Nov. 26, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017

"Helping others is the foundation stone of your recovery. A kindly act once in a while isn't enough. You have to act the Good Samaritan every day, if need be. It may mean the loss of many nights' sleep, great interference with your pleasures, interruptions to your business. It may mean sharing your money and your home, counseling frantic (spouses) and relatives, innumerable trips to police courts, sanitariums, hospitals, jails and asylums. Your telephone may jangle at any time of the day or night. ...A drunk may smash the furniture in your home, or burn a mattress. You may have to fight with him if he is violent. Sometimes you will have to call a doctor and administer sedatives under his direction." - Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Ch 7 ("Working With Others"), p 97.

Today, just as I was responsible for the consequences of my drinking, so I am also responsible to sobriety and recovery. Both are a gift, and they require nurturing and work to grow. "(T)he foundation stone of ...recovery" is helping others, that is, carrying the message to others who need and want it. But in our work, we must understand that we are also required to stress individual obligation to sobriety, that it is neither a right nor given without responsibility. The work of the truly effective and committed 12th-stepper is seldom limited to just talking to someone who cries for help. But the work to carry the message and in the process holding onto it is nowhere near the work needed to get and stay drunk. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

Nov. 26, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017

AA Thought for the Day
Continuing our thoughts about the rewards that have come to us as a result of our new way of living, we have found we have got rid of many of our fears, resentments, inferiority complexes, negative points of view, self-centeredness, criticism of others, over-sensitiveness, inner conflicts, the habits of procrastination, undisciplined sex, wasting money, boredom, false perfectionism, jealousy and envy of others. We are glad to be rid of our drinking, and we are also very glad to be rid of these other things. We can now go forward in the new way of life, as shown us by AA.

Am I ready to go forward in the new life?

Meditation for the Day
"He that has eyes to see, let him see." To the seeing eye, the world is good. Pray for a seeing eye, to see the purpose of God in everything good. Pray for enough faith to see God's care in His dealings with you. Try to see how He has brought you safely through your past life so that now you can be of use in the world. With the eyes of faith, you can see God's care and purpose everywhere.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may have a seeing eye. I pray that with the eye of faith I may see God's purpose everywhere.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 26, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017

Reflection for the Day
During our first days in The Program, we got rid of alcohol and pills. We had to get rid of our chemicals, for we knew they surely would have killed us. We got rid of the addictive substances, but we couldn't get rid of our addictions until we took further actions. So we also had to learn to toss self-pity, self-justifications, self-righteousness and self-will straight out the window. We had to get off the rickety ladder that supposedly led to money, property and prestige. And we had to take personal responsibility. To gain enough humility and self-respect to stay alive at all, we had to give up our most valued possessions - our ambition and our pride.

Am I well rid of the weights and chains that once bound me?

Today I Pray
May I give credit to my Higher Power not only for removing my addiction, but for teaching me to remove my old demanding, pushy "self" from all my spiritual and earthly relationships. For all the things I have learned and unlearned, for my own faith and for the grace of God, I am fully and heartily thankful.

Today I Will Remember
Gratitude for the grace of God.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 26, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017

In our drinking days, fear of everything and everybody was our constant companion. These fears continued until we finally, in desperate necessity, found the courage to surrender - to quit unconditionally. Then we found AA and a ray of Hope. Hope became desire, desire became determination. With necessity as our charger and with determination as our lance, we were adequately armed to overcome our despair.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 26, 2017 - Good morning to a serene Sunday with gratitude, confidence, faith and hope

Nov. 25, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017

Today's thought from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Stolen from Me

My child has been stolen from me. He's even been stolen from himself-The Addict has whisked away my son's very essence. I don't know if I will ever get him back. I know what he's like, the monstrous fiend who took my son away. The Abductor is evil, heartless, selfish, and abusive, with a reputation for spreading anarchy, bondage, devastation, and death.

Thinking about the torture my child must endure each and every minute of every day, with every passing year, is torture for me. I try not to allow the images to fill my mind (because they kill me)-but they do. Because they slip right on in with the thoughts of my child that fill my mind each and every minute of every day, with every passing year, too.

The Abductor needs my child, my child's body, to survive and will fight to keep him all the way to the bitter end. There is no ransom I can pay. There's no SWAT team on the job. No yellow ribbon tied around a tree.

My child has been stolen from me. There is no end to this hell.

Imagine trying to live without air. Now imagine something worse.
 -- Amy Reed

You are reading from the book:

Tending Dandelions by Sandra Swenson

Tending Dandelions © 2017 by Sandra Swenson

Nov. 25, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017

Today, taught by tradition to be thankful, let me know that simply voicing gratitude is not sufficient and the measure and extent of gratitude are reflected in my actions. Today, then, let me not be content with merely saying I am grateful and show me how to express it in action and behavior, that is, to walk the walk while I talk the talk. If today someone for whom I say I am grateful is in need of my time or if I am called upon to make some sacrifice such as missing part of a football game or giving up the holiday dinner dessert, let me be willing to do so without reservation. We are challenged in the 12th step to put our program into action with service to others even if it might inconvenience us. If today I am called upon to do something that slows or impedes my schedule and I refuse the call, I will fail as an effective 12th-stepper and, later, I will probably regret not answering the call. Today, let me express my gratitude in action. And, today, that I am clean and sober is literally everything. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

Nov. 25, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017

AA Thought for the Day
I am not so envious of other people, nor am I so jealous of other people's possessions and talents. When I was drinking, I was secretly full of jealousy and envy of those people who could drink normally, who had the love and respect of their families, who lived a normal life and were accepted as equals by their friends. I pretended to myself that I was as good as they were, but I knew it wasn't so. Now I don't have to be envious any more. I try not to want what I don't deserve. I'm content with what I have earned by my efforts to live the right way. More power to those who have what I have not. At least, I'm trying.

Have I got rid of the poison of envy?

Meditation for the Day
"My soul is restless till it finds its rest in Thee." A river flows on, until it loses itself in the sea. Our spirits long for rest in the Spirit of God. We yearn to realize a peace, a rest, a satisfaction that we have never found in the world or its pursuits. Some are not conscious of their need and shut the doors of their spirits against the spirit of God. They are unable to have true peace.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may feel the divine unrest. I pray that my soul may find its rest in God.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 25, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017

Reflection for the Day
"What you have may seem small; you desire so much more. See children thrusting their hands into a narrow-necked jar, striving to pull out the sweets. If they fill the hand, they cannot pull it out and then they fall to tears. When they let go a few, they can draw out the rest. You, too, let your desire go; covet not too much ..." - Epictetus

Let me expect not too much of anyone, particularly myself. Let me learn to settle for less than I wish were possible, and be willing to accept it and appreciate it.

Do I accept gratefully and graciously the good that has already come to me in the Program?

Today I Pray
May I search my soul for those little hankerings of want which may keep me from delighting in all that I have. If I can just teach myself not to want too much, not to expect too much, then when those expectations are not satisfied, I will not be let down. May I accept with grace what the grace of God has provided.

Today I Will Remember
I, alone, can grant myself the "freedom from want."

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 25, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017

Probably the first permanent benefit we received in AA was received when we undertook a personal inventory of ourselves. Then for the first time our faults were dragged out into the open where we could meet them face to face and endeavor to do something about them.

Had we not recognized these defects, we would never have taken steps to eradicate them. It is dead certain that if we still had them in the same degree, we would not now be sober. It was a definite step toward getting wise to ourselves.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 25, 2017 - Rise 'n shine in Saturday with stronger confidence, faith, gratitude and hope

Nov. 24, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Friday, Nov. 24, 2017

Today's thoughts from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Burden No Longer

Lord, take away this ache in my heart.

I know I have asked this of You before. This ache consumes my every waking moment, haunts my dreams, and weakens my spirit. I pray You take this from me so the burden is no longer my own, but ours together. I have wasted enough energy and am ready to turn it over to You completely.

I believe in You and Your will for me.

You are reading from the book:

The 12 Step Prayer Book Volume 2 by Bill P. and Lisa D.

The 12 Step Prayer Book Volume 2 by Bill P. and Lisa D. © 2007 by Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 24, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Friday, Nov. 24, 2017

Today, little significance on how many 24 Hours of sobriety I have, whether it be a single 24 Hours or five years' worth. All of us who practice AA have only a day-to-day reprieve from where we once were, and those with years of sobriety are no further from a slip or relapse than those whose last drink was yesterday. This is not to say there is no benefit to being sober in terms of months or years. The major benefit is that we may need that long simply to emerge from the alcoholic fog, from the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual damage that we self-inflicted. This is no overnight journey. But once we emerge from the haze, we may be better equipped to grasp the vision of the program and put it to work. Yet even when we move from being dry to sober and embark on the journey to recovery, we are not insulated from surrendering in one foolish and potentially deadly second to temptation or craving, or to some emotion we don't want to feel. Today, I am sincerely grateful for how many 24 Hours since my last drink. But I cannot risk the folly that it is promised tomorrow. That is why, today, we take everything one thing at a time, one day at a time, one step at a time. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

Nov. 24, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Friday, Nov. 24, 2017

AA Thought for the Day
Instead of pretending to be perfectionists, in AA we are content if we are making progress. The main thing is to be growing. We realize that perfectionism is only a result of false pride and an excuse to save our faces. In AA, we are willing to make mistakes and to stumble, provided we are always stumbling forward. We are not so interested in what we are as in what we are becoming. We are on the way, not at the goal. And we will be on the way as long as we live. No AA has ever "arrived." But we are getting better.

Am I making progress?

Meditation for the Day
Each new day brings an opportunity to do some little thing that will help to make a better world, that will bring God's kingdom a little nearer to being realized on earth. Take each day's happenings as opportunities for something you can do for God. In that spirit, a blessing will attend all that you do. Offering this day's service to God, you are sharing in His work. You do not have to do great things.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that today I may do the next thing, the unselfish thing, the loving thing. I pray that I may be content with doing small things as long as they are right.

Hazelden Foundation

Nov. 24, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Friday, Nov. 24, 2017

Reflection for the Day
Although we came into The Program to deal with a specific problem, we soon became aware that we would find not only freedom from addiction, but freedom to live in the real world without fear and frustration. We learned that the solutions are within ourselves. With the help of my Higher Power, I can enrich my life with comfort, enjoyment and deep-down serenity.

Am I changing from my own worst enemy to my own best friend?

Today I Pray
May I praise my Higher Power for my freedoms - from addiction, from spiritual bankruptcy, from loneliness, from fear, from the seesaw of pride, from despair, from delusions, from shallowness, from doom. I give thanks for the way of life that has given me these freedoms and replaced the empty spaces with extra goodness and peace of mind.

Today I Will Remember
To give thanks for all my freedoms.

Hazelden Foundation