~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Friendship
"We
commenced to make many fast friends and
a fellowship has grown up among us of which it is a wonderful thing to
feel a part of. The
joy of living we really have, even under pressure and difficulty. I have seen hundreds of families set
their feet in
the path that really goes somewhere; have seen the most impossible
domestic situations
righted; feuds
and bitterness of all sorts wiped out. I
have seen men come out of asylums and resume a vital place in the lives
of their families and
communities. Business
and professional men have
regained their standing.
There is scarcely
any form of trouble and misery which has not been overcome among us."
Bill W., Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 15
Thought to Consider . . .
"Most
of us feel we need look no further for Utopia.
We have it with us right
here and now."
Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 16
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
EGO
Easing God Out
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Psychology
From
"Medicine Looks at Alcoholics Anonymous":":
"As excuse-makers
and rationalizers, we drunks are champions. It is the business of the
psychiatrist to get behind our excuses and to find the deeper causes for our
conduct. Though uninstructed in psychiatry, we can, after a little time in
A.A., see that our motives have not been what we thought they were and that we
have been motivated by forces unknown to us. Therefore we ought to look with
the deepest respect, interest, and profit upon the findings of psychiatry,
remembering that up to now the psychiatrists have been far more tolerant of us
than we have been of them. - Bill W."
(c) 2001
AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 236
*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
A RESTING PLACE
All
of A.A.'s Twelve Steps ask us to go contrary to our natural desires . . . they
all deflate our egos.
When it comes to ego deflation, few Steps are
harder to take than Five. But scarcely any Step
is more
necessary to longtime sobriety
and peace of mind than this one.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE
TRADITIONS, p. 55
After
writing down my character defects, I was unwilling to talk about them, and
decided it was time to stop carrying this burden alone, I needed to confess
those defects to someone else. I had read -- and been told -- I could not
stay sober unless I did. Step Five provided me with a feeling of
belonging, with humility and serenity when I practiced it in my daily
living. It was important to admit my defects of character in the order
presented in Step Five: "to God, to ourselves and
to another human being." Admitting to God first paved the way for
admission to myself and to another person. As
the taking of the Step is described, a feeling of being at one with God and my
fellow man brought me to a resting place where I could prepare myself for the
remaining Steps toward a full and meaningful sobriety.
Copyright
1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Back To Work
It
is possible for us to use the alleged dishonesty of other people as a plausible
excuse for not meeting our own obligations. Once, some prejudiced friends exhorted
me never to go back to Wall Street. They were sure that the rampant
materialism and double-dealing down there would stunt my spiritual growth.
Because this sounded so high-minded, I continued to stay away from the only
business that I knew. When,
finally, my household went broke, I realized I hadn't been able to face the
prospect of going back to work. So I returned to Wall Street, and I have ever since been glad that
I did. I needed to rediscover that there are many fine people in
GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1961
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"The less people tolerated us, the more we withdrew from
society,
from life itself. As we
became subjects of King Alcohol, shivering
denizens of his mad
realm, the chilling vapor that is loneliness
settled down. It
thickened, ever becoming blacker. Some of us
sought out sordid
places, hoping to find understanding companionship
and approval.
Momentarily we did, then would come oblivion and
the awful awakening to
face the hideous Four Horsemen: "Terror,
Bewilderment, Frustration,
Despair."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, A Vision For
You, pg. 151~
~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
I'm grateful that I found a program in A.A. that could keep me
sober. I'm grateful that A.A. has shown me the way to faith in a Higher Power,
because the renewing of that faith has changed my way of life. And I've found a happiness and contentment that I had forgotten existed, by
simply believing in God and trying to live the kind of a life that I know He
wants me to live. As long as I stay grateful, I'll stay sober. Am I in a
grateful frame of mind?
Meditation for the Day
God can work through you better when you are not hurrying. Go
very slowly, very quietly, from one duty to the next, taking time to rest and
pray between. Do not be too busy. Take everything in order. Venture often into
the rest of God and you will find peace. At work that results from resting with
God is good work. Claim the power to work miracles in human lives. Know that you
can do many things through the Higher Power. Know that you can do good things
through God who rests you and gives you strength. Partake regularly of rest and
prayer.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may not be in too much of a hurry.
I pray that I may take time out often to rest with God