April 30, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Sunday, April 30, 2017

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

The best outcome is just and equitable

Principle over Personality - Looking ahead to this day, I may face a possible conflict with another person over a certain issue. How should I respond to this?

If I'm to follow my principles, I should hold to the idea of seeking the best outcome for everybody concerned. It may be very harmful to look at these conflicts as a case of winning or losing. If I seem to win when I'm wrong, I will lose in the long run. If I seem to lose even when I'm right, I can know that there's a just resolution of everything in time. I will always win, however, if I keep my thinking straight and take care to avoid resentment and bitterness.

It's not surprising that the world is beset by conflicts. Millions of people have conditioned themselves to selfish ways of thinking and behaving that are bound to cause such conflicts. Much harm is done by people who are absolutely sure they are right at all times.

As human beings, we cannot expect to be excluded from these conflicts simply because we have a Twelve Step program. We do, however, have a means of dealing with such conflicts effectively when we respond according to principle. This makes us privileged people, in a way, but it is good to know that any person can have the same privileges by following the right principles.

Unpleasant as any conflict may seem, it does give me an opportunity to learn and to grow. I will seek to benefit from any such conflict today.

You are reading from the book:

Walk in Dry Places by Mel B.

Walk in Dry Places by Mel B. © 1996 by Hazelden Foundation

April 30, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Sunday, April 30, 2017
 
Today, instead of an alcoholic, I'm a soberholic. If "alcoholic" calls attention to the fact that I am addicted to alcohol, can't "soberholic" stake my addiction to sobriety? Despite AA's progress in striking down the image of the alcoholic as the down-and-out'er sleeping in alleys or drying out in a flophouse, a jail's drunk tank or mental hospital, a stigma remains. Might I be able to erode that stigma by labeling my addiction to sobriety instead of to alcohol? If so, maybe I can renew my self-confidence and weaken any temptation or lingering doubt about drinking again. As someone addicted to sobriety, why do I need alcohol? Today, at the risk of angering those who warn against trading one addiction for another, I'll substitute dependence on alcohol for addiction to sobriety. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

April 30, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Sunday, April 30, 2017 
 
AA Thought for the Day 
The AA program is one of faith because we find that we must have faith in a Power greater than ourselves if we are going to get sober. We're helpless before alcohol, but when we turn our drink problem over to God and have faith that He can give us all the strength we need, then we have the drink problem licked. Faith in that Divine Principle in the universe which we call God is the essential part of the AA program. 
 
Is faith still strong in me? 
 
Meditation for the Day
Each one of us is a child of God, and as such, we are full of the promise of spiritual growth. A young person is like the springtime of the year. The full time of the fruit is not yet, but there is promise of the blossom. There is a spark of the Divine in every one of us. Each has some of God's spirit which can be developed by spiritual exercise. Know that your life is full of glad promise. Such blessings can be yours, such joys, such wonders, as long as you develop in the sunshine of God's love.
  
Prayer for the Day 
I pray that I may develop the divine spark within me. I pray that by so doing I may fulfill the promise of a more abundant life.
  
Hazelden Foundation

April 30, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Sunday, April 30, 2017
 
Reflection for the Day
We're taught in The Program that "faith without works is dead." How true this is for the addicted person. For if an addicted person fails to perfect or enlarge his or her spiritual life through work and self-sacrifice for others, s/he can't survive the certain trials and low spots ahead. If s/he doesn't work, s/he'll surely return to his or her addiction; and if s/he returns to addiction, s/he'll likely die. Then faith will be dead indeed.

Do I believe, through my faith, that I can be uniquely useful to those who still suffer?

Today I Pray
May my faith in my Higher Power and in the influence of The Program be multiplied within me as I pass it along to others who are overcoming similar addictions. May I be certain that my helping others is not simply repaying my debts, but it is the only way I know to continue my spiritual growth and maintain my own sobriety.

Today I Will Remember
The more faith I can give, the more I will have.

Hazelden Foundation

April 30, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Sunday, April 30, 2017
 
It is most discouraging to many of us to find, after many weary months of trying to work on our moral inventory and studied efforts to eliminate some of our worst character defects, that the more we do the more we find to do. It is not that we are not making progress, but as we steady ourselves from a coldly analytical viewpoint, we find more defects than we ever realized we possessed.

Do not become discouraged when this situation exists. It is very evident proof of progress that you have come to a conscious realization that these new defects exist and you are at least bringing them out in the open where you can get a crack at them.

Hazelden Foundation

April 30, 2017 - Waterskiing chickens? Well, have a terrific Sunday anyway

April 29, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Saturday, April 29, 2017

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

I wish I hadn't lost track of the guys I was stationed with. I kick myself for that.
 -- Tom Harding

We all have regrets, don't we? Some of us left jobs or spouses or neighborhoods only to wish we hadn't. Perhaps we closed the door on our family of origin and then felt grief when parents or siblings died. More commonly we regret the instances when our mean spirited behavior or attitude hurt someone else. We weren't always honest and forthright; we didn't always try to help a friend or co-worker who needed our advice. We simply didn't put our best self forward when the opportunities for doing so presented themselves.

Dwelling on the "shoulds" of past years is fruitless. We did the best we knew how to do at the time. The past is gone. Let's quit digging up the bones of old regrettable experiences. All they do is cloud our minds when we're trying to respond to today's opportunities.

I won't have anything to regret tomorrow if I respond to today with my best self.

You are reading from the book:

Keepers of the Wisdom by Karen Casey

Keepers of the Wisdom © 1996 by Karen Casey

April 29, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Saturday, April 29, 2017
 
Today, service to other people or causes as an essential element in my recovery, that expending some of my attention on something other than myself may make my problems not as bad as I think they are. Service can range from giving a lead talk, talking to a sponsor or sponsee, volunteering to make the coffee for a meeting or simply listening to someone else's problems or experiences. And possibly, the problems I have - or think I have and maybe exaggerate - may seem somewhat less serious. Adversely, I must respect prudence in not expending myself to the extreme that my own needs are sacrificed and neglected. In the end, my program requires that I not focus all that I have completely on myself and that sharing or volunteering for service work may make my own problems less heavy. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

April 29, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Saturday, April 29, 2017
 
AA Thought for the Day
The AA program is one of faith, hope and charity. It's a program of hope because when new members come into AA, the first thing they get is hope. They hear older members tell how they had been through the same kind of hell that they have and how they found the way out through AA. And this gives them hope that if others can do it, they can do it.

Is hope still strong in me?

Meditation for the Day
The rule of God's kingdom is perfect order, perfect harmony, perfect supply, perfect love, perfect honesty, perfect obedience. There is no discord in God's kingdom, only some things still unconquered in God's children. The difficulties of life are caused by disharmony in the individual man or woman. People lack power because they lack harmony with God and with each other. They think that God fails because power is not manifested in their lives. God does not fail. People fail because they are out of harmony with Him.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may be in harmony with God and with other people. I pray that this harmony will result in strength and success.

Hazelden Foundation

April 29, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Saturday, April 29, 2017 
 
Reflection for the Day 
As I grow in The Program - sharing, caring and becoming more and more active - I find that it's becoming easier to live in the Now. Even my vocabulary is changing. No longer is every other sentence salted with such well-used phrases as "could've," "should've," "would've," "might've." What's done is done and what will be will be. The only time that really matters is Now. 
 
Am I gaining real pleasure and serenity and peace in The Program? 
 
Today I Pray 
That I may collect all my scattered memories from the past and high-flown schemes and overblown fears for the future and compact them into the neater confines of Today. Only by living in the Now may I keep my balance, without bending backwards to the past or tipping forward into the future. May I stop trying to get my arms around my whole unwieldy lifetime and carry it around in a gunny sack with me wherever I go.

Today I Will Remember 
Make room for today. 
 
Hazelden Foundation

April 29, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Saturday, April 29, 2017
 
Effort has been made to carry AA into schools and young people's organizations, but the effective response has been so negligible that it has usually been abandoned after a short trial.

AA is a program for ALCOHOLICS - persons suffering from alcoholism. It was designed to appeal to them and them only. It is probably true that we can tell the kids a lot about drinking, but it will fall on deaf ears. Unfortunately, we must be pricked by the sharp thorn of experience in order to learn.

Hazelden Foundation

April 29, 2017 - Good morning to a beautiful and relaxing Saturday

April 28, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Friday, April 28, 2017

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

Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each other.
 -- Rainer Maria Rilke

Mature love is a powerful and wonderful thing that has to be learned in adulthood. Children are certainly capable of loving and receiving love, but they are not yet fully formed as individuals. Adult intimacy is like a bridge spanning the space between two people. When our intimate partner confides in us and becomes vulnerable, our task is to make that moment safe. And when we become vulnerable, we have a right to the same safety - which means no disrespect and no demeaning or abusive behavior. When someone puts trust in us, it is our duty to honor it.

Some of us grew up in families where love was paired with abuse and disrespect. The very people who loved us sometimes deliberately hurt us. As adults we may find ourselves being more decent and polite to strangers than to our loved ones. This becomes our adult challenge: to act respectfully to our loved ones and protect and honor the trust they have placed in us.

Today I will be most respectful of my intimate partner, who is the most vulnerable to me.

You are reading from the book:

Wisdom to Know by Anonymous

Wisdom to Know © 2005 by Hazelden Foundation

April 28, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Friday, April 28, 2017
 
Today, no running from mistakes with a sense of failure or blaming someone. No recovery program perfection because no person will or can achieve it. Likewise, I cannot and must not impose that unreachable goal on myself - and others. AA's 10th Step says, in part, we "promptly admitted" when we are wrong - not if. Thus, let me not be so vain as to place responsibility for my mistakes, big and small, on someone or something else. Adversely, let me not be discouraged by a sense of failure when I err in word, thought and deed. Instead, let me be open to owning my mistakes, identifying the reason for them and correcting the reason so that I do not repeat them. Today, I am not mistake-proof and I cannot expect myself to be - nor can I expect anyone and anything else to be. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

April 28, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Friday, April 28, 2017 
 
AA Thought for the Day 
We're so glad to be free from liquor that we do something about it. We get into action. We come to meetings regularly. We go out and try to help other alcoholics. We pass on the good news whenever we get a chance. In a spirit of thankfulness to God, we get into action. The AA program is simple. Submit yourself to God, find release from liquor and get into action. Do these things and keep doing them and you're all set for the rest of your life. 
 
Have I got into action?

Meditation for the Day 
God's eternal quest must be the tracking down of souls. You should join Him in His quest. Through briars, through waste places, through glades, up mountain heights, down into valleys. God leads you. But ever with His leadership goes your helping hand. Glorious to follow where the Leader goes. You are seeking lost sheep. You are bringing the good news into places where it has not been known before. You may not know which soul you will help, but you can leave all results to God. Just go with Him in His eternal quest for souls.

Prayer for the Day 
I pray that I may follow God in His eternal quest for souls. I pray that I may offer God my helping hand.

Hazelden Foundation

April 28, 2017 - Readings in Recovery:A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time
Friday, April 28, 2017
 
Reflection for the Day
I will resolve to observe with new interest even the commonplace things that happen today. If I learn to see everything with a fresh eye, perhaps I'll find I have countless reasons for contentment and gratitude. When I find myself trapped in the quicksand of my negative thoughts, I'll turn away from them - and grab for the life-saving strength of sharing with others in The Program.

Do I carry my weight as an all-important link in the worldwide chain of The Program?

Today I Pray
I pray that God will open my eyes to the smallest everyday wonders, that I may notice and list among my blessings things like just feeling good, being able to think clearly. Even when I make a simple, unimportant choice like whether to order coffee or tea or a soft drink, may I be reminded that the power of choice is a gift from God.

Today I Will Remember
I am blessed with the freedom of choice.

Hazelden Foundation

April 28, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Friday, April 28, 2017
 
The span of human life is such a small part of eternity that the length of your life, whether it be 20 years or 100, is of no moment. Yet the lifespan of some men has, and will continue to have, great influence upon many succeeding generations.

If you can by one single act do something that will benefit just one person 50 years from now, you will have done more than millions who have before you. Few leave anything to posterity when they die that will outlive their tombstone.

Hazelden Foundation

April 28, 2017 - Time to hit the floor for the Happy Dance Friday, folks

April 27, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Thursday, April 27, 2017

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

God's Will

How do we know what God's will is, especially when we're running around with a severe case of self-will run riot? How can we make sure the choices we're making are God's will when our options seem confusing and we're not sure what to do? What about when we do something we think is God's will and it doesn't work out? Do we blame ourselves? Or do we count our mistakes as lessons we needed to learn along the way?

Sometimes when I recover from a particularly exhausting bout of self-will, I think that my mistakes were just a waste of my time. But then something happens, and I see that my worst mistakes are recyclable. What I learn from mistakes translates into something else that works out for the good.

We do have choices, and they have consequences. Most philosophers agree that free will is the greatest gift given to human beings. And we're responsible for what we choose or don't choose. But most of us, who have some practice with God's will, agree that there's a little extra something taking place.

Getting a publishing contract to write my book Codependent No More was a passion and a dream I'd had for years. But when I went down into my basement to write it, I hit the wall. I didn't know what to say.

It finally turned into one of those surrender deals. What am I thinking of? I said to myself. If it's God's will, the book will get done. And if its not part of God's plan for my life, then it doesn't matter whether it gets done or not. There's something else I'm meant to do. I could see how futile and ridiculous it was to worry about whether anything would - or wouldn't work out.

No matter what happened or didn't, God's will was more than enough.

With all my ups and downs, I still believe with all my heart that God's will is the best thing around.

There's a peace, a harmony, a rhythm to God's will. It's a solid undercurrent, a path that takes us through, over, or around whatever we face, including the Unknown. We don't always know when we've gotten out of or away from it, but we can sure feel it when we get back on track.

You are reading from the book:

52 Weeks of Conscious Contact by Melody Beattie

52 Weeks of Conscious Contact © 2003 by Melody Beattie

April 27, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

Step by Step
Thursday, April 27, 2017
 
Today, character defects of frustration and impatience as they relate to relationships and communications. As a drinking alcoholic, frustration and impatience walked hand-in-hand when it came to dealing with others: frustration of impatience with people who did not react how and when I expected. As a recovering alcoholic, frustration and impatience still walk hand-in-hand in dealing with others. Clearly, little change. Also clearly, abstaining from the bottle isn't all that recovery requires. A fundamental reformation in character and emotions is needed. If I overreact when people do not respond when and how I think they should, maybe I am the problem. Today, I work consciously and conscientiously on my defects of frustration and impatience by considering the possibility that someone other than myself might have a better idea. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2017

April 27, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Thursday, April 27, 2017
 
AA Thought for the Day
By submitting to God, we're released from the power of liquor. It has no more hold on us. We're also released from the things that were holding us down: pride, selfishness, and fear. And we're free to grow into a new life, which is so much better than the old life that there's no comparison. This release gives us serenity and peace with the world.

Have I been released from the power of alcohol?

Meditation for the Day
We know God by spiritual vision. We feel that He is beside us. We feel His presence. Contact with God is not made by the senses. Spirit-consciousness replaces sight. Since we cannot see God, we have to perceive Him by spiritual perception. God has to span the physical and the spiritual with the gift to us of spiritual vision. Many persons, though they cannot see God, have had a clear spiritual consciousness of Him. We are inside a box of space and time, but we know there must be something outside of that box - limitless space, eternity of time, and God.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may have a consciousness of God's presence. I pray that God will give me spiritual vision.

Hazelden Foundation

April 27, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

A Day at a Time

Thursday, April 27, 2017 

Reflection for the Day 
Am I so sure I'm doing everything possible to make my new life a success? Am I using my capabilities well? Do I recognize and appreciate all I have to be grateful for? The Program and its Twelve Steps teach me that I am the possessor of unlimited resources. The more I do with them, the more they will grow - to overshadow and cancel out the difficult and painful feelings that now get so much of my attention. 
 
Am I less sensitive today than when I first came to The Program? 
 
Today I Pray 
May I make the most of myself in all ways. May I begin to look outward to people and opportunities and wonderful resources around me. As I become less ingrown and understand myself better in relation to others, may I be less touchy and thin-skinned. May I shrug off my old "the world-is-out-to-get-me" feeling and see that same world as my treasure-house, God-given and boundless. 
 
Today I Will Remember 
My resources are unlimited. 
 
Hazelden Foundation

April 27, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

The Eye Opener
Thursday, April 27, 2017
 
Real reforms are in people, not in movements. All the laws and demands of church, state and family could not make us change our drinking habits. But the day eventually came when we wanted to change and then, and then only, was the change possible. Prohibition legislation was only a challenge to us and we drank the more because they said we could not. We were determined to show those So-and-So's they couldn't stop us.

Only when we, ourselves, wanted to do something about it was any real reformation possible.

Hazelden Foundation

April 27, 2017 - Let's get trippin' on what's headed to be a far-out Thursday

April 26, 2017 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

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

A weed is but an unloved flower.
 -- Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Through actively loving one another we nurture the richness of everyone's fuller expression. With no more than a nod of attention we can elicit a smile or perhaps a commitment to attempt again a challenge that defeated us earlier. None of us shines as brightly, moves as swiftly, or succeeds as easily as when someone special is rooting in our corner.

We each need someone special, and let's not forget that we are someone special to another who is walking our path. The loneliness of a day is diminished when we feel the love of someone near or far. The dread of any task is lessened when we bask in the knowledge that we are special to someone. Like roses, we bloom while under the gaze of loving eyes.

Let's remember to nurture the rose within the friends and strangers who are walking our way today.

You are reading from the book:

Worthy of Love by Karen Casey

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