Daily Recovery Readings - January

[bluidkiti]

January 25

Daily Reflections

WHAT WE NEED - EACH OTHER

. . . . A.A. is really saying to every serious drinker,
"You are an A.A. member if you say so . . . nobody can
keep you out."
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 139

For years, whenever I reflected on Tradition Three
("The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire
to stop drinking"), I thought it valuable only to
newcomers. It was their guarantee that no one could bar
them from A.A. Today I feel enduring gratitude for the
spiritual development the Tradition has brought me. I
don't seek out people obviously different from myself.
Tradition Three, concentrating on the one way I am
similar to others, brought me to know and help every
kind of alcoholic, just as they have helped me.
Charlotte, the atheist, showed me higher standards of
ethics and honor; Clay, of another race, taught me
patience; Winslow, who is gay, led me by example into
true compassion; Young Megan says that seeing me at
meetings, sober thirty years, keeps her coming back.
Tradition Three insured that we would get what we need
- each other.

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As Bill Sees It

We Cannot Stand Still, p. 25

In the first days of A.A., I wasn't much bothered about the areas of
life in which I was standing still. There was always the alibi: "After
all," I said to myself, "I'm far too busy with much more important
matters." That was my near perfect prescription for comfort and
complacency.

<< << << >> >> >>

How many of us would presume to declare, "Well, Im sober and I'm
happy. What more can I want, or do? I'm fine the way I am." We
know that the price of such self-satisfaction is an inevitable backslide,
punctuated at some point by a very rude awakening. We have to grow
or else deteriorate. For us, the status quo can only be today, never for
tomorrow. Change we must; we cannot stand still.

1. Grapevine, June 1961
2. Grapevine, February 1961

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Chapter 7 - WORKING WITH OTHERS

Burn the idea into the consciousness of every man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is that he trust in God and clean house.

p. 98

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Tradition Seven - "Every A.A. group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions."

"I heard all this quite plainly, as I was piously trying to convert a newcomer who sat next to me. The hat came in my direction, and I reached into my pocket. Still working on my prospect, I fumbled and came up with a fifty-cent piece. Somehow it looked like a very big coin. Hastily, I dropped it back and fished out a dime, which clinked thinly as I dropped it in the hat. Hats never got folding money in those days.

p. 163

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"You cannot speak that which you do not know. You cannot share that which you do not feel. You cannot translate that which you do not have. And you cannot give that which you do not possess. To give it and to share it, and for it to be effective, you first need to have it. Good communication starts with good preparation." --Jim Rohn

Each day is a gift from God to be used in serving others. --Ruth C. Borges

"Confidence never comes from having all the answers; it comes from being open to all the questions." --Unknown

"Stress comes from within; it is your reaction to circumstances, not the circumstances themselves." --Brian Tracy

"Keep doing what you're doing and you'll keep getting what you're getting." --Anonymous

"Hope is a gift we give ourselves, and it remains when all else is gone." --Criswell Freeman

"You cannot be lonely if you like the person you're alone with." --Wayne Dyer

"The only limits to the possibilities in your life tomorrow are the buts you use today." --Les Brown

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

HONESTY

"Honesty is the first chapter of
the book of wisdom."
-- Thomas Jefferson

It is impossible to have a spiritual program without being honest. It is
impossible to be recovering from addiction without being honest. An
aspect of sobriety is honesty.

Today I can see that I was never really known when I was "using"
because I was so dishonest. I stopped other people from getting to
know me. I stopped me from getting to know me. Part of my pain
involved my dishonesty; part of my loneliness and feelings of isolation
was caused by my dishonesty; the unmanageability that nearly
destroyed my life grew in my dishonesty.

Today I need to be honest, rigorously honest --- even in the small
things. I can no longer exist to please others --- I need to please myself.
I need to love myself by being honest.

O God of wisdom, let me find truth in the honesty of my own life.

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"Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

"Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you. Cast all your anxieties on Him, for He cares about you." 1 Peter 5:6-7

"Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice." Psalm 105:3

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High,because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Luke 6:35-38

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Daily Inspiration

Avoid saying "No one knows." because God knows and understands more perfectly than we ourselves do. Calm my fears, Lord, and lift the burdens that I cannot carry alone.

To have a great day isn't always doing what you like, but trying to like what you must do. Lord, today I will spruce up my attitude and have a great day no matter what my circumstances.

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Each Day a New Beginning (Women)
Food for Thought
Language of Letting Go
Today's Gift
Touchstones (Men)
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Walk In Dry Places