KEEP IT SIMPLE #essentialsofrecovery

But the alcoholic . . . will be absolutely unable to stop
drinking on the basis of self-knowledge.

~ Alcoholics Anonymous ~

Our program says three things are more important than knowing ourselves: (1) admitting we have no control over our addiction, (2) believing in a Higher Power, and (3) turning our lives over to the care of that Higher Power.

Knowing ourselves makes our lives better in recovery. But it does not give us sobriety. Sobriety starts with surrender to our Higher Power. We now know we need the faith and strength we get from a Higher Power. We also need the support of others in our program.

Prayer for the Day

Higher Power, thank you for my sobriety today. Teach me what I need to know about myself to do Your will today.

Action for the Day

Today, I’ll talk with my sponsor about the change in my spirit that keeps me sober.

Copyright © 1988 by Hazelden Foundation 

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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ SELF KNOWLEDGE 

We’re our own dragons as well as our own heroes
and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.

Tom Robbins

I always tried to do my best in everything I did. Studies, school, and managing my own family are some good
examples. Being in control made it seem as though I always did as I was told, but I had a very difficult time Being on
my own and thinking for myself. The talent I was born with gave me a good start at being an artist, but I couldn’t seem
to make a successful career out of it. I was scared and shy and didn’t dare be on the forefront of making this talent
into what I wanted it to be.

When I started on my path to Recovery, I found that I was being too much of a perfectionist. I was always told to do
things perfectly and I tried and tried but never seemed to satisfy my parents or the god of my childhood. So when I
grew up I was so hard on myself that I lost the creativity I was born with. Creativity can’t thrive in a hostile environment.

One day while reading an author I liked, I read that I had to “get out of my own way”. I was a dragon trying to do
something creative and it didn’t work. I have to learn to “rescue myself from myself” so I can do my art with the talents
that are God-given.

One day at a time … I realize that if I want to see myself as I really am,I cannot stand in my own shadow.

~ Myrlene ~ 

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Step by Step #essentialsofrec #Self-Knowledge

” …(T)he actual or potential alcoholic, with hardly an exception, will be absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. This is a point we wish to emphasize and re-emphasize, to smash home upon our alcoholic readers as it has been revealed to us out of bitter experience.” 

– Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Ch 3 (“More About Alcoholism”), p 39.

Today, the experience as expressed in the words of the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous – “unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge” – serves as an omen that I should not continue to drink even though I may still have some power to abstain for even long periods of time. In time, in the experience of the Program‘s co-founders and in the men and women whose personal travails come later in the Book Book, that ability to abstain will be gone. Noting that the text of the Program speaks not only to the alcoholic but also to the potential one, I must give up any egotistical thoughts that I am spared the disease of alcoholism even if I am on the threshold of it. “Self-knowledge” did little to spare me the ravages of full alcoholism; today, pray that I listen to the knowledge of others. And our common journey continues. 

Step by step. – Chris M. 

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ELDER'S MEDITATION OF THE DAY #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Lakota #NAtive

“I went to a holy man and asked him for help. He told me to get on the Red Road. Pray to Wakan-Tanka (Great Spirit) to help you walk the Red Road.”

~ Dr. A.C. Ross (Ehanamani), LAKOTA ~

All Indian traditions, customs and ceremonies help us answer three questions: who am I?, why am I?, and where am I going? Only on the Red Road can we find the answer to these three questions. When we can answer these three questions, we are on the Red Road. When we cannot, we have gone astray. That is why the Holy Men tell us to pray to the Great Spirit and to seek the Red Road. Why am I? My purpose is the serve the Great Spirit. Who am I? I am an Indian who walks the Red Road. Where am I going? My vision is to serve my people.

Great Spirit, when I know You, only then do I know me. Help me today to know You.

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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #overeaters #Knowledge #OA

SELF KNOWLEDGE

We’re our own dragons as well as our own heroes and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.

Tom Robbins

I always tried to do my best in everything I did. Studies, school, and managing my own family are some good
examples. Being in control made it seem as though I always did as I was told, but I had a very difficult time Being on
my own and thinking for myself. The talent I was born with gave me a good start at being an artist, but I couldn’t seem
to make a successful career out of it. I was scared and shy and didn’t dare be on the forefront of making this talent
into what I wanted it to be.

When I started on my path to Recovery, I found that I was being too much of a perfectionist. I was always told to do
things perfectly and I tried and tried but never seemed to satisfy my parents or the god of my childhood. So when I
grew up I was so hard on myself that I lost the creativity I was born with. Creativity can’t thrive in a hostile environment.

One day while reading an author I liked, I read that I had to “get out of my own way”. I was a dragon trying to do
something creative and it didn’t work. I have to learn to “rescue myself from myself” so I can do my art with the talents
that are God-given.

One day at a time … I realize that if I want to see myself as I really am,I cannot stand in my own shadow.


~ Myrlene

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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ SELF KNOWLEDGE ~

We’re our own dragons as well as our own heroes and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.
–Tom Robbins

I always tried to do my best in everything I did. Studies, school, and managing my own family are some good examples. Being in control made it seem as though I always did as I was told, but I had a very difficult time Being on my own and thinking for myself. The talent I was born with gave me a good start at being an artist, but I couldn’t seem to make a successful career out of it. I was scared and shy and didn’t dare be on the forefront of making this talent into what I wanted it to be.

When I started on my path to Recovery, I found that I was being too much of a perfectionist. I was always told to do things perfectly and I tried and tried but never seemed to satisfy my parents or the god of my childhood. So when I grew up I was so hard on myself that I lost the creativity I was born with. Creativity can’t thrive in a hostile environment.

One day while reading an author I liked, I read that I had to “get out of my own way”. I was a dragon trying to do something creative and it didn’t work. I have to learn to “rescue myself from myself” so I can do my art with the talents that are God-given.

One day at a time …

I realize that if I want to see myself as I really am,I cannot stand in my own shadow.

~ Myrlene ~

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

One Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

~ SELF KNOWLEDGE ~

We’re our own dragons as well as our own heroes and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.
–Tom Robbins

I always tried to do my best in everything I did. Studies, school, and managing my own family are some good examples. Being in control made it seem as though I always did as I was told, but I had a very difficult time Being on my own and thinking for myself. The talent I was born with gave me a good start at being an artist, but I couldn’t seem to make a successful career out of it. I was scared and shy and didn’t dare be on the forefront of making this talent into what I wanted it to be.

When I started on my path to Recovery, I found that I was being too much of a perfectionist. I was always told to do things perfectly and I tried and tried but never seemed to satisfy my parents or the god of my childhood. So when I grew up I was so hard on myself that I lost the creativity I was born with. Creativity can’t thrive in a hostile environment.

One day while reading an author I liked, I read that I had to “get out of my own way”. I was a dragon trying to do something creative and it didn’t work. I have to learn to “rescue myself from myself” so I can do my art with the talents that are God-given.

One day at a time …

I realize that if I want to see myself as I really am,I cannot stand in my own shadow.

~ Myrlene ~

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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec

SELF-KNOWLEDGE


“The world we have created is a product of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.”

–Albert Einstein

The world I created before finding the Twelve Steps of recovery was a world in which I had no responsibility. Everything bad in my life was someone else’s fault: my parents’, my husband’s, society’s, and, when there was no one else to blame, it was God’s fault.

As I worked Step 4, I learned that I had been a part of all of these things for which I blamed others. I learned that I had defects of character that kept me from taking part in my life. As I recognized these defects, I asked my Higher Power to remove them, and that gradually happened.

One of the things I had tried to do for many years was bury my feelings of grief and pain. I seemed to have managed that fairly well, but in doing so, I had also buried all the other emotion. I no longer took enjoyment in anything. My child’s smile evoked no feeling and I felt no pride in anything I did. I felt none of the love that others gave to me. As I started dealing with the painful feelings, the positive emotions emerged as well.

The promise the Big Book speaks of became true for me: I no longer regretted the past nor wished to shut the door on it. I was able to feel my hurt and grief. Now I am also able to feel love and happiness. I have learned how to change my thinking through the process of working these wonderful Steps.

One Day at a Time . . .

I do a daily 10th, 11th and 12th Step and am reminded that it is my responsibility to listen to my Higher Power and do my part in creating the world around me.

~ Nancy 

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrecovery

A.A. Thought For The Day

“The alcoholic is absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. We must admit we can do nothing about it ourselves. Willpower and self-knowledge will never help in the strange mental blank spots when we are tempted to drink. An alcoholic mentally is in a very sick condition. The last flicker of conviction that we can do the job ourselves must be snuffed out. The spiritual answer and the program of action are the only hope. Only spiritual principles will solve our problems. We are completely helpless apart from Divine help. Our defence against drinking must come from a Higher Power.” Have I accepted the spiritual answer and the program of action?

Meditation For The Day

Rest now until life, eternal life, flowing through your veins and heart and mind, bids you to bestir yourself. Then glad work will follow. Tired work is never effective. The strength of God’s spirit is always available to the tired mind and body. He is your physician and your healer. Look to these quiet times of communion with God for rest, for peace, for cure. Then rise refreshed in spirit and go out to work, knowing that your strength is able to meet any problems because it is reinforced by God’s power.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that the peace I have found will make me effective. I pray that I may be relieved of all strain during this day.

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Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A CLEAN SWEEP

. . . . and third, having thus cleaned away the debris of the past, we consider how, with our newfound knowledge of ourselves, we may develop the best possible relations with every human being we know. 

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS , p. 77

As I face the Eighth Step, everything that was required for successful completion of the previous seven Steps came together: courage, honesty, sincerity, willingness and thoroughness. I could not muster the strength required for this task at the beginning, which is why this Step reads “Became willing. . . . ”

I needed to develop the courage to begin, the honesty to see where I was wrong, a sincere desire to set things right, thoroughness in making a list, and willingness to take the risk required for true humility. With the help of my Higher Power in developing these virtues, I completed this Step and continued to move forward in my quest for spiritual growth.

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A WOMAN’S SPIRIT #essentialsofrecovery

Recovery leads to self-knowledge, love, and joy. Addiction leads to self-loathing, fear, and isolation. The choice is mine.

~ Sarah Desmond 

Having decided on a clean and sober life gives us opportunities we’d never have imagined. We’re learning how to love ourselves and appreciate other people. We’re learning that a Higher Power guides and protects us. No one makes our decisions for us. We are free to go back to the old life any time we want to. Each day offers us a clean slate. We fill it in according to the principles we live by. Making healthy choices regarding these twenty-four hours becomes easier as we accumulate a series of healthy days.

Occasionally we wonder why we chose a fearful, isolated life. Recovery was always available to us. We weren’t ready for it, however, and it’s far more productive to trust that we came to this program when the time was right.

I choose how I live each day. Understanding that makes the right choice more obvious.

© 1994 by Hazelden Foundation 

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec

A.A. Thought For The Day

“The alcoholic is absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. We must admit we can do nothing about it ourselves. Willpower and self-knowledge will never help in the strange mental blank spots when we are tempted to drink. An alcoholic mentally is in a very sick condition. The last flicker of conviction that we can do the job ourselves must be snuffed out. The spiritual answer and the program of action are the only hope. Only spiritual principles will solve our problems. We are completely helpless apart from Divine help. Our defense against drinking must come from a Higher Power.”  Have I accepted the spiritual answer and the program of action?

Meditation For The Day

Rest now until life, eternal life, flowing through your veins and heart and mind, bids you to bestir yourself. Then glad work will follow. Tired work is never effective. The strength of God’s spirit is always available to the tired mind and body. He is your physician and your healer. Look to these quiet times of communion with God for rest, for peace, for cure. Then rise refreshed in spirit and go out to work, knowing that your strength is able to meet any problems because it is reinforced by God’s power.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that the peace I have found will make me effective. I pray that I may be relieved of all strain during this day. 

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How to Be Yourself - Eckhart Tolle #essentialsofrec #Recovery

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DAILY ZEN #essentialsofrec #Zen #Buddhism

Innate knowledge is vast and great
And lofty and clear.
Originally it has no false thoughts
That can be removed.
As soon as there are false thoughts,
We have already lost the vast and great,
Lofty and clear essence.
Right now just wake up
The fundamental essence,
And the many falsities will
Dissolve away by themselves.

- Qian Dehong (1495-1574)

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Just For Today #essentialsofrec #Recovery #NA #Work

“How Does It Work?”


“I used to think that I had all the answers, but today I am glad that I don’t”

Basic Text p. 272

What are the two favorite words of most addicts? “I know!” Unfortunately, many of us arrive in NA thinking we have all the answers. We have a lot of knowledge about what’s wrong with us. But in and of itself, knowledge never helped us stay clean for any length of time.

Members who have achieved long-term recovery will be the first to admit that the longer they are here, the more they have to learn. But they do know one thing: By following this simple Twelve Step program, they have been able to stay clean. They no longer ask “why”; they ask “how”? The value of endless speculation pales in comparison to the experience of addicts who’ve found a way to stay clean and live clean.

This doesn’t mean we don’t ask “why” when it’s appropriate. We don’t come to NA and stop thinking! But in the beginning, it’s often a very good idea to reword our questions. Instead of asking “why,” we ask “how”: How do I work this step? How often should I attend meetings? How do I stay clean?

Just for today: I don’t have all the answers, but I know where to find the ones that matter. Today, I will ask another addict, “How does it work?”
pg. 6

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day #essentialsofrec #recovery #Knowledge

A.A. Thought For The Day

When I came into A.A., I learned what an alcoholic was and then I applied this knowledge to myself to see if I was an alcoholic. When I was convinced that I was an alcoholic, I admitted it openly. Since then, have I been learning to live accordingly? Have I read the book Alcoholics Anonymous? Have I applied the knowledge gained to myself? Have I admitted openly that I am an alcoholic? Am I ready to admit it at any time when I can be of help?

Meditation For The Day

I will be renewed. I will be remade. In this, I need God’s help. His spirit shall flow through me and, in flowing through me, it shall sweep away all the bitter past. I will take heart. The way will open for me. Each day will unfold something good, as long as I am trying to live the way I believe God wants me to live.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may be taught, just as a child would be taught. I pray that I may never question God’s plans, but accept them gladly.

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One Day At A Time #essentialsofrec #SELF-KNOWLEDGE #Recovery #OA

   1
September

SELF-KNOWLEDGE


“The world we have created is a product of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.”

–Albert Einstein

The world I created before finding the Twelve Steps of recovery was a world in which I had no responsibility. Everything bad in my life was someone else’s fault: my parents’, my husband’s, society’s, and, when there was no one else to blame, it was God’s fault.

As I worked Step 4, I learned that I had been a part of all of these things for which I blamed others. I learned that I had defects of character that kept me from taking part in my life. As I recognized these defects, I asked my Higher Power to remove them, and that gradually happened.

One of the things I had tried to do for many years was bury my feelings of grief and pain. I seemed to have managed that fairly well, but in doing so, I had also buried all the other emotion. I no longer took enjoyment in anything. My child’s smile evoked no feeling and I felt no pride in anything I did. I felt none of the love that others gave to me. As I started dealing with the painful feelings, the positive emotions emerged as well.

The promise the Big Book speaks of became true for me: I no longer regretted the past nor wished to shut the door on it. I was able to feel my hurt and grief. Now I am also able to feel love and happiness. I have learned how to change my thinking through the process of working these wonderful Steps.

One Day at a Time . . .
I do a daily 10th, 11th and 12th Step and am reminded that it is my responsibility to listen to my Higher Power and do my part in creating the world around me.

~ Nancy

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Walk In Dry Places #essentialsofrec #Understanding #Self-Knowledge

21
August

Meeting needs in the Right Way.
Self-Understanding.

Bizarre as it is, the bad behavior of drunkenness has an underlying logic when it’s really understood.

Why, for example, would people squander money buying drinks for total strangers when their families are going without?

This is an insane way of meeting needs for intimacy and approval. It’s true that these needs will never be met in this fashion, but try telling that to a person who is still drinking!

In recovery, we can more easily forgive ourselves for past actions when we realize they came out of a misguided attempt to meet basic needs. A starving person will seek out garbage. Starved as we were for necessities of life, we sought a form of garbage. The good news in AA recovery is that sobriety will help us meet basic needs in the right way.

I’ll keep in mind today that as a human being I have certain needs that should be met in proper ways.

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Today’s Gift from Hazelden #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Knowledge

23
July


The best thing that can come with success is the knowledge that it is nothing to long for.

— Liv Ullmann

Success may be defined in many ways. In our youth, we may have measured success in terms of having a million dollars, two cars, a swimming pool. But we are coming to believe that success means staying clean and sober, living an honest life, and relying daily on our Higher Power.

Material success provides momentary pleasures but doesn’t leave us with lasting happiness. We’ve all experienced the rush to buy another “toy,” certain an inner void would be filled. Soon, we were tired of it and looking for another distraction.

We are now learning how to fill those voids with genuine sustenance; our daily commitment to the program and our relationship with God.

I will measure my success today by the quality of my sobriety and relationship with God.

From the book:

In God’s Care by Karen Casey

In God’s Care by Karen Casey. © 1991 by Hazelden Foundation

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Step by Step #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Self-Knowledge

15
July

” …(T)he actual or potential alcoholic, with hardly an exception, will be absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. This is a point we wish to emphasize and re-emphasize, to smash home upon our alcoholic readers as it has been revealed to us out of bitter experience.”

– Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Ch 3 (“More About Alcoholism”), p 39.

Today, the experience as expressed in the words of the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous – “unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge” – serves as an omen that I should not continue to drink even though I may still have some power to abstain for even long periods of time. In time, in the experience of the Program’s co-founders and other men and women whose personal travails come later in the Big Book, that ability to abstain will be gone. Noting that the text of the Program speaks not only to the alcoholic but also to the potential one, I must give up any egotistical thoughts that I am spared the disease of alcoholism even if I am on the threshold of it. “Self-knowledge” did little to spare me the ravages of full alcoholism; today, pray that I listen to the knowledge of others. And our common journey continues. 

Step by step. – Chris M.

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