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God grant me the
Serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
and Wisdom to know the difference.
Thy will, not mine, be done.
June 27, 2009
Daily
Reflections
CONFORMING TO THE A.A. WAY
We obey A.A.'s Steps and Traditions because we really want them for
ourselves. It is no longer a question of good or evil; we conform
because we genuinely want to conform. Such is our process of growth
in unity and function. Such is the evidence of God's grace and love
among us.
A.A. COMES OF AGE, p. 106
It is fun to watch myself grow in A.A. I fought conformity to A.A.
principles from the moment I entered, but I learned from the pain of
my belligerence that, in choosing to live the A.A. way of life, I opened
myself to God's grace and love. Then I began to know the full
meaning of being a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.
***********************************************************
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
If you can take your troubles as they come, if you can maintain your
calm and composure amid pressing duties and unending engagements,
if you can rise above the distressing and disturbing circumstances in
which you are set down, you have discovered a priceless secret of
daily living. Even if you are forced to go through life weighed down by
some unescapable misfortune or handicap and yet live each day as it
comes with poise and peace of mind, you have succeeded where most
people have failed. You have wrought a greater achievement than a
person who rules a nation. Have I achieved poise and peace of mind?
Meditation For The Day
Take a blessing with you wherever you go. You have been blessed, so
bless others. Such stores of blessings are awaiting you in the months
and years that lie ahead. Pass on your blessings. Blessing can and does
go around the world, passed on from one person to another. Shed a
little blessing in the heart of one person. That person is cheered to
pass it on, and so, God's vitalizing, joy-giving message travels on. Be a
transmitter of God's blessings.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may pass on my blessings. I pray that they may flow into
the lives of others.
***********************************************************
As Bill Sees It
Down To Earth, p. 178
Those of us who have spent much time in the world of spiritual make-believe have
eventually seen the childishness of it. This dream world has been replaced by a great
sense of purpose, accompanied by a growing consciousness of the power of God in our
lives.
We have come to believe He would like us to keep our heads in the clouds with Him, but
that our feet ought to be firmly planted on earth. That is where our work must be done.
These are the realities for us. We have found nothing incompatible between a powerful
spiritual experience and a life of sane and happy usefulness.
Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 130
***********************************************************
Walk In Dry Places
Have I ever been helped?
Unselfishness.
Sometimes we hear hard luck stories by people who claim they never "had a single helping hand." Everybody was against them.
It's true that certain people have had more than their share of abuse and abandonment. But it's hard to believe that helping hands haven't been extended... acts of kindness, often made by selfless but ordinary people.
Our problem has been in recognizing such helping hands. Lost in self-pity, we could hardly have recognized help when it was given. Nor were we capable of giving constructive assistance to others.
Furthermore, if people were against us, we may have provoked it. Our task is to change our thinking about the past and to be grateful for the people who were kind to us.
I realize that there are kind and decent people who have helped me. There are many such people in the world, and I want to be one of them.
***********************************************************
Keep It Simple
Hell is not to love anymore.---Geogre Bernanos
Someone in an AA group said, "From the first day I started this program, I felt like I had died and gone to heaven." This person had walked into a room full of love. In recovery, we are spiritual people because we believe in love. We have faith in love.
Love is respect. Love is truth with kindness. Love is being willing to forgive and help others.
Love is thinking about how our Higher Power wants us to act. Love is what we do best. We have turned our will and our life over to love.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I may love all parts of life. Higher Power, help me seek out love, not material things.
Action for the Day: Today, I'll think about what I love about recovery. I will share this with a couple of friends and my Higher Power.
***********************************************************
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
Chapter 7 - WORKING WITH OTHERS
When he sees you know all about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself as an alcoholic. Tell him how baffled you were, how you finally learned that you were sick. Give him an account of the struggles you made to stop. Show him the mental twist which leads to the first drink of a spree. We suggest you do this as we have done it in the chapter on alcoholism. If he is alcoholic, he will understand you at once. He will match your mental inconsistencies with some of his own.
pp. 91-92
***********************************************************
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Eleven - "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out."
In the morning we think of the hours to come. Perhaps we think of our day's work and the chances it may afford us to be useful and helpful, or of some special problem that it may bring. Possibly today will see a continuation of a serious and as yet unresolved problem left over from yesterday. Our immediate temptation will be to ask for specific solutions to specific problems, and for the ability to help other people as we have already thought they should be helped. In that case, we are asking God to do it our way. Therefore, we ought to consider each request carefully to see what its real merit is. Even so, when making specific requests, it will be well to add to each one of them this qualification: "...if it be Thy will." We ask simply that throughout the day God place in us the best understanding of His will that we can have for that day, and that we be given the grace by which we may carry it out.
p. 102
***********************************************************
Set others free to achieve and experience the path that leads to their
highest good and you, too, will become free to find yours.
--Melody Beattie
Learn a lesson from the redwoods. Let them teach the power of
patience and calm. Life goes on. Things happen. People change.
Times move along. There are stories to live and stories to tell, but we
can be calm and know that, always, all is well.
--Melody Beattie
"Forgiving is not forgetting, it's letting go of the hurt."
--Mary McLeod Bethune
"Life holds so much--so much to be so happy about always. Most
people ask for happiness on condition. Happiness can be felt only if
you don't set conditions."
--Artur Robinstein
Applaud others when they run. Console them when they fall. And
cheer them when they recover.
As water is to a flower so is praise to the heart of another.
--Unknown
Abundance comes from your gifts of love.
--unknown
***********************************************
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
HYPOCRISY
"The devil can cite scripture for his
purpose."
--William Shakespeare
This quotation reminds me that the disease of alcoholism is "cunning,
baffling and powerful". I am aware of the need to walk like I talk, to
make the action fit the word, to live my program today rather than
talk about it for tomorrow. Why? Because the disease can talk
program! I have caught myself saying things that I do not practice in
my life. I catch myself saying things to others that I do not live out in
my own life. Today I am aware of my hypocrisy. Today I am aware of
the disease in my life.
I need to be aware of this aspect of the disease because I am such a
good talker, such a convincing talker, such a practiced manipulator!
Today I know that I am not perfect, but that should never be an
excuse to avoid dealing with my character defects. I must not "con"
myself into staying sick!
I pray that I may strive to live the message.
***********************************************************
If
anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and
he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is
love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
1 John 4:15-16
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is
not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices
with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always
perseveres. Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
***********************************************************
Daily Inspiration
It is normal to make mistakes, but it is the better person who is able to grow from them. Lord, I am not perfect, but may each day bring me a little closer.
Not only must we know God's will, but we must do God's will to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Lord, I commit myself to obeying the will of my heavenly Father.
We obey A.A.'s Steps and Traditions because we really want them for
ourselves. It is no longer a question of good or evil; we conform
because we genuinely want to conform. Such is our process of growth
in unity and function. Such is the evidence of God's grace and love
among us.
A.A. COMES OF AGE, p. 106
It is fun to watch myself grow in A.A. I fought conformity to A.A.
principles from the moment I entered, but I learned from the pain of
my belligerence that, in choosing to live the A.A. way of life, I opened
myself to God's grace and love. Then I began to know the full
meaning of being a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.
************
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
If you can take your troubles as they come, if you can maintain your
calm and composure amid pressing duties and unending engagements,
if you can rise above the distressing and disturbing circumstances in
which you are set down, you have discovered a priceless secret of
daily living. Even if you are forced to go through life weighed down by
some unescapable misfortune or handicap and yet live each day as it
comes with poise and peace of mind, you have succeeded where most
people have failed. You have wrought a greater achievement than a
person who rules a nation. Have I achieved poise and peace of mind?
Meditation For The Day
Take a blessing with you wherever you go. You have been blessed, so
bless others. Such stores of blessings are awaiting you in the months
and years that lie ahead. Pass on your blessings. Blessing can and does
go around the world, passed on from one person to another. Shed a
little blessing in the heart of one person. That person is cheered to
pass it on, and so, God's vitalizing, joy-giving message travels on. Be a
transmitter of God's blessings.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may pass on my blessings. I pray that they may flow into
the lives of others.
************
As Bill Sees It
Down To Earth, p. 178
Those of us who have spent much time in the world of spiritual make-believe have
eventually seen the childishness of it. This dream world has been replaced by a great
sense of purpose, accompanied by a growing consciousness of the power of God in our
lives.
We have come to believe He would like us to keep our heads in the clouds with Him, but
that our feet ought to be firmly planted on earth. That is where our work must be done.
These are the realities for us. We have found nothing incompatible between a powerful
spiritual experience and a life of sane and happy usefulness.
Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 130
************
Have I ever been helped?
Unselfishness.
Sometimes we hear hard luck stories by people who claim they never "had a single helping hand." Everybody was against them.
It's true that certain people have had more than their share of abuse and abandonment. But it's hard to believe that helping hands haven't been extended... acts of kindness, often made by selfless but ordinary people.
Our problem has been in recognizing such helping hands. Lost in self-pity, we could hardly have recognized help when it was given. Nor were we capable of giving constructive assistance to others.
Furthermore, if people were against us, we may have provoked it. Our task is to change our thinking about the past and to be grateful for the people who were kind to us.
I realize that there are kind and decent people who have helped me. There are many such people in the world, and I want to be one of them.
************
Hell is not to love anymore.---Geogre Bernanos
Someone in an AA group said, "From the first day I started this program, I felt like I had died and gone to heaven." This person had walked into a room full of love. In recovery, we are spiritual people because we believe in love. We have faith in love.
Love is respect. Love is truth with kindness. Love is being willing to forgive and help others.
Love is thinking about how our Higher Power wants us to act. Love is what we do best. We have turned our will and our life over to love.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I may love all parts of life. Higher Power, help me seek out love, not material things.
Action for the Day: Today, I'll think about what I love about recovery. I will share this with a couple of friends and my Higher Power.
************
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
Chapter 7 - WORKING WITH OTHERS
When he sees you know all about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself as an alcoholic. Tell him how baffled you were, how you finally learned that you were sick. Give him an account of the struggles you made to stop. Show him the mental twist which leads to the first drink of a spree. We suggest you do this as we have done it in the chapter on alcoholism. If he is alcoholic, he will understand you at once. He will match your mental inconsistencies with some of his own.
pp. 91-92
************
Step Eleven - "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out."
In the morning we think of the hours to come. Perhaps we think of our day's work and the chances it may afford us to be useful and helpful, or of some special problem that it may bring. Possibly today will see a continuation of a serious and as yet unresolved problem left over from yesterday. Our immediate temptation will be to ask for specific solutions to specific problems, and for the ability to help other people as we have already thought they should be helped. In that case, we are asking God to do it our way. Therefore, we ought to consider each request carefully to see what its real merit is. Even so, when making specific requests, it will be well to add to each one of them this qualification: "...if it be Thy will." We ask simply that throughout the day God place in us the best understanding of His will that we can have for that day, and that we be given the grace by which we may carry it out.
p. 102
************
highest good and you, too, will become free to find yours.
--Melody Beattie
Learn a lesson from the redwoods. Let them teach the power of
patience and calm. Life goes on. Things happen. People change.
Times move along. There are stories to live and stories to tell, but we
can be calm and know that, always, all is well.
--Melody Beattie
"Forgiving is not forgetting, it's letting go of the hurt."
--Mary McLeod Bethune
"Life holds so much--so much to be so happy about always. Most
people ask for happiness on condition. Happiness can be felt only if
you don't set conditions."
--Artur Robinstein
Applaud others when they run. Console them when they fall. And
cheer them when they recover.
As water is to a flower so is praise to the heart of another.
--Unknown
Abundance comes from your gifts of love.
--unknown
************
HYPOCRISY
"The devil can cite scripture for his
purpose."
--William Shakespeare
This quotation reminds me that the disease of alcoholism is "cunning,
baffling and powerful". I am aware of the need to walk like I talk, to
make the action fit the word, to live my program today rather than
talk about it for tomorrow. Why? Because the disease can talk
program! I have caught myself saying things that I do not practice in
my life. I catch myself saying things to others that I do not live out in
my own life. Today I am aware of my hypocrisy. Today I am aware of
the disease in my life.
I need to be aware of this aspect of the disease because I am such a
good talker, such a convincing talker, such a practiced manipulator!
Today I know that I am not perfect, but that should never be an
excuse to avoid dealing with my character defects. I must not "con"
myself into staying sick!
I pray that I may strive to live the message.
************
1 John 4:15-16
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is
not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices
with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always
perseveres. Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
************
It is normal to make mistakes, but it is the better person who is able to grow from them. Lord, I am not perfect, but may each day bring me a little closer.
Not only must we know God's will, but we must do God's will to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Lord, I commit myself to obeying the will of my heavenly Father.
Ask and you shall
receive,
Seek and ye shall find,
Knock and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7
Seek and ye shall find,
Knock and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7
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