Dec. 18, 2019 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time

Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2019

Reflection for the Day

I’m learning – all too slowly, at times – that when I give up the losing battle of trying to run my life in my own way, I gain abiding peace and deep serenity. For many of us, that learning process is a painfully slow one. Eventually, however, we understand that there are only two wills in the world, my will and God’s. Whatever is within my direct control is my will; whatever is beyond my direct control is His will. So I try to accept that which is beyond my control as God’s will for me.

Am I beginning to realize that by surrendering my will to the Divine Will, I am for the first time living without turmoil and without anxiety?

Today I Pray

May I hope that my will can be congruent with the all-encompassing will of God. I pray that I will know immediately if my will is in a useless tug-of-war with His Divine Will. May I trust God now to guide my will according to his Master Plan – and to make His purpose mine.

Today I Will Remember

Achievement comes when my will is in harmony with God’s.

Hazelden Foundation

Dec. 17, 2019 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time

Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019

Reflection for the Day

More and more these days, as I progress in my recovery, I seem to do a lot of listening – quietly waiting to hear God’s unmistakable voice within me. Prayer is becoming a two-way street – of seeking and listening, of searching and finding. A favorite bit of Scripture for me is, “Be still and know that I am God.“

Do I pay quiet and loving attention to Him, ever more confident of an enlightened knowledge of His will for me?

Today I Pray

As I seek to know my Higher Power, may I learn the best ways – for me – to reach and hear Him. May I begin to feel prayer, not just listen to the sound of my own verbalizing. May I feel the sharp outlines of my humanness fading as His Godliness becomes a part of me. May I feel that I am one with Him.

Today I Will Remember

Feel the stillness of God.

Hazelden Foundation

Dec. 15, 2019 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

I feel we have picked each other from the crowd as fellow-travelers, for neither of us is to the other’s personality the end-all and the be-all. — Joanna Field

We must look around at the people in our lives today, and know that we have something special to offer each of them, and they to us. We do travel separate paths together. We may need to learn tolerance; perhaps a friend’s behavior pushes us to be more tolerant. Impatience may be our nemesis, and everywhere we turn are lines, slow cash registers, traffic jams. Our experiences with others aren’t chance. Fellow travelers are carefully selected by the inner self, the spiritual guide who understands our needs in this life.

We are both the teachers and the pupils. We need both our friends and those we may label our enemies for what they can help us learn.

I will carefully look about me today with gladness at the travelers I’ve selected to learn from.

Hazelden Foundation