~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Self-Restraint
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"We enjoy certain inherent
advantages which should make our task of self-restraint
relatively easy. There
is no really good reason for anyone to object
if a great many drunks
get sober. Nearly everyone can agree that this is a good thing.
If, in the process, we
are forced to develop a certain amount of honesty, humility, and tolerance, who
is going to kick about that? If we recognize that religion is the province of
the clergy and the practice of medicine is for doctors,
we can helpfully
cooperate with both. Certainly there is little basis for controversy in these
areas. It is a fact that AA has not the slightest reform or political
complexion.
We try to pay our own
expenses, and we strictly mind our single purpose."
- Bill W.
1962AAWS, Twelve
Concepts for World Service, 26th Printing, p. 69
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Thought to Consider . . .
We are not living just to be sober;
we are living to learn,
to serve, and to love.
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
S
W A T =
Surrender, Willingness, Acceptance, and Trust
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Continually
From
"For Emergencies Only?":
"Whether we had
been believers or unbelievers, we began to get over the idea that the Higher
Power was a sort of bush-league pinch hitter [sic], to be called upon only in
an emergency."The notion that we would still
live our own lives, God helping a little now and then, began to evaporate. Many
of us who had thought ourselves religious awoke to the limitations of this
attitude. Refusing to place God first, we had deprived ourselves of His help."But now the words 'Of myself I am nothing, the
Father doeth the works' began to carry bright purpose
and meaning." adapted
from the 12 and 12, pg. 75
1990
AAWS, Inc.; As Bill Sees It; pg. 66
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
REMOVING "THE GROUND GLASS"
The
moral inventory is a cool examination of the damages that occurred to us during
life and a sincere effort to look at them in a true perspective. This has
the effect of taking the ground glass out of us, the emotional substance that
still cuts and inhibits.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 140
My
Eighth Step list used to drag me into a whirlpool of resentment. After
four years of sobriety, I was blocked by denial connected with an ongoing
abusive relationship. The argument between fear and pride eased as the
words of the Step moved from my head to my heart. For the first time in
years I opened my box of paints and poured out an honest rage, an explosion of
reds and blacks and yellows. As I looked at the drawing, tears of joy and
relief flowed down my cheeks. In my disease, I had given up my art, a
self-inflicted punishment far greater than any imposed from outside. In
my recovery, I learned that the pain of my defects is the very substance God
uses to cleanse my character and to set me free.
Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
One Fellowship - Many Faiths
As a society we must
never become so vain as to suppose that we are authors
and inventors of a new religion. We will humbly reflect that every one of
A.A.'s principles has been borrowed from ancient sources.
<<<>>>
A minister in
Buddhist monastery in
this province, and the head priest said, 'Why, these
Steps are fine! For us
as Buddhists, it might be slightly more acceptable if
you had inserted the
word 'good' in your Steps instead of 'God.'
Nevertheless, you say
that it is God as you understand Him, and that must
certainly include the
good. Yes, A.A.'s Twelve Steps will surely be accepted
by the Buddhists around
here."
<<<>>>
St. Louis old-timers recall how Father
Edward Dowling helped start their
group; it turned out to
be largely Protestant, but this fazed him not a bit.
A.A. COMES OF AGE - 1. p. 231 - 2. p. 81 - 3. p. 37
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Outsiders are sometimes shocked when we burst into
merriment over a
seemingly tragic
experience out of the past. But why shouldn't we
laugh? We have
recovered, and have been given the power to help others."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg.
132~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
"While alcoholics
keep strictly away from drink, they react
to life much like other
people. But the first drink sets
the terrible cycle in
motion. Alcoholics usually have no
idea why they take the
first drink. Some drinkers have
excuses with which they
are satisfied, but in their hearts
they really do not know
why they do it. The truth is that
at some point in their drinking
they have passed into a
state where the most
powerful desire to stop drinking is
of no avail." Am I
satisfied that I have passed my tolerance point for alcohol?
Meditation
for the Day
He who made the ordered
world out of chaos and set the stars
in their courses and
made each plant to know its season, He
can bring peace and
order out of your private chaos if you
will let Him. God is
watching over you, too, to bless you and
care for you. Out of the
darkness He is leading you to light,
out of unrest to rest,
out of disorder to order, out of
faults and failure to
success. You belong to God and your
affairs are His affairs
and can be ordered by Him if you are willing.
Prayer
for the Day
I pray that I may be led
out of disorder into order.
I pray that I may be led out of failure into success.