Just for Today
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Just for today, I will not self-destruct by believing I am not deserving of the benefits of the Program and recovery. If I am carrying into today the guilt, remorse and regret of yesterday, their strength lies in sabotaging my progress toward sobriety and in setting me up for failure, i.e., relapse. But my Program of admission, surrender and service has empowered me with grace, courage and strength, each endowed by a Higher Power, and they are powerful enough to assure me that I am worth the gift of recovery. Today, by virtue of returning from the abyss, I am earning worthiness. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
Friday, February 3, 2012
Feb. 3, 2012 - Today's Gift from Hazelden
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
Did you ever get a punch card from a coffee shop? If you buy nine coffees, you get the tenth free. Even though you're not paying for it, you know this purchase isn't free. The price was factored into earlier purchases. But still, getting something free is sweet. We feel like we deserve what's handed to us.
Have you ever had the experience of moving into an apartment or house, and even though it looked okay, the decorating wasn't yours? I've got to do something to make this mine, you think, even if it's just painting a wall.
Many things in life are like that. They don't feel like ours and we don't feel like we deserve them until we put time and effort into them. Then we feel like they belong to us.
In Alcoholics Anonymous, there are no dues, or fees. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stay sober. But we do certain things. We work the Steps. We go to meetings. We work with other alcoholics. And although our sobriety is a gift from God, we begin to feel like we deserve sobriety by working to make it ours.
Most of us like the concept of getting something for free. But little in life can compare to feeling like we deserve what we've earned.
52 Weeks of Conscious Contact © 2003 by Melody Beattie. All rights reserved.
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
Did you ever get a punch card from a coffee shop? If you buy nine coffees, you get the tenth free. Even though you're not paying for it, you know this purchase isn't free. The price was factored into earlier purchases. But still, getting something free is sweet. We feel like we deserve what's handed to us.
Have you ever had the experience of moving into an apartment or house, and even though it looked okay, the decorating wasn't yours? I've got to do something to make this mine, you think, even if it's just painting a wall.
Many things in life are like that. They don't feel like ours and we don't feel like we deserve them until we put time and effort into them. Then we feel like they belong to us.
In Alcoholics Anonymous, there are no dues, or fees. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stay sober. But we do certain things. We work the Steps. We go to meetings. We work with other alcoholics. And although our sobriety is a gift from God, we begin to feel like we deserve sobriety by working to make it ours.
Most of us like the concept of getting something for free. But little in life can compare to feeling like we deserve what we've earned.
From the book:
52 Weeks of Conscious Contact © 2003 by Melody Beattie. All rights reserved.
Feb. 3, 2012 - Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Thought for the Day
By drinking, we escaped from boredom for a while. We almost forgot our troubles. But when we sobered up, our troubles were twice as bad. Drinking had only made them worse. In AA, we really escape boredom. Nobody's bored at an AA meeting. We stick around after it's over and we hate to leave. Drinking gave us a temporary feeling of importance. When we're drinking, we kid ourselves into thinking we are somebody. We tell tall stories to build ourselves up. In AA, we don't want that kind of self-importance. We have real self-respect and honesty and humility. Have I found something much better and more satisfactory than drinking?
Meditation for the Day
I believe that my faith and God's power can accomplish anything in human relationships. There is no limit to what these two things can do in this field. Only I believe, and anything can happen. St. Paul said, "I can do all things through Him who strengtheneth me." All walls that divide you from other human beings can fall by your faith and God's power. These are the two essentials. Everyone can be moved by these.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may try to strengthen my faith day by day. I pray that I may rely more and more on God's power.
Hazelden Foundation
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Thought for the Day
By drinking, we escaped from boredom for a while. We almost forgot our troubles. But when we sobered up, our troubles were twice as bad. Drinking had only made them worse. In AA, we really escape boredom. Nobody's bored at an AA meeting. We stick around after it's over and we hate to leave. Drinking gave us a temporary feeling of importance. When we're drinking, we kid ourselves into thinking we are somebody. We tell tall stories to build ourselves up. In AA, we don't want that kind of self-importance. We have real self-respect and honesty and humility. Have I found something much better and more satisfactory than drinking?
Meditation for the Day
I believe that my faith and God's power can accomplish anything in human relationships. There is no limit to what these two things can do in this field. Only I believe, and anything can happen. St. Paul said, "I can do all things through Him who strengtheneth me." All walls that divide you from other human beings can fall by your faith and God's power. These are the two essentials. Everyone can be moved by these.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may try to strengthen my faith day by day. I pray that I may rely more and more on God's power.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 3, 2012 - A Day at a Time
A Day at a Time
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Reflection for the Day
The Program enables us to discover two roadblocks that keep us from seeing the value and comfort of the spiritual approach: self-justification and self-righteousness. The first grimly assures me that I'm always right. The second mistakenly comforts me with the delusion that I'm better than other people - "holier than thou." Just for today, will I pause abruptly while rationalizing and ask myself, "Why am I doing this? Is this self-justification really honest?"
Today I Pray
May I overcome the need to be "always right" and know the cleansing feeling of release that comes with admitting, openly, a mistake. May I be wary of setting myself up as an example of self-control and fortitude, and give credit where it is due - to a Higher Power.
Today I Will Remember
To err is human, but I need to admit it.
Hazelden Foundation
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
Reflection for the Day
The Program enables us to discover two roadblocks that keep us from seeing the value and comfort of the spiritual approach: self-justification and self-righteousness. The first grimly assures me that I'm always right. The second mistakenly comforts me with the delusion that I'm better than other people - "holier than thou." Just for today, will I pause abruptly while rationalizing and ask myself, "Why am I doing this? Is this self-justification really honest?"
Today I Pray
May I overcome the need to be "always right" and know the cleansing feeling of release that comes with admitting, openly, a mistake. May I be wary of setting myself up as an example of self-control and fortitude, and give credit where it is due - to a Higher Power.
Today I Will Remember
To err is human, but I need to admit it.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 3, 2012 - The Eye Opener
The Eye Opener
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
To shut off from our minds the recollections of unpleasant yesterdays is, of course, impossible. But we can refuse to dwell on them unnecessarily or to lash the present with the cruel whip of the past. It was in the past that remorse, resentments and self-pity were found, but now we are doing our level best to lose them in order to insure a happy and sober present. Close the gate - we have passed through it.
Hazelden Foundation
Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
To shut off from our minds the recollections of unpleasant yesterdays is, of course, impossible. But we can refuse to dwell on them unnecessarily or to lash the present with the cruel whip of the past. It was in the past that remorse, resentments and self-pity were found, but now we are doing our level best to lose them in order to insure a happy and sober present. Close the gate - we have passed through it.
Hazelden Foundation
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Feb. 2, 2012 - Just for Today
Just for Today
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Just for today, I understand - perhaps for the first time - that dependency is not confined to alcohol and the dymanics of addiction to it, and that dependency CAN impact my relationships with other people. For years, I depended on alcohol to drown feelings I did not want, to "create" feelings I wanted and to shape my attitude and perspective. Is it not logical, then, that I depended on alcohol to define - in part - my relationships with other people? Honesty says yes! And my expectations in those relationships were either to dominate THEM, or to be so emotionally needy and dependent on them that MY unrealistic expectations of them drove them away. Now, in sobriety, I have to admit that quitting drinking is not enough, that I must also be sober in my relationships and find the compromise between being the dominating one - and the needy one. Today, I begin the search for the way to being a contributor to healthy relationships. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Just for today, I understand - perhaps for the first time - that dependency is not confined to alcohol and the dymanics of addiction to it, and that dependency CAN impact my relationships with other people. For years, I depended on alcohol to drown feelings I did not want, to "create" feelings I wanted and to shape my attitude and perspective. Is it not logical, then, that I depended on alcohol to define - in part - my relationships with other people? Honesty says yes! And my expectations in those relationships were either to dominate THEM, or to be so emotionally needy and dependent on them that MY unrealistic expectations of them drove them away. Now, in sobriety, I have to admit that quitting drinking is not enough, that I must also be sober in my relationships and find the compromise between being the dominating one - and the needy one. Today, I begin the search for the way to being a contributor to healthy relationships. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
Feb. 2, 2012 - Today's Gift from Hazelden
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
Possibilities and miracles are one and the same. -- Anonymous
Many of us have seen happiness as a goal we couldn't find. When we were children, we were taught that "life is a hard row to hoe." We carried that over into our adult lives.
Seize the day - We let too many of our days just slide by. None of those hours can be replaced. Why worry over past failures if there is a victory to win? Why keep thinking about our faults when we could be practicing virtues instead?
Seize the day - Hold each moment tight and look at each one with wide-open eyes and mind. They are our lives, special to each of us. The moments pass swiftly into memory. Let those memories be good ones, filled with joys large and small.
Yesterday's unhappiness can't be changed, but today's happiness is my own responsibility.
Easy Does It © 1999 by Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved.
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
Possibilities and miracles are one and the same. -- Anonymous
Many of us have seen happiness as a goal we couldn't find. When we were children, we were taught that "life is a hard row to hoe." We carried that over into our adult lives.
Seize the day - We let too many of our days just slide by. None of those hours can be replaced. Why worry over past failures if there is a victory to win? Why keep thinking about our faults when we could be practicing virtues instead?
Seize the day - Hold each moment tight and look at each one with wide-open eyes and mind. They are our lives, special to each of us. The moments pass swiftly into memory. Let those memories be good ones, filled with joys large and small.
Yesterday's unhappiness can't be changed, but today's happiness is my own responsibility.
From the book:
Easy Does It © 1999 by Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved.
Feb. 2, 2012 - Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Thought for the Day
We got a kick out of the first few drinks, before we got stupefied by alcohol. For a while, the world seemed to look brighter. But how about the letdown, the terrible depression that comes the morning after? In AA, we get a real kick: not a false feeling of exhilaration, but a real feeling of satisfaction with ourselves, self-respect, and a feeling of friendliness toward the world. We got a sort of pleasure from drinking. For a while, we thought we were happy. But it's only an illusion. The hangover the next day is the opposite of pleasure. In AA, am I getting real pleasure and serenity and peace?
Meditation for the Day
I will practice love, because lack of love will block the way. I will try to see good in all people, those I like and also those who fret me and go against the grain. They are all children of God. I will try to give love; otherwise, how can I dwell in God's spirit whence nothing unloving can come? I will try to get along with all people, because the more love I give away, the more I will have.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may do all I can to love others, in spite of their many faults. I pray that as I love, so will I be loved.
Hazelden Foundation
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Thought for the Day
We got a kick out of the first few drinks, before we got stupefied by alcohol. For a while, the world seemed to look brighter. But how about the letdown, the terrible depression that comes the morning after? In AA, we get a real kick: not a false feeling of exhilaration, but a real feeling of satisfaction with ourselves, self-respect, and a feeling of friendliness toward the world. We got a sort of pleasure from drinking. For a while, we thought we were happy. But it's only an illusion. The hangover the next day is the opposite of pleasure. In AA, am I getting real pleasure and serenity and peace?
Meditation for the Day
I will practice love, because lack of love will block the way. I will try to see good in all people, those I like and also those who fret me and go against the grain. They are all children of God. I will try to give love; otherwise, how can I dwell in God's spirit whence nothing unloving can come? I will try to get along with all people, because the more love I give away, the more I will have.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may do all I can to love others, in spite of their many faults. I pray that as I love, so will I be loved.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 2, 2012 - A Day at a Time
A Day at a Time
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Reflection for the Day
Looking back, I realize just how much of my life has been spent in dwelling upon the faults of others. It provided much self-satisfaction, to be sure, but I see now just how subtle and actually perverse the process became. After all was said and done, the net effect of dwelling on the so-called faults of others was self-granted permission to remain comfortably unaware of my own defects. Do I still point my finger at others and thus self-deceptively overlook my own shortcomings?
Today I Pray
May I see that my preoccupation with the faults of others is really a smokescreen to keep me from taking a hard look at my own, as well as a way to bolster my own failing ego. May I check out the "why's" of my blaming.
Today I Will Remember
Blame-saying Is game-playing.
Hazelden Foundation
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Reflection for the Day
Looking back, I realize just how much of my life has been spent in dwelling upon the faults of others. It provided much self-satisfaction, to be sure, but I see now just how subtle and actually perverse the process became. After all was said and done, the net effect of dwelling on the so-called faults of others was self-granted permission to remain comfortably unaware of my own defects. Do I still point my finger at others and thus self-deceptively overlook my own shortcomings?
Today I Pray
May I see that my preoccupation with the faults of others is really a smokescreen to keep me from taking a hard look at my own, as well as a way to bolster my own failing ego. May I check out the "why's" of my blaming.
Today I Will Remember
Blame-saying Is game-playing.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 2, 2012 - The Eye Opener
The Eye Opener
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Probably no class of people has been brought into deep and turbulent waters of life to the extent of us alcoholics. Thousands of us were saved by a merciful God and emerged from our ordeal cleaner and stronger. That we were spared can be attributed only to the Grace of God. There is nothing haphazard about God's actions. He led us into deep water for a purpose; He extracted us for a purpose. Be sure you fulfill that purpose.
Hazelden Foundation
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
Probably no class of people has been brought into deep and turbulent waters of life to the extent of us alcoholics. Thousands of us were saved by a merciful God and emerged from our ordeal cleaner and stronger. That we were spared can be attributed only to the Grace of God. There is nothing haphazard about God's actions. He led us into deep water for a purpose; He extracted us for a purpose. Be sure you fulfill that purpose.
Hazelden Foundation
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Feb.1, 2012 - Just for Today
Just for Today
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Just for today, I begin to tear down the wall that BITTERNESS has built between me and the promises of the Program and recovery - serenity with the world and myself, inclusion instead of exclusion from others in recovery who have found what I have not, a positive instead of a negative influence of everyone around me. Unlike anger, which in some cases is justified, bitterness has NO justification; like alcohol, the power of bitterness is in its destruction not only of everything and everyone around me but of myself as well. And, like alcohol, bitterness is the epitome of selfishness, of rejection of all that is good and constructive - and a validated ticket to loneliness. With as much work as I expended on drinking, it takes as much if not more work emotionally and physically to keep bitterness going. Today, I'm too tired and disgusted with bitterness to give it the time and effort needed to empower it. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Just for today, I begin to tear down the wall that BITTERNESS has built between me and the promises of the Program and recovery - serenity with the world and myself, inclusion instead of exclusion from others in recovery who have found what I have not, a positive instead of a negative influence of everyone around me. Unlike anger, which in some cases is justified, bitterness has NO justification; like alcohol, the power of bitterness is in its destruction not only of everything and everyone around me but of myself as well. And, like alcohol, bitterness is the epitome of selfishness, of rejection of all that is good and constructive - and a validated ticket to loneliness. With as much work as I expended on drinking, it takes as much if not more work emotionally and physically to keep bitterness going. Today, I'm too tired and disgusted with bitterness to give it the time and effort needed to empower it. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
Feb. 1, 2012 - Today's Gift from Hazelden
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
To be alive is to be hungry.
Our appetite for life is good. It keeps us reaching, growing, enjoying, and yearning to fulfill our potential. When our basic needs are satisfied, our hunger propels us to search for more elaborate gratification.
Here is where we often run into trouble. Instead of progressing through the hierarchy of needs to the spiritual level, we get stuck in an attempt to make quantity - more things, more people, and more activity - substitute for quality. And quantity alone is never enough.
It's good that we're hungry. Our appetite motivates us to feed our body in a healthy way and also to feed our mind, heart, and spirit. Our needs pyramid, and our hunger leads us beyond quantity to the quality experiences that fill our emptiness. We read, we share, we love, we pray, we listen, we accomplish, we dance, and we feast on the fullness of life.
Today, I will direct my appetite to quality experiences.
Inner Harvest by Elisabeth L. © 1990 by Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved.
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
To be alive is to be hungry.
Our appetite for life is good. It keeps us reaching, growing, enjoying, and yearning to fulfill our potential. When our basic needs are satisfied, our hunger propels us to search for more elaborate gratification.
Here is where we often run into trouble. Instead of progressing through the hierarchy of needs to the spiritual level, we get stuck in an attempt to make quantity - more things, more people, and more activity - substitute for quality. And quantity alone is never enough.
It's good that we're hungry. Our appetite motivates us to feed our body in a healthy way and also to feed our mind, heart, and spirit. Our needs pyramid, and our hunger leads us beyond quantity to the quality experiences that fill our emptiness. We read, we share, we love, we pray, we listen, we accomplish, we dance, and we feast on the fullness of life.
Today, I will direct my appetite to quality experiences.
From the book:
Inner Harvest by Elisabeth L. © 1990 by Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved.
Feb. 1, 2012 - Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Thought for the Day
When we think about having a drink, we're thinking of the kick we get out of drinking, the pleasure, the escape from boredom, the feeling of self-importance and the companionship of other drinkers. What we don't think of is the letdown, the hangover, the remorse, the waste of money and the facing of another day. In other words, when we think about that first drink, we're thinking of all the assets of drinking and none of the liabilities. What has drinking really got that we haven't got in AA? Do I believe that the liabilities of drinking outweigh the assets?
Meditation for the Day
I will start a new life each day. I will put the old mistakes away and start anew each day. God always offers me a fresh start. I will not be burdened or anxious. If God's forgiveness were only for the righteous and those who had not sinned, where would be its need? I believe that God forgives us all of our sins, if we are honestly trying to live today the way He wants us to live. God forgives us much and we should be very grateful.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that my life may not be spoiled by worry and fear and selfishness. I pray that I may have a glad, thankful and humble heart.
Hazelden Foundation
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Thought for the Day
When we think about having a drink, we're thinking of the kick we get out of drinking, the pleasure, the escape from boredom, the feeling of self-importance and the companionship of other drinkers. What we don't think of is the letdown, the hangover, the remorse, the waste of money and the facing of another day. In other words, when we think about that first drink, we're thinking of all the assets of drinking and none of the liabilities. What has drinking really got that we haven't got in AA? Do I believe that the liabilities of drinking outweigh the assets?
Meditation for the Day
I will start a new life each day. I will put the old mistakes away and start anew each day. God always offers me a fresh start. I will not be burdened or anxious. If God's forgiveness were only for the righteous and those who had not sinned, where would be its need? I believe that God forgives us all of our sins, if we are honestly trying to live today the way He wants us to live. God forgives us much and we should be very grateful.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that my life may not be spoiled by worry and fear and selfishness. I pray that I may have a glad, thankful and humble heart.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 1, 2012 - A Day at a Time
A Day at a Time
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Reflection for the Day
The longer I'm in The Program, the more clearly I see why it's important for me to understand why I do what I do and say what I say. In the process, I'm coming to realize what kind of person I really am. I see now, for example, that it's far easier to be honest with other people than with myself. I'm learning, also, that we're all hampered by our need to justify our actions and words. Have I taken an inventory of myself as suggested in the Twelve Steps? Have I admitted my faults to myself, to God and to another human being?
Today I Pray
May I not be stalled in my recovery process by the enormity of The Program's Fourth Step, taking a moral inventory of myself or by admitting these shortcomings to myself, to God and to another human being. May I know that honesty to myself about myself is all-important.
Today I Will Remember
I cannot mend if I bend the truth.
Hazelden Foundation
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
Reflection for the Day
The longer I'm in The Program, the more clearly I see why it's important for me to understand why I do what I do and say what I say. In the process, I'm coming to realize what kind of person I really am. I see now, for example, that it's far easier to be honest with other people than with myself. I'm learning, also, that we're all hampered by our need to justify our actions and words. Have I taken an inventory of myself as suggested in the Twelve Steps? Have I admitted my faults to myself, to God and to another human being?
Today I Pray
May I not be stalled in my recovery process by the enormity of The Program's Fourth Step, taking a moral inventory of myself or by admitting these shortcomings to myself, to God and to another human being. May I know that honesty to myself about myself is all-important.
Today I Will Remember
I cannot mend if I bend the truth.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 1, 2012 - The Eye Opener
The Eye Opener
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
To us alcoholics, our Twelve Steps of Recovery are the stars on which we set our course of sobriety. Like the seafaring man, we will not get them completely in our grasp, nor do we need to do so. If we but follow the course they indicate, we, too, will reach our haven.
Hazelden Foundation
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012
To us alcoholics, our Twelve Steps of Recovery are the stars on which we set our course of sobriety. Like the seafaring man, we will not get them completely in our grasp, nor do we need to do so. If we but follow the course they indicate, we, too, will reach our haven.
Hazelden Foundation
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