[bluidkiti]

September 2

Daily Reflections

FINDING "A REASON TO BELIEVE"
The willingness to grow is the essence of all spiritual
development. As Bill Sees It, p.171

A line from a song goes, ". . . and I look to find a reason to believe .
. ." It reminds me that at one time I was not able to find a reason
to believe that my life was all right. Even though my life had been
saved by coming to A.A., three months later I went out and drank
again. Someone told me: "You don't have to believe. Aren't you
willing to believe that there is a reason for your life, even though you
may not know yourself what that reason is, or that you may not
sometimes know the right way to behave?" When I saw how
willing I was to believe there was a reason for my life, then I could
start to work on the Steps. Now when I begin with, "I am willing. .
. ," I am using the key that leads to action, honesty, and openness
to a Higher Power moving through my life.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

"Outline the program of action to new prospects, explaining how you
made a self appraisal, how you straightened out your past, and
why you are now endeavoring to help them. It is important for
them to realize that your attempt to pass this on to them plays a
vital part in your recovery. The more hopeless they feel, the better.
They will be more likely to follow your suggestions. Tell them about
the fellowship of A.A. and if they show interest, lend them a copy of
the Big Book." Can I tell the A.A. story to another alcoholic?

Meditation For The Day

You should try to stand aside and let God work through you. You
should try not to block Him off by your own efforts, or prevent
His spirit working through you. God desires your obedient service
and your loyalty to the ideals of the new life you are seeking. If
you are loyal to God, He will give you protection against
mistakes. His spirit will plan for you and secure for you a
sufficiency of all spiritual help. You will have true victory and real
success, if you will put yourself in the background and let God work
through you.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may not interfere with the working of God's spirit in me
and through me. I pray that I may give it full rein.

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As Bill Sees It

Toward Maturity, p.244

Many oldsters who have put our A.A. "booze cure" to severe but
successful tests still find they often lack emotional sobriety. To
attain this, we must develop real maturity and balance (which is to
say, humility) in our relations with ourselves, with our fellows, and
with God.

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Let A.A. never be a closed corporation; let us never deny our
experience, for whatever it may be worth, to the world around us.
Let our individual members heed the call to every field of human
endeavor. Let them carry the experience and spirit of A.A. into all
these affairs, for whatever good they may accomplish. For not only
has God saved us from alcoholism; the world has received us back into
its citizenship.

1. Grapevine, January 1958
2. A.A. Comes Of Age, pp. 232-233

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Walk In Dry Places

Going with the Flow
Problem solving.
It's surprising how many problems solve themselves when we're willing to turn them over to our Higher
Power. This isn't a self-fulfilling prophecy brought about by suspicious beliefs we can actually find proof of this seemingly providential activity in our lives.
We don't have to convince anybody except ourselves that this process works. What we can prove is that some of our best opportunities come about by what we would call chance or coincidence. Indeed, the first meeting of two AA founders could be called such a chance event.
We need to believe that our Higher Power is working ceaselessly for the upward development of the human race, and Twelve Step programs can be essential forces in this upward development. In our own lives, we can go with this flow of ever-increasing good, as we continue to feel ourselves a part of it.
I will not wrestle with every problem today. Some problems will be
dealt with later and some will seem to solve themselves. I will
know that I am part of an upward development that is continuing.

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Keep It Simple

… except when to do so would injure them or others.
---Second half of Step Nine
We have to be careful when we make amends. We must think about people’s well being. Can we help heal by being direct with them? Or would it hurt them again? At times, this means not making direct amends. Sometimes, it’s better to make some other kind of amend. If you’re not sure how to make amends to someone, ask for advice from your sponsor and your group. And pray. Over time, you’ll know if making direct amends is the right thing to do. Remember, Step Nine means we’re responsible for our actions. In recovery, our actions can be healing. Healing takes place when we love ourselves and others. And love is what heals us.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I’ve hurt people in the past. Please use me now to help those people heal. Give me good judgment, courage, and good timing.
Action for the Day: I will never be able to make direct amends to some people. I will think of amends I can make to them. I can pray daily for their healing.

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Each Day a New Beginning

If I had to describe something as divine it would be what happens between people when they really get it together. There is a kind of spark that makes it all worthwhile. When you feel that spark, you get a good feeling deep in your gut. --June L. Tapp
How lucky we are, that we can experience that divine spark with one another, and with all recovering women. The program offers us the chance, every moment of our lives from this day forward, to experience divinity. All we are asked to do is be there, for one another, to share fully who we are. Vulnerability gets easier as we learn that we can trust each other, that we can share pain, that it's okay to pull and prod and follow, first you and then me and then her.
What a thrill it is to leave our competition behind! The program bonds us together, and the bond will strengthen each of us, but it can elude us, too. It often does when we forget to be there, in one another's presence, when the opportunity comes.
I need these sparks to nurture my growth, singly and collectively. I will be part of a divine experience today.

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Doctor Bob's Nightmare

A co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. The birth of our Society dates from his first day of permanent sobriety, June 10, 1935.
To 1950, the year of his death, he carried the A.A. message to more than 5,000 alcoholics men and women, and to all these he gave his medical services without thought of charge.
In this prodigy of service, he was well assisted by Sister Ignatia at St. Thomas Hospital in Akron, Ohio, one of the greatest friends our Fellowship will ever know.

We entered her house at exactly five o' clock and it was eleven fifteen when we left. I had a couple of shorter talks with this man afterward, and stopped drinking abruptly. This dry spell lasted for about three weeks; Then I went to Atlantic City to attend several days' meeting of a National Society of which I was a member. I drank all the Scotch they had on the train and bought several quarts on my way to the hotel. This was on Sunday. I got tight that night, stayed sober Monday till after the dinner and then proceeded to get tight again. I drank all I dared in the bar, and then went to my room to finish the job. Tuesday I started in the morning, getting well organized by noon. I did not want to disgrace myself, so I then checked out. I bought some more liquor on the way to the depot. I had to wait some time for the train. I remember nothing from then on until I woke up at a friend's house, in a town near home. These good people notified my wife, who sent my newly-made friend over to get me. He came and got me home and to bed, gave me a few drinks that night, and one bottle of beer the next morning.
That was June 10, 1935, and that was my last drink. As I write nearly six years have passed.

pp. 179-180

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Step Eight - "Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all."

Whenever our pencil falters, we can fortify and cheer ourselves by remembering what A.A. experience in this Step has meant to others. It is the beginning of the end of isolation from our fellows and from God.

p. 82

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Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
--Abraham Lincoln

"The truth of the matter is that you always know the right thing to do.
The hard part is doing it."
--General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

"I didn't learn humility with my head. I learned humility with my
heart."
--Unknown

For all my good intentions, there are days when things go wrong or I
fall into old habits. When things are not going well, when I'm grumpy
or mad, I'll realize that I've not been paying attention to my soul and
I've not been following my best routine.
--Robert Fulghum

When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and
brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life.
--Jean Shinoda Bolen

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

MEMORY

"Every man's memory is his
private literature."
-- Aldous Huxley

What it was like. What happened. What it is like today. Memory. If I
am to stay sober, I need to remember. I need to remember on a daily
basis. I must never forget.

My life is reflected in my memory. The "writing on the wall" is
really in my head, but am I prepared to see it and acknowledge it?
For years I chose not to remember. I lived in a world of
make-believe. People were exaggerating the facts! With denial at
the center of my life I was able to forget the pain and drink again,
only to awake to yesterday's pain again.

My memory is the key to my recovery. Spirituality is about "seeing" --
seeing my life as it is, rather than how I imagined or hoped it would
be. My pain belongs in my life because it is mine! Alcohol always
works; but does it work for me or against me? My remembering
helps me answer that question today and hopefully tomorrow.

Thank You, God, for allowing my yesterdays to forge my tomorrows.

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The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times
of trouble.
Psalm 9:9

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1

I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor
height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:38-39

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give
them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them
out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than
all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father
are one."
John 10:27-30

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Daily Inspiration

Don't miss a single chance to enrich your life or the lives of others. Lord, Your blessings are countless. May I always be aware of Your presence in my life, share my blessings, and use my blessings to be a blessing to others.

Never judge. The heart of each one of us is so different, so complex, with so many different circumstances and sufferings that only God is truly able to know it. Lord, may I reach out to others with compassion when they need my support.