~*~A

ON THIS DAY IN 1971, THE SAME DAY AS BILL W’S AND HIS WIFE LOIS’S WEDDING ANNIVERSAY, BILL W. DIED AND BEGAN CHAIRING THE BIG MEETING IN THE SKY. I AM NOT IN A HURRY TO GET TO THAT MEETING, BUT I KNOW IT IS GOING TO BE THERE FOR ME AND COUNTLESS OTHERS.

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
^*^*^*^*^
(\ ~~~ /)
( \(AA)/ )
(_ /AA\ _)
/AA\
^*^*^*^*^
Belief
Here are thousands of men and women, worldly indeed. They flatly declare that since they have

come to believe in a Power greater than themselves, to take a certain attitude toward that Power,
and to do certain simple things, there has been a revolutionary change in their way of living and thinking.

In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of the total failure of their human resources,
they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into them.
c. 2001AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 50
^*^*^*^*^
Thought to Consider . . .

Newcomers are the lifeblood of the program.
But our old-timers are the arteries.

*~*~*AKRONYMS*~*~*

P R O G R A M = People Relying On God Relay A Message

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

Visibility

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"The 1941-1945 period brought still other developments. Our downtown Vesey Street office was moved to 415 Lexington Avenue, just opposite Grand Central [train] Station. We made this move because the need for serving the many A.A. travelers through New York had become urgent. Our new location near Grand Central brought us into contact with visitors who, for the first time, began to see Alcoholics Anonymous as a vision for the whole world."

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
GETTING INVOLVED

There is action and more action. "Faith without works is dead" . . . To be helpful is our only aim.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 88-89

I understand that service is a vital part of recovery but I often wonder, "What can I do?" Simply start with what I have today! I look around to see where there is a need. Are the ashtrays full? Do I have hands and feet to empty them? Suddenly I'm involved! The best speaker may make the worst coffee; the member who's best with newcomers may be unable to read; the one willing to clean up may make a mess of the bank account -- yet every one of these people and jobs is essential to an active group. The miracle of service is this: when I use what I have, I find there is more available to me than I realized before.

©Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.©
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Alike When the Chips Are Down

In the beginning, it was four whole years before A.A. brought permanent sobriety to even one alcoholic woman. Like the "high bottoms," the women said they were different; A.A. couldn't be for them. But as the communication was perfected, mostly by the women themselves, the picture changed. This process of identification and transmission has gone on and on. The Skid-Rower said he was different. Even more loudly, the socialite (or Park Avenue stumblebum) said the same - so did the artists and the professional people, the rich, the poor, the religious, the agnostic, the Indians and the Eskimos, the veterans, and the prisoners.
But nowadays all of these, and legions more, soberly talk about how very much alike all of us alcoholics are when we admit that the chips are finally down.

GRAPEVINE, OCTOBER 1959
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"Yes, there is a substitute and it is vastly more than that. It is a
fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. There you will find release from
care, boredom and worry. Your imagination will be fired. Life will
mean something at last. The most satisfactory years of your
existence lie ahead. Thus we find the fellowship, and so will you."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, A Vision For You, pg. 152~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Alcoholics who are living in a blind alley refuse to be really honest with themselves or with other people. They're running away from life and won't face things as they are. They won't give up their resentments. They're too sensitive and too easily hurt. They refuse to try to be unselfish. They still want everything for themselves. And no matter how many disastrous experiences they have had with drinking, they still do it over and over again. There's only one way to get out of that blind alley way of living and that's to change your thinking. Have I changed my thinking?

Meditation for the Day

I know that the vision and power that I receive from God are limitless, as far as spiritual things are concerned. But in temporal and material things, I must submit to limitations. I know that I cannot see the road ahead. I must go just one step at a time, because God does not grant me a longer view. I am in uncharted waters, limited by my temporal and spatial life, but unlimited in my spiritual life.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that, in spite of my material limitations, I may follow God's way.

I pray that I may learn that trying to do His will is perfect freedom