful accident related to drinking, I finally realized that I must decide whether I want to follow my grandparents or truly take up this life. Circumstances that followed led me to choose life.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
My life is run by choices and decisions. Every choice I make today will carry with it the consequences of that choice. Every decision I make today will carry with it the consequences of that decision. The question I will ask myself today is, “Do I want to be happy or do I want to be right?” Which ever one I choose will have a lot to do with the consequences I will experience today. If today was the last day of my life, what choices and what decisions would I make?
Oh Great Spirit, guide my path today and help me see the value of choosing the Red
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Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Defeat #Victory
30
August
Defeat may serve as well as victory
To shake the soul and let the glory out.
— Edwin Markham
So life has given us some dents. So what? Dents are necessary, besides being unavoidable and painful. Each dent is a part of the process that enables us to embrace life as a creative experience and to see the world in a new way, a way of compassion and understanding. Recovery is not a matter of escaping further blows or of disguising the dents we already have. It’s a matter of understanding what the dents mean and how we can work with them.
Dents are neither soft spots in our characters that should make us ashamed nor saber scars that should make us proud. They are simply evidence that we have been alive for a while. Recovery offers us the chance to learn from our dents, to accept them as new spaces for growth. When we decide to see our dents as opportunities gained rather than opportunities lost, we stand much taller in our own eyes and in the eyes of others.
Today, I will look on my difficult life experiences in a new light. Today, I will plant some seeds.
August
Defeat may serve as well as victory
To shake the soul and let the glory out.
— Edwin Markham
So life has given us some dents. So what? Dents are necessary, besides being unavoidable and painful. Each dent is a part of the process that enables us to embrace life as a creative experience and to see the world in a new way, a way of compassion and understanding. Recovery is not a matter of escaping further blows or of disguising the dents we already have. It’s a matter of understanding what the dents mean and how we can work with them.
Dents are neither soft spots in our characters that should make us ashamed nor saber scars that should make us proud. They are simply evidence that we have been alive for a while. Recovery offers us the chance to learn from our dents, to accept them as new spaces for growth. When we decide to see our dents as opportunities gained rather than opportunities lost, we stand much taller in our own eyes and in the eyes of others.
Today, I will look on my difficult life experiences in a new light. Today, I will plant some seeds.
From the book:
Days of Healing, Days of Joy by Earnie Larsen and Carol Larsen Hegarty. © 1987, 1992 by Hazelden Foundation
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Step By Step #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Inventory #Step10
30
August
Today, I take Step 10 for the first time or retake it because it is one of the Program’s most integral maintenance Steps: “Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.” The 10th is the logical extension of the Fourth in which we “Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.” We cannot and should not believe that our personal inventory and admission of our wrongs is a one-time exercise: not only can those wrongs be resurrected in recovery and even after we’ve asked our Higher Power to remove them, but “new” defects can and do evolve in recovery. But why should we look in the mirror even long after our last drink or use? Failing to do so risks old character defects to rise again, possibly undetected, and a fearless honesty will likely tell us that our active addiction was fueled by those defects. And a relapse, even a so-called “slip,” is too high a price to pay for neglecting our maintenance of the progress we achieve in the Fourth Step. Today, I have to muster the honesty required of a continued personal inventory – my recovery is too precious a gift to risk. And our common journey continues.
August
Today, I take Step 10 for the first time or retake it because it is one of the Program’s most integral maintenance Steps: “Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.” The 10th is the logical extension of the Fourth in which we “Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.” We cannot and should not believe that our personal inventory and admission of our wrongs is a one-time exercise: not only can those wrongs be resurrected in recovery and even after we’ve asked our Higher Power to remove them, but “new” defects can and do evolve in recovery. But why should we look in the mirror even long after our last drink or use? Failing to do so risks old character defects to rise again, possibly undetected, and a fearless honesty will likely tell us that our active addiction was fueled by those defects. And a relapse, even a so-called “slip,” is too high a price to pay for neglecting our maintenance of the progress we achieve in the Fourth Step. Today, I have to muster the honesty required of a continued personal inventory – my recovery is too precious a gift to risk. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
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The Eye Opener #essentialsofrec #Power
30
August
You can’t swim like a fish, run like a deer, fight like a tiger or fly like a bird. Every one of your five senses is excelled by some member of the animal kingdom. Man, physically, has many superiors and would long since have been extinct but for the fact that he alone possess reasoning power.
With this advantage he can build ships to outswim the fish, motor cars to outrun the deer, perfect weapons to outfight the tiger and airplanes to outstrip the fastest of birds. With this reason he can visualize the reason behind all Nature and thus avail himself of a Power greater than himself and all the forces with which he has to contend.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
August
You can’t swim like a fish, run like a deer, fight like a tiger or fly like a bird. Every one of your five senses is excelled by some member of the animal kingdom. Man, physically, has many superiors and would long since have been extinct but for the fact that he alone possess reasoning power.
With this advantage he can build ships to outswim the fish, motor cars to outrun the deer, perfect weapons to outfight the tiger and airplanes to outstrip the fastest of birds. With this reason he can visualize the reason behind all Nature and thus avail himself of a Power greater than himself and all the forces with which he has to contend.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
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Daily Tao / 242 – Heart #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Tao #Taoism #Zen
30
August
August
Heart
Imagine your heart as an opening lotus.
From its center comes a crimson child,
Pure, virginal, and innocent.
One meditation gives this instruction :
Imagine your heart opening into a red lotus.
From its center comes a crimson child.
Bring this child out of your body and imagine him or her floating above your head. You, as a child, are holding a sun in each hand while each foot stands on a moon.
Hold this image as long as you can.
It is hard to bring out this child. When you try, you realize how many defenses you have built around yourself. You also realize how the experiences of adolescence and adulthood have stained you. Sometimes, you may even doubt that you have a pure and innocent self to bring out anymore. But each of us does. Each of us must find that crimson child within us and bring him or her out. For this child represents the time when our energies were whole and our hearts were untroubled by the duplicity of the world and ourselves.
Imagine your heart as an opening lotus.
From its center comes a crimson child,
Pure, virginal, and innocent.
One meditation gives this instruction :
Imagine your heart opening into a red lotus.
From its center comes a crimson child.
Bring this child out of your body and imagine him or her floating above your head. You, as a child, are holding a sun in each hand while each foot stands on a moon.
Hold this image as long as you can.
It is hard to bring out this child. When you try, you realize how many defenses you have built around yourself. You also realize how the experiences of adolescence and adulthood have stained you. Sometimes, you may even doubt that you have a pure and innocent self to bring out anymore. But each of us does. Each of us must find that crimson child within us and bring him or her out. For this child represents the time when our energies were whole and our hearts were untroubled by the duplicity of the world and ourselves.
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Daily Zen #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Zen #Buddhism
30
August
The moon illuminates
A thousand peaks with
The brilliance of daylight.
The sound of the bell
Falls on my pillow
Of old friend’s poems;
In my thin monk’s robes,
Unafraid of the frost’s harshness,
I rise, roll up the thin blinds,
Sit in the depths of the night.
- Tesshu Tokusai (d.1366)
August
The moon illuminates
A thousand peaks with
The brilliance of daylight.
The sound of the bell
Falls on my pillow
Of old friend’s poems;
In my thin monk’s robes,
Unafraid of the frost’s harshness,
I rise, roll up the thin blinds,
Sit in the depths of the night.
- Tesshu Tokusai (d.1366)
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Saturday 29 August 2015
Polly P. - AA Speakers - "How to be Happy, Content, and have Emotional Sobriety" (Part 2) #essentialsofrec #Recovery #AA #Speaker
29
August
August
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A Date With Destiny? #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Grapevine
29
August
AA Grapevine October 1944
Somebody once said, "As much as you may grow, as many recoveries as there may be, I think the eventual by-products of A.A. will be greater than A.A. itself."
Everywhere now, we hear such remarks. They come from all kinds of people. Doctors think of applying our methods to other neurotics; clergymen wonder if our humble example may not vitalize their congregations; businessmen find we make good personnel managers--they glimpse a new industrial democracy; educators see power in our non-controversial way of presenting the truth; and our friends wistfully say, "We wish we were alcoholics--we need A.A. too."
Why these stirrings? They must all mean, I am sure, that we have suddenly become much more than recovered alcoholics, A.A. members only. Society has begun to hope that we are going to utilize, in every walk of life, that miraculous experience of our returning, almost overnight, from the fearsome land of Nowhere.
Yes, we are again citizens of the world. It is a distraught world, very tired, very uncertain. It has worshipped its own self-sufficiency--and that has failed. We A.A.s are a people who once did that very thing. That philosophy failed us, too. So perhaps, here and there, our example of recovery can help. As individuals, we have a responsibility, may be a double responsibility. It may be that we have a date with destiny.
An example: Not long ago Dr. E. M. Jellinek, of Yale University, came to us. He said, "Yale, as you know, is sponsoring a program of public education on alcoholism, entirely non-controversial in character. We need the cooperation of many A.A.s. To proceed on any educational project concerning alcoholism without the goodwill, experience and help of A.A. members would be unthinkable."
So, when the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism was formed, an A.A. member was made its executive director: Marty M., one of our oldest and finest. In this issue, she tells The Grapevine of her new work. As a member of A.A., she is just as much interested in us as before--A.A. is still her avocation. But as an officer of the Yale-sponsored National Committee, she is also interested in educating the general public on alcoholism. Her A.A. training has wonderfully fitted her for this post in a different field. Public education on alcoholism is to be her vocation.
Could an A.A. do such a job? At first, Marty herself wondered. She asked her A.A. friends, "Will I be regarded as a professional?" Her friends replied, "Had you come to us, Marty, proposing to be a therapist, to sell straight A.A. to alcoholics at so much a customer, we should certainly have branded that as professionalism. So would everybody else.
"But the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism is quite another matter. You will be taking your natural abilities and A.A. experience into a very different field. We don't see how that can affect your amateur status with us. Suppose you were to become a social worker, a personnel officer, the manager of a state farm for alcoholics, or even a minister of the Gospel? Who could possibly say those activities would make you a professional A.A.? No one, of course."
They went on, "Yet we do hope that A.A. as a whole will never deviate from its sole purpose of helping other alcoholics. As an organization, we should express no opinions save on the recovery of problem drinkers. That very sound national policy has kept us out of much useless trouble already, and will surely forestall untold complications in the future.
"Though A.A. as a whole," they continued, "should never have but one objective, we believe just as strongly that for the individual there should be no limitations whatever, except his own conscience. He should have the complete right to choose his own opinions and outside activities. If these are good, A.A.s everywhere will approve. Just so, Marty, do we think it will be in your case. While Yale is your actual sponsor, we feel sure that you are going to have the warm personal support of thousands of A.A.s wherever you go. We shall all be thinking how much better a break this new generation of potential alcoholic kids will have because of your work, how much it might have meant to us had our own mothers and fathers really understood alcoholism." Personally I feel that Marty's friends have advised her wisely; that they have clearly distinguished between the limited scope of "A.A. as a whole" and the broad horizon of the individual A.A. acting on his own responsibility; that they have probably drawn a correct line between what we would regard as professional and amateur.
Bill W.
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., October 1944
"A Date With Destiny"
The Language of the Heart
August
AA Grapevine October 1944
Somebody once said, "As much as you may grow, as many recoveries as there may be, I think the eventual by-products of A.A. will be greater than A.A. itself."
Everywhere now, we hear such remarks. They come from all kinds of people. Doctors think of applying our methods to other neurotics; clergymen wonder if our humble example may not vitalize their congregations; businessmen find we make good personnel managers--they glimpse a new industrial democracy; educators see power in our non-controversial way of presenting the truth; and our friends wistfully say, "We wish we were alcoholics--we need A.A. too."
Why these stirrings? They must all mean, I am sure, that we have suddenly become much more than recovered alcoholics, A.A. members only. Society has begun to hope that we are going to utilize, in every walk of life, that miraculous experience of our returning, almost overnight, from the fearsome land of Nowhere.
Yes, we are again citizens of the world. It is a distraught world, very tired, very uncertain. It has worshipped its own self-sufficiency--and that has failed. We A.A.s are a people who once did that very thing. That philosophy failed us, too. So perhaps, here and there, our example of recovery can help. As individuals, we have a responsibility, may be a double responsibility. It may be that we have a date with destiny.
An example: Not long ago Dr. E. M. Jellinek, of Yale University, came to us. He said, "Yale, as you know, is sponsoring a program of public education on alcoholism, entirely non-controversial in character. We need the cooperation of many A.A.s. To proceed on any educational project concerning alcoholism without the goodwill, experience and help of A.A. members would be unthinkable."
So, when the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism was formed, an A.A. member was made its executive director: Marty M., one of our oldest and finest. In this issue, she tells The Grapevine of her new work. As a member of A.A., she is just as much interested in us as before--A.A. is still her avocation. But as an officer of the Yale-sponsored National Committee, she is also interested in educating the general public on alcoholism. Her A.A. training has wonderfully fitted her for this post in a different field. Public education on alcoholism is to be her vocation.
Could an A.A. do such a job? At first, Marty herself wondered. She asked her A.A. friends, "Will I be regarded as a professional?" Her friends replied, "Had you come to us, Marty, proposing to be a therapist, to sell straight A.A. to alcoholics at so much a customer, we should certainly have branded that as professionalism. So would everybody else.
"But the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism is quite another matter. You will be taking your natural abilities and A.A. experience into a very different field. We don't see how that can affect your amateur status with us. Suppose you were to become a social worker, a personnel officer, the manager of a state farm for alcoholics, or even a minister of the Gospel? Who could possibly say those activities would make you a professional A.A.? No one, of course."
They went on, "Yet we do hope that A.A. as a whole will never deviate from its sole purpose of helping other alcoholics. As an organization, we should express no opinions save on the recovery of problem drinkers. That very sound national policy has kept us out of much useless trouble already, and will surely forestall untold complications in the future.
"Though A.A. as a whole," they continued, "should never have but one objective, we believe just as strongly that for the individual there should be no limitations whatever, except his own conscience. He should have the complete right to choose his own opinions and outside activities. If these are good, A.A.s everywhere will approve. Just so, Marty, do we think it will be in your case. While Yale is your actual sponsor, we feel sure that you are going to have the warm personal support of thousands of A.A.s wherever you go. We shall all be thinking how much better a break this new generation of potential alcoholic kids will have because of your work, how much it might have meant to us had our own mothers and fathers really understood alcoholism." Personally I feel that Marty's friends have advised her wisely; that they have clearly distinguished between the limited scope of "A.A. as a whole" and the broad horizon of the individual A.A. acting on his own responsibility; that they have probably drawn a correct line between what we would regard as professional and amateur.
Bill W.
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., October 1944
"A Date With Destiny"
The Language of the Heart
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Daily Reflections #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Anonymity
29
August
I CHOOSE ANONYMITY
We are sure that humility, expressed by anonymity, is the greatest safeguard that Alcoholics Anonymous can ever have.
August
I CHOOSE ANONYMITY
We are sure that humility, expressed by anonymity, is the greatest safeguard that Alcoholics Anonymous can ever have.
12 & 12, p.187
Since there are no rules in A.A. I place myself where I want to be, and so I choose anonymity. I want my God to use me, humbly, as one of His tools in this program. Sacrifice is the art of giving of myself freely, allowing humility to replace my ego. With sobriety, I suppress that urge to cry out to the world, “I am a member of A.A.” and I experience inner joy and peace. I let people see the changes in me and hope they will ask what happened to me. I place the principles of spirituality ahead of judging, fault-finding, and criticism. I want love and caring in my group, so I can grow.
Since there are no rules in A.A. I place myself where I want to be, and so I choose anonymity. I want my God to use me, humbly, as one of His tools in this program. Sacrifice is the art of giving of myself freely, allowing humility to replace my ego. With sobriety, I suppress that urge to cry out to the world, “I am a member of A.A.” and I experience inner joy and peace. I let people see the changes in me and hope they will ask what happened to me. I place the principles of spirituality ahead of judging, fault-finding, and criticism. I want love and caring in my group, so I can grow.
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Just For Today #essentialsofrec #Addiction #Recovery #NA
29
August
Don’t Look Back
“The steps offer a big change from a life dominated by guilt and remorse. Our futures are changed because we don’t have to avoid those who we have harmed. As a result… we receive a new freedom that can end isolation.”
August
Don’t Look Back
“The steps offer a big change from a life dominated by guilt and remorse. Our futures are changed because we don’t have to avoid those who we have harmed. As a result… we receive a new freedom that can end isolation.”
Basic Text p.31
Many of us come to Narcotics Anonymous full of regrets about our past. Our steps help us begin to resolve those regrets. We examine our lives, admit our wrongs, make amends for them, and sincerely try to change our behavior. In doing so, we find a joyous sense of freedom.
No longer must we deny or regret our past. Once we’ve made our amends, what’s done is truly over and gone. From that point on, where we come from ceases to be the most important thing about us. It’s where we are going that counts.
In NA, we begin to look forward. True, we live and stay clean just for today. But we find that we can begin to set goals, dream dreams, and look ahead to the joys a life in recovery has to offer. Looking forward keeps us centered in where we are going, not remorseful or regretful about our past. After all, it is hard to move forward if we are looking back.
Just for today: The steps have freed me from regrets over my past. Today, I look forward to my new life in recovery.
Many of us come to Narcotics Anonymous full of regrets about our past. Our steps help us begin to resolve those regrets. We examine our lives, admit our wrongs, make amends for them, and sincerely try to change our behavior. In doing so, we find a joyous sense of freedom.
No longer must we deny or regret our past. Once we’ve made our amends, what’s done is truly over and gone. From that point on, where we come from ceases to be the most important thing about us. It’s where we are going that counts.
In NA, we begin to look forward. True, we live and stay clean just for today. But we find that we can begin to set goals, dream dreams, and look ahead to the joys a life in recovery has to offer. Looking forward keeps us centered in where we are going, not remorseful or regretful about our past. After all, it is hard to move forward if we are looking back.
Just for today: The steps have freed me from regrets over my past. Today, I look forward to my new life in recovery.
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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Meditation
29
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“We cannot get along without prayer and meditation. On awakening, let us think about the 24 hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day. Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking. Our thought lives will be placed on a much higher plane when we start the day with prayer and meditation. We conclude this period of meditation with a prayer that we will be shown through the day what our next step is to be. The basis of all our prayers is: Thy will be done in me and through me today.” Am I sincere in my desire to do God’s will today?
Meditation For The Day
Breathe in the inspiration of goodness and truth. It is the spirit of honesty, purity, unselfishness, and love. It is readily available if we are willing to accept it wholeheartedly. God has given us two things – His spirit and the power of choice – to accept or not, as we will. We have the gift of free will. When we choose the path of selfishness and greed and pride, we are refusing to accept God’s spirit. When we choose the path of love and service, we accept God’s spirit and it flows into us and makes all things new.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may choose the right way. I pray that I may try to follow it to the end.
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“We cannot get along without prayer and meditation. On awakening, let us think about the 24 hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day. Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking. Our thought lives will be placed on a much higher plane when we start the day with prayer and meditation. We conclude this period of meditation with a prayer that we will be shown through the day what our next step is to be. The basis of all our prayers is: Thy will be done in me and through me today.” Am I sincere in my desire to do God’s will today?
Meditation For The Day
Breathe in the inspiration of goodness and truth. It is the spirit of honesty, purity, unselfishness, and love. It is readily available if we are willing to accept it wholeheartedly. God has given us two things – His spirit and the power of choice – to accept or not, as we will. We have the gift of free will. When we choose the path of selfishness and greed and pride, we are refusing to accept God’s spirit. When we choose the path of love and service, we accept God’s spirit and it flows into us and makes all things new.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may choose the right way. I pray that I may try to follow it to the end.
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As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Step9
29
August
Hard On Ourselves, Considerate Of Others, p. 240
We cannot disclose anything to our wives or our parents which will hurt them and make them unhappy. We have no right to save our own skins at their expense.
Such damaging parts of our story we tell to someone else who will understand, yet be unaffected. The rule is, we must be hard on ourselves, but always considerate of others.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Good judgment will suggest that we ought to take our time in making amends to our families. It may be unwise at first to rehash certain harrowing episodes. While we may be quite willing to reveal the very worst, we must be sure to remember that we cannot buy our own peace of mind at the expense of others.
1. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 74
2. 12 & 12, p. 84
August
Hard On Ourselves, Considerate Of Others, p. 240
We cannot disclose anything to our wives or our parents which will hurt them and make them unhappy. We have no right to save our own skins at their expense.
Such damaging parts of our story we tell to someone else who will understand, yet be unaffected. The rule is, we must be hard on ourselves, but always considerate of others.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Good judgment will suggest that we ought to take our time in making amends to our families. It may be unwise at first to rehash certain harrowing episodes. While we may be quite willing to reveal the very worst, we must be sure to remember that we cannot buy our own peace of mind at the expense of others.
1. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 74
2. 12 & 12, p. 84
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Keep It Simple #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Gentleness
29
August
This day I choose to spend in perfect peace.
— A Course in Miracles
Today, let’s be gentle and kind. Lets talk to ourselves with love and respect. Let’s be gentle with others too.
Today, let’s be clear in how we think, speak, and act. And if we start to get mixed up, let’s stop thinking and listen for our Higher Power’s voice.
Today, we know that we have just a small job to do. It is to live today with love in our heart. We can’t take care of every problem in the world. But we make our actions today part of the answer instead of the part of the problem. Let’s Keep It Simple.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me find Your calmness and peace in my heart today.
Action for the Day: Do I believe that peace starts with me? Today, I’ll listen to the simple voice of peace inside of me. And I’ll Keep It Simple.
August
This day I choose to spend in perfect peace.
— A Course in Miracles
Today, let’s be gentle and kind. Lets talk to ourselves with love and respect. Let’s be gentle with others too.
Today, let’s be clear in how we think, speak, and act. And if we start to get mixed up, let’s stop thinking and listen for our Higher Power’s voice.
Today, we know that we have just a small job to do. It is to live today with love in our heart. We can’t take care of every problem in the world. But we make our actions today part of the answer instead of the part of the problem. Let’s Keep It Simple.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me find Your calmness and peace in my heart today.
Action for the Day: Do I believe that peace starts with me? Today, I’ll listen to the simple voice of peace inside of me. And I’ll Keep It Simple.
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Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrec #Recovery #FrLeo
29
August
EDUCATION
“The university exists only to find and communicate the truth.”
– Robert Maynard Hutchins
Today in my recovery I know I am a student of Truth and will hopefully be so until the day that I die. No longer do I search for the cheap thrill or the quick fix — now I desire lasting truths.
Spirituality is about finding God in things that are true and honest, good and wholesome, creative and positive.
I battle daily with that sick side of me that is greedy, selfish and dishonest — I’m not perfect. Today I know that the sick and dishonest way of living does not work. My history teaches me that it does not work. I was never truly happy knowing that the gains came at the expense of others. Now I am a student in the “university of life”, and I enjoy learning something new about me every day. Today I am able to listen — listen to those who are wiser than I. I know that I do not have all the answers — and with this knowledge comes freedom.
August
EDUCATION
“The university exists only to find and communicate the truth.”
– Robert Maynard Hutchins
Today in my recovery I know I am a student of Truth and will hopefully be so until the day that I die. No longer do I search for the cheap thrill or the quick fix — now I desire lasting truths.
Spirituality is about finding God in things that are true and honest, good and wholesome, creative and positive.
I battle daily with that sick side of me that is greedy, selfish and dishonest — I’m not perfect. Today I know that the sick and dishonest way of living does not work. My history teaches me that it does not work. I was never truly happy knowing that the gains came at the expense of others. Now I am a student in the “university of life”, and I enjoy learning something new about me every day. Today I am able to listen — listen to those who are wiser than I. I know that I do not have all the answers — and with this knowledge comes freedom.
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A Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Prayer
29
August
Reflection For The Day
Prayer can have many rewards. One of the greatest rewards is the sense of belonging it brings to me. No longer do I live as a stranger in a strange land, alien in a completely hostile world. No longer am I lost, frightened and purposeless. I belong. We find, in The Program, that the moment we catch a glimpse of God’s will — the moment we begin to see truth, justice and love as the real and eternal things in life — we’re no longer so deeply upset by all the seeming evidence to the contrary surrounding us in purely human affairs. Do I believe that God lovingly watches over me?
Today I Pray
May I be grateful for the comfort and peace of belonging — to God the ultimately wise “parent” and to His family on earth. May I no longer need bumper stickers or boisterous gangs to give me my identity. Through prayer, I am God’s.
Today I Will Remember
I find my identity through prayer.
August
Reflection For The Day
Prayer can have many rewards. One of the greatest rewards is the sense of belonging it brings to me. No longer do I live as a stranger in a strange land, alien in a completely hostile world. No longer am I lost, frightened and purposeless. I belong. We find, in The Program, that the moment we catch a glimpse of God’s will — the moment we begin to see truth, justice and love as the real and eternal things in life — we’re no longer so deeply upset by all the seeming evidence to the contrary surrounding us in purely human affairs. Do I believe that God lovingly watches over me?
Today I Pray
May I be grateful for the comfort and peace of belonging — to God the ultimately wise “parent” and to His family on earth. May I no longer need bumper stickers or boisterous gangs to give me my identity. Through prayer, I am God’s.
Today I Will Remember
I find my identity through prayer.
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One day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #OA #disease
29
Anne Hillman
My disease of compulsive overeating is fueled by my regrets of the past and my fears of the future. The more I try to rewrite the past, (which of course I cannot do); the more I try to devise a future plan, (which usually does not come to pass), the less I am present for my life.
I learn much from my three-year-old son. Sometimes when running to get a ball, he suddenly stops to look at an unusual insect he sees on the ground. His life flows and he abides by this pattern. He follows his heart and is "there" for life.
When I consciously stay present for life -- when I savor each moment and stay with my feelings -- I am alive and living. In the present there is no worry, no fear, no regrets.
One Day at a Time . . .
I ask my Higher Power to help me to stay present for my life, to stay with whatever is happening at any given moment. I feel feelings. I am spontaneous and life is exciting and inspired.
~ Melissa S. ~
August
STAYING PRESENT
"First you need only look."
STAYING PRESENT
"First you need only look."
Anne Hillman
My disease of compulsive overeating is fueled by my regrets of the past and my fears of the future. The more I try to rewrite the past, (which of course I cannot do); the more I try to devise a future plan, (which usually does not come to pass), the less I am present for my life.
I learn much from my three-year-old son. Sometimes when running to get a ball, he suddenly stops to look at an unusual insect he sees on the ground. His life flows and he abides by this pattern. He follows his heart and is "there" for life.
When I consciously stay present for life -- when I savor each moment and stay with my feelings -- I am alive and living. In the present there is no worry, no fear, no regrets.
One Day at a Time . . .
I ask my Higher Power to help me to stay present for my life, to stay with whatever is happening at any given moment. I feel feelings. I am spontaneous and life is exciting and inspired.
~ Melissa S. ~
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Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Shawnee #NativeAmerican
29
August
“The devastated earth, the air, water, the extinct species of mankind, animalkind, and plantkind, the drugs, suicides, family separations – these are all the result of false ceremonies.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
All life is a ceremony.
Every act is a ceremony creating a result in our lives.
Every ceremony we do always brings results to our lives.
If we do bad medicine to others, we do bad medicine to ourselves.
If we keep on doing bad ceremonies, we will eventually destroy ourselves.
Any time we live our lives out of harmony, we are doing bad ceremonies. Any time we treat anything with disrespect whether it is another human being or a plant or an animal, we are performing bad ceremonies.
These ceremonies not only have an effect on ourselves but will simultaneously affect everything. We need to use our power well, only do good ceremonies.
My Creator, teach me only good ceremonies. Teach me ceremonies that accomplish good for all the people. Good ceremonies cause good results. Teach me ceremonies that are helpful
August
“The devastated earth, the air, water, the extinct species of mankind, animalkind, and plantkind, the drugs, suicides, family separations – these are all the result of false ceremonies.”
–Barney Bush, SHAWNEE
All life is a ceremony.
Every act is a ceremony creating a result in our lives.
Every ceremony we do always brings results to our lives.
If we do bad medicine to others, we do bad medicine to ourselves.
If we keep on doing bad ceremonies, we will eventually destroy ourselves.
Any time we live our lives out of harmony, we are doing bad ceremonies. Any time we treat anything with disrespect whether it is another human being or a plant or an animal, we are performing bad ceremonies.
These ceremonies not only have an effect on ourselves but will simultaneously affect everything. We need to use our power well, only do good ceremonies.
My Creator, teach me only good ceremonies. Teach me ceremonies that accomplish good for all the people. Good ceremonies cause good results. Teach me ceremonies that are helpful
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Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Intimacy
29
August
Love at first sight is easy to understand. It’s when two people have been looking at each other for years that it becomes a miracle.
— Sam Levenson
True intimacy introduces us to ourselves. A loving relationship is the greatest therapy. When we first fall in love, we are filled with optimism and the greatest hopes for fulfillment of our dreams. We cling to all the best qualities of the person we fall in love with and we look past those things we don’t like. But living in an intimate partnership takes us beyond the edge of what we have learned. It is truly an adult developmental challenge.
Most of us fall in love and soon find ourselves in over our heads. We haven’t had experience as adults in sustaining the openness and vulnerability we have walked into. We may gradually begin to feel too vulnerable and exposed. The relationship tests our ability to trust someone who has this much access to our inner self. We are tempted to become cranky, edgy, or overly sensitive. We may test our partner’s love by asking, If you love me, will you do such and such? We begin to try to control our partner so we don’t feel so vulnerable. All these temptations are holdover behaviors from our less mature selves. So we must reach for our more mature selves, breathe deeply, and trust that we can survive while being so close and vulnerable.
Wisdom to Know © 2005 by Hazelden Foundation
August
Love at first sight is easy to understand. It’s when two people have been looking at each other for years that it becomes a miracle.
— Sam Levenson
True intimacy introduces us to ourselves. A loving relationship is the greatest therapy. When we first fall in love, we are filled with optimism and the greatest hopes for fulfillment of our dreams. We cling to all the best qualities of the person we fall in love with and we look past those things we don’t like. But living in an intimate partnership takes us beyond the edge of what we have learned. It is truly an adult developmental challenge.
Most of us fall in love and soon find ourselves in over our heads. We haven’t had experience as adults in sustaining the openness and vulnerability we have walked into. We may gradually begin to feel too vulnerable and exposed. The relationship tests our ability to trust someone who has this much access to our inner self. We are tempted to become cranky, edgy, or overly sensitive. We may test our partner’s love by asking, If you love me, will you do such and such? We begin to try to control our partner so we don’t feel so vulnerable. All these temptations are holdover behaviors from our less mature selves. So we must reach for our more mature selves, breathe deeply, and trust that we can survive while being so close and vulnerable.
Today I will turn to my Higher Power for guidance in going forward, in trust while being vulnerable.
From the book:
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Step by Step #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Inventory
29
August
Today, I must understand that serenity in recovery comes from within and not from people and things on the outside. I wasted too much time, emotion and energy in my drinking days searching and even clinging to outside things and people in whom I vested my sobriety. But now I must accept that my sobriety comes from within. I no longer can demand or hope that the world and other people can change to accommodate my recovery but that I must change myself to fit into the world and the people in it. AA gives me the road map to arrive at such a lofty destination, in Step Four: “Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.” Steps Five, Six and Seven, then, guide us through the admission to God, to ourselves and another human being the “exact nature” of the wrongs we find in Step Four and through asking God to remove our shortcomings. The Steps are dependent on action by me, not someone or something else. Today, I begin assuming responsibility for both my addiction and recovery. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
August
Today, I must understand that serenity in recovery comes from within and not from people and things on the outside. I wasted too much time, emotion and energy in my drinking days searching and even clinging to outside things and people in whom I vested my sobriety. But now I must accept that my sobriety comes from within. I no longer can demand or hope that the world and other people can change to accommodate my recovery but that I must change myself to fit into the world and the people in it. AA gives me the road map to arrive at such a lofty destination, in Step Four: “Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.” Steps Five, Six and Seven, then, guide us through the admission to God, to ourselves and another human being the “exact nature” of the wrongs we find in Step Four and through asking God to remove our shortcomings. The Steps are dependent on action by me, not someone or something else. Today, I begin assuming responsibility for both my addiction and recovery. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
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The Eye Opener #essentialsofrec #Relationships
29
August
The relationship of hours to a lifetime is comparable to the relationship of bricks to a house. Every brick that is laid must be a separate and distinct operation, yet so tied to the preceding and the following brick that their positions are level and plumb. Each one is an entirety in itself, but all the bricks are either supporting or are supported by each other.
Our hours, lived one by one, are in no sense different. The beauty, strength and durability of our lives will be determined by the individual hours viewed collectively.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
August
The relationship of hours to a lifetime is comparable to the relationship of bricks to a house. Every brick that is laid must be a separate and distinct operation, yet so tied to the preceding and the following brick that their positions are level and plumb. Each one is an entirety in itself, but all the bricks are either supporting or are supported by each other.
Our hours, lived one by one, are in no sense different. The beauty, strength and durability of our lives will be determined by the individual hours viewed collectively.
Copyright Hazelden Foundation
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Daily Tao / 241 – Utopia #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Tao #Utopia
29
August
August
Utopia
Chant one million times for world peace, they told me.
Pray three times a day to end all wars.
Practice austerities to liberate all living beings.
But the world’s miseries have never diminished.
Periodically, some religious group proclaims that if everyone would just do something like chant, some fundamental social problem would be solved. Claims have been made that spiritual devotion could affect wars, famine, disease, the economy, and overpopulation.
Only personal endeavors can be spiritual. What you do with your daily devotions is purely for your own sake. Once you put ideals on a grand scale, they are compromised by the contradictions of life.
There is no utopia. There never will be. There is only the valiant attempt of each person to live spiritually in a world where spirituality is almost impossible.
Chant one million times for world peace, they told me.
Pray three times a day to end all wars.
Practice austerities to liberate all living beings.
But the world’s miseries have never diminished.
Periodically, some religious group proclaims that if everyone would just do something like chant, some fundamental social problem would be solved. Claims have been made that spiritual devotion could affect wars, famine, disease, the economy, and overpopulation.
Only personal endeavors can be spiritual. What you do with your daily devotions is purely for your own sake. Once you put ideals on a grand scale, they are compromised by the contradictions of life.
There is no utopia. There never will be. There is only the valiant attempt of each person to live spiritually in a world where spirituality is almost impossible.
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Daily Zen #essentialsofrec #Zen #Buddhism
29
August
Cold Cliff’s remoteness
Is what I love.
No one travels this way;
Clouds lie around on the peaks;
A lone gibbon howls on the ridge.
What else do I cherish?
It’s good to grow old content.
Cold and heat change my appearance;
The pearl of my mind stays safe
- Cold Mountain
August
Cold Cliff’s remoteness
Is what I love.
No one travels this way;
Clouds lie around on the peaks;
A lone gibbon howls on the ridge.
What else do I cherish?
It’s good to grow old content.
Cold and heat change my appearance;
The pearl of my mind stays safe
- Cold Mountain
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Friday 28 August 2015
Polly P. - AA Speakers - "How to be Happy, Content, and have Emotional Sobriety" (Part 1) #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Emotions
28
August
August
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Daily Reflections #essentialsofrec #Recovery
28
August
LIGHTENING THE BURDEN
Showing others who suffer how we were given help is the very thing which makes life seem so worth while to us now. . . . the dark past is . . . the key to life and happiness for others.
August
LIGHTENING THE BURDEN
Showing others who suffer how we were given help is the very thing which makes life seem so worth while to us now. . . . the dark past is . . . the key to life and happiness for others.
Alcoholics Anonymous, p.124
Since I have been sober, I have been healed of many pains: deceiving my partner, deserting my best friend, and spoiling my mother’s hopes for my life. In each case someone in the program told me of a similar problem, and I was able to share what happened to me. When my story was told, both of us got up with lighter hearts.
Since I have been sober, I have been healed of many pains: deceiving my partner, deserting my best friend, and spoiling my mother’s hopes for my life. In each case someone in the program told me of a similar problem, and I was able to share what happened to me. When my story was told, both of us got up with lighter hearts.
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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec #Fear #Resentment #Inventory
28
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“We must continue to take personal inventory and continue to set right any new mistakes as we go along. We should grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter; it should continue for our lifetime. Continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear. When these crop up, we ask God at once to remove them. We must not rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do. We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve, contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.” Am I checking my spiritual condition daily?
Meditation For The Day
Happiness cannot be sought directly; it is a byproduct of love and service. Service is a law of our being. With love in your heart, there is always some service to other people. A life of power and joy and satisfaction is built on love and service. Persons who hate or are selfish are going against the law of their own being. They are cutting themselves off from God and other people. Little acts of love and encouragement, of service and help, erase the rough places of life and help to make a path smooth. If we do these things, we cannot help having our share of happiness.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may give my share of love and service. I pray that I may not grow weary in my attempts to do the right thing.
August
A.A. Thought For The Day
“We must continue to take personal inventory and continue to set right any new mistakes as we go along. We should grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter; it should continue for our lifetime. Continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear. When these crop up, we ask God at once to remove them. We must not rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do. We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve, contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.” Am I checking my spiritual condition daily?
Meditation For The Day
Happiness cannot be sought directly; it is a byproduct of love and service. Service is a law of our being. With love in your heart, there is always some service to other people. A life of power and joy and satisfaction is built on love and service. Persons who hate or are selfish are going against the law of their own being. They are cutting themselves off from God and other people. Little acts of love and encouragement, of service and help, erase the rough places of life and help to make a path smooth. If we do these things, we cannot help having our share of happiness.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may give my share of love and service. I pray that I may not grow weary in my attempts to do the right thing.
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As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Giving
28
August
When And How To Give, p.239
Men who cry for money and shelter as a condition of their sobriety are on the wrong track. Yet we sometimes do provide a new prospect with these very things–when it becomes clear that he is willing to place his recovery first.
It is not whether we shall give that is the question, but when and how to give. Whenever we put our work on a material plane, the alcoholic commences to rely upon alms rather than upon a Higher Power and the A.A. group. He continues to insist that he cannot master alcohol until his material needs are cared for.
Nonsense! Some of us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth: that, job or no job, wife or no wife, we simply do not stop drinking so long as we place material dependence upon other people ahead of dependence on God.
Alcoholics Anonymous, p.98
August
When And How To Give, p.239
Men who cry for money and shelter as a condition of their sobriety are on the wrong track. Yet we sometimes do provide a new prospect with these very things–when it becomes clear that he is willing to place his recovery first.
It is not whether we shall give that is the question, but when and how to give. Whenever we put our work on a material plane, the alcoholic commences to rely upon alms rather than upon a Higher Power and the A.A. group. He continues to insist that he cannot master alcohol until his material needs are cared for.
Nonsense! Some of us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth: that, job or no job, wife or no wife, we simply do not stop drinking so long as we place material dependence upon other people ahead of dependence on God.
Alcoholics Anonymous, p.98
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Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrec #Prayer #Guidance
28
August
No Prayer Goes Unanswered
Guidance.
It would be nearly impossible to do an accounting of the results of prayer. Sometimes there seems to be no answer , and at other times, an answer seems to be the result of coincidence. It’s too easy to dismiss these results as things that would have happened even if we hadn’t prayed.
Yet those of us who believe in prayer feel that it is indeed a way of communicating with our Higher Power. It takes many forms. Even thinking about God is a type of prayer.
The best answers to prayer come in the new ways we begin to feel about ourselves and others. If prayer brings us to a realization of being in tune with our Higher Power, we are working in the right way. The proper changes will come into our lives as needed. We should not try to measure results, because this tends to bring doubt into the process. Our only responsibility is to pray then let God’s work take place in our lives.
I will pray regularly to day, thinking often about God and asserting to myself and others that this Higher Power is in charge.
August
No Prayer Goes Unanswered
Guidance.
It would be nearly impossible to do an accounting of the results of prayer. Sometimes there seems to be no answer , and at other times, an answer seems to be the result of coincidence. It’s too easy to dismiss these results as things that would have happened even if we hadn’t prayed.
Yet those of us who believe in prayer feel that it is indeed a way of communicating with our Higher Power. It takes many forms. Even thinking about God is a type of prayer.
The best answers to prayer come in the new ways we begin to feel about ourselves and others. If prayer brings us to a realization of being in tune with our Higher Power, we are working in the right way. The proper changes will come into our lives as needed. We should not try to measure results, because this tends to bring doubt into the process. Our only responsibility is to pray then let God’s work take place in our lives.
I will pray regularly to day, thinking often about God and asserting to myself and others that this Higher Power is in charge.
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Keep It Simple #essentialsofrec #Recovery
28
August
The saints are the sinners who kept going.
August
The saints are the sinners who kept going.
—Robert Louis Stevenson
The saints are what our program calls the “winner.” We’re told to “stick” with the winners. Saints are just proven winners. They keep on believing in their Higher Power even when things get hard.
There will be times when we’ll want to give up. We may want to stop going to meetings. We may want to get high. We may want to stop working the Steps.
To be winners in this program, we need to follow the example of the saints. This means we live a spiritual life. We need to keep on going. One day at a time.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I’ll be a winner in this program. Higher Power, be with me in the easy times and the hard times. Help me keep going.
Action for the Day: I’ll list people who are winners in this program. I’ll ask one of the how he or she keeps going in tough times.
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#essentialsofrec #Bible #Quote #Inspiration
28
August
August
The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me. ~ Psalms 116:6
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Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Character
28
August
CHARACTER
“A man never discloses his own character so clearly as when he describes another’s.”
– Johann Paul Richter
I was always so perceptive when it came to assessing the character faults of others. I could offer the best therapy and treatment to others; the best advice in the world. I was excellent at “pulling the covers” on a con-man — but always I missed me! I never really heard my insights. I never followed my advice. I always minimized my character faults.
Usually what I saw in others was reflected in my own personality. The things I loathed in others existed in me. The anger and resentments came from a denial of self.
In sobriety I hear the advice of others. I don’t always like it but I hear it. I give criticism and today I am growing in my acceptance of criticism.
In relationships may I see clearly my own reflection.
August
CHARACTER
“A man never discloses his own character so clearly as when he describes another’s.”
– Johann Paul Richter
I was always so perceptive when it came to assessing the character faults of others. I could offer the best therapy and treatment to others; the best advice in the world. I was excellent at “pulling the covers” on a con-man — but always I missed me! I never really heard my insights. I never followed my advice. I always minimized my character faults.
Usually what I saw in others was reflected in my own personality. The things I loathed in others existed in me. The anger and resentments came from a denial of self.
In sobriety I hear the advice of others. I don’t always like it but I hear it. I give criticism and today I am growing in my acceptance of criticism.
In relationships may I see clearly my own reflection.
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A Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Change
28
August
Reflection For The Day
“Prayer does not change God,” wrote Soren Kierkegaard, “but it changes him who prays.” Those of us in The Program who’ve learned to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we’d trun down sunshine, fresh air, or food — and for the same reason. Just as the body can wither and fail for lack of nourishment, so can the soul. We all need the light of God’s reality, the nourishment of His strength, and the atmosphere of His Grace. Do I thank God for all that He has given me, for all that He has taken away from me, and for all He has left me?
Today I Pray
Dear H.P.; I want to thank you for spreading calm over my confusion, for making the jangled chords of my human relationships harmonize again, for putting together the shattered pieces of my Humpty Dumpty self, for giving me as a sobriety present a whole great expanded world of marvels and opportunities. May I remain truly Yours, Yours truly.
Today I Will Remember
Prayer, however simple, nourishes the soul.
August
Reflection For The Day
“Prayer does not change God,” wrote Soren Kierkegaard, “but it changes him who prays.” Those of us in The Program who’ve learned to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we’d trun down sunshine, fresh air, or food — and for the same reason. Just as the body can wither and fail for lack of nourishment, so can the soul. We all need the light of God’s reality, the nourishment of His strength, and the atmosphere of His Grace. Do I thank God for all that He has given me, for all that He has taken away from me, and for all He has left me?
Today I Pray
Dear H.P.; I want to thank you for spreading calm over my confusion, for making the jangled chords of my human relationships harmonize again, for putting together the shattered pieces of my Humpty Dumpty self, for giving me as a sobriety present a whole great expanded world of marvels and opportunities. May I remain truly Yours, Yours truly.
Today I Will Remember
Prayer, however simple, nourishes the soul.
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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Spiritual
August
FIT SPIRITUAL CONDITION
“… the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us.
We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is our experience.
That is how we react so long as we keep in fit spiritual condition.”
FIT SPIRITUAL CONDITION
“… the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us.
We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is our experience.
That is how we react so long as we keep in fit spiritual condition.”
The Big Book, p.85
These words, read every morning during prayer time, teach me to live as I am meant to live. Sanely and peacefully. Laid back. Patient and forgiving of myself. I am no longer a part of the war of the worlds. Anger can be dealt with or walked away from. Eating over it is no longer an option. Compulsive overeating is a problem I can live without, just for today.
One day at a time...
I will remember where I came from and how I got here so long as I keep in fit spiritual condition.
~ Jo
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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #Experience #Spiritual
28
August
FIT SPIRITUAL CONDITION
“… the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us. We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is our experience. That is how we react so long as we keep in fit spiritual condition.”
–The Big Book, p.85
These words, read every morning during prayer time, teach me to live as I am meant to live. Sanely and peacefully. Laid back. Patient and forgiving of myself. I am no longer a part of the war of the worlds. Anger can be dealt with or walked away from. Eating over it is no longer an option. Compulsive overeating is a problem I can live without, just for today.
One day at a time…
I will remember where I came from and how I got here so long as I keep in fit spiritual condition.
~ Jo
August
FIT SPIRITUAL CONDITION
“… the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us. We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is our experience. That is how we react so long as we keep in fit spiritual condition.”
–The Big Book, p.85
These words, read every morning during prayer time, teach me to live as I am meant to live. Sanely and peacefully. Laid back. Patient and forgiving of myself. I am no longer a part of the war of the worlds. Anger can be dealt with or walked away from. Eating over it is no longer an option. Compulsive overeating is a problem I can live without, just for today.
One day at a time…
I will remember where I came from and how I got here so long as I keep in fit spiritual condition.
~ Jo
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Elder’s Meditation of the Day #HUICHOL #NativeAmerican #Prayer
28
August
“With prayer and good intentions, we make our lives sacred and come into balance.”
August
“With prayer and good intentions, we make our lives sacred and come into balance.”
Don Jose Matsua, HUICHOL SIERRA MADRE MEXICO
Only through prayer can we make spiritual changes that are permanent. You have told us that all life is sacred. Today I intend to serve you, my Creator. Allow me to overcome temptation, and if one comes along, let me see the lessons that will give balance. You have told us that all life is sacred. Let me see today with a sacred eye. Let me see beauty in all things.
My Creator, let me know what You would have me be today. Let my intentions be honest, respectful, humble, and loving.
Only through prayer can we make spiritual changes that are permanent. You have told us that all life is sacred. Today I intend to serve you, my Creator. Allow me to overcome temptation, and if one comes along, let me see the lessons that will give balance. You have told us that all life is sacred. Let me see today with a sacred eye. Let me see beauty in all things.
My Creator, let me know what You would have me be today. Let my intentions be honest, respectful, humble, and loving.
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Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Gratitude
28
August
Success can only be measured in terms of distance travelled.
— Mavis Gallant
We are forever moving from one experience to another, one challenge to another, and one relationship to another. Our ability to handle confidently all encounters is a gift of the program, and one that accompanies us throughout every day, providing we humbly express gratitude for it. Success is ours when we are grateful.
We are not standing still. No matter how uneventful our lives may seem, we are traveling toward our destiny, and all the thrills and tears, joys and sorrows, are contributing to the success of our trip. Every day, every step, we are succeeding.
We can reflect on yesterday, better yet, on last week or even last year. What were our problems? It’s doubtful we can even remember them. We have put distance between them and us. They were handled in some manner. We have succeeded in getting free of them. We have succeeded in moving beyond them.
How far we have come! And we will keep right on traveling forward. As long as we rely on the program, we are assured of success.
I can do whatever I need to do today, with success, when I humbly accept the program’s gifts.
Success can only be measured in terms of distance travelled.
— Mavis Gallant
We are forever moving from one experience to another, one challenge to another, and one relationship to another. Our ability to handle confidently all encounters is a gift of the program, and one that accompanies us throughout every day, providing we humbly express gratitude for it. Success is ours when we are grateful.
We are not standing still. No matter how uneventful our lives may seem, we are traveling toward our destiny, and all the thrills and tears, joys and sorrows, are contributing to the success of our trip. Every day, every step, we are succeeding.
We can reflect on yesterday, better yet, on last week or even last year. What were our problems? It’s doubtful we can even remember them. We have put distance between them and us. They were handled in some manner. We have succeeded in getting free of them. We have succeeded in moving beyond them.
How far we have come! And we will keep right on traveling forward. As long as we rely on the program, we are assured of success.
I can do whatever I need to do today, with success, when I humbly accept the program’s gifts.
From the book:
Each Day a New Beginning by Karen Casey. © 1982, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation
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Step by Step #essentialsofrec #Understanding #Recovery
28
August
“I realize that all I'm guaranteed in life is today. The poorest person has no less and the wealthiest has no more – each of us has but one day. What we do with it is our own business; how we use it is up to us individually.”
August
“I realize that all I'm guaranteed in life is today. The poorest person has no less and the wealthiest has no more – each of us has but one day. What we do with it is our own business; how we use it is up to us individually.”
– Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, “They Lost Nearly All,” Ch 2 (“Promoted to Chronic”), p 473.
Today, let me fully understand and accept that all I have today is just that – today! Whether I have little to nothing, or all and more I can use materially, I am no less and no better than anyone because, in the end, all we take with us to our final chapters is ourselves. But, especially in recovery, I cannot foolishly look too far beyond the forest in my goal to achieve a landmark anniversary of sobriety or any other goal; one of the trees in the forest could cold-cock me. Grant me wisdom and prudence to see first what is in front of me instead of beyond and what must be done to get me intact to a long-term goal. Today, I do with what I have – today. And our common journey continues.
Today, let me fully understand and accept that all I have today is just that – today! Whether I have little to nothing, or all and more I can use materially, I am no less and no better than anyone because, in the end, all we take with us to our final chapters is ourselves. But, especially in recovery, I cannot foolishly look too far beyond the forest in my goal to achieve a landmark anniversary of sobriety or any other goal; one of the trees in the forest could cold-cock me. Grant me wisdom and prudence to see first what is in front of me instead of beyond and what must be done to get me intact to a long-term goal. Today, I do with what I have – today. And our common journey continues.
Step by step. – Chris M., 2014
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Daily Zen #essentialsofrec #Zen #Buddhism
28
August
Of each and every person
Contains a great spiritual awareness.
It is fundamentally without birth and death.
It extends through ancient and modern,
Spiritually alive and illuminating,
Undefiled, wondrous, sovereign,
In peace and bliss.
Is this not the Buddha of Infinite Light?
- T’aego (1301-1382)
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