Oct. 6, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Friday, Oct. 6, 2023

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

AA Thought for the Day

When new members come into my AA group, do I make a special effort to make them feel at home? Do I put myself out to listen to them, even if their ideas of AA are vague? Do I make it a habit to talk to all new members myself, or do I often leave that to someone else? I may not be able to help them, but then again it may be something that I might say that would put them on the right track. When I see any members sitting alone, do I put myself out to be nice to them, or do I stay among my own special group of friends and leave them out in the cold?

Are all new AAs my responsibility?

Meditation for the Day

You have let go and surrendered to a Higher Power, and it has worked a miracle in your life. Sharing the message with others who share your same disease keeps you connected to your Higher Power, to AA, and to your sobriety. View your work within the fellowship in this light. Try to do your day’s work the way you believe God wants you to do it, never shirking any responsibility and often going out of your way to be of service.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may serve well this fellowship that I have needed and that needs me. I pray that I may be willing to go out of my way to be of service.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 6, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Friday, Oct. 6, 2023

“The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost the power of choice in drink. Our so-called will power becomes practically nonexistent. We are unable, at certain times, to bring into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago. We are without defense against the first drink.” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Ch 2 (“There Is a Solution”), p 24.

Today, if the numbing physical and psychological impact of my last drunk has been weakened by the passage of time, let me recall honestly the outcome of my last drunk — with the same consequences, if not worse, of every drunk before the last one. I have long since passed the point that a drunk tonight will be less physically painful and less costly than my last drunk, even if it was years ago. My sobriety today does not promise I will be sober tomorrow, but it does promise that I have a choice today to drink or not. If the memory of the physical and emotional toll of my last drunk has been diminished by time, pray I know that I and I alone will be responsible for the consequences of another drunk. And lest I forget that, if the consequences were too heavy then, they will probably be heavier next time. Today, I have the choice, and I choose not to forget my last drunk. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2023

Oct. 6, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Friday, Oct. 6, 2023

AA Thought for the Day
Is it my desire to be a big shot in AA? Do I always want to be up front in the limelight? Do I feel that nobody else can do as good a job as I can? Or am I willing to take a seat in the back row once in a while and let somebody else carry the ball? Part of the effectiveness of any AA group is the development of new members to carry on, to take over from the older members. Am I reluctant to give up authority? Do I try to carry the load for the whole group? If so, I am not being fair to the newer members. Do I realize that no one person is essential?

Do I know that AA could carry on without me, if it had to?

Meditation for the Day
The Unseen God can help to make us truly grateful and humble. Since we cannot see God, we must believe in Him without seeing. What we can see clearly is the change in a human being, when he sincerely asks God for the strength to change. We should cling to faith in God and in His power to change our ways. Our faith in an Unseen God will be rewarded by a useful and serviceable life. God will not fail to show us the way we should live, when in real gratitude and true humility we turn to Him.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may believe that God can change me. I pray that I may be always willing to be changed for the better.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 6, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time

Friday, Oct. 6, 2023

Reflection for the Day
As we “keep coming back” to meetings, we’re able to recognize those people who have an abundance of serenity. We are drawn to such people. To our surprise, we sometimes find that those who seem most grateful for today’s blessings are the very ones who have the most serious and continuing problems at home or at work. Yet they have the courage to turn away from such problems, actively seeking to learn and help others in The Program. How have they gotten this serenity? It must be because they depend less on themselves and their own limited resources — and more on a Power greater than themselves in whom they have confidence.

Am I acquiring the gift of serenity? Have my actions begun to reflect my inner faith?

Today I Pray
May I never cease to be awed by the serenity I see in others in my group — a serenity which manifests their comfortable surrender to a Higher Power. May I learn from them that peace of mind is possible even in the thick of trouble. May I, too, learn that I need to pull back from my problems now and then and draw upon the God-provided pool of serenity within myself.

Today I Will Remember
Serenity is surrender to God’s plan.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 6, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener

Friday, Oct. 6, 2023

Prohibition is a glaring example of the futility of endeavoring to protect men from their own follies. The setting up of barriers is effective only in challenging the resources of man to overcome those barriers.

It is an unfortunate truth that we never fear a hot stove until we have been burnt, and a fresh paint sign serves only as a dare to everyone to put their finger on it and see for themselves.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 6, 2023 – Good morning with gratitude that it’s finally Friday

 

Good morning with a plan to make today a fabulous Friday without the drama- and trauma of people and things that aren’t worth our time

Oct. 5, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

— Albert Einstein

In following the healing way, we open ourselves to truths that can never be established as concrete facts. Some of us have always been comfortable with a spiritual outlook. But some of us were hurt by damaging or even abusive experiences in religious institutions and gave up on them as meaningless. Now we all come together on a path that takes a very wide view of spirituality while making spiritual ideas central.

It is reassuring to learn that one of the greatest scientists of all time had a firm respect for realities that could not be pointed to or quantified. He excelled in the practical, objective world of science, and he also knew about spiritual truth. Now we, too, are learning how our spiritual life creates miracles we could not bring about by the force of our will.

Today, I am grateful to be tuned in to those forces that are outside objective, concrete reality.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 5, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023

“My story has a happy ending, but not of the conventional kind. I had a lot more hell to go through. But what a difference there is between going through hell without a power greater than one’s self, and with it! …(M)y teetering tower of worldly success collapsed. My alcoholic associates fired me, took control and ran the enterprise into bankruptcy. My alcoholic wife took up someone else, divorced me and took with her all my remaining property. The most terrible blow of my life befell me after I’d found sobriety through AA. …One night my son, when he was only 16, was suddenly and tragically killed. The Higher Power was on deck to see me through, sober. I think He’s on hand to see my son through, too. I think He’s on hand to see all of us through whatever may come to us.” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, “They Stopped in Time,” Ch 16 (“Me an Alcoholic?”), p 437.

Today, foresight to know and be prepared for the day when my recovery program is called upon to keep me sober through the bad. I must accept that bad things are going to happen in my life and that recovery is not a promise that the bad will not happen. But recovery is a promise that I can get through the bad sober if I not only adhere to the 12 Steps but also trust a Higher Power stronger than me. I absolutely must be willing to be open to the idea of a Higher Power, even if that Power is the Program itself. On good days, it’s easy to talk the talk; on bad ones, it’s another to walk the walk. Disappointments and tragedy can be expected to hit me, just as they do the non-alcoholic. Let me begin today to invest in a program strong enough that I can draw upon when the good days aren’t so good. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2023

Oct. 5, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023

AA Thought for the Day
Do I have any hard feelings about other group members or for any other AA group? Am I critical of the way a group member thinks or acts? Do I feel that another group is operating in the wrong way, and do I broadcast it? Or do I realize that all AA members, no matter what their limitations, have something to offer, some good, however little, that they can do for AA in spite of their handicaps? Do I believe that there is a place for all kinds of groups in AA, provided they are following AA traditions, and that they can be effective, even if I do not agree with their procedure?

Am I tolerant of people and groups?

Meditation for the Day
“The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in, from this time forth and even forever more.” All your movements, your goings and comings, can be guided by the Unseen Spirit. Every visit to help another, every unselfish effort to assist, can be blessed by that Unseen Spirit. There can be a blessing on all you do, on every interview with one who is suffering. Every meeting of a need may not be a chance meeting, but it may have been planned by the Unseen Spirit. Led by the Spirit of the Lord, you can be tolerant, sympathetic and understanding of others and so accomplish much.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may be led by the spirit of God. I pray that the Lord will preserve my goings and my comings.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 5, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023

Reflection for the Day
Soon after I came to The Program, I found a Higher Power whom I choose to call God. I’ve come to believe that He has all power; if I stay close to Him and do His work well, He provides me not with what I think I want, but with what I need. Gradually, I’m becoming less interested in myself and my little schemes; at the same time, I’m becoming more interested in seeing what I can contribute to others and to life.

As I become more conscious of God’s presence, am I beginning to lose my self-centered fears?

Today I Pray
May I see that the single most evident change in myself — beyond my own inner sense of peace — is that I have come out from behind my phony castle walls, dropped the drawbridge that leads into my real village and crossed it. I am back among people again, interested in them, caring what happens to them. May I find my joy here in this peopled reality, now that I have left behind those old self-protective fears and illusions of my own uniqueness.

Today I Will Remember
What is life without people?

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 5, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023

The opportunities around us for doing good are so numerous that to do all the good things we would like to do is almost impossible. Nor is it necessary to read the papers for opportunities to help. They are near at hand and far more numerous than we suspect. Our eyes see what they are trained to see and a little practice will enable them to see many opportunities that you once failed to observe.

If your prayers include a request to never let a day go by without some opportunity of serving, you’ll have your prayer answered and you will rejoice in the fact that you have so much to do, and your lone regret will be that you cannot do more.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 5, 2023 – Good morning to a gorgeous Thursday we want to make great

 

Good morning to a couple of cute puppy dogs to get this wonderful Thursday off to a great start …and don’t hesitate to tell people and things who don’t want us to have a great day where to go

Oct. 4, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

I have discovered that while God would do for me what I could not do for myself, God would not do for me what I could do for myself.

— Mary Norton Gordon

There are some things God is always in charge of. One is outcomes. Another is the big picture encompassing our lives. Each experience is part of God’s design for us. On occasion, we may feel there is little for us to do, since God will handle it all. However, the truth is, our participation is necessary. Every day we have many opportunities to thoughtfully put one foot in front of the other. How lovingly, how gently, how honestly and openly we move through our lives — all these things color the experiences God has planned for us.

We may sometimes find ourselves sitting back, waiting for God to take charge, or aggressively trying to force an outcome that belongs only to God. But we are learning. With time in the program, we begin to realize what is God’s work and what is ours. Our sponsors, the women who share their experiences in meetings, prayer, and meditation enlighten us about how it works.

I am surrounded by women who can help me distinguish between my job and God’s job today. My confusion won’t trouble me for long.

Hazelden Foundation

Oct. 4, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023

“For me, AA is a synthesis of all the philosophy I’ve ever read, all of the positive, good philosophy, all of it based on love. I have seen that there is only one law, the law of love, and there are only two sins; the first is to interfere with the growth of another human being, and the second is to interfere with one’s own growth.” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, “They Lost Nearly All,” Ch 11 (“He Who Loses His Life”), p 542.

Today, how not to impede anyone’s growth — emotional and spiritual — including my own. If the traditional definition of philosophy as an ideal state of life is applied to recovery, then, no, the Program is not a philosophy. Rather, it is a discipline because recovery does not promise a rose garden but gives us the tools to effectively deal with the thorns in the rose bed of life. And discipline is required to stick to the Steps that help us to deal effectively with the thorns of life. How do I not impede anyone’s personal growth, including my own? Simple: look to Step 11 and seek my Higher Power’s will and the ability to carry it out. His will, not mine, be done. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2023

Oct. 4, 2023 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023

AA Thought for the Day
Am I critical of other members of AA or of new prospects? Do I ever say about other members: “I don’t think they’re sincere, I think they’re bluffing, or I think they’re taking a few drinks on the quiet?” Do I realize that my doubtful and skeptical attitude is hurting those members, if only in my attitude toward them, which they cannot help sensing? Do I say about new prospects: “They’ll never make the program,” or do I say: “They’ll only last a few months?”  If I take this attitude, I am unconsciously hurting those prospects’ chances.

Is my attitude always constructive and never destructive?

Meditation for the Day
To be attracted toward God and a better life, you must be spirit-guided. There is wonderful illumination of thought given to those who are spirit-guided. To those who are material-guided, there is nothing in God or a finer life to appeal to them or to attract them. But to those who are spirit-guided, there is strength and peace and calm to be found in communion with an Unseen Lord. To those who believe in this God, they cannot see but whose power they can feel, life has a meaning and purpose. They are children of the Unseen Lord, and all human beings are their brothers and sisters.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may be spirit-guided. I pray that I may feel God’s presence and power in my life.

Hazelden Foundation