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Feb. 24, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
Today's thought from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:
Don't take storms personally
Somewhere out in the Pacific, a storm brewed and swirled and thrashed and died without ever touching the land. Three days, later, under a clear blue sky, the storm surge reached the California coast near Los Angeles. The sea threw rocks at my house, and the waves stacked up and crashed down against the pilings of the foundation. Farther up the street, the ocean ate the back porch of two houses. All night the shoreline trembled and shook from the power of the sea.
The next morning the tide pulled back, the swells calmed, and the sky stayed blue. I walked down the beach, impressed at the way the ocean had littered it with huge chunks of driftwood and rocks. Then I walked back upstairs and drank my morning coffee.
Sometimes storms aren't about us.
Sometimes, friends or loved ones will attack us for no apparent reason. They'll fuss, fume, and snap at us. When we ask them why, they'll say, "Oh I'm sorry. I had a bad day at work." But we still feel hurt and upset.
Hold people accountable for their behavior. Don't let people treat you badly. But don't take the storms in their lives personally. These storms may have nothing to do with you.
Seek shelter if necessary. Get away from hurt friends until they have time to calm down; then approach when it's safe. If the storm isn't about you, there's nothing you need to do. Would you try to stop the ocean waves by standing in the surf with your arms outstretched?
God, help me not to take the storms in the lives of my friends and loved ones too personally.
Don't take storms personally
Somewhere out in the Pacific, a storm brewed and swirled and thrashed and died without ever touching the land. Three days, later, under a clear blue sky, the storm surge reached the California coast near Los Angeles. The sea threw rocks at my house, and the waves stacked up and crashed down against the pilings of the foundation. Farther up the street, the ocean ate the back porch of two houses. All night the shoreline trembled and shook from the power of the sea.
The next morning the tide pulled back, the swells calmed, and the sky stayed blue. I walked down the beach, impressed at the way the ocean had littered it with huge chunks of driftwood and rocks. Then I walked back upstairs and drank my morning coffee.
Sometimes storms aren't about us.
Sometimes, friends or loved ones will attack us for no apparent reason. They'll fuss, fume, and snap at us. When we ask them why, they'll say, "Oh I'm sorry. I had a bad day at work." But we still feel hurt and upset.
Hold people accountable for their behavior. Don't let people treat you badly. But don't take the storms in their lives personally. These storms may have nothing to do with you.
Seek shelter if necessary. Get away from hurt friends until they have time to calm down; then approach when it's safe. If the storm isn't about you, there's nothing you need to do. Would you try to stop the ocean waves by standing in the surf with your arms outstretched?
God, help me not to take the storms in the lives of my friends and loved ones too personally.
You are reading from the book:
More Language of Letting Go © 2000 by Melody Beattie
Feb. 23, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Step by Step
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
Today, I will apply the Program to a wider use by remembering that it is developed not solely to guide us to sobriety but to detect and correct the character flaws that made us drink ourselves into alcoholism. Being dry is all we can expect if the only action we take is to quit drinking; abstinence alone will not earn us the sobriety and peace if we do not uncover, admit and either give up or correct the dysfunctional dynamics of our spiritual and emotional characters. Being dry is a major step forward from our drinking days, but being dry without serenity puts us at significant risk of relapse if we turn a blind eye to the defective parts of our character. And because simply being dry positions me on the edge of a relapse waiting to happen, my Program will be applied to more than abstaining from drinking and will include what and how I must deal with the defects in my mental, spiritual and emotional characters. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2015
Feb. 24, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
AA Thought for the Day
When we came to our first AA meeting, we looked up at the wall at the end of the room and saw the sign: "But for the Grace of God." We knew right then and there that we would have to call on the Grace of God in order to get sober and get over our soul-sickness. We heard speakers tell how they had come to depend on a Power greater than themselves. That made sense to us and we made up our minds to try it.
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
AA Thought for the Day
When we came to our first AA meeting, we looked up at the wall at the end of the room and saw the sign: "But for the Grace of God." We knew right then and there that we would have to call on the Grace of God in order to get sober and get over our soul-sickness. We heard speakers tell how they had come to depend on a Power greater than themselves. That made sense to us and we made up our minds to try it.
Am I depending on the Grace of God to help me stay sober?
Meditation for the Day
Share your love, your joy, your happiness, your time, your food, your money gladly with all. Give out all the love you can with a glad, free heart and hand. Do all you can for others and back will come countless stores of blessings. Sharing draws others to you. Take all who come as sent by God and give them a royal welcome. You may never see the results of your sharing. Today they may not need you, but tomorrow may bring results from the sharing you did today.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may make each visitor desire to return. I pray that I may never make anyone feel repulsed or unwanted.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 24, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time
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| The Serenity Prayer |
A Day at a Time
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
Reflection for the Day
I can banish fear by realizing the truth. Am I afraid to be alone? This fear can be banished by the realization that I am never alone, that God is always with me wherever I am and whatever I do. Am I afraid that I won't have enough money to meet my needs? This fear can be banished by the realization that God is my inexhaustible, unfailing resource, now and always. Today I have the power to change fear into faith.
Can I say with confidence, "I will trust, and will not be afraid ...?"
Today I Pray
That I may fear no evil, for God is with me. That I may learn to turn to my Higher Power when I am afraid. I pray diligently that my faith in God and trust in what He has in store for me is strong enough to banish the fears that undermine my courage.
Today I Will Remember
Turn fear into faith.
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
Reflection for the Day
I can banish fear by realizing the truth. Am I afraid to be alone? This fear can be banished by the realization that I am never alone, that God is always with me wherever I am and whatever I do. Am I afraid that I won't have enough money to meet my needs? This fear can be banished by the realization that God is my inexhaustible, unfailing resource, now and always. Today I have the power to change fear into faith.
Can I say with confidence, "I will trust, and will not be afraid ...?"
Today I Pray
That I may fear no evil, for God is with me. That I may learn to turn to my Higher Power when I am afraid. I pray diligently that my faith in God and trust in what He has in store for me is strong enough to banish the fears that undermine my courage.
Today I Will Remember
Turn fear into faith.
Hazelden Foundation
Feb. 24, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener
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| The Serenity Prayer |
The Eye Opener
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
We alcoholics know that one drink is too much and a barrel isn't enough. That first drink starts the compulsion to drink.
Suppressing desires can become a habit just as their satisfaction does. Each time we Say "NO," we weaken the old habit and strengthen the new.
The efforts to satisfy our desires led us to the excesses that brought about our alcoholism. So let us follow the advise of John Stuart Mill and "learn to seek our happiness by limiting our desires, rather than attempting to satisfy them."
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015
We alcoholics know that one drink is too much and a barrel isn't enough. That first drink starts the compulsion to drink.
Suppressing desires can become a habit just as their satisfaction does. Each time we Say "NO," we weaken the old habit and strengthen the new.
The efforts to satisfy our desires led us to the excesses that brought about our alcoholism. So let us follow the advise of John Stuart Mill and "learn to seek our happiness by limiting our desires, rather than attempting to satisfy them."
Hazelden Foundation
'Birdman' takes flight at politically and socially conscience Oscar ceremony
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| Host Neil Patrick Harris at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP) |
Feb. 23, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Monday, Feb. 23, 2015
Today's thought from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:
Make yourself at home
Make yourself at home
It was night, only a few months after I'd begun my skydiving adventure.One of the other skydivers was sitting in a lawn chair. The evening lights had been turned on and he was wrapped up in a sleeping bag, reading a book under the hazy glow. He was one of the full-time skydivers, who had been attracted to the gypsy lifestyle of the skydiving community as much as the sport itself.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"I'm in my living room, reading a book," he replied. "Do you like the view of the backyard?" he asked, making a gesture toward the rolling hills that cascaded gently in the background. "Sometimes I take my sleeping bag and curl up under the stars in the landing area over there."
I looked around, almost envious of his freedom.
Sometimes, we get so busy and involved creating a home for ourselves that we create a structure that's too safe, limiting, and confined. We forget about our real home, the planet earth. It's good to sleep indoors. It's nice to make ourselves comfortable in our home. But don't let your cozy nest become a locked, confining box.
Stretch your arms. Push the lid off the box. Get out into the world. Walk around. Move about. See how connected everything is. See how connected you are, too, to all that is. Make yourself comfortable, wherever you are. Make yourself a home and be at home in the world.
God, help me relax and make myself at home in your bountiful world.
You are reading from the book:
More Language of Letting Go © 2000 by Melody Beattie
Feb. 23, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Monday, Feb. 23, 2015
Today, if life sneaks up with unexpected tasks or frustration that delay my plans, I will not cave in to anger or a sense of failure at not carrying out my plans to completion. Even if my patience or expectations of myself or others are stretched to the max, I will not whine with self-pity or anything else negative because, if I have gotten through the last 24 Hours sober, I have literally nothing to complain about and absolutely everything for which to be grateful and humble. I have no excuse to morph frustration or anger into self-imposed isolation because isolation is the breeding ground for loneliness - and loneliness can be lethal in recovery. But should I feel lonely, I will reach out to someone who can lend an empathetic - not sympathetic - ear or, in the spirit the 12th Step, jump into some form of service to someone or something in need and want. An old saying is that the non-addict who has a flat tire calls Triple A, but the recovering alcoholic with a flat calls Suicide Prevention. Today, I will use the Steps to keep events and things in their proper perspective and, if I find I have a flat tire today, I'll call roadside assistance; Suicide Prevention has other people in greater need. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M., 2015
Feb. 23, 2015 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day
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| The Serenity Prayer |
Monday, Feb. 23, 2015
AA Thought for the Day
Besides our jobs, our families, our friends and our sobriety, we have something else which many of us found through AA. That's faith in a Power greater than ourselves, to which we can turn for help: faith in that Divine Principle in the universe which we call God and which is on our side as long as we do the right thing. There have been many days in the past when, if we had taken an inventory, we'd have found ourselves very much in the red, without sobriety and, therefore, without jobs, families, friends or faith in God. We now have these things because we're sober.
Do I make one resolution every day of my life - to stay sober?
Meditation for the Day
Love the busy life. It is a joy-filled life. Take your fill of joy in the Spring. Live outdoors whenever possible. Sun and air are nature's great healing forces. That inward joy changes poisoned blood into a pure, healthy, life-giving flow. But never forget that the real healing of the spirit comes from within, from the close, loving contact of your spirit with God's spirit. Keep in close communion with God's spirit day by day.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may learn to live the abundant life. I pray that I may enjoy a close contact with God this day and be glad in it.
Hazelden Foundation
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