Alcoholic Anonymous - Daily Ponderables - Together we trudge the
Road of Happy Destiny – Saturday, 2 February 2014 - Daily Reflections “RESCUED
BY SURRENDERING”
Characteristic of the so-called typical alcoholic is a
narcissistic egocentric core, dominated by feelings of omnipotence, intent on
maintaining at all costs its inner integrity. . . . Inwardly the alcoholic
brooks no control from man or God. He, the alcoholic, is and must be the master
of his destiny. He will fight to the end to preserve that position.--AA Come of
Age, page 311
The great mystery is: "Why do some of us die alcoholic
deaths, fighting to preserve the 'independence' of our ego, while others seem
to sober up effortlessly in A.A.?" Help from a Higher Power, the gift of
sobriety, came to me when an otherwise unexplained desire to stop drinking
coincided with my willingness to accept the suggestions of the men and women of
A.A. I had to surrender, for only by reaching out to God and my fellows could I
be rescued.--From the book Daily Reflections © Copyright 1990 by Alcoholics
Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought for the Day
We got a kick out of the first few drinks, before we got
stupefied by alcohol. For a while, the world seemed to look brighter. But how
about the letdown, the terrible depression that comes the morning after? In
A.A., we get a real kick: not a false feeling of exhilaration, but a real
feeling of satisfaction with ourselves, self respect, and a feeling of
friendliness toward the world. We got a sort of pleasure from drinking. For a
while we thought we were happy. But it's only an illusion. The hangover the
next day is the opposite of pleasure. In AA, am I getting real pleasure and
serenity and peace?
Meditation for the Day
I will practice love, because lack of love will block the way. I
will try to see GOOD in all people, those I like and also those who fret me and
go against the grain. They are all children of God. I will try to give love;
otherwise, how can I dwell in God's spirit whence nothing unloving can come? I
will try to get along with all people, because the more love I give away, the
more I will have.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may do all I can to love others, in spite of their
many faults. I pray that as I love, so will I be loved.--From the book
Twenty-Four Hours a Day © Copyright 1975 by Hazelden Foundation
NA - Just for Today
Goodwill--Page 34
"Goodwill is best exemplified in service; proper service is
'Doing the right thing for the right reason.'"--Basic Text, page xv
The spiritual core of our disease is self-centeredness. In
dealing with others, the only motive our addiction taught us was selfishness—we
wanted what we wanted when we wanted it. Obsession with self was rooted in the
very ground of our lives. In recovery, how do we root self-obsession out?
We reverse the effects of our disease by applying a few very
simple spiritual principles. To counteract the self-centeredness of our
addiction, we learn to apply the principle of goodwill. Rather than seeking to
serve only ourselves, we begin serving others. Rather than thinking only about
what we can get out of a situation, we learn to think first of the welfare of
others. When faced with a moral choice, we learn to stop, recall spiritual
principles, and act appropriately
As we begin “doing the right thing for the right reason,” we can
detect a change in ourselves. Where once we were ruled by self-will, now we are
guided by our goodwill for others! The chronic self-centeredness of addiction
is losing its hold on us. We are learning to “practice these principles in all
our affairs”; we are living in our recovery, not in our disease.
Just for Today: Wherever I am, whatever I do, I will seek to
serve others, not just myself. When faced with a dilemma, I will try to do the
right thing for the right reason.--From the book Just for Today © Copyright
1991-2013 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought for Today
In a healthy family the parents are there to meet the needs of
the children.
In an unhealthy family the children are there to meet the needs
of the parents.
Buddha/Zen Thoughts
You should know that so far as Buddha-nature is concerned, there
is no difference between an enlightened man and an ignorant one.
What makes the difference is that one realizes it, while the
other is ignorant of it.--The Sutra of Hui Neng
Native American
"Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing,
and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle
from childhood to childhood and so it is everything where power moves."--Black
Elk (Hehaka sapa), OGLALA SIOUX
In these modern times it is difficult to understand why we
should think circles and seasons. People and society are always moving, through
distance, over yonder, going here and going there-hurry up, grow up, be
successful, climb the ladder of success, etc. The Elders tell us to slow down,
to be patient, pray and think circles. Circle thinking applies to
relationships, business and every area of our lives. We need to teach our
awareness to look for seasons and cycles.
My Creator, teach me the seasons of growth.
Keep It Simple
We must believe the things we teach our children.--Woodrow
Wilson
It may be easy to say the words and phrases we've heard without
really meaning them. Someone says something at a meeting that sounds good. Our
counselor has a favorite saying. We may say these words, but are we taking the
time to ask the question. Do I believe what I'm saying?
Step Two speaks of, "Came to believe..." By really
believing in the Twelve Steps, we let them become part of us. The more we
believe in the Steps the more we turn our lives over to them. Hopefully, over
time, the Twelve Steps will guide us more and more. We'll speak to our family
with respect we've found in the Twelve Steps. Our spirit must truly believe.
Then we can work the Steps.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, believing is something that
lasts a lifetime. Give me the power to believe even when doubt creeps in.
Action for the Day: My beliefs are changing. Today, in my
inventory, I'll ask: Do I believe what I said today?
Big Book
"Although financial recovery is on the way for many of us,
we found we could not place money first. For us, material well-being always followed
spiritual progress; it never preceded."--Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th
Edition, The Family Afterward, page 127
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The Wisdom of Surrender (thanks Damien B.)
Resistance Equals Persistence
Resistance tends to strengthen the energies it attempts to
oppose by giving them power and energy to work against.
We all know the feeling of being repeatedly haunted by the same
issue, no matter how we try to ignore it, avoid it, or run away from it.
Sometimes it seems that we can get rid of something we don’t want by simply
pushing it away. Most of the time, the more we push away, the more we get
pushed back. There are laws of physics and metaphysics that explain this
phenomenon, which is often summed up in this pithy phrase: That which you
resist persists.
Resistance tends to strengthen the energies it attempts to
oppose by giving them power and energy to work against. Additionally,
resistance keeps us from learning more about what we resist. In order to fully
understand something, we must open to it enough to receive its energy;
otherwise, we remain ignorant of its lessons. There is a Tibetan story of a
monk who retreats to meditate in a cave only to be plagued by demons. He tries
everything—chasing, fighting, hiding—to get the demons out of his cave, but the
thing that finally works is surrender. He simply lets them have their way with
him and only then do they disappear.
Now, this wisdom must be applied practically. We are not meant
to get ourselves physically injured. Instead, this story speaks of how, in
essence, our demons are inside of us. What plagues and pursues us on an inner
level has a way of manifesting itself in our environment in the form of people,
events, and issues that appear to be beyond our control. But all these external
expressions are reflections of our insides, and it is inside ourselves that we
can safely experiment with surrendering to what we fear and dislike. It may
feel scary, and we may find ourselves in the company of a lot of resistance as
we begin the process of opening to what we fear. But the more we learn to
surrender, and the more the demons that plague us disappear in the process, the
more courageous we will become.
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If you're not enjoying your sobriety it's your own damn fault
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