Happy 4^th of July ! !

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Freedom
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"Looking back we see that our freedom to choose badly was not, after all, a very real freedom.
When we chose because we 'must,' this was not a free choice either.
But it got us started in the right direction. When we chose because we 'ought to'
we were really doing better. This time we were earning some freedom,
making ourselves ready for more. But when, now and then, we could gladly make
right choices without rebellion, holdout, or conflict, then we had our first view of what
perfect freedom under God's will could be like."
Bill W., May 1960
1988AAGrapevine, The Language of the Heart, p. 302
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Thought to Consider . . .

Within our wonderful new world,
we have found freedom from our fatal obsession.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
F I N E  =  Free, Independent, New and Energetic

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

Acceptance

From "Happiness":

"Accept the things you cannot change. So simple. If the problem cannot be solved—today—why, simply drop it. I grant that this is not always easy; it takes self-discipline, a faculty infrequently found in newly sober alcoholics. – New Hartford, New York, USA"

1973 AAWS, Inc.; Came to Believe, 30^th printing 2004, pg. 111

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
A NATURAL FAITH

. . . deep down in every man, woman and child, is the fundamental idea of God. It may be obscured by calamity, by pomp, by worship of other things, but in some form or other it is there. For faith in a Power greater than ourselves, and miraculous demonstrations of that power in human lives, are facts as old as man himself.

  ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 55

I have seen the workings of the unseen God in A.A. rooms around the country. Miracles of recovery are everywhere in evidence. I now believe that God is in these rooms and in my heart. Today faith is as natural to me, a former agnostic, as breathing, eating and sleeping. The Twelve Steps have helped to change my life in many ways, but none is more effective than the acquisition of a Higher Power.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.

*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Boomerang

When I was ten, I was tall and gawky, and smaller kids could push me around in quarrels. I remember being very depressed for a year or more, and then I began to develop a fierce resolve to win. One day, my grandfather came along with a book about Australia and told me, "This book says that nobody but an Australian bushman knows how to make and throw the boomerang." "Here's my chance," I thought. "I will be the first man in America to make and throw a boomerang." Well, any kid could have had a notion like that. It might have lasted two days or two weeks. But mine was a power drive that kept on for six months, till I made a boomerang that swung around the church yard in front of the house and almost hit my grandfather in the head when it came back.
Emotionally, I had begun the fashioning of another sort of boomerang, one that almost killed me later on.

A.A. comes of age, P. 53
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Sometimes we hear an alcoholic say that the only thing he needs to
do is to keep sober. Certainly he must keep sober, for there will be
no home if he doesn't. But he is yet a long way from making good to
the wife or parents whom for years he has so shockingly treated."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 82~

*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought For The Day

In Alcoholics Anonymous there is no thought of individual
profit.  No greed or gain.  No membership fees, no dues.  
Only voluntary contributions of our money and ourselves.
All that we hope for is sobriety and regeneration, so that
we can live normal, respectable lives and can be recognized
by others as men and women willing to do unto others as we
would be done by.  These things we accomplish by the help
of each other, by following the twelve steps and by the
grace of God.  Am I willing to work for A.A. without material gain to myself?

Meditation For The Day

What is sometimes called by religion as conversion is often
only the discovery of God as a friend in need.  What is
sometimes called religion is often only the experiencing of
the help and strength of God's power in our lives.  What is
sometimes called holiness is often only the invitation of
God to be our Friend.  As God becomes your friend, you
become a friend of others.  We experience true human
friendship and from this experience we can imagine what
kind of Great Friend God can be.  We believe Him to be a
tireless, selfless, all conquering, miracle-working Friend.  
We can reach out to the Great Friend and figuratively take His hand in ours.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may think of God as a Great Friend in need.  
I pray that I may go along with Him.