Jan. 31, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018

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

Ideally, both members of a couple in love free each other to new and different worlds.

 — Anne Morrow Lindbergh

We cannot possess another’s spirit, even though we may desire to do so while struggling to feel love. We must not block one another’s invitations for adventure even though we fear being left behind. We won’t find the happiness we long for if we’ve tied another to ourselves by strings of shame, guilt, or pity.

Being free to love, or not, is the only path to real love. A trapped butterfly soon loses its splendor – and life; likewise, a trapped lover quietly awaits the relationship’s death.

Traveling separate, yet parallel, paths keeps a relationship vital. Bringing fresh ideas, favored hopes, and fruitful experiences to each other’s attention is the enhancement a relationship must have to stay strong.

Let’s not corner our partners but instead trust that real love is the promised gift of being free.

You are reading from the book:

Worthy of Love by Karen Casey

Worthy of Love by Karen Casey. © 1985 by Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 31, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018

Today, live just for today. I cannot nor do I want to forget yesterday for it has lessons to carry into tomorrow. Nor do I want to be so preoccupied with tomorrow that I neglect today for I may miss some unintended good that someone or something has to offer. I can plan for tomorrow, but I cannot fret over it and dread what demons or challenges my yesterdays programmed me to expect. But that programming from my yesterdays was dictated by a whiskey bottle and, God granting, there is no whiskey bottle in my today. I therefore cannot fear that what I do today will poison my tomorrow. My life, my sobriety, my hopes, my dreams, my fears, my recovery - all are today. Today is all I have, and I must not be lax in strengthening it to make tomorrow's today the promise of something good. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2018

Jan. 31, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018

AA Thought for the Day

Drinking cuts you off from God. No matter how you were brought up, no matter what your religion is, no matter if you say you believe in God, nevertheless you build up a wall between you and God by your drinking. You know you're not living the way God wants you to live. As a result, you have that terrible remorse. When you come into AA, you begin to get right with other people and with God. A sober life is a happy life because, by giving up drinking, we've got rid of our loneliness and remorse.

Do I have real fellowship with other people and with God?

Meditation for the Day

I believe that all sacrifice and all suffering is of value to me. When I am in pain, I am being tested. Can I trust God, no matter how low I feel? Can I say, "Thy will be done," no matter how much I am defeated? If I can, my faith is real and practical. It works in bad times as well as in good times. The Divine Will is working in a way that is beyond my finite mind to understand, but I can still trust in it.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may take my suffering in my stride. I pray that I may accept pain and defeat as part of God's plan for my spiritual growth.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 31, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018

Reflection for the Day
One of the most constructive things I can do is to learn to listen to myself and get in touch with my true feelings. For years, I tuned myself out, going along, instead, with what others felt and said. Even today, it sometimes seems that they have it all together, while I'm still stumbling about. Thankfully, I'm beginning to understand that people-pleasing takes many forms. Slowly but steadily, I've also begun to realize that it's possible for me to change my old patterns.

Will I encourage myself to tune in to the real me? Will I listen carefully to my own inner voice with the expectation that I'll hear some wonderful things?

Today I Pray

I pray that I may respect myself enough to listen to my real feelings, those emotions which for so long I refused to hear or name or own, which festered in me like a poison. May I know that I need to stop often, look at my feelings, listen to the inner me.

Today I Will Remember

I will own my feelings.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 31, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018

Nothing great was ever achieved without overcoming great obstacles, and no hero of history deserves more acclaim than those who were triumphant over self. But do not let us swell up too much with pride. If we are honest, we know that with our character-weakened souls, with our "fogbound" brains, we could accomplish nothing of ourselves. It was only when we, in our desperate surrender, threw our lives and our wills into His keeping that He, in His mercy, removed the obstacle. Unknown, even to ourselves, there must have slept in us that Faith of a mustard seed, that can remove mountains.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 31, 2018 - Let's get groovin' to a far-out and fabulous Hump Day Wednesday

Jan. 30, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018

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

Two things a man should never be angry at: what he can help, and what he cannot help.

 — Thomas Fuller

In the Serenity Prayer, we pray for the wisdom to know the difference between what we can change and what we cannot.

That distinction can be hard for many of us to recognize. When we finally see the reality clearly – that some things we face cannot be controlled by our own will or fixed by force – new possibilities open up to us. When we stop trying to move a mountain, our relationship to the mountain changes. We start to live at peace with the mountain. At the same time we can take greater responsibility for those parts of our lives that we can change.

Peace of mind comes from accepting what we can do nothing about and taking responsibility for what we can.

Today I pray for the wisdom that helps me know the difference.

You are reading from the book:

Wisdom to Know by Anonymous

Wisdom to Know © 2005 by Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 30, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018

Today, progress, not perfection. In recognizing the difference, I might learn patience over impatience not only with others, but with myself. Progress requires that I focus on just this day while perfection forces me to look to the unrealistic and unattainable goals beyond today. And by preoccupying myself with tomorrow, I am likely to neglect something today - and that failure will likely sabotage any tomorrow I might have. Tomorrow will hold nothing good if I neglect today. Today, then, will be focused on one thing at a time and first things first. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2018

Jan. 30, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018

AA Thought for the Day
A drinking life isn't a happy life. Drinking cuts you off from other people and from God. One of the worst things about drinking is the loneliness. And one of the best things about AA is the fellowship. Drinking cuts you off from other people, at least from the people who really matter to you, your family, your co-workers and your real friends. No matter how much you love them, you build up a wall between you and them by your drinking. You're cut off from any real companionship with them. As a result, you're terribly lonely.

Have I got rid of my loneliness?

Meditation for the Day
I will sometimes go aside into a quiet place of retreat with God. In that place, I will find restoration and healing and power. I will plan quiet times now and then, times when I will commune with God and arise rested and refreshed to carry on the work which God has given me to do. I know that God will never give me a load greater than I can bear. It is in serenity and peace that all true success lies.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may strengthen my inner life, so that I may find serenity. I pray that my soul may be restored in quietness and peace.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 30, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018

Reflection for the Day
Have I gained freedom simply because one day I was weak and the next day I became suddenly strong? Have I changed from the helpless and hopeless person I once seemed to be simply by resolving, "from now on, things will be different ...?" Is the fact that I am more comfortable today than ever before the result of my own willpower? Can I take credit for pulling myself up by my own bootstraps? I know better, for I sought refuge in a Power greater than myself - a Power which is still beyond my ability to visualize.

Do I consider the change in my life a miracle far beyond the workings of any human power?

Today I Pray
As the days of sobriety lengthen, and the moment of decision becomes farther behind me, may I never lose sight of the Power that changed my life. May I remember that my sobriety is an ongoing miracle, not just a once-in-a-lifetime transformation.

Today I Will Remember
Life is an ongoing miracle.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 30, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018

After several years on the Program, we still have to guard against rationalizing. When it comes to selling ourselves a bill of goods, we are tops. Our drinking was most always occasioned by a "good reason," or so we thought; the real reason - the fact that we were alcoholics and therefore compulsive drinkers - never occurred to us. A good reason can always be found for our actions, but the real reason is frequently obscure. Lord, teach us to know the difference.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 30, 2018 - Rise 'n shine for a terrific Tuesday of new hope and confidence

Jan. 29, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Monday, Jan. 29, 2018

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

No man is more cheated than the selfish man.
 -- Henry Ward Beecher

When we're selfish, we close off the channels of exchange with others. Not only are we grabbing and holding all the goods or attention we can get, but we are denying others the possibility of sharing with us in the benefits. We may be selfish in material goods, but there are many other ways too. Some of us expect our spouses to meet our needs while we make little effort to meet theirs. Some of us discover our selfishness as we drive, refusing to yield a position to another car or getting furious if we lose a place in heavy traffic.

By contrast, our generosity and welcoming responses nourish the spirit within us and create a good environment for our growth. Sometimes giving does not come easily We have a more generous spirit when we are in touch with our ultimate vulnerability. All of life is fragile, and we need each other to have a good life. We can truly hold on to nothing but ourselves. Giving what we can of our time, our energy, and our goods, helps create the kind of world we want to live in.

Today, I will look for ways to be generous with those with whom I share this world.

You are reading from the book:

Touchstones by Anonymous

Touchstones ©1986, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 29, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step

Monday, Jan. 29, 2018

Today, I will harness courage, strength, hope, the wisdom of my Higher Power, compassion and passion and work them for another person's whose needs are far more urgent and desperate than mine. I will not accept that other person's intellect or others barrier as an excuse to permit his voice from being heard. Today, MY voice will be HIS, and his desperate struggle for help will no longer be his silent and lonely fight. And in helping this person who cannot help himself, I am driven by the knowledge that my Higher Power has sent this person to me and He will give me the knowledge to carry out His will. And, in the end, if I am effective in helping someone else, I will NOT accept accolades. And, in advocating for someone else today, I won't have the time, I'll have no reason or excuse, to use or drink. I will be too busy carrying out the commandment of the program - carrying the message. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2018

Jan. 29, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Monday, Jan. 29, 2018

AA Thought for the Day
What a load wasting money puts on your shoulders! They say that members of AA have paid the highest initiation fee of any club members in the world, because we've wasted so much money on liquor. We'll never be able to figure out how much it was. We not only wasted our own money, but also the money we should have spent on our families. When you come into AA, that terrible load of wasted money falls off your shoulders. We alcoholics were getting round-shouldered from carrying all those loads that drinking put on our shoulders. But when we come into AA, we get a wonderful feeling of release and freedom.

Can I throw back my shoulders and look the whole world in the face again?

Meditation for the Day
I believe that the future is in the hands of God. He knows better than I what the future holds for me. I am not at the mercy of fate or buffeted about by life. I am being led in a very definite way, as I try to rebuild my life. I am the builder, but God is the architect. It is mine to build as best I can, under His guidance.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may depend on God, since He has planned my life. I pray that I may live my life as I believe God wants me to live it.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 29, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Monday, Jan. 29, 2018

Reflection for the Day
I used to imagine my life as a grotesque abstract painting; a montage of crises framed by end-upon-end catastrophies. My days all were grey and my thoughts grayer still. I was haunted by dread and nameless fears. I was filled with self-loathing. I had no idea who I was, what I was or why I was. I miss none of those feelings. Today, step by step, I am discovering myself and learning that I can be free to be me.

Am I grateful for my new life? Have I taken the time to thank God today for the fact that I am clean and sober - and alive?

Today I Pray
May calm come to me after the turmoil and nightmares of the past. As my fears and self-hatred dissipate, may the things of the spirit replace them. For in the spiritual world, as in the material world, there is no empty space. May I be filled with the spirit of my Higher Power.

Today I Will Remember
Morning scatters nightmares.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 29, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Monday, Jan. 29, 2018

On that awful day when the world had toppled about us, when all hope had departed and only wild desperation remained, then was the night darkest and nearest was the dawn. At this darkest hour, we "hit our bottom." There was no way to go but UP.

As dawn follows darkness in Nature's scheme, so darkness follows again in its turn. All things, save God, are transitory and what one day can bring, another day can take away. Let us not feel too secure in our sobriety, for darkness will come in the regular course of events, and we must be sure we have provided ourselves with the Light which will enable us to keep our footing on the slippery paths ahead.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 29, 2018 - It's time for a marvelous Monday and awesome new week

Jan. 28, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

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

Agreement is usually not necessary

Many of us have lived as if we always had to be right. We did not stop to notice that other things we cared about were being lost such as friends who got tired of our persistent need to be right, or children whose self-esteem was undermined when there was no room for their ideas, or a former mate who drifted away because we could relax only if we were proven right. In our differences there is much more to look at and far more to settle than who is right and who is wrong.

An intimate connection is simply communicating our differences to each other and understanding them. Agreement is usually not necessary. Our partnership gives us an opportunity to view the world intimately through someone else’s eyes. Defeating our differences defeats our opportunities to learn. We need just exclaim, Oh that’s another way to see it!

Our task is to learn how our partner sees the world. We grow because we gain a second outlook.

You are reading from the book:

The More We Find In Each Other by Merle Fossum and Mavis Fossum

The More We Find in Each Other by Merle Fossum and Mavis Fossum. © 1992 by Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 28, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

Today, at day's end, I will look back and know by the grace of God that I did the best I could in all my affairs. If in prayer and meditation I find that I have not fully surrendered to my higher power some problem or character defect, I will know I have asked for the wisdom and humility to surrender it once and for all and that, if there is a tomorrow for me, I may be one day closer to that total surrender. I will not have reason to regret some communication with someone else because I was either cruel or indifferent to their needs or feelings. I will be grateful that I was not have tempted to take the first drink that always leads to disaster, and I will go to sleep tonight with the comfort that my higher power blessed me with the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant." And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2018

Jan. 28, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

AA Thought for the Day
What a load hangovers put on your shoulders! What terrible physical punishment we've all been through. The pounding headaches and jumpy nerves, the shakes and the jitters, the hot and cold sweats! When you come into AA and stop drinking, that terrible load of hangovers falls off your shoulders. What a load remorse puts on your shoulders! That terrible mental punishment we've all been through. Ashamed of the things you've said and done. Afraid to face people because of what they might think of you. Afraid of the consequences of what you did when you were drunk. What an awful beating the mind takes! When you come into AA, that terrible load of remorse falls off your shoulders.

Have I got rid of these loads of hangovers and remorse?

Meditation for the Day
When you seek to follow the way of the spirit, it frequently means a complete reversal of the way of the world which you had previously followed. But it is a reversal that leads to happiness and peace. Do the aims and ambitions that a person usually strives for bring peace? Do the world's awards bring heart-rest and happiness? Or do they turn to ashes in the mouth?

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may not be weary, disillusioned or disappointed. I pray that I may not put my trust in the ways of the world, but in the way of the Spirit.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 28, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

Reflection for the Day
Now that I am in The Program, I am no longer enslaved by alcohol and other drugs. Free, free at last from the morning-after tremors, the dry heaves, the three-day beard, the misplaced eyelashes. Free, free at last from working out the alibis and hoping they won't unravel; free from blackouts; free from watching the clock so that I can somehow get that desperately needed "first one."

Do I treasure my freedom from chemical enslavement?

Today I Pray
Praise God that I am free of chemicals. This is my first freedom, from which other freedoms will develop - freedom to appraise my behavior sanely and constructively, freedom to grow as a person, freedom to maintain relationships with others on a sound basis. I will never cease to thank my Higher Power for leading me away from enslavement.

Today I Will Remember
Praise God for my freedom.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 28, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

Man was created in the image of God. We are told that the heart of man is the Temple of the Holy Ghost. A realization of this fact makes the desecration of the body as sacrilegious as the desecration of any church.

We alcoholics have a lot of mess to clean up in our Temples in order to make them a fit place for communion with the God in us.

If we really want God to work in and through us in the rehabilitation of other alcoholics, we must provide Him at least a clean workshop.

Hazelden Foundation

Jan. 28, 2018 - Time to get hoppin' on a splendid and serene Sunday with hope and confidence

Jan. 27, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018

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

Your Destiny

Watch your thoughts,

they become your words.

Watch your words,

they become your actions.

Watch your actions,

they become your character.

Watch your character,

it becomes your destiny.

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

Jan. 27, 2018 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step

Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018

Today, "Let Go and Let God" does not absolve me from responsibility to be an active participant in my redemption from the damage and pain to others of my drinking days. "Let Go and Let God" commands that I turn my will over to my higher power for knowledge of HIS will for me and "the power to carry (it) out." It does not give me the easy out by expecting God to do it for me. In accepting a role in my recovery instead of expecting it to come to me by reading the Big Book and going to meetings, I understand that sobriety is a two-level process. On the surface, I cannot drink; on a deeper level, I cannot expect a change in spiritual and emotional conditions that come solely by not drinking. I am responsible for my condition as an alcoholic; likewise, I am responsible for my recovery. "Let Go and Let God" does not dismiss me from either responsibility. Today, I "Let Go and Let God" by surrendering MY self-will and listening for my higher power to show me HIS will and how to carry it out. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2018