~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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(_ /AA\ _)
/AA\
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Motives
"Suppose we fall short of the chosen ideal
and stumble? Does this mean we are going to get drunk? Some people tell us so.
But this is only a half-truth. It depends on us and our motives. If we are
sorry for what we have done, and have the honest desire to let God take us to
better things, we believe we will be forgiven and will have learned our lesson.
If we are not sorry, and our conduct continues to harm others, we are quite
sure to drink.
"Alcoholics
Anonymous, p. 70
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
TRUST Try Relying Upon The Steps
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Fear
From "Fear of
Fear":
"Many women who have reached the
stage that I had reached in my drinking have lost husbands, children, homes,
everything they hold dear. I have been very fortunate in many ways. The important
thing I lost was my own self-respect. I could feel fear coming into my life. I
couldn't face people. I couldn't look them straight in the eyes, although I had
always been a self-possessed, brazen person. I'd brazen anything out. I lied
like a trooper to get out of many scrapes. "But I felt a fear coming into my
life, and I couldn't cope with it. I got so that I hid quite a bit of the time,
wouldn't answer the phone, and stayed by myself as much as I could. I noticed
that I was avoiding all my social friends, except for my bridge club. I
couldn't keep up with many of my other friends, and I wouldn't go to anyone's
house unless I knew they drank as heavily as I did. I never knew it was the
first drink that did it. I thought I was losing my mind when I realized that I
couldn't stop drinking. That frightened me terribly."
(c) 2001 AAWS, Inc.,
Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pgs. 291-92
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
WEEDING THE GARDEN
The essence
of all growth is a willingness to make a change for the better and then an
unremitting willingness to shoulder whatever responsibility this entails.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 115
By the time I had reached Step Three I
had been freed of my dependence on alcohol, but bitter experience has shown me
that continuous sobriety requires continuous effort.
Every now and then I pause to take a
good look at my progress. More and more of my garden is weeded each time
I look, but each time I also find new weeds sprouting where I thought I had
made my final pass with the blade. As I head back to get the newly
sprouted weed (it's easier when they are young), I take a moment to admire how
lush the growing vegetables and flowers are, and my labors are rewarded.
My sobriety grows and bears fruit.
(c)Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS
ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.(c)
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Free of Dependence
I asked
myself, "Why can't the Twelve Steps work to release me from this
unbearable depression?" By the hour, I stared at the St. Francis Prayer:
"It is better to comfort than to be comforted “. Suddenly I realized what the answer might be. My
basic flaw had always been dependence on people or circumstances to supply me
with prestige, security, and confidence. Failing to get these things according
to my perfectionist dreams and specifications, I fought for them. And when
defeat came, so did my depression.
Reinforced by what grace I could find
in prayer, I had to exert every ounce of will and action to cut off these
faulty emotional dependencies upon people and upon circumstances. Then only
could I be free to love as Francis had loved.
GRAPEVINE,
JANUARY 1958
Copyright(R)1967
Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"We have
no monopoly on God; we merely have an approach that worked
with us."
~Alcoholics
Anonymous, 4th Edition, Working With Others, pg. 95~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
Having
surrendered our lives to God and put our drink problem in His hands doesn't
mean that we'll never be tempted to drink. So we must build up strength for the
time when temptation will come. In this quiet time, we read and pray and get
our minds in the right mood for the day. Starting the day right is a great help
in keeping sober. As the days go by and we get used to the sober life, it gets
easier and easier. We begin to develop a deep gratitude to God for saving us
from that old life. And we begin to enjoy peace and serenity and quiet
happiness. Am I trying to live the way God wants me to live?
Meditation
for the Day
The elimination of selfishness is the
key to happiness and can only be accomplished with God's help. We start out
with a spark of the Divine Spirit but a large amount of selfishness. As we grow
and come in contact with other people, we can take one of two paths. We can
become more and more selfish and practically extinguish the Divine Spark within
us, or we can become more unselfish and develop our spirituality until it
becomes the most important thing in our lives.
Prayer for
the Day
I pray that I may grow more and more
unselfish, honest, pure, and loving.
I pray that I may take the right path every day.