~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Balance

"Most of us must admit that we have loved but a few;
that we have been indifferent to the many
so long as none of them gave us trouble;
and as for the remainder -- well, we have really
disliked or hated them.
Although these attitudes are common enough,
we AA's find we need something much better
in order to keep our balance.
We can't stand it if we hate deeply.
The idea that we can be possessively loving of a few,
and can continue to fear or hate anybody,
has to be abandoned, if only a little at a time."
c. 1952AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pp. 92-3
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Thought to Consider . . .

Bigotry disfigures the heart.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
F A I T H =  Facing All In Trusting Him

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

From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":

"In September, 1939, the Liberty [magazine] piece hit the newsstands. It was a bit lurid, and we thought the title, 'Alcoholics and God,' would scare off plenty of prospects. Maybe it did, but several hundred alcoholics and their families were not scared. Liberty magazine received 800 urgent pleas for help, which were promptly turned over to [office manager] Ruth and me [Bill W.]. She wrote fine personal letters to every one of them, enclosing a leaflet which described the A.A. book. The response was wonderful [sic] Several hundred books sold at once at full retail price of $3.50. Even more importantly, we struck up a correspondence with alcoholics, their friends, and their families all over the country. Ruth could at last draw a few dollars a week for herself. And all those moving appeals for assistance had made us forget our own troubles. Looking after all those new people by mail and relating [sic] them in some cases to each other and in others to the groups in Akron, New York, and Cleveland became our chief occupation until early 1940. Shortly after the Liberty article came out, Cleveland's Plain Dealer ran its great series of pieces, as already described. This brought in new book orders and new problems by scores. Alcoholics Anonymous was on the march, out of its infancy into adolescence."

2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 178

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
H.P. AS GUIDE

See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to pass for you and countless others. This is the Great Fact for us.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 164

Having a right relationship with God seemed to be an impossible order.  My chaotic past had left me filled with guilt and remorse and I wondered how this "God business" could work.  A.A. told me that I must turn my will and my life over to the care of God, as I understand Him.  With nowhere else to turn, I went down on my knees and cried, "God, I can't do this. Please help me!"  It was when I admitted my powerlessness that a glimmer of light began to touch my soul, and then a willingness emerged to let God control my life.  With Him as my guide, great events began to happen, and I found the beginning of sobriety.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.


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~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Fear and Faith

The achievement of freedom from fear is a lifetime undertaking, one that can never be wholly completed.
When under heavy attack, acute illness, or in other conditions of serious insecurity, we shall all react to this emotion - well or badly, as the case may be. Only the self-deceived will claim perfect freedom from fear.

<<<>>>

We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up. Sometimes we had to search persistently, but He was there. He was as much a fact as we were. We found the Great Reality deep down within us.


1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962 - 2. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 55


*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"In this book you read again and again that faith did for us what we
could not do for ourselves. We hope you are convinced now that God can
remove whatever self-will has blocked you off from Him. If you have
already made a decision, and an inventory of your grosser handicaps,
you have made a good beginning. That being so you have swallowed and
digested some big chunks of truth about yourself."


~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 70~


*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Step Four is, "Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of
ourselves." Step Five is, "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to
another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." Step Six is,
"Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of
character." Step Seven is, "Humbly asked Him to remove our
shortcomings." Step Ten is, "Continued to take personal inventory
and when we were wrong promptly admitted it." In taking a personal
inventory, we have to be absolutely honest with ourselves and with
other people. Have I taken an honest inventory of myself?

Meditation for the Day

God is good. You can often tell whether or not a thing is of God.
If it is of God, it must be good. Honesty, purity, unselfishness,
and love are all good, unselfish helpfulness is good, and these
things all lead to the abundant life. Leave in God's hands the
present and the future, knowing only that He is good. The hand that
veils the future is the hand of God. He can bring order out of
chaos, good out of evil, and peace out of turmoil. We can believe
that everything really good comes from God and that He shares His
goodness with us.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may reach out for the good.

I pray that I may try to choose the best in life