[bluidkiti]

September 7

Step by Step

Today, respect of the recovery programs of other individual members without imposing my own. What works for me in AA may not work for another individual, and vice versa. I can look at my own experience through the years and see that what works for me today would not have worked three years ago, and that what works for me today may not work a year from now. For life is an evolving process of change, as it should be. It is not my right to criticize someone else's program if it is keeping that person clean and sober and on the road of progress. Today, I respect that the program that works for me may not work for someone else and that another's program, if it works for him or her, is not "wrong" if it might not work for me. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M.

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~ EASY DOES IT ~ (A Book of Daily 12 Step Meditations) ~

RAINY DAYS

Unhappy sailors curse the rain for which poor farmers prayed in vain.

~ Anonymous ~

We lived our lives like a horse wearing blinders. We had tunnel vision and viewed the things around us with short-sightedness. Our attitudes were based on very few alternatives. We believed we could change things we couldn't.

What if the day turns out to be rainy? We can't call room service and order up a different kind of day! We either adjust our attitude to a rainy day or we elect to pout and sulk because it is raining.

The problem with many of us is that we have limited our outlook to just a few options. When we wake up to a rainy day and we check our "glad bag," we can't find our rainy-day joy-filled attitudes, because we have never cultivated an attitude of joy during bad weather. Sometimes we only have a sunny-day attitude in our glad bag and that does not fit a rainy day.

Loving and accepting myself requires that I learn to be good to myself each day. I can only work on what my attitude toward that day will be, whether it brings rain or shine.

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~ WISDOM TO KNOW ~ (More Daily Meditations For Men) ~

You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.

~ Harper Lee ~

We came to this spiritual path with habits and addictions that had trapped us in a very childish and self- centered mind. Our strong need for control, our sense that we could count only on ourselves blocked us from learning to understand others. Now we are finding a fellowship in which we don’t have to be alone. Others reach out to us in helpful and generous ways. We have friends.

The wonderful thing about a good friend is that we gain the opportunity to see through someone else’s eyes. We can borrow this person’s life experiences as if they were our own and learn those lessons without making the same mistakes. Or we can borrow our friend’s feeling of hope when our own hope is flagging. It’s not necessary to agree with someone to see things from his point of view. Sometimes we simply enlarge our scope by saying, “I see why you could feel that way.” The fellowship of good friends is one of the most humanizing experiences we can have.

Today I will listen to others and try to borrow their eyes and ears.

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~ A WOMAN’S SPIRIT ~ (More Meditations For Women) ~

I find myself wondering whether serenity is really attainable for women with small children.

~ Mary Casey ~

Serenity is a state of mind. Children, animals, co-workers, careers, traffic, ringing phones, bad weather, drinking partners—all can steal our serenity if we let them. Even beautiful weather and loving companions can’t guarantee serenity. Deciding to free our minds of the clutter that keeps us agitated is what assures our serenity.

Focusing on our Higher Power and seeking guidance will bring us peace. Even during the most troubling times, we can be at peace if we quiet our minds, focus on the Spirit within us, and remember that our lives are uniquely purposeful. We are needed; we have a specific role to play; in the stillness we can best decipher our particular part.

In the midst of havoc I can find the stillness, if that’s my desire.

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~ TODAY I WILL DO ONE THING ~ (Daily Readings for Awareness and Hope) ~

I am coming to believe

It has not been easy for me to believe in a higher power. I grew up with no one to trust. When I hit bottom with addiction and emotional illness—that is, when street drugs made the psychiatric symptoms worse—I felt hopeless and helpless, and realized I had nowhere to turn.

But eventually I found a higher power in the spiritual fellowship of dual recovery. Slowly I am learning to talk to my higher power, to pray. Slowly I am learning to listen to my higher power, to meditate. These days I feel closest to my higher power at meetings, where I witness my fellow members' strength and feel their hope.

Today I will tell my higher power about one problem I need help with.

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~ BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT ~ (Inspiration and Support for Recovery) ~

Be not afraid of life.
Believe that life is worth living
and your belief will help create the fact.

~ William James ~

It is normal to feel once in a while that when everything is going wrong in life, maybe it would be better if life were over. But it is dangerous to nurture that feeling. Many things can and do go wrong, even in recovery. Someone else gets the job or promotion we were expecting. We break up with our boyfriend or girlfriend. A loved one is tragically killed in an accident.

When things go wrong, the question often raised is, “What’s the use? We do our best, work hard, go to meetings, but things still go wrong, so what’s the use?”

The answer is in our attitude. If we believe everything should always go our way, we will be disappointed and discouraged when things don’t. But if we believe life is the most precious gift we can have, no matter what pain or loss we experience, we will endure. In recovery, we’re learning that life can be good, and that God and others will help us through the bad times. We’re mentally, physically, and spiritually prepared for all that life may bring us. We are becoming grateful for life, our blessings, and even our problems.

Today help me to believe that life is precious so I may not fear it, but rejoice in it daily.

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~ MORNING LIGHT ~ (Meditations to Begin Your Day) ~

A cruel story runs on wheels, and every hand oils the ! wheels as they run.

~ Ouida ~

Social media have become a fertile ground for spreading lies and rumors, which can sometimes border on bullying. Such postings inflict emotional hurt and make life so miserable for the subjects of such falsehoods that they can have devastating results.

It is human nature to be drawn to gossip and innuendo. But to engage in it—even by listening—runs contrary to the need to be honest and respectful of others. You can let those who enjoy spreading gossip know that you will not tolerate listening to their rumors by asking them three questions.

1. “Is what you are going to share based on something that is truthful?”
2. “Is what you are going to share something nice or good about someone?”
3. “Is what you are going to share useful to know?”

By asking these questions, you create a means of turn-ing aside rumor or gossip. You may also be able to raise the awareness of the speaker about the nature of gossip— that it is hurtful, rather than helpful.

I will not engage in gossip or rumor about others in the program.

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~ NIGHT LIGHT ~ (A Book Of Nighttime Meditations) ~

We have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.

~ Inscription in crypt of Allegheny, Observatory, University of Pittsburgh ~

Some people so love their work or hobbies that they almost seem to become different people when they're involved with what they love to do. Their voices becomes animated, their eyes light up, and they feel energized all over. What do we have in our lives that makes us feel that way?

If we don't love doing something—just one thing—then we are missing out on an experience that drives us and challenges us to learn and grow.

Loving what we do teaches us much about our abilities. Through the program of recovery, we may be learning we have a great deal of skill and talent we never knew we had. Developing these skills and talents can yield us more pleasure than we've ever had.

What do I love to do? Tonight I can find pleasure in recognizing my skills and talents.

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~ DAY BY DAY ~ (Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts) ~

Finding the common bond

We are one among so many and may feel “terminally unique.” We need help; we need each other.

If we see that we’re all in the same boat, that we’re more alike than different, we can diminish whatever seems to separate us. Then we can offer each other our experience, strength, and hope.

Can I look for the common bond?

Higher Power, help me find what I share with my fellow travelers.

To make a connection with one other person today, I will

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

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~ IF YOU WANT WHAT WE HAVE ~ (Sponsorship Meditations) ~

To be positive: to be mistaken at the top of one's voice.

~ AMBROSE BIERCE ~

Newcomer

I have what I think is a spiritual problem. There's someone I had a major conflict with in my days of active addiction. He did something unforgivable to me, yet he blames me! He never made amends to me, and I'm sure he never will. I've heard that he still goes around bad-mouthing me to other people. I'm furious! How should I handle seeing him?

Sponsor

I'm glad that you see this as a spiritual issue that needs some resolution. It's important to find some way of dealing with the sense of being injured by an "enemy." Our days of gossip and criticism are over, and violent retaliation is not an option if we want to stay in recovery.

Even after we have done Steps Eight and Nine, there may be people whose presence in our lives makes us profoundly uncomfortable. We don't have to be friends with everyone, and not everyone wants to be friends with us.

You and this other person have shared a small piece of the past. It is the past, and it can stay there. When you see him, you can nod or say "hello" in acknowledgment of this mutual past, and move on; in all likelihood, he'll take the cue from you and move on, too. You might consider praying to refrain from further conflict with him, praying to heal the memories that disturb you, praying to live in the freedom of the present. You'll be surprised how much lighter your feelings will become.

Today, I take my Higher Power with me wherever I go, even into my past.

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~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Remember those days when you walked around with a chip on your shoulder—daring any and all the hostile world to knock it off and you were beaten and kicked at every turn. You were constantly fighting alcohol, and people, and things.

The day finally came when you had had enough; you were beaten to your knees; the chips toppled from your shoulder when you surrendered, and your burdens became lighter at once. Actually you had only been fighting yourself all the time.

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~ The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK ~ (A Collection of Favorite 12 Step Prayers and Inspirational Readings) ~

Looking for God

Higher Power, I remember when I was new to recovery I was told to go out and find You. I made little progress until I realized, through surrendering my will, You had always been trying to find me. I then began to recognize the ways You are already here with me. Once I learned to feel Your presence, in my good and bad days, it became much easier to trust You and to surrender to Your will.

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~ AROUND THE YEAR WITH EMMET FOX ~ (A Book of Daily Readings) ~

NO GRAVE ROBBING

Don't, be a grave robber. Let corpses alone. In due course nature disposes of such remains, if they are left undisturbed. Every time you dig up an old grievance or an old mistake by rehearsing it in your mind or, still worse, by telling someone else about it, you are simply ripping open a grave—and you know what you may expect to find.

Live the present. Prepare intelligently for the future—and let the past alone. This is what Jesus meant when he said, . . . let the dead bury their dead (Matthew 8:22).

Make a law for yourself today that you are not going to touch mentally any negative thing that has happened up to the present moment—and keep that law. Life is too precious for grave robbing. The past is past—liquidate it. If a negative memory comes into your mind, cremate it with the right thought (the fire of Love) and forget it.

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~ A DEEP BREATH OF LIFE ~ (365 Daily Inspirations for Heart-Centered Living) ~

Experience, Not Opinion

Stay at home in your mind. Don't recite the opinions of others.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

Vinny was a fellow with whom I enjoyed working. He was always very kind to me, and he followed through on his business agreements. When I spoke to others about Vinny, I heard quite a different story. I was astounded by the number of people he had managed to alienate, all of whom complained about his lack of integrity. When one of Vinny's competitors invited me to break my association with Vinny and work with him instead, I had to dig into my soul to determine my truth. While it was obvious that Vinny had created poor business relationships with nearly everyone else, that was not my experience with him. For whatever reason, he had shown me only kindness and fairness. I realized I would be out of integrity if I jumped ship because other people had had a bad experience with him. I told the other fellow that I was satisfied working with Vinny, and until I had an experience to the contrary, I would stay with him.

No matter what experiences other people create, we have only our own to go by. Looking back, I see that it would have been cruel and unkind of me to leave Vinny because other people did not like him. My relationship with him was what it was, and it did not depend on what other people thought of him.

In the film A Man for All Seasons, Thomas More was an English nobleman who faced extreme pressure to side with a criminal king. More was brought before a kangaroo court of his peers and urged to sign an oath of allegiance "for the sake of camaraderie." More's response: "When you go to heaven for following your conscience, and I go to hell for not following mine, will you join me there 'for the sake of camaraderie'?"

Honor your friends by being true to your own experience.

Help me be confident in my own truth, and live it.

I create according to my own consciousness.