Patcha

Daily Reflections

POWERLESS

We admitted we were powerless over alcohol-that our lives had become unmanageable.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 21

It is no coincidence that the very first Step mentions powerlessness: An
admission of personal powerlessness over alcohol is a cornerstone of
the foundation of recovery. I've learned that I do not have the power
and control I once thought I had. I am powerless over what people
think about me. I am powerless over having just missed the bus. I am
powerless over how other people work (or don't work) the Steps. But
I've also learned I am not powerless over some things. I am not
powerless over my attitudes. I am not powerless over negativity. I am
not powerless over assuming responsibility for my own recovery. I
have the power to exert a positive influence on myself, my loved ones,
and the world in which I live.

************************************************** *********

Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

When I came into A.A., I learned what an alcoholic was and then I
applied this knowledge to myself to see if I was an alcoholic. When I
was convinced that I was an alcoholic, I admitted it openly. Since then,
have I been learning to live accordingly? Have I read the book
Alcoholics Anonymous? Have I applied the knowledge gained to
myself? Have I admitted openly that I am an alcoholic? Am I ready to
admit it at any time when I can be of help?

Meditation For The Day

I will be renewed. I will be remade. In this, I need God's help. His spirit
shall flow through me and, in flowing through me, it shall sweep away
all the bitter past. I will take heart. The way will open for me. Each day
will unfold something good, as long as I am trying to live the way I
believe God wants me to live.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may be taught, just as a child would be taught. I pray that
I may never question God's plans, but accept them gladly.

************************************************** *********

As Bill Sees It

Pain And Progress, p. 3

"Years ago I used to commiserate with all people who suffered. Now I
commiserate only with those who suffer in ignorance, who do not
understand the purpose and ultimate utility of pain."

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

Someone once remarked that pain is the touchstone of spiritual
progress. How heartily we A.A.'s can agree with him, for we know
that the pains of alcoholism had to come before sobriety, and
emotional turmoil before serenity.

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

"Believe more deeply. Hold your face up to the Light, even though
for the moment you do not see."

1. Letter, 1950
2. 12 & 12, pp. 93-94
3. Letter, 1950

************************************************** *********

Walk In Dry Places

Forgiving others___Releasing the past

There is a general reluctance on the part of most people to forgive old injuries. Some of us wasted lots of time brooding about old wrongs done to us or trying to get even for some past injuries.

But the only way we can ever really get even is to forgive others completely and without the slightest hidden reservation. If we haven't forgiven others, the old resentments are a poison in our own lives. We continue to feel the pain of the original injury, and the ensuing resentment destroys our peace of mind and endangers our relationships.

In forgiving others, we do not grant a favor to them, but to ourselves. By extending forgiveness, we release thoughts and feelings that have been like a cancer in our lives. We are not giving up a possession or a right; instead, we are freeing ourselves from a burden that nobody needs to carry. We are letting go of garbage that we do not need in our lives. When we forgive others, we also realize that we are forgiven. As it is stated in closing meetings, "Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us."

I will not review past hurts and injuries this day. I will go through the day knowing that God forgives me to the extent that I forgive.

************************************************** *********

Keep It Simple

Never play leapfrog with a unicorn.---Unknown

As we work Step One, we accept that alcohol and other drugs are poison to us. We accept our limits.
This means we know that hanging around our using "buddies" can remind us of "the good old days."
Hanging around "slippery places" means we could "slip" back into our old ways. This isn't testing our sobriety; it's being reckless with it. So let's accept our limits. Everybody has limits. When we know our limits, we protect our recovery against the people and places that pull us from our spiritual center. This is what true acceptance means.

Prayer for the Day: I pray for true acceptance. Higher Power, help me to stay away from slippery places. I will protect the gift You've given me.

Action for the Day: Today, I'll list the people and places that are risky for me to be around. I will share this list with my sponsor, my group, and my sober friends.

************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Chapter 9 - The Family Afterwards

Though the family does not fully agree with dad’s spiritual activities, they should let him have his head. Even if he displays a certain amount of neglect and irresponsibility towards the family, it is well to let him go as far as he likes in helping other alcoholics. During those first days of convalescence, this will do more to insure his sobriety than anything else. Though some of his manifestations are alarming and disagreeable, we think dad will be on a firmer foundation than the man who is placing business or professional success ahead of spiritual development. He will be less likely to drink again, and anything is preferable to that.

pp. 129-130

************************************************** *********

Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Stories

BUILDING A NEW LIFE - Hallucinating and restrained by sheriff's deputies and hospital staff, this once-happy family man received an unexpected gift from God--a firm foundation in sobriety that would hold up through good times and bad.

After that I moved to California. My kids were on welfare while I was touring all over. I never knew anyone could make the money I made in union construction jobs in California, so I drank it up. I didn't feel bad about the kids because I was drunk all the time. I sent them presents. When I got sober, I felt bad about them, so I'd drink again. I couldn't stand being sober because I couldn't stand thinking about how I hadn't taken care of my own kids.

p. 481

************************************************** ********

Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Step Six - "Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character."

Many will at once ask, "How can we accept the entire implication of Step Six? Why--that is perfection!" This sounds like a hard question, but practically speaking, it isn't. Only Step One, where we made the 100 percent admission we were powerless over alcohol, can be practiced with absolute perfection. The remaining eleven Steps state perfect ideals. They are goals toward which we look, and the measuring sticks by which we estimate our progress. Seen in this light, Step Six is still difficult, but not at all impossible. The only urgent thing is that we make a beginning, and keep trying.

p. 68

************************************************** ********
A Day At A Time

Reflection For The Day

My addiction is three-fold in that it affects me physically, mentally and spiritually. As a chemically-dependent person, I
was totally out of touch not only with myself, but with reality. Day after miserable day, like a caged animal on a
treadmill, I repeated my self-destructive pattern of living. Have I begun to break away from my old ideas? Just for today,
can I adjust myself to what is, rather than try to adjust everything to my own desires?

Today I Pray

I pray that I may not be caught up again in the downward, destructive spiral which removed me from myself and from
the realities of the world around me. I pray that I may adjust to people and situations as they are instead of always
trying, unsuccessfully and with endless frustration, to bend them to my own desires.

Today I Will Remember

I can only change myself.

*****************************************
AA 'Big Book' - Quote

If you are as seriously alcoholic as we were, we believe there is no middle-of-the-road solution. We were in a position where life was becoming impossible, and if we had passed into the region from which there is no return through human aid, we had but two alternatives: One was to go on to the bitter end, blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable situation as best we could; and the other, to accept spiritual help. This we did because we honestly wanted to, and were willing to make the effort. - Pg. 25-26 - There Is A Solution

************************************************** *********

Warriors Anonymous Practice of the Day-
BB pg 87-88-
Ch 6- Into Action:
(Pertaining to 11th Step)

As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action. We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day "Thy will be done." We are then in much less danger of excitement, fear, anger, worry, self-pity, or foolish decisions. We become much more efficient. We do not tire so easily, for we are not burning up energy foolishly as we did when we were trying to arrange life to suit ourselves. It works-it really does.

We alcoholics are undisciplined. So we let God discipline us in the simple way we have just outlined.

But this is not all. There is action and more action. "Faith without works is dead." The next chapter is entirely devoted to Step Twelve.

-Tom- Many things stick out to me in those paragraphs. Where it says “we alcoholics are undisciplined” I am in line with the print there. The cool thing for me is that it doesn’t then say I need to be more disciplined, because If I could do that, I already would be, it says we “let” God discipline us in the simple way we just outlined.

The key word is “let”. AA and God does not force anything on us, we choose it, or not.

Only hostage takers make Demands. My God does not want mindless minions, He wants Powerful Freedom Fighters. Power comes from Love, Freedom and Choice.

Today I pray that I am open minded enough to Let my God discipline and train me through the spiritual actions I take in the 12 Steps of AA.