~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Thankfulness
I try to hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful heart
cannot entertain great conceits. When brimming with gratitude,
one's heartbeat must surely result in outgoing love,

the finest emotion that we can ever know.
Bill W., AAGrapevine, March 1962
c. 1967 AAWS, As Bill Sees It,  p. 37
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Thought to Consider . . .

The peaks and valleys of my life
have become gentle rolling hills.

*~*~*AKRONYMS*~*~*
G I F T S  =  Getting It From The Steps

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

Puzzle

From "More about Alcoholism":

"The 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."

� 2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 39

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
THE TREASURE OF THE PAST

Showing others who suffer how we were given help is the very thing which makes life seem so worth while to us now.  Cling to the thought that, in God's hands, the dark past is the greatest possession you have -- the key to life and happiness for others.  With it you can avert death and misery for them.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p.  124

What a gift it is for me to realize that all those seemingly useless years were not wasted.  The most degrading and humiliating experiences turn out to be the most powerful tools in helping others to recover.  In knowing the depths of shame and despair, I can reach out with a loving and compassionate hand, and know that the grace of God is available to me.

�Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.�
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Troublemakers Can Be Teachers

Few of us are any longer afraid of what any newcomer can do to our A.A. reputation or effectiveness. Those who slip, those who panhandle, those who scandalize, those with mental twists, those who rebel at the program, those who trade on the A.A. reputation - all such persons seldom harm an A.A. group for long.
Some of these have become our most respected and best loved. Some have remained to try our patience, sober nevertheless. Others have drifted away. We have begun to regard the troublesome ones not as menaces, but rather as our teachers. They oblige us to cultivate patience, tolerance, and humility. We finally see that they are only people sicker than the rest of us, that we who condemn them are the Pharisees whose false righteousness does our group the deeper spiritual damage.

GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1946
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"The minute we put our work on a service plane, the alcoholic
commences to rely upon our assistance rather than upon God. He
clamors for this or that, claiming he cannot master alcohol until
his material needs are cared for. Nonsense. Some of us have taken very
hard knocks to learn this truth: Job or no job, wife or no wife, we
simply do not stop drinking so long as we place dependence upon other
people ahead of dependence on God."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 98~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

What a load hangovers put on your shoulders! What terrible physical punishment we've all been through. The pounding headaches and jumpy nerves, the shakes and the jitters, the hot and cold sweats! When you come into A.A. and stop drinking, that terrible load of hangovers falls off your shoulders. What a load remorse puts on your shoulders! That terrible mental punishment we've all been through. Ashamed of the things you've said and done. Afraid to face people because of what they might think of you. Afraid of the consequences of what you did when you were drunk. What an awful beating the mind takes! When you come into A.A., that terrible load of remorse falls off your shoulders. Have I gotten rid of these loads of hangovers and remorse?

Meditation for the Day

When you seek to follow the way of the spirit, it frequently means a complete reversal of the way of the world that you had previously followed. But it is a reversal that leads to happiness and peace. Do the aims and ambitions that a person usually strives for bring peace? Do the world's awards bring heart rest and happiness? Or do they turn to ashes in the mouth?

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may not be weary, disillusioned, or disappointed.

I pray that I may not put my trust in the ways of the world, but in the way of the spirit