~*~A

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Earnestness

"An alcoholic in his cups is an unlovely creature. Our struggles with them are variously
strenuous, comic, and tragic. One poor chap committed suicide in my home.
He could not, or would not, see our way of life. There is, however, a vast amount of fun about it all.
I suppose some would be shocked at our seeming worldliness and levity.
But just underneath there is deadly earnestness. Faith has to work twenty-four hours a day
in and through us, or we perish."
Bill W., Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 92

Thought to Consider....

Laughter is the sound effect of recovery.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
DEAD
Drinking Ends All Dreams

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

Message

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"Three blocks away from the main office we have a good-sized loft space where all shipping and mailing is done. This activity now runs into tons of material a month. Six busy lads spend full time at it. Last year they shipped about 40,000 books and hundreds of thousands of pamphlets, many of them newly designed and edited largely through the work of Ralph, our consultant on pamphlet literature. They mailed about 30,000 letters and bulletins and did huge quantities of mimeographing. [c. 1959]"

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
GROWING UP

The essence of all growth is a willingness to change for the better and then an unremitting willingness to shoulder whatever responsibility this entails.

AS BILL SEES IT, p. 115

Sometimes when I've become willing to do what I should have been doing all along, I want praise and recognition. I don't realize that the more I'm willing to act differently, the more exciting my life is. The more I am willing to help others, the more rewards I receive. That's what practicing the principles means to me. Fun and benefits for me are in the willingness to do the actions, not to get immediate results. Being a little kinder, a little slower to anger, a little more loving makes my life better day by day.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
The Forgotten Mountain

When I was a child, I acquired some of the traits that had a lot to do with my insatiable craving for alcohol. I was brought up in a little town in Vermont, under the shadow of Mount Aeolus. An early recollection is that of looking up at this vast and mysterious mountain, wondering what it meant and whether I could ever climb that high. But I was presently distracted by my aunt who, as a fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next thirty-five years I pursued the fudge of life and quite forgot about the mountain.
<<< >>>
When self-indulgence is less than ruinous, we have a milder word for it. We call it "taking our comfort."

1. A.A. COMES OF AGE, PP. 52-53
2. TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 67
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No
person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his
fellows. Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers
have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people.

The idea that somehow, someday he will
control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every
abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing.
Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, Page 30~

*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

When I came into A.A., I came into a new world. A sober world. A world of sobriety, peace, serenity, and happiness. But I know that if I take just one drink, I'll go right back into that old world. That alcoholic world. That world of drunkenness, conflict, and misery. That alcoholic world is not a pleasant place for an alcoholic to live in. Looking at the world through the bottom of a whiskey glass is no fun after you've become an alcoholic. Do I want to go back to that alcoholic world?

Meditation for the Day

Pride stands sentinel at the door of the heart and shuts out the love of God. God can only dwell with the humble and the obedient. Obedience to God's will is the key unlocking the door to God's kingdom. You cannot obey God to the best of your ability without in time realizing God's love and responding to that love. The rough stone steps of obedience lead up to where the mosaic floor of love and joy is laid. Where God's spirit is, there is your home. There is heaven for you.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that God may make His home in my humble and obedient heart.

I pray that I may obey His guidance to the best of my ability