Feb. 22, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

God delays but doesn’t forget. — Spanish saying

It’s frustrating to get sick, lose a job, or encounter financial setbacks. We suddenly feel curtailed, with the rhythm of our lives changed in a way we never anticipated. But our Higher Power slows us down for a reason. There can be gifts in adversity. They can provide us with time alone, time to think. Being alone gives us the chance to find ourselves in a new way. We may be surprised to find inner resources we didn’t know we had. A period of waiting through adversity can also turn us to our Higher Power when the solace we need is beyond the capacity of people to give.

It’s challenging to do nothing when the world tells us that we must always take action. When action isn’t possible, accepting the circumstances of our lives enables us to experience the value of being, rather than doing.

When some part of my life is beyond my control, I can be patient and simply wait. Inaction is not necessarily inactivity.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 22, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

Today, indecision is NO decision and no decision is stagnation - in growth, progress, sobriety, moving forward, moving on. If some issue has immobilized me with uncertainty or fear of the outcome, the uncertainty of no resolution will likely progress to a breaking point. And, for me, the breaking point could be my sobriety. Today, enough is enough. I will decide, and I will call on the Program and Higher Power on how best to resolve the thing that has hung over my head far too long. And in coming to a decision, God grant me the wisdom that the outcome may be what I need and not necessarily what I want. Today, no decision will yield to decision, and what has kept me stagnant loses its control. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2022

Feb. 22, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

AA Thought for the Day

Now we can take an inventory of the good things that have come to us through AA. To begin with, we're sober today. That's the greatest asset on any alcoholic's books. Sobriety to us is like good will in business. Everything else depends on that. Most of us have jobs which we owe to our sobriety. We know we couldn't hold these jobs if we were drinking, so our jobs depend on our sobriety. Most of us have wives or husbands and children, which we either had lost or might have lost, if we hadn't stopped drinking. We have friends in AA, real friends who are always ready to help us.

Do I realize that my job, my family and my real friends are dependent upon my sobriety?

Meditation for the Day

I must trust God to the best of my ability. This lesson has to be learned. My doubts and fears continually drive me back into the wilderness. Doubts lead me astray, because I am not trusting God. I must trust God's love. It will never fail me, but I must learn not to fail it by my doubts and fears. We all have much to learn in turning out fear by faith. All our doubts arrest God's work through us. I must not doubt. I must believe in God and continually work at strengthening my faith.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may live the way God wants me to live. I pray that I may get into that stream of goodness in the world.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 22, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

Reflection for the Day

When I came to The Program, I found people who knew exactly what I meant when I spoke finally of my fears. They had been where I had been; they understood. I've since learned that many of my fears have to do with projection. It's normal, for example, to have a tiny "back-burner" fear that the person I love will leave me. But when the fear takes precedence over my present and very real relationship with the person I'm afraid of losing, then I'm in trouble. My responsibility to myself includes this: I must not fear things which do not exist.

Am I changing from a fearful person into a fearless person?

Today I Pray

I ask God's help in waving away my fears - those figments, fantasies, monstrous thoughts, projections of disaster which have no bearing on the present. May I narrow the focus of my imagination and concentrate on the here-and-now, for I tend to see the future through a magnifying glass.

Today I Will Remember

Projected fears, like shadows, are larger than life.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 22, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

You cannot know and appreciate wisdom unless you are also acquainted with a liberal amount of pure folly. Folly provides the lessons that really stick in our memories and provide danger signals to govern our decisions in our future conduct.

For that reason, the lessons learned overnight in a jail cell outlast those acquired after long periods of study. Believe you me, those lessons are seldom forgotten.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 22, 2022 - Good morning and let's have some enthusiasm for this magnificent Tuesday

 

Good morning with assurance that it's going to be a terrific Tuesday ...have a truly great but productive and paced day, and don't waste time on people and things that want to screw it up

Feb. 21, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Monday, Feb. 21, 2022

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Honesty

I hope I shall follow firmness of virtue enough to maintain that I consider the most enviable of all titles — the character of an honest man. — George Washington

Happiness in recovery and in society depends on our honesty. We create pain for others, and ourselves, when we are dishonest. True honesty begins within each of us and flows out to touch those around us. If we are to be true to society, and to ourselves, we cannot feel one thing in our hearts and outwardly speak different views.

There is no such thing as too much honesty. When we practice honesty in all our affairs, we discover that the reason for being honest is not because it is expected of us, but because we find that honesty avoids problems and makes our life happier.

When I am honest with myself and others, I am making progress toward greatness of character.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 21, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Monday, Feb. 21, 2022

Today: KISS: "Keep It Simple and Sweet!" In the end, the complexities and sometimes grueling work of the Twelve Steps come down to a cardinal action. If I do not want to deal with the shakes through the day and the oblivion of intoxication; if I do not want to deal with guilt, remorse, shame and self-degradation; if I do not want the numbing pain of letting down myself and anyone who has stood with me through the worst of my drinking and the best of my recovery; if I do not want to devote any part of the day and night with my head in a toilet throwing up dry heaves; if I don't want to take bed sheets to the laundromat for an unplanned wash because they got soaked by my own vomit; if I don't want to risk getting nailed for drunk driving and the subsequent court-ordered fines and fees, alcohol classes and triple car insurance rates; if I want to continue to progress in recovery and sobriety; if I want to nurture the re-established relationships that were previously broken and responsibilities that went neglected because of drinking; if I want to be free of self-pity, anger, confusion, and anguish; if I want to claim honestly that I am sober; today, I won't drink. KISS: "Keep It Simple and Sweet." And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2022

Feb. 21, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Monday, Feb. 21, 2022

AA Thought for the Day

I go to the AA meetings because it helps me in my business of keeping sober. And I try to help other alcoholics when I can, because that's part of my business of keeping sober. I also have a partner in this business and that's God. I pray to Him every day to help me to keep sober. As long as I keep in mind that liquor can never be my friend again, but is now my deadly enemy, and as long as I remember that my main business is keeping sober and that it's the most important thing in my life, I believe I'll be prepared for that crucial moment when the idea of having a drink pops into my mind.

When that idea comes, will I be able to resist it and not take that drink?

Meditation for the Day

I will be more afraid of spirit-unrest, of soul-disturbance, of any ruffling of the mind, than of earthquake or fire. When I feel the calm upset, then I must steal away along with God, until my heart sings and all is strong and calm again. Uncalm times are the only times when evil can find an entrance. I will beware of unguarded spots of unrest. I will try to keep calm, no matter what turmoil surrounds me.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that no emotional upsets will hinder God's power in my life. I pray that I may keep a calm spirit and a steady heart.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 21, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time

Monday, Feb. 21, 2022

Reflection for the Day
Do I waste my time and energy wrestling with situations that aren't actually worth a second thought? Like Don Quixote, the bemused hero of Spanish literature, do I imagine windmills as menacing giants, battling them until I am ready to drop from exhaustion? Today, I'll not allow my imagination to build small troubles into big ones. I'll try to see each situation clearly, giving it only the value and attention it deserves.

Have I come to believe, as the second of the Twelve Steps suggests, that a Power greater than myself can restore me to sanity?

Today I Pray
God, keep my perspective sane. Help me to avoid aggrandizing petty problems, tying too much significance to casual conversations, making a Veruvius out of an anthill. Keep my fears from swelling out of scale, like shadows on a wall. Restore my values, which became distorted during the days of my chemical involvement.

Today I Will Remember
Sanity is perspective.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 21, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener

Monday, Feb. 21, 2022

The effectiveness of AA is largely built upon understanding and human sympathy. These characteristics were not acquired from a book but learned the hard way as we, too, traveled the long dark alley of despair in search of a helping hand and an understanding heart.

Creeds and ideologies are for preachers and students to debate and reason, but our doctrine of love and understanding has nothing to do with reason; frequently it is contrary to reason, as it comes from the heart and not the head.

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 21, 2022 - Good morning and are we revved up for another Monday and new week?

 

Good morning and have faith that we can take whatever Monday and a new week have in store ...give today your best shot and allow nothing and no one the control to mess it up

Feb. 20, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

There’s a rhythm to flying, and it’s the rhythm of the universe. — William Steig

Nature has a lot to teach us. One of these lessons is to stop trying to control everything and “Let go and let God.” Think of a flock of geese flying in a V-formation. What a beautiful sight! How do you think all those geese know what to do? It’s all in the rhythm of the universe.

How does a seed know when to sprout? How do our hearts know when to beat and our lungs know when to breathe? It’s all in the rhythm of the universe.

We each have a rhythm to our lives. We lost it somewhere along the way — perhaps in our active addiction, perhaps earlier. When we move too fast, we waste a lot of energy. When we move too slow, we miss out. But when we make the decision to put our life and our will into the care of our Higher Power, we will find the right rhythm for us. We just let go, and the timing will come to us as we practice listening to the rhythm of our spirit.

Prayer for the Day

Higher Power, teach me to live like the geese fly, with grace and direction and with my friends.

Today’s Action

Today I will think of a time I tried to control things, when I had the timing all wrong. Then I will think of a time when everything went well, and the timing was perfect. What am I learning about rhythm and trust?

Hazelden Foundation

Feb. 20, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step

Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022

Today, in these 24 Hours put aside MY wants and hear the cry of someone whose need is greater, whose anguish cuts deeper and whose fears are more haunting than mine. This is the marching order of Step 12: to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers and wants the message. And to be an effective 12th-Stepper, I must put aside my wants and needs for someone whose need may be greater. In putting myself aside in favor of someone else this day, I might experience a fundamental change, a spiritual awakening, a move toward compassion, empathy and selflessness. Not absolutely altruistic, however. My motive hasn't really been altogether selfless - I may have progressed to my first or another spiritual awakening by attaining humility in the knowledge that my own fears, insecurities and problems probably are not as heavy as someone else's. Today, someone whose burdens are heavier than mine will have my prayers. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2022

Feb. 20, 2022 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022

AA Thought for the Day
Liquor used to be my friend. I used to have a lot of fun drinking. Practically all the fun I had was connected with drinking. But the time came when liquor became my enemy. I don't know just when liquor turned against me and became my enemy, but I know it happened because I began to get into trouble. And since I realize that liquor is now my enemy, my main business now is keeping sober. Making a living or keeping house is no longer my main business. It's secondary to the business of keeping sober.

Do I realize that my main business is keeping sober?

Meditation for the Day
I can depend on God to supply me with all the power I need to face any situation, provided that I will sincerely believe in that power and honestly ask for it, at the same time making all my life conform to what I believe God wants me to be. I can come to God as a business manager would come to the owner of the business, knowing that to lay the matter before Him means immediate cooperation, providing the matter has merit.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may believe that God is ready and willing to supply me with all that I need. I pray that I may ask only for faith and strength to meet any situation.

Hazelden Foundation