Sunday, November 29, 2015

Nov. 29, 2015 - 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof' and a challenge to masculinity

Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor: 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'
Nov. 29, 2015 - GoodMenProject.com - “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” And A Challenge To Manhood And Masculinity -

Nov. 29, 2015 - A father's call to discuss mental health issues in men - starting with his own

Nov. 29, 2015 - Getting through a relationship breakup - with Alcoholics Anonymous

Nov. 29, 2015 - Arkansas Baptist church ejects member for 'embracing' gay lifestyle

Nov. 29, 2015 - 11 reasons you're still a single gay man (Thank God!)

Nov. 29, 2015 - Gay men who defy stigma and stereotypes

Nov. 29, 2015 - A gay high school football player's unique coming out

Nov. 29, 2015 - LGBT domestic violence: It's time to shift the discussion

Nov. 29, 2015 - For many Native American communities, marriage equality is still forbidden

Nov. 29, 2015 - 15 unexpectedly candid tips for straight guys from Reddit's gay men

Nov. 29, 2015 - From Rock Hudson to Charlie Sheen, the changing face of HIV stigma

Rock Hudson, Charlie Sheen, Freddie Mercury
Nov. 29, 2015 - TheConversation.com - Charlie Sheen, Rock Hudson and the changing face of HIV stigma

Nov. 29, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015
Today's thought from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

One way to become enthusiastic is to look for the plus sign. To make progress in any difficult situation, you have to start with what's right about it and build on that.
 -- Norman Vincent Peale


Beginning our days with a positive mental outlook is a great depression chaser. Simply lifting our heads and looking up and out instead of down will make us feel better. Although we can't spend all our time staring at the sky, we can train ourselves to look for the best in ourselves and others.

Even in the middle of difficulty or pain, we have choices. We can choose a gloom-and-doom attitude and endlessly replay the thoughts that accompany it. Or we can step back and find the one good thing. We may be blinded with pain. The situation may appear hopeless, utterly bleak. But recovery guarantees that we are equal to it; that in our pain there is at least one good thing.

We are the masters of our fate. We can change even the most difficult situations with an attitude of hope and positive expectation. Approaching each day with a hopeful heart will give us a different approach to our troubles.

Today help me find the one good thing. Help me let go of fear and negativity.
You are reading from the book:
Body, Mind, and Spirit © 1990 by Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 29, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015

Today, if my candle is burning at both ends with responsibilities, obligations and expectations,  I will not complain or seek adulation and, instead, will practice gratitude and humility that I now am trusted to carry out what is asked and expected of me. But if I feel overwhelmed at times, I can fall back on the an edict "First Things First." The first thing is sobriety. Without it, there is nothing; with it, there is everything. The benefits sobriety bring include service to the sufferer who needs and wants to hear the message, and I should not shirk or complain about being in service. Not only does what I contribute to another soul strengthen my own against a possible slip or relapse, I need only to remember the days when I was drunk literally 24/7 and ask if those days were better than now. Today, my yesterdays are nowhere better than today, and today is where I will stay without complaining, without seeking recognition and instead ask in humility for His will and the power to carry it out. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2015

Nov. 29, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015

AA Thought for the Day
The AA way is the way of sobriety, and yet there are slips. Why do these slips occur? Why don't we all accept AA and stay sober from then on? There are many reasons, but it has been proved without exception that once we have become alcoholics, we can never drink successfully again. This has never been disproved by any case we know of. Many alcoholics have tried drinking after a period of sobriety from a few days to a few years, and no one that we know of has been successful in becoming a normal drinker.
Could I be the only exception to this rule?

Meditation for the Day
"We are gathered together in Thy name." First, we are gathered together, bound by a common loyalty to God and to each other. Then, when this condition has been fulfilled, God is present with us. Then, when God is there and one with us, we voice a common prayer. Then it follows that our prayer will be answered according to God's will. Then, when our prayer is answered, we are bound together in a lasting fellowship of the spirit.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may be loyal to God and to others. I pray that my life today may be lived close to His and to theirs.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 29, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015

Reflection for the Day
Contrary to what some people think, our slogan "Let Go and Let God" isn't an expression of apathy, an attitude of defeatism or an unwillingness to accept responsibility. Those who turn their backs on their problems are not "letting go and letting God" but, instead, are abandoning their commitment to act on God's inspiration and guidance. They neither ask for nor expect help; they want God to do it all.

In seeking God's guidance, do I realize that the ultimate responsibility is mine?

Today I Pray
May I not allow myself to be lazy just because I think God is going to do everything anyway. (Such apathy reminds me of my old powerless self, the one that moaned that the world was going up in smoke, civilization was going down the drain and there wasn't a thing I could do about it.) Neither may I use "letting God" do it as an excuse for shrugging off my problems without even trying. May God be my inspiration; may I be an instrument of God.

Today I Will Remember
God guides those who help themselves.

Hazelden Foundation