Essentials Of Recovery : February 2023

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.

Sunday, 26 February 2023

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

RIGOROUS HONESTY

Who wishes to be rigorously honest and tolerant? Who wants to confess his faults to another and make restitution for harm done? Who cares anything about a Higher Power, let alone meditation and prayer? Who wants to sacrifice time and energy in trying to carry A.A.’s message to the next sufferer? No, the average alcoholic, self-centered in the extreme, doesn’t care for this prospect – unless he has todo these things in order to stay alive himself.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 24

I am an alcoholic. If I drink I will die. My, what power, energy, and emotion this simple statement generates in me! But it’s really all I need to know for today. Am I willing to stay alive today? Am I willing to stay sober today? Am I willing to ask for help and am I willing to be a help to another suffering alcoholic today? Have I discovered the fatal nature of my situation? What must I do, today, to stay sober?

Wednesday, 15 February 2023

Daily Reflections - 15th February 2026

TAKING ACTION

Are these extravagant promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us–sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84

One of the most important things A.A. has given me, in addition to freedom from booze, is the ability to take “right action.” It says the promises will ALWAYS materialize if I WORK for them. Fantasizing about them, debating them, preaching about them and faking them just won’t work. I’ll remain a miserable, rationalizing dry drunk. By taking action and working the Twelve Steps in all my affairs, I’ll have a life beyond my wildest dreams.

Monday, 13 February 2023

Big Book - Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 101

So our rule is not to avoid a place where there is drinking, if we have a legitimate reason for being there. That includes bars, nightclubs, dances, receptions, weddings, even plain ordinary whoopee parties. To a person who has had experience with an alcoholic, this may seem like tempting Providence, but it isn't. You will note that we made an important qualification. Therefore, ask yourself on each occasion, 'Have I any good social, business, or personal reason for going to this place? Or am I expecting to steal a little vicarious pleasure from the atmosphere of such places?' If you answer these questions satisfactorily, you need have no apprehension. Go or stay away, whichever seems best. But be sure you are on solid spiritual ground before you start and that your motive in going is thoroughly good. Do not think of what you will get out of the occasion. Think of what you can bring to it. But if you are shaky, you had better work with another alcoholic instead.

Big Book - Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 101

Thursday, 9 February 2023

Just For Today - 9th February 2026

Self-acceptance

“When we accept ourselves, we can accept others into our lives, unconditionally probably for the first time.”

IP No. 19, “Self-Acceptance”

From our earliest memories, many of us felt like we never belonged. No matter how big the gathering, we always felt apart from the crowd. We had a hard time “fitting in.” Deep down, we believed that if we really let others get to know us, they would reject us. Perhaps our addiction began to germinate in this climate of self-centeredness.

Many of us hid the pain of our alienation with an attitude of defiance. In effect, we told the world, “You don’t need me? Well, I don’t need any of you, either. I’ve got my drugs and I can take care of myself!” The further our addiction progressed, the higher the walls we built around ourselves.

Those walls begin to fall when we start finding acceptance from other recovering addicts. With this acceptance from others, we begin to learn the important principle of self-acceptance. And when we start to accept ourselves, we can allow others to take part in our lives without fear of rejection.

Just for today: I am accepted in NA; I fit in. Today, it’s safe to start letting others into my life.

Tuesday, 7 February 2023

Big Book - Alcoholics Anonymous - Chapter 6 - Working With Others

Your job now is to be at the place where you may be of maximum helpfulness to others, so never hesitate to go anywhere if you can be helpful. You should not hesitate to visit the most sordid spot on earth on such an errand. Keep on the firing line of life with these motives and God will keep you unharmed.~ Big Book - Alcoholics Anonymous - Chapter 6 - Working With Others

Daily Dose Of Emmet Fox

THY KINGDOM COME

Thy kingdom come (Matthew 6:10)

Man, being manifestation or expression of God, has a limitless destiny before him. His works is to express, in concrete, definite form, the ideas that God furnishes him, and in order to do this, he must have creative power. Elsewise, he would be merely a machine through which God worked - an automation. But man, having the nature of his father, remains a creator. Notice that the word individual means "undivided." The consciousness of man is not separated from God's consciousness.

"Thy kingdom come" means that it is our duty to bring more and more of God's ideas into concrete manifestation upon this plane. That is what we are here for. The old saying "God has a plan for every man, and he has one for you," is quite correct.

If only you can find out the thing God intends you to do, and will do it, you will find that all doors will open to you, and you will be gloriously happy. There is a true place in life for each one of us where we can bring the Kingdom of God into manifestation, and truly say, "Thy Kingdom cometh."

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A PATH TO FAITH

True humility and an open mind can lead us to faith, and every A.A. meeting is an assurance that God will restore us to sanity if we rightly relate ourselves to Him.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 33

My last drunk had landed me in the hospital, totally broken. It was then that I was able to see my past float in front of me. I realized that, through drinking, I had lived every nightmare I had ever had. My own self-will and obsession to drink had driven me into a dark pit of hallucinations, blackouts and despair. Finally beaten, I asked for God’s help. His presence told me to believe. My obsession for alcohol was taken away and my paranoia has since been lifted. I am no longer afraid. I know my life is healthy and sane.

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

This Is Not A Test

“We have found a loving, personal God to whom we can turn.”

Basic Text p. 27

Some of us come into recovery with the impression that life’s hardships are a series of cosmic tests designed to teach us something. This belief is readily apparent when something traumatic happens and we wail, “My Higher Power is testing me!” We’re convinced that it’s a test of our recovery when someone offers us drugs, or a test of our character when faced with a situation where we could do something unprincipled without getting caught. We may even think it’s a test of our faith when we’re in great pain over a tragedy in our lives.

But a loving Higher Power doesn’t test our recovery, our character, or our faith. Life just happens, and sometimes it hurts. Many of us have lost love through no fault of our own. Some of us have lost all of our material wealth. A few of us have even grieved the loss of our own children. Life can be terribly painful at times, but the pain is not inflicted on us by our Higher Power. Rather, that Power is constantly by our sides, ready to carry us if we can’t walk by ourselves. There is no harm that life can do us that the God of our understanding can’t heal.

Just for today: I will have faith that my Higher Power’s will for me is good, and that I am loved. I will seek my Higher Power’s help in times of need.

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

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

Keep It Simple #essentialsofrecovery

I thank God for my handicaps, for through them, I have found myself, my work and my God.

—Helen Keller.

None of us ever wanted to be addicts. It’s not what we would choose to be— just as no one would choose to blind and deaf. Helen Keller, who was blind and deaf, told of how her problems became her biggest gift. Through them, she found true meaning in her life. We can accept our handicap—our addiction— and learn from it. The truth is, we’re all handicapped in some way. Recovery is about facing our addiction and learning to live with it. When we see we can’t do things alone, we see the need for a Higher Power.

Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me see myself as I really am. Give me the serenity that comes from accepting my handicaps.

Action for the Day: Today, I’ll list all the ways I am handicapped. I’ll ask myself, “What gift does each of these hold for me?”

Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrecovery

CHILDLIKE

“In every child who is born, under no matter what circumstances, and of no matter what parents, the potentiality of the human race is born again.”

— James Agee

Today I am able to believe and see the God-given dignity of the human race in the faces and lifestyles of others. In the challenge and rebelliousness of youth is the hope for tomorrow.

Today I can associate myself with the need to question, risk and “be outrageous”. Today I can play, laugh at myself and own my craziness. Today I d not need to be perfect.

When I used drugs, I was so judgmental, serious and controlling. Everything had to have a place, or an answer, or be acceptable to others. My moments of guilt were caused by my inability to please others.

Today I can be childlike and identify with the radical message for tomorrow: “to thine own self be true!”

I see a child looking at the stars and I smile; I am that child.

A Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

Reflection For The Day

What do I do what I do? Why did I say what I said? Why on earth did I put off an important responsibility? Questions like these, best asked of myself in a quiet time of meditation, demand honest answers. I may have to think deeply for those answers, going beyond the tempting rationalizations that lack the luster of truth. Have I accepted the fact that self-deception can only damage me, providing a clouded and unrealistic picture of the person I really am?

Today I Pray

May God allow me to push aside my curtain of fibs, alibis, rationalizations, justification, distortions and downright lies and let in the light on the real truths about myself. May I meet the person I really am and take comfort in the person I can become.

Today I Will Remember

Hello, Me. Meet the Real Me.

One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ FELLOWSHIP ~

We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.

–Martin Luther King Jr.

As a child I never had many friends and I was never one of the “in” crowd. I had many complexes and never thought I was good enough, or clever enough or thin enough. I didn’t date much, nor did I often go to parties. Instead I lived in my perfect fantasy world, where I would one day be thin and beautiful and live happily ever after. As a result food became my best friend, and where friends would constantly disappoint me or leave me, food was always there to numb the pain of loneliness, rejection and loss. There was never anyone in whom I could confide the unbearable pain that I felt, and so I would bury myself in books and food, and thought that as long as I had enough food to soothe that great big hole in my soul, everything would be fine.

Finally, however, when the food was causing me more pain than the pain it was supposed to take away, in desperation I found the doors of this wonderful fellowship. The people in that first meeting were from all walks of life, and of all ages, with some being old enough to be my parents or young enough to be my children. Even though they initially appeared so different to me, I realized that in this motley group of people I had found the friends that I had always been looking for. The common bond we shared in our desire to stop eating compulsively and to heal our lives was the cement that keeps this wonderful fellowship going. These friends listened to me without judging me, they loved me even when I couldn’t love myself, and they were there for me when I needed them. They have become my best friends and my family. It’s a result of this fellowship with other compulsive overeaters, who share with me their experience, strength and hope, that I am constantly able to learn and grow.

One day at a time…

I will reach out in fellowship to my friends in the program, as they reach out to me, and in doing so I am empowered in ways that are truly miraculous.
~ Sharon S. ~

Today’s Gift #essentialsofrecovery

It is the weak who are cruel. Gentleness can only be expected from the strong.
—Leo Rosten

When we think of strength, do we think of someone who shows no emotion and intimidates others with physical power? True strength is the freedom to show all kinds of feelings. Strong people aren’t afraid of being vulnerable. A person who feels insecure may not feel free to show any kind of softness or be able to share gentle feelings. If we have true inner strength, we are not afraid to show what is a part of us, gentle feelings included.

It is wonderful to see a well-conditioned athlete cry tears of joy after a victory. In such an example we can see physical and emotional strength. In our lives together, we will be stronger if we do not try to hide our feelings out of fear. As our feelings flow, we will increase our self-understanding and build our true strength.

Am I strong enough to show how I really feel today?

THE EYE OPENER #essentialsofrec #Self-improvement #Recovery

You want the world to be better? Then be better yourself. True, you are only one individual in a thickly populated world, but your life touches hundreds of others and each of those touches hundreds more. Who knows how far the influence of one smile travels or where a word of wisdom will take root? Even should your influence for good extend no further than your own skin, there will be at least one less rogue in the world.

Published by Hazelden

The Eye Opener #essentialsofrecovery

Daily TAO / -038 - ADAPTING

Heaven embraces the horizon.
No matter how jagged the profile,
The sky faithfully conforms.

Wherever you are, the sky constantly meets the horizon. It conforms absolutely with the earth’s surface. Changes in the earth or sky do not affect this perfect adaptation. There might be clouds, it might be night, there might be mountains or trees or even buildings on the horizon, but the relationship remains.

No matter what circumstances life may present, we must adapt exactly, whether we think the situation is good or bad. Resistance is useless. Instead, we should concentrate on perceiving whatever circumstances surround us. For example, if one is in a leadership situation, one must adapt one’s vision to that of the group; the successful leader articulates and brings consensus to the group. Being flexible and constantly adjusting to the times is one of the secrets of Tao.
We often think of the landscape as being in the foreground and the sky as the background. It is because the sky is always in the background that it can meet the outline of the foreground perfectly. If we emulate this feature of being in the background, then we too can find perfect conformity with life. Such adaptation is not passivity, however. It is concordance. It is because the sky is in the background that it is in fact supreme. So too with ourselves. If we know how to adapt, we end up being superior.

Daily Zen

The pain, the discomfort, the sickness are what they are. We can always cope with the way life moves and changes. The mind of an enlightened human being is flexible and adaptable. The mind of the ignorant person is conditioned and fixed.

-Ajahn Sumedho, “Seeing the Way”

Monday, 6 February 2023

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A RALLYING POINT

Therefore, Step Two is the rallying point for all of us. “Whether agnostic, atheist, or former believer, we can stand together on this Step.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 33

I feel that A.A. is a God-inspired program and that God is at every A.A. meeting. I see, believe, and have come to know that A.A. works, because I have stayed sober today. I am turning my life over to A.A. and to God by going to an A.A. meeting. If God is in my heart and He speaks to me through other people, then I must be a channel of God to other people. I should seek to do His will by living spiritual principles and my reward will be sanity and emotional sobriety.

Random Big Book "Alcoholics Anonymous"

"Lack of power, that was our dilemma. We had to find a power by which we could live, and it had to be a Power greater than ourselves. Obviously. But where and how were we to find this Power? Well, that's exactly what this book is about." Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, We Agnostics, pg. 45

How A.A. Meetings In Belfast Helps with your Alcohol Addiction

Alcohol addiction is a serious issue that affects millions of people worldwide. While it can be difficult to overcome, help is available. Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) is one such organisation that has been helping people recover from alcohol addiction for over 80 years. In this blog post, we will discuss how A.A. in Belfast can help you overcome your alcohol addiction.

A.A. is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength, and hope with each other, so that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The program is based on the Twelve Steps, which provide a roadmap for recovery. These steps encourage individuals to acknowledge their problem, seek help, and work towards recovery.

A.A. Meetings in Belfast offers support and guidance to those struggling with alcohol addiction. Through regular meetings, individuals can connect with others who have faced similar challenges and find comfort and encouragement in their shared experiences. The meetings provide a safe and non-judgemental environment where individuals can open up about their struggles and receive support and encouragement from their peers.

In addition to the meetings, A.A. in Belfast and other places also provides a wealth of resources and support services to help individuals overcome their addiction. This includes literature, online resources, and volunteer-led support groups. The organisation also provides educational materials and workshops to help individuals understand their addiction and develop the skills they need to maintain sobriety.

A key aspect of A.A. is the emphasis on mutual support and shared responsibility. Members are encouraged to support one another in their journey towards recovery, and to offer encouragement and guidance to others who are struggling. This sense of community and shared purpose can be incredibly powerful in helping individuals overcome their addiction.

In conclusion, A.A. in Belfast offers a valuable resource for those struggling with alcohol addiction. Through regular meetings, support services, and a focus on mutual support and shared responsibility, individuals can find the help and guidance they need to overcome their addiction and build a fulfilling, sober life. If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol addiction, we encourage you to reach out to A.A. in Belfast and start your journey towards recovery today.

Drunks - Harold G.

Daily Dose OF Emmet Fox #essentialsofrecovery

HOW TO BE UNHAPPY

Sit down quietly where you are not likely to be disturbed. Relax the body - and begin to think about yourself. Every time your thought wander to something higher, bring it back gently but relentlessly.
Think about the past. Think over all the mistakes you have made, going right back to childhood. Think over all the opportunities you have missed and the time you have wasted. Especially think of all the occasions upon which you have been badly treated.

Think about your body and wonder if your age or your job or the climate isn't beginning to tell. See if you cannot discover a pain or an ache somewhere.
Think about finances and if they are going well now, insist that this is probably too good to last.
In any case, think about yourself, that is the main point, and if you will keep this up faithfully for fifteen or twenty minutes, there can be no doubt about the result.
"Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him." (Proverbs 26:12)

- Emmet Fox

Daily Dose OF Emmet Fox #essentialsofrecovery

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A RALLYING POINT

Therefore, Step Two is the rallying point for all of us. “Whether agnostic, atheist, or former believer, we can stand together on this Step.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 33

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

I Can’t – We Can

“We had convinced ourselves that we could make it alone and proceeded to live life on that basis. The results were disastrous and, in the end, each of us had to admit that self-sufficiency was a lie”

Basic Text p. 59

“I can’t, but we can.” This simple but profound truth applies initially to our first need as NA members: Together, we can stay clean, but when we isolate ourselves, we’re in bad company. To recover, we need the support of other addicts.

Self-sufficiency impedes more than just our ability to stay clean. With or without drugs, living on self-will inevitably leads to disaster. We depend on other people for everything from goods and services to love and companionship, yet self-will puts us in constant conflict with those very people. To live a fulfilling life, we need harmony with others.

Other addicts and others in our communities are not the only ones we depend on. Power is not a human attribute, yet we need power to live. We find it in a Power greater than ourselves which provides the guidance and strength we lack on our own. When we pretend to be self-sufficient, we isolate ourselves from the one source of power sufficient to effectively guide us through life: our Higher Power.

Self-sufficiency doesn’t work. We need other addicts; we need other people; and, to live fully, we need a Power greater than our own.

Just for today: I will seek the support of other recovering addicts, harmony with others in my community, and the care of my Higher Power. I can’t, but we can.

Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrecovery

A.A. Thought For The Day

On a dark night, the bright lights of the corner tavern look mighty inviting. Inside, there seems to be warmth and good cheer. But we don’t stop to think that if we go in there we’ll probably end up drunk, with our money spent and an awful hangover. A long mahogany bar in the tropical moonlight looks like a very gay place. But you should see the place the next morning. The chairs are piled on the tables and the place stinks of stale beer and cigarette stubs. And often we are there too, trying to cure the shakes by gulping down straight whiskey. Can I look straight through the night before and see the morning after?

Meditation For The Day

God finds, amid the crowd, a few people who follow Him, just to be near Him, just to dwell in His presence. A longing in the Eternal Heart may be satisfied by these few people. I will let God know that I seek just to dwell in His presence, to be near Him, not so much for teaching or a message, as just for Him. It may be that the longing of the human heart to be loved for itself is something caught from the Great Divine Heart.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may have a listening ear, so that God may speak to me. I pray that I may have a waiting heart, so that God may come to me.

Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrecovery

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

A Full and Thankful Heart, p. 37

One exercise that I practice is to try for a full inventory of my blessings and then for a right acceptance of the many gifts that are mine–both temporal and spiritual. Here I try to achieve a state of joyful gratitude. When such a brand of gratitude is repeatedly affirmed and pondered, it can finally displace the natural tendency to congratulate myself on whatever progress I may have been enabled to make in some areas of living.

I try hard to hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful heart cannot entertain great conceits. When brimming with gratitude, one’s heartbeat must surely result in outgoing love, the finest emotion that we can never know.

Grapevine, March 1962

Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrecovery

Competing with Others
A new View of Competition.

We live in a world torn by endless strife and competition. Although competitiveness can be a good quality, we’ve seen it become very ugly and destructive. A few alcoholics like the excitement of competition, but many of us withdraw from it. We hate anything that includes the risk of defeat or might make us appear second best. Sometimes we even feel guilty in winning.

We don’t need the kind of competition that causes us to gloat arrogantly in victory or to wallow in self-pity in defeat. We don’t really need to compete with others in anything if we are truly seeking guidance from our Higher power. If God is in charge of our lives, we do not have to struggle with others for the good we seek in life. It is God’s pleasure to give us the good things of the kingdom.

There is a kind of competition that does pay off in sobriety…… competition with ourselves. We can try to be better people than we might have been yesterday, or a week ago, or a month ago. This kind of competition requires skill and stamina, and it also requires exercise and training. But anybody who sincerely seeks a spiritual life and true self-improvement can find it in AA.
This day, I won’t try to reform or change anybody but myself. I’ll remember that God is in charge of things and concentrate on competing with the person I once was by letting the program work in my life.

Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrecovery

LIES

“Christ cannot possibly have been a Jew. I don’t have to prove that scientifically. It is a fact!”

— Joseph Goebbels

Today I know that if a lie is said loudly enough, often enough, with ceremony and ritual, people will believe it. I can identify with the above statement: I said I was not alcoholic because I did not drink every day, in the mornings, all day and I was too young! People believed me. Some people still choose to believe this lie.

Spirituality requires that I not only confront the lies in other people but also in myself. Usually if I am angry at the remarks of others, it is because they remind me of myself.

Today I seek not simply to condemn but to understand.

May I continue to learn from the criticism I make of others.

A Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery.

Reflection For The Day

I used to be an expert at unrealistic self-appraisal. At certain times, I would look only at that part of my life which seemed good. Then I would magnify whatever real or imagined virtues I had attained. Next, I would pat myself on the back for the fantastic job I was doing in The Program. Naturally, this generated a craving for still more “accomplishments” and still greater approval. Wasn’t that the pattern of my days during active addiction? The difference now, though, is that I can use the best alibi known — the spiritual alibi. Do I sometimes rationalize willful actions and nonsensical behavior in the name of “spiritual objectives?”

Today I Pray

God help me to know if I still crave attention and approval to the point of inflating my own virtues and magnifying my accomplishments in The Program or anywhere. May I keep a realistic perspective ab out my good points, even as I learn to respect myself.

Today I Will Remember

Learn to control inflation.

One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ ERRORS AND ASSETS ~

We grow by our willingness to face and rectify errors and convert them into assets.
–The Big Book

I have had a paradigm shift in my life. This means that I have begun to see some of my most basic ideas about food and nourishment from a different angle. I never really thought these things through before this program nudged me to have a look at my life with rigorous honesty. Oh, I wanted to be thin, but I barely related that to my feelings about food.

I was on autopilot for years and now realize that my concept of food was reasoned out when I was still a child. I put that childish set of ideas in place and then just stopped thinking about it. That little child wanted the most she could get of everything there was. She wanted the most attention, the most love, the most toys . . . and the most food. And at that time it was exactly the right way to look at the world. When I was a child setting up the system that constantly demands more to calm or soothe or comfort or love, I turned to food because it is simple and I did not possess the skills to get my needs met in other ways. It was a victory really, because I coped, made it through to now. But, to stick with a plan set up by a little child reflects a lack of willingness to face a basic error in engaging the world and change my behavior.

Now I know that eating mass quantities of food isn’t about love, or fun, or comfort. Now my adult mind knows that food is a fuel that, if chosen judiciously, helps my body to work efficiently and clears my mind for the task of being a responsible adult in a busy, troubled world. By shifting from “How much food do I get for me?” to “What must I eat today to be healthy?” I change my whole basis for choosing. I take an area of my life that has been a constant error and change it into an asset, one that nourishes me and helps me to do that next right thing.

One Day at a Time . . .
I am willing to face my flawed thinking about food and change the way I make food choices, meal by meal, so that food is an asset to me and not a liability.

~ Carol B. ~

Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrecovery

“We hold on to our otuhan, our give-aways, because they help us to remain Indians.”

–Lame Deer, LAKOTA

Our traditional communities and villages function on interdependence. Share the deer and give freely of what you have to another. Another way to express this principle is, it’s better to give than to receive. To share what you have eliminates complexity. The Elders say, live a simple life. One of the principles in the Unseen World is, the more you give, the more you get. You can become a channel for abundance for your family, tribe or community. A giving person sets up a flow or replacement. Whatever you share will be returned to you in an amount equal or greater. The Indian way is for everyone to give to another, thus the community wins.

Great Spirit, today, teach me the principle of giving. Let me be Your channel of abundance.

Today’s Gift #essentialsofrecovery

He that cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he must pass himself; for every man has need to be forgiven.

— Thomas Fuller

Often we’re afraid to forgive others who’ve hurt us because we believe that, in doing so, we are permitting what they’ve done. This is not true. When we forgive, we are saying, “I pardon you, I give up any claim for revenge, you are no longer an enemy.”

Relationships are not all black and white. We can forgive people and still not want to spend time with them. Forgiveness is for ourselves. It is a housecleaning of the heart. It feels good to sweep out the resentments and bitterness, lift up the windows, and let in the forgiveness.

Today let me offer forgiveness, either silently or out loud, to someone who has hurt me.

From the book:

Our Best Days by Nancy Hull-Mast

Daily TAO / 037 - DISCORD #essentialsofrecovery

When birds fly too high,
They sing out of tune.

There are times when we feel out of harmony with our surroundings, matters do not go our way, and we feel confused and disoriented. Sometimes these moments will last a day, sometimes they may last for weeks. When we feel like this, we are not integrated with the Tao, or as it is sometimes metaphorically said, Tao has flowed elsewhere.

Being constantly in touch with Tao is an ideal. There will be times of misfortune and discord from external sources. We can also fall out of synchronization with Tao through our own follies, as when we act without complete consideration. Whenever this happens, we are like the birds singing out of tune: We are mired in discord.

If we keep our patience, we can usually ride out these times. We should take action and break the stagnation if an opportunity presents itself. Whether it is waiting or acting, we should always try to bring a situation back into balance so that we can rejoin Tao.

Whenever we find ourselves linked again, we will feel relieved. We are back on track, back on target. But we should learn from each time that we lose Tao. Sometimes this is enough to prevent reoccurrences, and sometimes it is enough to buoy our hopes through future lean times. Once we know the Tao, we will recognize it again and again. We will not lose faith, even in times of discord.

Daily Zen #essentialsofrecovery

If a traveler does not meet with one who is better or equal,

let one firmly travel alone; there is no companionship with a fool.

Sunday, 5 February 2023

Daily Dose OF Emmet Fox #essentialsofrecovery

WHICH ART IN HEAVEN

Having clearly established the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, Jesus next goes on to describe the fundamental facts of existence. It is the nature of God to be in heaven, and of man to be on earth because God is Cause, and man is manifestation. Here heaven stands for God or Cause, because in religious phraseology heaven is the term for the Presence of God. The word earth signifies manifestation, and man's function is to manifest or express God as Cause. In other words, God is the Infinite Perfect Cause of all things; but Cause has to be expressed, and God expresses Himself by means of man. Man's destiny is to express God in all sorts of glorious ways. To express means to press outward, or bring into sight. Every feature of your life is really a manifestation or expression of something in your soul.

Since it is misunderstandings about the relationship of God and man that lead to all our difficulties, it is worth any amount of trouble to correctly understand that relationship. Trying to have manifestation without Cause is atheism and materialism, and we know where they lead. "Our Father which art in heaven."

...as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them... (2 Corinthians 6:16).

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A GLORIOUS RELEASE

“The minute I stopped arguing, I could begin to see and feel. Right there, Step Two gently and very gradually began to infiltrate my life. I can’t say upon what occasion or upon what day I came to believe in a Power greater than myself, but I certainly have that belief now. To acquire it, I had to stop fighting and practice the rest of A.A.’s program as enthusiastically as I could.”

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p.27

After years of indulging in a “self-will run riot,”Step Two became for me a glorious release from being all alone. Nothing is so painful or insurmountable in my journey now. Someone is always there to share life’s burdens with me. Step Two became a reinforcement with God, and I now realize that my insanity and ego were curiously linked. To rid myself of the former, I must give up the latter to One with far broader shoulders than my own.

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

Keep Coming Back!

“We are grateful that we were made so welcome at meetings that we felt comfortable.”

Basic Text p. 80

Remember how scared we were when we walked into our first NA meeting? Even if we walked in with a friend, most of us recall how difficult it was to attend that first meeting. What was it that kept us coming back? Most of us have grateful memories of the welcome we were given and how comfortable that made us feel. When we raised our hand as a newcomer, we opened the door for other members to approach us and welcome us.

Sometimes the difference between those addicts who walk back out the door of their first meeting, never to return to NA, and the addicts who stay to seek recovery is the simple hug of an NA member. When we have been clean awhile, it’s easy to step back from the procession of newcomers—after all, we’ve seen so many people come and go. But members with some clean time can make the difference between the addict who doesn’t return and the addict who keeps coming back. By offering our phone numbers, a hug, or just a warm welcome, we extend the hand of Narcotics Anonymous to the addict who still suffers.

Just for today: I remember the welcome I was given when I first came to NA. Today, I will express my gratitude by offering a hug to a newcomer.

Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrecovery

A.A. Thought For The Day

One thing we learn in A.A. is to take a long view of drinking instead of a short view. When we were drinking we thought more about the pleasure or release that a drink would give us, than we did about the consequences which would result from our taking that drink. Liquor looks good from the short view. When we look in a package store window, we see liquor dressed up in its best wrappings, with fancy labels and decorations. They look swell. But have I learned that what’s inside those beautiful bottles is just plain poison to me?

Meditation For The Day

I believe that life is a school in which I must learn spiritual things. I must trust in God and He will teach me. I must listen to God and He will speak through my mind. I must commune with Him in spite of all opposition and every obstacle. There will be days when I will hear no voice in my mind and when there will come no intimate heart to heart communion. But if I persist, and make a life habit of schooling myself in spiritual things, God will reveal Himself to me in many ways.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may regularly go to school in things of the spirit. I pray that I may grow spiritually by making a practice of these things.

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

Humility First, p. 36

We found many in A.A. who once thought, as we did, that humility was another name for weakness. They helped us to get down to right size. By their example they showed us that humility and intellect could be compatible, provided we placed humility first. When we began to do that, we received the gift of faith, a faith which works. This faith is for you, too.

**************************************

Where humility formerly stood for a forced feeding on humble pie, it now begins to mean the nourishing ingredient that can give us serenity.

12 & 12
1. p. 30
2. p. 74

Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrecovery

Is it really honesty?
Honesty

No matter how cruel the results, the need to criticize others can be a compulsion. Such criticism is sometimes justified by the defense “Well, I had to be honest” or “it was only the truth.”

But is it really honesty to gratuitously bring our a hurtful truth? Not when the critic’s real motives are to wound and humiliate someone, not to foster self-improvement and better behavior. Under those circumstances, the critic is really the dishonest person…. For not having detected the ugly personal motives that triggered the criticism.

Honesty is closely related to humility, and the truly honest person is usually humbly aware of person shortcomings in his or her own life. This alone makes the honest person reluctant to criticize and always careful to do it in ways that avoid inflicting pain or hurt.

Real honesty is rare, especially in people who hurt others under the guise of honesty.

With God’s help, I’ll look carefully at my motives today.

Keep It Simple #essentialsofrecovery

Don’t bite at the bait of pleasure till you know there is no hook beneath it.

~ Thomas Jefferson

Pleasure is important in recovery. But at times we think pleasure is the answer to life’s pains. Alcohol and other drugs were what we liked best. We need to watch out so we don’t switch to another addiction–such as gambling, food, sex, or work. The real answer to life’s pains is in having a strong spiritual center. It is also our best way to avoid another addiction. Recovery lets us turn our pain over to the care of our Higher Power. Our Higher Power can handle any problem we may have. Our program can help us with our problems too. Recovery is a three-way deal. Higher Power, program, and us.

Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me avoid another addiction. When I have problems, have me come to You and to my program before anything else.

Action for the Day: Today, I’ll set aside time and ask the question, “Am I headed for another addiction/” I’ll also ask my sponsor what he or she thinks.

Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrecovery

IDENTITY

“Without freedom, no one really has a name.”
— Milton Acorda

Part of my identity involves my disease. I am an alcoholic and my name is . . . And with this recognition of who I am comes the liberty and freedom to live and create in God’s world. Who I am involves what I am; in the fusion of the two is my spiritual identity.

For years I ran from myself because I wanted to be different. I felt that I would not be acceptable or good enough for you. In running from me, I lost my identity; the seed of low self-esteem was sown.

With the spiritual recognition that I can only be who I am came the freedom of existence and identity. I am what I am!

Lord, You said once, “I am who I am.” Well, so am I!

Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrecovery

MONEY

“Capital, as such, is not evil; it is its wrong use that is evil.”

~ Mohandas K. Gandhi

Today I am not afraid to say that I am concerned for my prosperity — not just in terms of health, friendship and employment but also concerning money. For years I was concerned to have the best, buy the best, own the best and not “shortchange” myself — yet I felt guilty in having such feelings. Today in my sobriety I truly believe that I deserve the best. In this way I am loving myself. Money, prosperity and capital are not “bad” in themselves; it is how we use them.

Today, as promised in my recovery, things are certainly getting better and I am able to invest and buy wisely. Some years ago I would squander money on my addiction. Today I am able to appreciate and share my monetary benefits. Family, friends and the “needy” can genuinely share my prosperity: the more I give away today, the more I get.

Thank You for all the many benefits You have showered upon me in my recovery, not least capital. May I always use it responsibly.

A DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrecovery

Reflection for the Day

If I am troubled, worried, exasperated, or frustrated, do I tend to rationalize the situation and lay the blame on someone else? When I am in such a state, is my conversation punctuated with, “He did..”, “She said…”, “They did…”? Or can I honestly admit that perhaps I’m at fault. My peace of mind depends on overcoming my negative attitudes and tendency toward rationalization. Will I try, day by day, to be rigorously honest with myself?

Today I Pray

May I catch myself as I talk in the third person, “He did…” or “They promised…” or “She said she would…” and listen for the blaming that has become such a pattern for me and preserves delusion. May I do a turnabout and face myself instead.

Today I Will Remember

Honesty is the only policy.

© 1989 by Hazelden Foundation

One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ SELF WORTH ~

Your worth is not established by teaching or learning. Your worth is established by God. Nothing you do or think or wish or make is necessary to establish your worth.

–Helen Schucman, scribe of “A Course in Miracles”
I have spent the last 30 years of my life wanting more, thinking that in proving myself I would be worthy of the love and affection I deserved and this would determine my value. I was always seeking the best path to take to show everyone what I could do and that I was worthy of more of their love and praises.

Turning my life and my will over to God has allowed me to see that, no matter what I may think, in God’s eyes I am worth plenty, and this has given me so much peace. I now know that what others say or think about me is not going to make me worthy or worthless. Allowing God to run the show and doing the next right thing is all I need to do. I don’t have to concern myself if I am of value to anyone; I am of value to God, and that is all that counts.

One Day at a Time . . .
I will continue to turn to God for my strength, knowing that I need not carry the burden of proof of what I’m worth.

~ Maureen ~

Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrecovery

“Let the person I serve express his thanks according to his own bringing up and his sense of humor.”

–Charles A. Eastman (Ohiyesa), SANTEE SIOUX

“It is better to give than receive.” But it doesn’t really matter if we are giving or receiving. There is an identical feeling associated with both. We get this feeling every time we receive. We can’t control when we receive gifts but we can control when we give gifts. Therefore, the more we give, the better we feel. When we are given gifts, or someone does something for us, it is the Indian way to honor this person.

Great Spirit, let me honor and be respectful to those who are good to me today.

Today’s Gift

Let there be spaces in your togetherness.

—Kahlil Gibran
Sometimes it is just as important to know when to leave others alone as it is to know when to talk with them. We all need to be alone at times – to think, to work out a problem, or just to be quiet with ourselves. This is especially true in families, where we’re often surrounded by others. If we tune in to our other family members, we can develop sensors that will let us know when they need some time alone. Part of good communication is knowing when not to talk, too.

Can I be sensitive to my family’s needs for privacy today?

THE EYE OPENER #essentialsofrecovery

Created in God’s image, with the breath of God in my nostrils, my body the Temple of the Holy Ghost, called by the Christ a child of God, surely, I could walk with angels if I could only live up to my heritage.

Man has fallen short of his goal mostly because he has not thought he could do it. He timidly denies his own divine origin; he fails to credit the existence of God in him.

He is like the man who wants to fly but not so high that he can’t keep one foot on the ground. His eyes are fixed on the skies but his feet are planted solidly on the earth.

Published by Hazelden

DAILY TAO / 36 - Vantage #essentialsofrecovery

Distant ridges, far away clouds
All events come from a distance.
With a high vantage point,
Foretelling the future is elementary.

It is often superstitiously said that one who follows Tao knows magic. This is nonsense. Superiority is simply a matter of using the best of one’s abilities and being in the right position. For example, a wise person who lives high in the mountains and who is not blinded by wine, sensuality, intellectuality, poor health, or greed will be better able to see events in the distance that one who lives in a closed room, eyes on some obscure project.

A storm does not happen abruptly; it takes hours, sometimes days, to develop. Travelers do not arrive suddenly; they can be seen in the distance. Knowing things in advance is possible with a high vantage point. For this reason, the follower of Tao appears to know magic.

DAILY ZEN #essentialsofrecovery

The problem is not materialism as such. Rather, it is the underlying assumption that full satisfaction can arise from gratifying the senses alone. Unlike animals whose quest for happiness is restricted to survival and to the immediate gratification of sensory desires, we human beings have the capacity to experience happiness at a deeper level which, when achieved, can overwhelm unhappy experiences.

-His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Saturday, 4 February 2023

Dick S. - Recovery Speaker Lincoln Nebraska #essentialsofrecovery

DAILY REFLECTIONS #essentialsofrecovery

WHEN FAITH IS MISSING

Sometimes A.A. comes harder to those who have lost or rejected faith than to those who never had any faith at all, for they think they have tried faith and found it wanting. They have tried the way of faith and the way of no faith.

~ TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 28 ~

I was so sure God had failed me that I became ultimately defiant, though I knew better, and plunged into a final drinking binge. My faith turned bitter and that was no coincidence. Those who once had great faith hit bottom harder. It took time to rekindle my faith, though I came to A.A. I was grateful intellectually to have survived such a great fall, but my heart felt callous. Still, I stuck with the A.A. program; the alternatives were too bleak! I kept coming back and gradually my faith was resurrected.

Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services Inc

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

WHEN FAITH IS MISSING

Sometimes A.A. comes harder to those who have lost or rejected faith than to those who never had any faith at all, for they think they have faith and found it wanting. They have tried the way of faith and the way of no faith.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 28

I was so sure God had failed me that I became ultimately defiant, though I knew better, and plunged into a final drinking binge. My faith turned bitter and that was no coincidence. Those who once had great faith hit bottom harder. It took time to rekindle my faith, though I came to A.A. I was grateful intellectually to have survived such a great fall, but my heart felt callous. Still, I stuck with the A.A. program; the alternatives were too bleak! I kept coming back and gradually my faith was resurrected.

JUST FOR TODAY # essentialsofrecovery

Feeling Good Isn’t the Point

“For us, recovery is more than just pleasure.”

~ Basic Text p. 42 ~

In our active addiction, most of us knew exactly how we were going to feel from one day to the next. All we had to do was read the label on the bottle or know what was in the bag. We planned our feelings, and our goal for each day was to feel good.

In recovery, we’re liable to feel anything from one day to the next, even from one minute to the next. We may feel energetic and happy in the morning, then strangely let down and sad in the afternoon. Because we no longer plan our feelings for the day each morning, we could end up having feelings that are somewhat inconvenient, like feeling tired in the morning and wide-awake at bedtime.

Of course, there’s always the possibility we could feel good, but that isn’t the point. Today, our main concern is not feeling good but learning to understand and deal with our feelings, no matter what they are. We do this by working the steps and sharing our feelings with others.

Just for today: I will accept my feelings, whatever they may be, just as they are. I will practice the program and learn to live with my feelings.

© 1991 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services Inc

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

Feeling Good Isn’t The Point

“For us, recovery is more than just pleasure.”

Basic Text p. 42

In our active addiction, most of us knew exactly how we were going to feel from one day to the next. All we had to do was read the label on the bottle or know what was in the bag. We planned our feelings, and our goal for each day was to feel good.

In recovery, we’re liable to feel anything from one day to the next, even from one minute to the next. We may feel energetic and happy in the morning, then strangely let down and sad in the afternoon. Because we no longer plan our feelings for the day each morning, we could end up having feelings that are somewhat inconvenient, like feeling tired in the morning and wide-awake at bedtime.

Of course, there’s always the possibility we could feel good, but that isn’t the point. Today, our main concern is not feeling good but learning to understand and deal with our feelings, no matter what they are. We do this by working the steps and sharing our feelings with others.

Just for today: I will accept my feelings, whatever they may be, just as they are. I will practice the program and learn to live with my feelings.

AS BILL SEES IT #essentialsofrecovery

Page 35 ~

Suffering Transmuted

“A.A. is no success story in the ordinary sense of the word. It is a story of suffering transmuted, under grace, into spiritual progress.”

************************************

For Dr. Bob, the insatiable craving for alcohol was evidently a physical phenomenon which bedeviled several of his first years in A.A., a time when only days and nights of carrying the message to other alcoholics could cause him to forget about drinking. Although his craving was hard to withstand, it doubtless did account for some part of the intense incentive that went into forming Akron’s Group Number One.

Bob’s spiritual release did not come easily; it was to be painfully slow. It always entailed the hardest kind of work and the sharpest vigilance.

~ 1. LETTER, 1959 ~
~ 2. A.A. COMES OF AGE, P. 69 ~

© 1967 by Alcoholics Anonymous ® World Services, Inc

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

Suffering Transmuted, p. 35

“A.A. is no success story in the ordinary sense of the word. It is a story of suffering transmuted, under grace, into spiritual progress.”

************************************

For Dr. Bob, the insatiable craving for alcohol was evidently a physical phenomenon which bedeviled several of his first years in A.A., a time when only days and nights of carrying the message to other alcoholics could cause him to forget about drinking. Although his craving was hard to withstand, it doubtless did account for some part of the intense incentive that went into forming Akron’s Group Number One.

Bob’s spiritual release did not come easily; it was to be painfully slow. It always entailed the hardest kind of work and the sharpest vigilance.

1. Letter, 1959

2. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 69

Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrecovery

The Rewards of Honesty
Honesty

Sometimes we think that honesty is simply too painful and demanding—- all sacrifice with no gain. If we are completely honest with ourselves, however, the results can only be positive.

What are the advantages of being entirely honest about our motives and feelings? One benefit is that we never will have to face the disillusionment and humiliation that come from self-deception. Surely we had enough of that while drinking.

Honesty also speaks for itself. People know intuitively when a person is completely honest, and they are drawn to that person because of it. An honest AA member-one who has truly faced personal faults—- also becomes an example to others.

The honest person has self-respect and a clear conscious. In real honesty, there is no inner struggle to keep up appearances or to pretend we are anybody except ourselves.

Honesty makes us comfortable rather than pained, relaxed rather than anxious, and decisive rather than confused. These are rich rewards for people who once lived in the false world of alcoholism.

I’ll try to be honest in all things today. In any case, I will at least be honest with my self about my true motives and feelings.

Father Leo’s Daily Meditation #essentialsofrecovery

INTELLIGENCE

“The brighter you are, the more you have to learn.”

— Don Herold

The one thing I know in sobriety is how much I do not know! I thought I knew every thing about God because I was a priest, only to discover that I had made Him a prisoner of the Church. Once I was willing to free Him from my prison, I discovered a freedom and awareness that daily fascinates and astounds me.

Today I see that the glory of God shines within my pain, within my loneliness, within my confusion, and the acceptance of my disease is the key to recovery. Today the suffering enables me to discover a realistic spirituality — and it is okay to be confused!

With each new day, Lord, let me learn something — even if it is that I have not learned anything that day!

A Day At A Time

Reflection For The Day

Rare is the recovering alcoholic who will now dispute the fact that denial is a primary symptom of the illness. The Program teaches us that alcoholism is the only illness which actually tells the afflicted person that he or she really isn’t sick at all. Not surprisingly, then, our lives as practicing alcoholics were characterized by endless rationalization, countless alibis and in short, a steadfast unwillingness to accept the fact that we were, without question, bodily and mentally different from our fellows. Have I conceded to my innermost self that I am truly powerless over alcohol?

Today I Pray

May The Program’s First Step be not half-hearted for me, but a total admission of powerlessness over my addiction. May I rid myself of that first symptom — denial — which refuses to recognize any other symptom of my disease.

Today I Will Remember

Deny denial.

One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ Laughter ~

Laughter can be more satisfying than honor; more precious than money; more heart-cleansing than prayer.

–Harriet Rochlin

For as long as I can remember I’ve always been a serious person. I can’t remember ever doing something just for fun or to have a laugh. There always had to be a purpose for what I did in my life, or else it was of no value. As for being able to laugh at myself, that wasn’t even in my frame of reference. I was so super-sensitive that I’d get upset if someone made fun of me, as it would always make me feel “less than” or stupid.

So when I came into the doors of my first Twelve Step meeting, I was amazed that, even though all the people I met had problems around food, they were still able to look at their mistakes and realize that that didn’t make them a bad person. But even more heartwarming was the fact that I heard laughter in those rooms. Before, I’d always thought that when someone laughed at what I said, they were laughing at me, and that would reinforce my feelings of inadequacy.

The lessons I’m learning here are not easy ones and there are still times when my old behaviors of being overly sensitive creep in, but I know that recovery is a process, and as I grow in the program, it will get better.

One day at a time …
As I practice the program and work the steps, I am becoming more able to laugh at myself and not always look at the dark side of life. What a gift it has been to start enjoying life!

~ Sharon ~

Elder’s Meditation of the Day #essentialsofrecovery

“We say there is a right time and place for everything.It’s easy to say, but hard to understand. You have to live it to understand it.”

–Rolling Thunder, CHEROKEE

The Elders tell us there is a right time and a right place. Don’t plant seeds in the fall- wrong time. One way we find out about the right time and right place is our experience. If we are lucky, we have a few friends who will share their experience; this will help us too. The best way is to let God guide us. Only He knows the right time and the right place. So we need to pray and ask Him for guidance.

Great Spirit, show me patience so I can live in the right time and right place.