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Pamela7030
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800 Posts |
 Posted - 06/09/2008 : 08:07:12 AM
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Old dreams need't die.............................................................................June 9
______________________________________________________________________________________
"Lost dreams awaken and new possibilities arise."
Basic Text, p88
Most of us had dreams when we were young. Whether we dreamed of a dynamic career, a large and loving family, or travels abroad, our dreams died when our addiction took hold. Anything we ever wanted for ourselves was cast away in our pursuit of drugs. Our dreams didn't go beyond the next drug and the euphoria we hoped it would bring.
Now in recovery, we find a reason to hope that our lost dreams could still come true. No matter how old we are, how much our addiction has taken from us, or how unlikely it may seem, our freedom from active addiction gives us the freedom to pursue our ambitions. We may discover that we're very talented at something, or find a hobby we love, or learn that continuing our education can bring remarkable rewards.
We used to put most of our energy into spinning excuses and rationalizations for our failures. Today, we go forward and make use of the many opportunities life presents to us. We may be amazed at what we're capable of. With our foundation of recovery, success, fulfillment, and satisfaction are within our reach at last.
Just for today: Starting today, I'll do whatever I can to realize my dreams.
From the book Just For Today, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts, NA World Services, Inc. page 157
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/09/2008 : 08:36:02 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 9, 2008
Meetings
Sometimes, the body can speak an eloquent language all its own.
I see and feel that in meetings. So coming to regular meetings of AA
is a priceless experience for me on a great many levels --
mental, spiritual, social, and now possibly physical.
Listening quietly is already a joy to me, and if it calms me down
and lowers my blood pressure in the process,
that's just another great reason to keep coming back.
© 2003 The AA Grapevine, Inc., Thank You For Sharing, p. 13
Thought to Ponder . . .
Learn to listen; listen to learn.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Hearing Othere People's Experience.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/10/2008 : 07:29:19 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 10, 2008
On Borrowed Time
May we never forget that we live by the grace of God -- on borrowed time;
that anonymity is better than acclaim;
that for us as a movement poverty is better than wealth.
And may we reflect with ever deepening conviction,
that we shall never be at our best except when we hew only to the
primary spiritual aim of AA.
That of carrying the message to the alcoholic who still suffers alcoholism.
- Bill W., April 1948
© 1998 The AA Grapevine, Inc., The Language of the Heart, p. 83
Thought to Ponder . . .
In AA we carry the message ... not the mess.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Gently Releasing All Conscious Expectations.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/10/2008 : 10:22:55 AM
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June 10...........................................................................................................Changing Motives
_________________________________________________________________________________________
"When we finally get our own selfish motives out of the way, we begin to find a peace that we never imagined possible."
Basic Text, p.44
As we examine our beliefs, our actions, and our motives in recovery, we'll find that sometimes we do things for the wrong reasons. In our early recovery, we may have spent a great deal of money and time on people, wanting only for them to like us. Later on, we may find that we still spend money on people, but our motives have changed. We do it, because we like them. Or perhaps we used to get romantically involved because we felt hollow inside and were seeking fulfillment through another person. Now our reasons for romantic involvement are based in a desire to share our already rewarding lives with an equal partner. Maybe we used to work the steps because we were afraid we'd relapse if we didn't. Today we work the steps because we want to grow spiritually.
We have a new purpose in life today, and our changing motives reflect that. We have so much more to offer than our neediness and insecurities. We have developed a wholesomeness of spirit and a peace of mind that moves our recovery into a new realm. We extend our love and share our recovery with complete generosity, and the difference we make is the legacy we leave to those who have yet to join us.
Just for today: In recovery, my motives have changed. I want to do things for the right reason, not just for my personal benefit. Today, I will examine my motives.
From the book Just For Today, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts, NA World Services, Inc. page 168
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/11/2008 : 08:44:54 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 11, 2008
Gifts
The gift of understanding has allowed the simple messages from my parents,
my teachers, and my church to take on new meaning and soundness.
With the gift of serenity, I am ready and willing to accept what God permits
to happen to me; with the gift of courage,
to take action to change the things I can for the good of myself and others.
The gift of wisdom has been given to me so that in personal relationships
I may act intelligently and with love or, as it has also been expressed,
with competence and compassion. . .
I have come to believe that the gift of sobriety is what gives value and dignity
to my life. It is this that I have to share, and it grows as it is shared.
© 1973 AAWS, Came To Believe . . ., p. 4
With permission, Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought to Ponder . . .
Sobriety is a gift.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
God Is Forever There.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 08:24:00 AM
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From the book "As Bill Sees It", page 35
Celebrating 73 Years of AA This Past Tuesday!!!!
Suffering Transmuted
"AA is no success story in the ordinary sense of the word. It is a story of suffering transmuted, under grace into spiritual progress."
<< << << >> >> >>
For Dr. Bob, the insatible craving for alcohol was evidently a physical phenomenon which bedeviled several of his first years in AA, a time when only days and nights of carrying the message to other alcoholics could cause him to forget about drinking. Although his craving was hard to withstand, it doubtless did account for some part of the intense incentive that went into forming Akron's Group Number One.
Bob's spiritual release did not come easily; it was to be painfully slow. It always entailed the hardest kind of work and the sharpest vigilance.
1. LETTER, 1959
2. AA COMES OF AGE, P. 69
The AA Way of Life....selected writings of AA's co-founder
AA World Services Inc. New York, NY.
___________________________________________
A lot of my AA friends came back this weekend from Founder's Day in Akron, Ohio and had wonderful stories to tell. Their spiritual experience there was just beautiful. Too beautiful to put into words. They were able to visit Dr. Bob's house and grave. They took sobriety coins from the grave and left coins of their own. They met other recovering AA memebers and talked of there spiritual journey. AA is now 73 years old. There are millions of sober people because of AA. I am so grateful to Dr. Bob and Bill Wilson for putting this program of recovery together and that it will always be there for anyone who needs it. Remember Alcohol is a DRUG!
______________________________
To open your heart means risking it all – to experience great joy and profound sorrow.
-- Tom Mathews
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our Darkness that most frightens us.
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 08:38:21 AM
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June 12......................A Vision of Hope
"Yes, we are a vision of hope..."
Basic Test, p 51
By the time we reached the end of our road, many of us had lost all hope for a life without the use of drugs. We believed we were destined to die from our disease. What an inspiration it was, then, coming to our first meeting and seeing a room full of addicts who were staying clean! A clean addict is, indeed, a vision of hope.
Today, we give that same hope to others. The newcomers see the joyful light in our eyes, notice how we carry ourselves, listen to us speak in meetings, and often want what we have found. They believe in us until they learn to believe in themselves.
Newcomers hear us carry a message of hope to them. They tend to see us through "rose-colored glasses." They don't always recognize our struggle with a particular character defect or our difficulties with improving our consicious contact with our Higher Power. It takes them time to realize that we, the "oldtimers" with three or six or ten years clean, often place personalities before principles or suffer from some other unsightly character defects.
Yes, the newcomer sometimes places us on a pedestal. It is good, though, to openly admit the nature of our struggles in recovery for, in time, the newcomer will be walking through those same trials. And that newcomer will remember that others walked through that difficulty and stayed clean.
Just for Today: I will remember that I am a beacon to all who follow in my path, a vision of hope.
From the book Just For Today, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts, NA World Services, Inc. page 170
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/13/2008 : 09:05:02 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 13, 2008
Starting Problem
I remember telling a friend years ago
that I didn't have a drinking problem,
I had a stopping problem. We laughed. It was true,
but there was something else going on,
something that never occurred to me until I came to AA.
I didn't just have a stopping problem. I had a starting problem too.
No matter how often I stopped, or for how long, I always started drinking again.
© 2001 AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, pp. 372-373
With permission, Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought to Ponder . . .
If you want to quit drinking, you are going to have to quit drinking.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Keep It Simple, Surrender.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/13/2008 : 2:35:45 PM
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A Full Life..........................June 13
"The program works a miracle in our lives.... We become free to live."
Basic Text, p. 11
Most of us--if we've been in recovery for any length of time at all--have heard some member complaining in a meeting about being terribly overworked, too busy for meetings or sponsorship or other activities. In fact, we may have been the complaining member. The days seem so full: job, family and friends, meetings, activities, sponsorship, step work. "There just aren't enough hours in the day," the member complains, "to get everything done and meet everyone's demands on my time!"
When this happens, usually there's soft laughter from some of the other members--probably members who had planned to grumble about the same sort of thing. The laughter stems from our recognition that we are complaining about the miracle of the life that is ours today. Not so long ago, few of us were capable of having any of these "problems" in our life. We devoted all of our energy to maintaining our active addiction. Today we have full lives, complete with all the feelings and problems that go with living in reality.
Just For Today: I will remember that my life is a miracle. Instead of resenting how busy I am, I will be thankful my life is so full.
From the book Just For Today, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts, NA World Services, Inc. page 171
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/13/2008 : 2:42:19 PM
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From the book "As Bill Sees It", page 105
Move Ahead
To spend too much time on any one alcoholic is to deny some other an opportunity to live and be happy. One of our Fellowship failed entirely with his first half-dozen prospects. He often says that if he had continued to work on them, he might have deprive many others, who have since recovered, of their chance.
<< << << >> >> >>
"Our chief responsibility to the newcomer is an adequate presentation of the program. If he does nothing or argues, we do nothing but maintain our own sobriety. If he starts to move ahead, even a little, with an open mind, we then break our necks to help in every way we can."
The AA Way of Life....selected writings of AA's co-founder
AA World Services Inc. New York, NY.
1. ALCOHOLIC ANONYMOUS, P. 96
2. LETTER, 1942
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/14/2008 : 11:16:21 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 14, 2008
Threefold Illness
When I first walked into an AA meeting,
I had that wonderful feeling of belonging.
Talking to the people there,
I discovered that I was not the only person in the world
who had done the kind of things I had done,
hurting the people I loved most.
I had been afraid that I might be going out of my mind.
I was grateful to learn that alcoholism is a threefold illness,
that I had been ill mentally, physically and spiritually.
© 1976 AAWS, AA For The Woman (pamphlet P-5), p. 11
With permission, Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought to Ponder . . .
I'm not alone anymore.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
You Are Not Alone.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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| Information in this forum is not monitored or provided by a medical professional. The information reflects member opinions only. Do not act on advice from these forums without first consulting a qualified medical professional. All content is copyrighted and protected by Aelius Group. |
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/14/2008 : 3:10:58 PM
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June 14.....................Maintaining our faith
"If we maintain our spiritual condition daily, we find it
easier to deal with the pain and confusion."
Basic Text, p. 92
When we first began searching for a Power greater than ourselves,
many of us got stuck in old beliefs or ideas. These ranged
from the fear of a punishing or vengeful God to no belief at all.
Some of us felt we had done such terible things that a loving
Power would never have anything to do with us. Others were
convinced that the "bad" things that happened to us would not
have occurred if a loving Power had actually existed. It took time,
effort, open-mindedness, and faith to acquire a working belief in a
loving Higher Power that would guide us through life's challenges.
Even after we come to believe in a Power greater than ourselves,
our old ideas can come back to haunt us. Major setbacks in our
lives and the insecurity such events can trigger may give rise to
the return of our old, inadequate ideas about God. When this
happens, we need to assure ourselves that our Higher Power has
not abandoned us but is waiting to help us make it through the
hard times in our recovery. No matter how painful our loss may
be, we will survive our setback and continue to grow if we maintain
the faith our program has given us.
Just For Today: I have worked hard to build my faith in a loving,
caring Higher Power that will guide me through life's challenges.
Today, I will trust that Power.
From the book Just For Today, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts, NA World Services, Inc. page 172
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/15/2008 : 08:56:01 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
Powerlessness
I cannot make anyone love me,
or even like me.
Oh, I still have some of my active drunk's talent to create a scene
and twist a conversation so someone may be forced into saying
what I want to hear, but I have no power to make anyone feel anything.
All I can do is work to make myself worthy of love.
As these thoughts came to me
-- and they came almost in the words I've written out here --
I felt a great relief.
© 1986 The AA Grapevine, Inc., The Best of the Grapevine [Vol. 2], pp. 104-5
Thought to Ponder . . .
If I have the courage to begin, I have the courage to succeed.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Achieve Anything.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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Pamela7030
Moderator
800 Posts |
Posted - 06/15/2008 : 10:14:51 AM
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From the book "As Bill Sees It", page 275
Recovery Through Giving
For a new prospect, outline the program of action,
explaining how you made a self-appraisal, how
you straightened out your past, and why you
are now endeavoring to be helpful to him. It is
important for him to realize that your attempt to
pass this on to him plays a vital part in your own
recovery. Actually, he may be helping you more
than you are helping him. Make it plain that
he is under no obligation to you.
<< << << >> >> >>
In the first six months of my own sobritey, I
worked hard with many alcoholics. Not a one
responded. Yet this work kept me sober. It wasn't
a question of those alcoholics giving me anything.
My stability came out of trying to give, not
out of demanding that I receive.
1. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P.94
2. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1958
The AA Way of Life....selected writings of AA's co-founder
AA World Services Inc. New York, NY.
"Reach for the stars...You will at least end up among the clouds"
Share your experience, strength, and hope with another and see the miracles transform your life!
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Freefly
Administrator
964 Posts |
Posted - 06/16/2008 : 06:59:30 AM
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AA Thought for the Day
June 16, 2008
Compulsion
It is the first drink which triggers, immediately or some time later,
the compulsion to drink more and more until we are in drinking trouble again.
Many of us have come to believe that our alcoholism is an addiction
to the drug alcohol; like addicts of any sort who want to maintain recovery,
we have to keep away from the first dose of the drug
we have become addicted to.
© 1988 AAWS, Living Sober, p. 5
With permission, Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought to Ponder . . .
Alcohol -- cunning, baffling, powerful!
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
One Day At A Time.
Day by Day is the only way.... |
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