~*~A

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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(   \ (AA)/   )
(_   /AA\ _)
   /AA\
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Change

"Let us never fear needed change.
Certainly we have to discriminate between
changes for worse and changes for better.
But once a need becomes clearly apparent in an individual,
in a group, or in AA as a whole,
it has long since been found out
that we cannot stand still and look the other way."
Bill W., Box 1980: The AA Grapevine, July 1965
As Bill Sees It, p. 115

Thought to Consider . . .

We're responsible for the effort - not the outcome.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C H A N G E
Choosing Honesty Allows New Growth Everyday.

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*

Objectivity

Step Four: Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

"They comfort the melancholy one by first showing him that his case is not strange or different, that his character defects are probably not more numerous or worse than those of anyone else in A.A. This the sponsor promptly proves by talking freely and easily, and without exhibitionism, about his own defects, past and present. This calm, yet realistic, stocktaking is immensely reassuring. The sponsor probably points out that the newcomer has some assets which can be noted along with his liabilities. This tends to clear away morbidity and encourage balance. As soon as he begins to be more objective, the newcomer can fearlessly, rather than fearfully, look at his own defects."

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
AN INSIDE LOOK

We want to find exactly how, when, and where our natural desires have warped us. We wish to look squarely at the unhappiness this has caused others and ourselves. By discovering what our emotional deformities are, we can move toward their correction.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 43

Today I am no longer a slave to alcohol, yet in so many ways enslavement still threatens-my self, my desires, even my dreams. Yet without dreams I cannot exist; without dreams there is nothing to keep me moving forward.

I must look inside myself, to free myself I must call upon God's power to face the person I've feared the most, the true me, the person God created me to be. Unless I can or until I do, I will always be running, and never be truly free. I ask God daily to show me such a freedom!

©Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.©
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Anger--Personal and Group Enemy

"As the book 'Alcoholics Anonymous' puts it, 'Resentment is the Number One offender,' It is a primary cause of relapses into drinking. How well we of A.A. know that for us 'To drink is eventually to go mad or die.'
"Much the same penalty overhangs every A.A. group. Given enough anger, both unity and purpose are lost. Given still more 'righteous' indignation, the group can disintegrate; it can actually die. This is why we avoid controversy. This is why we prescribe no punishments for any misbehavior, no matter how grievous. Indeed, no alcoholic can be deprived of his membership for any reason whatever. "Punishment never heals. Only love can heal."

LETTER, 1966
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

If we are planning to stop drinking, there must be no reservation of any kind, nor any

lurking notion that someday we will be immune to alcohol.

- Pg. 33 - More About Alcoholism
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Second, alcoholics recover their faith in a Power greater than themselves. They admit that they're helpless by themselves and they call on that Higher Power for help. They surrender their lives to God, as they understand Him. They put their drink problem in God's hands and leave it there. They recover their faith in a Higher Power that can help them. Have I recovered my faith?

Meditation for the Day

You must make a stand for God. Believers in God are considered by some as peculiar people. You must even be willing to be deemed a fool for the sake of your faith. You must be ready to stand aside and let the fashions and customs of the world go by, when God's purposes are thereby forwarded. Be known by the marks that distinguish a believer in God. These are honesty, purity, unselfishness, love, gratitude, and humility.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be ready to profess my belief in God before others.

I pray that I may not be turned aside by the skepticism and cynicism of unbelievers