Say Yes to Life!!!
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Say Yes to Life!!!
today is May 31, 2005 A great day for recovery!!
AMBITION
"Show me a thoroughly satisfied man - and I will show you a failure."
--Thomas Alva Edison
I need to strive for new things in my life. I need to push out into new areas and discover the richness of God's world. I need to explore the varied creativity of creation.
There is so much that I have not done because of the wasted years of my addiction. So much that I have not seen, countries that I have not visited, languages that I have not learned and experiences that I have missed. My compulsive and obsessive behavior left me a prisoner of self - and also a victim of self.
The spiritual recovery I enjoy today says it is okay for me to have things, enjoy things and do things.
Help me to realize the energy and ambition You have created within me.
-Reverend Leo Booth
\\// Wendy
AMBITION
"Show me a thoroughly satisfied man - and I will show you a failure."
--Thomas Alva Edison
I need to strive for new things in my life. I need to push out into new areas and discover the richness of God's world. I need to explore the varied creativity of creation.
There is so much that I have not done because of the wasted years of my addiction. So much that I have not seen, countries that I have not visited, languages that I have not learned and experiences that I have missed. My compulsive and obsessive behavior left me a prisoner of self - and also a victim of self.
The spiritual recovery I enjoy today says it is okay for me to have things, enjoy things and do things.
Help me to realize the energy and ambition You have created within me.
-Reverend Leo Booth
\\// Wendy
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
serenity is not
freedom from the storm
but peace
within the storm.
I'm not what i ought to be,
and
I'm not what I'm going to be,
But thanks to God alone
I'm not what I used to be.
What you are is God's
gift to you...
What you make of
yourself is your gift to God.....RG
freedom from the storm
but peace
within the storm.
I'm not what i ought to be,
and
I'm not what I'm going to be,
But thanks to God alone
I'm not what I used to be.
What you are is God's
gift to you...
What you make of
yourself is your gift to God.....RG
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 3, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
DREAMS
"I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past."
--Thomas Jefferson
I am an optimist. I believe that things are getting better day by day. Today I believe that what happened yesterday need not happen today or tomorrow. Dreams can come true. I know this to be true. Today I have dreams. Today I have a hope for my life and on a daily basis it is coming true. My life is becoming more meaningful. Today my dreams have coincided with God's dream for me.
Now I love myself enough to speak out for me - and it feels good. Now my decision to embrace the spiritual life is not dependent upon others. Today I can dream to be me.
Help me to dream with my feet firmly on the ground.
A Great Day for Recovery!
DREAMS
"I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past."
--Thomas Jefferson
I am an optimist. I believe that things are getting better day by day. Today I believe that what happened yesterday need not happen today or tomorrow. Dreams can come true. I know this to be true. Today I have dreams. Today I have a hope for my life and on a daily basis it is coming true. My life is becoming more meaningful. Today my dreams have coincided with God's dream for me.
Now I love myself enough to speak out for me - and it feels good. Now my decision to embrace the spiritual life is not dependent upon others. Today I can dream to be me.
Help me to dream with my feet firmly on the ground.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Follow your dream . . . take one step at a time and don't settle for less, just continue to climb.
--Amanda Bradley
Dreams are common to us all. Dreams are special as well. We probably keep to ourselves many of our dreams for fear of derision or misunderstanding. Oftentimes we may have selectively shared some dreams, those we figured would get approval. The ones closest and dearest to us, the ones we feel most vulnerable about, we may choose to treasure to our hearts only, sometimes thinking, "If only you knew," sometimes wondering if we are being silly.
We are coming to believe that our dreams are spirit-filled. They are gifts to encourage us. Like a ship at sea needing a "heading" to move forward, our dreams lend direction to our lives. Our frustration may be that we can't realize a dream without many steps and much time. But life is a process of steps. Success in anything comes inch by inch, stroke by stroke, step after step.
My dreams today are meant to guide me. I will take a first step toward making the dream a reality.
--Amanda Bradley
Dreams are common to us all. Dreams are special as well. We probably keep to ourselves many of our dreams for fear of derision or misunderstanding. Oftentimes we may have selectively shared some dreams, those we figured would get approval. The ones closest and dearest to us, the ones we feel most vulnerable about, we may choose to treasure to our hearts only, sometimes thinking, "If only you knew," sometimes wondering if we are being silly.
We are coming to believe that our dreams are spirit-filled. They are gifts to encourage us. Like a ship at sea needing a "heading" to move forward, our dreams lend direction to our lives. Our frustration may be that we can't realize a dream without many steps and much time. But life is a process of steps. Success in anything comes inch by inch, stroke by stroke, step after step.
My dreams today are meant to guide me. I will take a first step toward making the dream a reality.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 4, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
PROFIT
"What is a man to profit if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"
--Jesus (Mt. 16:26)
Spirituality brings with it a sense of priority in my life: first things first. Unless I discover me and have a love and respect for me, I have nothing to offer in this world. I am the center of my universe and through my life God is radiated. I am a part of God's creative plan and the pleasures of this world must be seen as secondary to my developing a right relationship with God.
My disease of obsession and compulsion wants me to place other things at the center of my life: food, alcohol, drugs, people, money, success, achievement and ego.
My spiritual program reminds me that my love of self is shown in my refusal of the first drink. If I am healthy, I can have the world; without me, I can have nothing!
Let me find Your Kingdom that is within.
A Great Day for Recovery!
PROFIT
"What is a man to profit if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"
--Jesus (Mt. 16:26)
Spirituality brings with it a sense of priority in my life: first things first. Unless I discover me and have a love and respect for me, I have nothing to offer in this world. I am the center of my universe and through my life God is radiated. I am a part of God's creative plan and the pleasures of this world must be seen as secondary to my developing a right relationship with God.
My disease of obsession and compulsion wants me to place other things at the center of my life: food, alcohol, drugs, people, money, success, achievement and ego.
My spiritual program reminds me that my love of self is shown in my refusal of the first drink. If I am healthy, I can have the world; without me, I can have nothing!
Let me find Your Kingdom that is within.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 5, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
REASON
"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us to forego their use."
--Galileo Galilei
An essential part of being human is the ability to think, reflect and reason. Spirituality is involved in our ideas and perceptions because that is historically how man has grown and been able to change. As Descarte said, "Cogito ergo sum - I think therefore I am."
The tragedy is that few people experience the freedom to think and create because of the stifling addictions that are epidemic in our society: food, alcohol, drugs, religion, work, money and sex. We are so afraid of what others might think or say that we never fully experience our spiritual selves and everybody suffers. It is the "risks" in life that make man great.
Help me to challenge what I do not believe in order to discover what I do believe
A Great Day for Recovery!
REASON
"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us to forego their use."
--Galileo Galilei
An essential part of being human is the ability to think, reflect and reason. Spirituality is involved in our ideas and perceptions because that is historically how man has grown and been able to change. As Descarte said, "Cogito ergo sum - I think therefore I am."
The tragedy is that few people experience the freedom to think and create because of the stifling addictions that are epidemic in our society: food, alcohol, drugs, religion, work, money and sex. We are so afraid of what others might think or say that we never fully experience our spiritual selves and everybody suffers. It is the "risks" in life that make man great.
Help me to challenge what I do not believe in order to discover what I do believe
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 6, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
SCIENCE
"As long as men are free to ask what they must - free to say what they think - free to think what they will - freedom can never be lost and science can never regress."
--J. Robert Oppenheimer
We need to press on in this wonderful journey of life because new discoveries await us in our tomorrows. Spirituality always brings joy in the journey. In the traveling is the fun for we will never reach our destination in this life.
The freedom to question is the discipline of science, and science is involved in the treatment and recovery of addiction. We must always be looking for better ways of treatment, more vivid ways of teaching and creative aids to recovery.
Science, and every other creative discipline, should be used in the treatment of addictions: God is to be found in the many.
Lord, let us remember that You gave mankind a scalpel and a prayer book.
A Great Day for Recovery!
SCIENCE
"As long as men are free to ask what they must - free to say what they think - free to think what they will - freedom can never be lost and science can never regress."
--J. Robert Oppenheimer
We need to press on in this wonderful journey of life because new discoveries await us in our tomorrows. Spirituality always brings joy in the journey. In the traveling is the fun for we will never reach our destination in this life.
The freedom to question is the discipline of science, and science is involved in the treatment and recovery of addiction. We must always be looking for better ways of treatment, more vivid ways of teaching and creative aids to recovery.
Science, and every other creative discipline, should be used in the treatment of addictions: God is to be found in the many.
Lord, let us remember that You gave mankind a scalpel and a prayer book.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 7, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
GREED
"One of the weakness of our age is our apparent inability to distinguish our needs from our greeds."
--Don Robinson
I was a greedy drunk. A greedy man. Spoiled, selfish and demanding. I felt that the world owed me a living and if I did not get my way, I sulked, cried or tried to hurt people. And this greedy attitude to life only made me sad, dull and boring. Greed, in this sense, could not work because what I was craving would never satisfy me.
Then I learned how to "let go". Instead of demanding, I learned how to wait. Instead of consuming large amounts of alcohol, I practiced abstinence. Instead of expecting life on my terms, I went with the natural flow of life. I became happy, joyous and free. A miracle? Yes. I accepted my "needs" and with the acceptance came the satisfaction.
Lord, only when I accept my hunger for You am I truly satisfied.
A Great Day for Recovery!
GREED
"One of the weakness of our age is our apparent inability to distinguish our needs from our greeds."
--Don Robinson
I was a greedy drunk. A greedy man. Spoiled, selfish and demanding. I felt that the world owed me a living and if I did not get my way, I sulked, cried or tried to hurt people. And this greedy attitude to life only made me sad, dull and boring. Greed, in this sense, could not work because what I was craving would never satisfy me.
Then I learned how to "let go". Instead of demanding, I learned how to wait. Instead of consuming large amounts of alcohol, I practiced abstinence. Instead of expecting life on my terms, I went with the natural flow of life. I became happy, joyous and free. A miracle? Yes. I accepted my "needs" and with the acceptance came the satisfaction.
Lord, only when I accept my hunger for You am I truly satisfied.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 8, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
DOUBT
"I respect faith but doubt is what gets you an education."
--Wilson Mizner
It is okay to question things. It is okay to say that I do not agree. Today I have the freedom to doubt opinions and attitudes.
In my childhood I was never allowed to do this. I had to accept the Bible because the preacher said it was God's word. I had to accept that only Christians went to Heaven because Grandma said so! I had to believe that Jews and Blacks were "inferior" because family and friends said so - and to doubt them was to be different. I was dependent upon an attitude towards life that I was uncomfortable with. It brought me pain, anger, loneliness and guilt in later life.
Then I learned that growth comes to those who are prepared to doubt or disagree with an existing system. God is to be found in the questions. Spirituality is discovered in the shades of life.
A Great Day for Recovery!
DOUBT
"I respect faith but doubt is what gets you an education."
--Wilson Mizner
It is okay to question things. It is okay to say that I do not agree. Today I have the freedom to doubt opinions and attitudes.
In my childhood I was never allowed to do this. I had to accept the Bible because the preacher said it was God's word. I had to accept that only Christians went to Heaven because Grandma said so! I had to believe that Jews and Blacks were "inferior" because family and friends said so - and to doubt them was to be different. I was dependent upon an attitude towards life that I was uncomfortable with. It brought me pain, anger, loneliness and guilt in later life.
Then I learned that growth comes to those who are prepared to doubt or disagree with an existing system. God is to be found in the questions. Spirituality is discovered in the shades of life.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
drat!!! i missed the 9th!!!
oh well, that was yesterday
Today is June 10, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
LAUGHTER
"God cannot be solemn, or he would not have blessed man with the incalculable gift of laughter."
--Sydney Harris
I think the way to understand God is to begin to understand man! Sometimes we forget that we bear the "image" of God - and this is not so much physical as emotional, our inner selves, the soul. So much of what I feel, what hurts me, what causes me distress and pain I believe also affects God. Also the gifts, the creative intelligence and spiritual sacrifice that has characterized so many people in history reflects something of God. Involved in this is "laughter" . I believe that laughter is derived from God and is part of the spiritual gift He has bequeathed to every one of us: we need only discover it.
"Let go - and let God." Sometimes we need to get out of our own way so that we can begin to laugh.
You gave the gift of laughter to be used. May it be used in the precious art of healing.
oh well, that was yesterday
Today is June 10, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
LAUGHTER
"God cannot be solemn, or he would not have blessed man with the incalculable gift of laughter."
--Sydney Harris
I think the way to understand God is to begin to understand man! Sometimes we forget that we bear the "image" of God - and this is not so much physical as emotional, our inner selves, the soul. So much of what I feel, what hurts me, what causes me distress and pain I believe also affects God. Also the gifts, the creative intelligence and spiritual sacrifice that has characterized so many people in history reflects something of God. Involved in this is "laughter" . I believe that laughter is derived from God and is part of the spiritual gift He has bequeathed to every one of us: we need only discover it.
"Let go - and let God." Sometimes we need to get out of our own way so that we can begin to laugh.
You gave the gift of laughter to be used. May it be used in the precious art of healing.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 11, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
SOLITUDE
"Everyone should try to find a spot to be alone."
--Queen Juliana (Netherlands)
Greta Garbo was reported to have said, "I want to be alone." Life brings its pressures, but we all need to find a place where we can be "alone".
Alone - not to "think" or "do" - simply to be. We need time to simply rest in our lives. A time in the day which we can call our own, to have a visit with the most important person we have got in our lives - ourselves.
To rest in self is to experience "spiritual selfishness" - the joy of self-love.
And how much we look forward to setting aside a time just for heart and mind to center on the pathway to listening to God.
A Great Day for Recovery!
SOLITUDE
"Everyone should try to find a spot to be alone."
--Queen Juliana (Netherlands)
Greta Garbo was reported to have said, "I want to be alone." Life brings its pressures, but we all need to find a place where we can be "alone".
Alone - not to "think" or "do" - simply to be. We need time to simply rest in our lives. A time in the day which we can call our own, to have a visit with the most important person we have got in our lives - ourselves.
To rest in self is to experience "spiritual selfishness" - the joy of self-love.
And how much we look forward to setting aside a time just for heart and mind to center on the pathway to listening to God.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 12, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
POTENTIAL
"There is no meaning to life except the meaning man gives his life by the unfolding of his powers."
--Eric Fromm
My life was powerless when I was drinking. The drug alcohol stopped me from reaching my full potential - I was depressed, tired, angry, lonely and confused. Incredible as it may sound, I was the enemy to my life. By drinking alcohol, I fed the disease and made my life unmanageable.
Then I had a "moment" when I saw what I was doing to my life. The pain caused by drinking outweighed any advantages. I had hit my bottom. I began to change my life by refusing the first drink, and I began to experience a new vitality and potential. A new and creative life dawned. Friendships and relationships were possible again. God became understandable in His world. My power as a human being was unleashed in my sobriety.
Master, may I discover my potential in the loving decisions I undertake.
A Great Day for Recovery!
POTENTIAL
"There is no meaning to life except the meaning man gives his life by the unfolding of his powers."
--Eric Fromm
My life was powerless when I was drinking. The drug alcohol stopped me from reaching my full potential - I was depressed, tired, angry, lonely and confused. Incredible as it may sound, I was the enemy to my life. By drinking alcohol, I fed the disease and made my life unmanageable.
Then I had a "moment" when I saw what I was doing to my life. The pain caused by drinking outweighed any advantages. I had hit my bottom. I began to change my life by refusing the first drink, and I began to experience a new vitality and potential. A new and creative life dawned. Friendships and relationships were possible again. God became understandable in His world. My power as a human being was unleashed in my sobriety.
Master, may I discover my potential in the loving decisions I undertake.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 13, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
WORLD
"We are citizens of the world; and the tragedy of our time is that we do not know this."
--Woodrow Wilson
In recovery I have learned to "go home" to who I am - and part of this involves my understanding my place in this vast universe. I am a child of God and my "family" is not just my immediate blood relatives, but also the millions of other people that inhabit this planet.
God did not just make me. God does not just love me. God is concerned for all His children. As an alcoholic I did not have this attitude and I was always feeling lost and different. I became selfish and narrow in my lifestyle. Other people were tolerated.
Today I have a "big" God and He has enabled me to grow not only in my acceptance of self but also in my acceptance of others. Today I am a citizen of the world and it feels good.
Lord, today I know what it is to belong to the human family. And with this awareness comes responsibility.
A Great Day for Recovery!
WORLD
"We are citizens of the world; and the tragedy of our time is that we do not know this."
--Woodrow Wilson
In recovery I have learned to "go home" to who I am - and part of this involves my understanding my place in this vast universe. I am a child of God and my "family" is not just my immediate blood relatives, but also the millions of other people that inhabit this planet.
God did not just make me. God does not just love me. God is concerned for all His children. As an alcoholic I did not have this attitude and I was always feeling lost and different. I became selfish and narrow in my lifestyle. Other people were tolerated.
Today I have a "big" God and He has enabled me to grow not only in my acceptance of self but also in my acceptance of others. Today I am a citizen of the world and it feels good.
Lord, today I know what it is to belong to the human family. And with this awareness comes responsibility.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 14, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
LIFE
"To be free is to have achieved your life."
--Tennessee Williams
Yesterday's tapes: I need a drink. Ican't exist without a fix. How will I get through the morning without taking something? Do people see me shake? Are people watching me? Where can I get money? The prison of addiction!
Today I am free because I took courage and asked for help. Today I am free because I still ask for help. Today I have learned to say "no" to the first drink and life is more comfortable and less painful.
Freedom is a precious spiritual gift that I work for on a daily basis. God is involved - but so am I. The freedom from alcoholism is only guaranteed by the creative choices I make and in the choice is the freedom.
God, my memory is the key to today's freedom; may I continue to remember.
A Great Day for Recovery!
LIFE
"To be free is to have achieved your life."
--Tennessee Williams
Yesterday's tapes: I need a drink. Ican't exist without a fix. How will I get through the morning without taking something? Do people see me shake? Are people watching me? Where can I get money? The prison of addiction!
Today I am free because I took courage and asked for help. Today I am free because I still ask for help. Today I have learned to say "no" to the first drink and life is more comfortable and less painful.
Freedom is a precious spiritual gift that I work for on a daily basis. God is involved - but so am I. The freedom from alcoholism is only guaranteed by the creative choices I make and in the choice is the freedom.
God, my memory is the key to today's freedom; may I continue to remember.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 15, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
FEAR
"Nothing is so much to be feared as fear. "
--Henry David Thoreau
Fear is a killer. It stops the God-given spirituality in our lives from taking shape and making life enjoyable. Fear is connected with doubt - doubt of self. Low self-esteem develops along with fear and in order for confidence to develop, the fear must be faced , confronted and talked about.
Fear is not going to go away because we wish it away or hope it sway or even pray it away. Fear needs to be identified, located and seen for what it is - or, as in most cases, what it isn't. Fear of people, things, tomorrow or life itself grows so long as we forge that we are creatures of God. There is nothing that cannot be faced or overcome - as long as we remain drug-free. God is on our side - but we need also to be on our side. Fear is never stronger than our spirituality. We need to bring our fear into the light; then it can be overcome.
I ask to stay in the light of sobriety, not the darkness of alcoholism.
A Great Day for Recovery!
FEAR
"Nothing is so much to be feared as fear. "
--Henry David Thoreau
Fear is a killer. It stops the God-given spirituality in our lives from taking shape and making life enjoyable. Fear is connected with doubt - doubt of self. Low self-esteem develops along with fear and in order for confidence to develop, the fear must be faced , confronted and talked about.
Fear is not going to go away because we wish it away or hope it sway or even pray it away. Fear needs to be identified, located and seen for what it is - or, as in most cases, what it isn't. Fear of people, things, tomorrow or life itself grows so long as we forge that we are creatures of God. There is nothing that cannot be faced or overcome - as long as we remain drug-free. God is on our side - but we need also to be on our side. Fear is never stronger than our spirituality. We need to bring our fear into the light; then it can be overcome.
I ask to stay in the light of sobriety, not the darkness of alcoholism.
Miss Behavin'
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: regina,saskatchewan
Posts: 966
Today is June 17, 2005
A Great Day for Recovery!
SELF-LOVE
"Only a person who can live with himself can enjoy the gift of leisure."
--Henry Greber
As an addict I could not tolerate my own company for long. I was forever telephoning somebody, going over to a friend's house, inviting people in, creating an "occasion" so I did not have to think or, at least, think about myself. Being alone terrified me. I was terrified because I would begin to think about what was happening in my life and I did not want to face it.
Spirituality is reality. Some years ago I decided to encounter the "real" me, painful but necessary. I began to develop an awareness of who I am. Acceptance followed: I am an alcoholic.
Today I know me; today I like me; today I can love me - and this awareness brings with it a knowledge of God, self and my neighbor.
Today I can be alone without feeling lonely.
A Great Day for Recovery!
SELF-LOVE
"Only a person who can live with himself can enjoy the gift of leisure."
--Henry Greber
As an addict I could not tolerate my own company for long. I was forever telephoning somebody, going over to a friend's house, inviting people in, creating an "occasion" so I did not have to think or, at least, think about myself. Being alone terrified me. I was terrified because I would begin to think about what was happening in my life and I did not want to face it.
Spirituality is reality. Some years ago I decided to encounter the "real" me, painful but necessary. I began to develop an awareness of who I am. Acceptance followed: I am an alcoholic.
Today I know me; today I like me; today I can love me - and this awareness brings with it a knowledge of God, self and my neighbor.
Today I can be alone without feeling lonely.
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