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September 14

Step by Step

"Why sit with a long face in places where there is drinking, sighing about the good old days? If it is a happy occasion, try to increase the pleasure of those there; if a business occasion, go and attend to your business enthusiastically. If you are with a person who wants to eat in a bar, by all means go along. Let your friends know they are not to change their habits on your account. ...While you were drinking, you were withdrawing from life little by little. Now you are getting back into the social life of this world. Don't start to withdraw again just because your friends drink liquor." - Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Ch 7 ("Working With Others"), p 102.

Today, what "good old days" of my drinking? If they were so good, why am I in AA? And because I am in AA, do I skirt responsibility for my alcoholism by expecting or asking others to accommodate me by not having alcohol in their houses or serve it when I'm there? Do I expect a friend to take me to a new restaurant if the one we frequented serves liquor? And if others don't alter their habits to convenience me, do I repeat what I did as my drinking progressed by steadily withdrawing? Today, I begin taking responsibility for my own addiction and recovery by making changes from within and not expecting them from outside. By failing to do that, I am doing little else than living in the problem of struggling not to drink instead of the answer of sobriety. And our common journey continues. Step by step. - Chris M.

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

NEW FRIENDS

Our friends are people who know all about us and still like us.

~ Anonymous ~

Because we are people who need people in order to maintain a happy recovery, we know that making friends can be one of our most important activities. We have over-come our "terminal uniqueness," isolation, and feelings of "being alone in a crowd." Sharing with friends in recovery is vital to our Program.

We are told we can be an example of how our Program works. When we make new friends in recovery, sharing our experiences and learning from theirs, we carry the message. To be a loner is to deny this to others. As recovering people, we need others in order to survive. Again we are reminded that no one can do it for us, but we can't do it alone.

By sharing with friends and making new ones, I've overcome my "terminal uniqueness." I carry the message and work my Program.

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

I began to have an idea of my life, not as the slow shaping of achievement to fit my preconceived purposes, but as the gradual discovery and growth of a purpose which I did not know.

~ Joanna Field ~

When we pledge to turn our life and our will over to the care of God, we have taken a profound step. With those words we enter into the mystery of the spiritual life. We move from feeling alone to trusting that our Higher Power will guide our choices. We move from focusing on what we want to focusing on who we will become. We stop trying to control everything and become open to the mystery that underlies life.

For some of us, today presents challenges and worries. Some of us are anxious about a problem at work or within our family. We may have a painful dispute with our life partner. In the wisdom of the spiritual path, we can lean back on the faith that we don’t have to deal with these things alone. We can do what is possible, and we can rely on the care of God to work in the ways of God.

Today I am grateful for the care and purposes of God to lead me in dealing with life.

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

Sharing secrets requires trust. Accepting secrets requires an open heart.

~ Kathleen Tierney Andrus ~

Sometimes we feel so different, so out-of-place with our co-workers, siblings, or even friends. Self- consciousness overwhelms us when we hide parts of ourselves from other people, fearing they’d reject us if they knew who we really were. Living in fear and isolation with our secrets gives others far too much power over us. We’re not comfortable when we try and hide so much of ourselves.

If we take notice, we’ll see that at least one woman at every Twelve Step meeting risks her anonymity to talk about a dark area of her life. She is a wonderful example to us. Our acceptance of her heals her. Her sharing with us begins our own healing process.

Accepting the secrets a friend needs to share today will help her heal. I will benefit too. My secrets will no longer reign so powerful.

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

I need to keep "first things first"

In recovering from my dual disorder, I have two "first things": abstinence in my addiction and stability in my psychiatric illness. I can't simply choose either abstinence or medication. I need to stay free of street drugs and keep up my prescribed psychiatric medication. I can't simply choose between Twelve Step meetings or my group therapy meetings prescribed by my psychiatrist. They're different and I need them both, one for each illness. Each part supports the other.

I must keep in mind that I have two no-fault illnesses that can affect one another and so place my recovery at greater risk. I am coming to believe that my very first thing—the most important thing in my life—is recovery.

I will put my daily dual recovery activities first.

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

Glance at negatives
but focus on positives.

~ Maxwell Maltz ~

It is always easy for a chemically dependent person to focus on the negatives. Up until now we have had little experience with positives. But now we can learn to use life’s negatives as tools for learning rather than as an outline for continued failure.

Taking an inventory will turn them into such tools and rid us of the excess baggage we’ve been carrying for so long. By making a searching and fearless moral inventory, writing it all down on paper, we can see the past for what it was, recognize what caused it, and think about what we can learn from it. Then, and only then, can the past be disposed of.

Our disease has kept us from looking at the positive side of many things. But already we can find many positive changes in our lives. We are more healthy, more emotionally stable. Our minds are clear again. And we have a Higher Power to protect and love us. Soon we’ll be able to find joy wherever we look, and realize the value of positive thinking.

Today help me see the positives in my negatives.

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

If you don’t like how things are, change it! You’re not a tree.

~ Jim Rohn ~

Imagine that you have signed up for a white-water rafting weekend. As you head off down the river on your first day, your guide shouts commands and issues warnings of upcoming hazards. When the raft nearly flips over in a particularly rough patch of water, he says you are doing an awful job. By the end of the day, you feel like a failure.

But the next day you have a new guide. As you head out in the raft, the guide offers instruction to paddle with greater strength. As you negotiate gnarly twists in the river, the guide praises your efforts. Even when the raft is almost upended, the guide gives soothing guidance and positive feedback. You enjoy this day far more than the previous day.

Some people strive to instill fear in you and speak with anger and impatience. They rarely give praise or guidance. When you are around such people, you feel weak and uncertain of yourself. Others provide support and good advice. They recognize your strengths and give praise. When you are around such people, you feel strong and self-assured. Whom do you choose to be with today as you navigate the river of life?

I choose to associate with people who recognize my strengths and help build my confidence.

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

Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark.

~ Sir Rabindranath Tagore ~

The bird that sings long before the sun has risen is strong evidence of faith. For that bird trusts the sky will soon lighten, the sun will rise, and the world will come alive. It is when the bird won't sing at such a time that we know it has lost faith in the great continuum of things.

Even when things seem darkest for us, we can still sing. Even in our grief or loneliness or fear, we can find a voice within us that will help us have faith that all things change, all wounds heal, all is eased through the passage of time.

We hear people tell us things get better. They do. Of that we can be certain, for it’s as sure as the rising sun. There isn't a day that won't have light. There isn’t a night that won’t have a rising sun at its end. There isn't a problem that won’t have a solution, a teardrop that won't have a smile, a weary soul that won't be energized once again. Tonight we can sing, for we can have faith in the rising sun.

Things aren't as bad as they may seem tonight. There as hope, because there is always change.

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

Being patient

Over time, we get what we want out of this program. If we seek a better way of life, for example, we will develop it. If we want to diminish our pain, we will find relief. If we want love, we will learn how to give it and receive it.

Over time, our lives can improve a great deal through the Twelve Step program. Thus, our job is to keep coming to meetings and working the Steps.

Can I do what I need to do to get what I want?

Higher Power, help me to be patient with myself, the program, and the process of change.

I will continue my process of recovery today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

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

All the stories have been told long ago. Your job is retelling. Relighting.

~ PAM GEMS ~

Newcomer

I can't believe how nervous I was about speaking at a neighborhood meeting. I was thinking, "These people already know all about me; I've got nothing to share that they haven't heard before." But after the meeting, lots of people thanked me

Sponsor

Every meeting is somehow different- Perhaps some people have heard us before, but most likely they bring a new awareness each time they hear us' What we say, as long as it's honest, will touch and connect with what's on other people's minds. What others have to share at the meeting is as important as the speaker's contribution. As all of us listen, identify, and speak in our various ways, our experience, strength, and hope become the warp and woof of another meeting. If our speaking keeps any one of us from acting out our addictions today, it's a success.

Speaking is a tool for staying sober and a service to the rest of us who listen. Your presence, your willingness to show up and share, speaks volumes all on its own.

Today, I have the self-esteem and the humility to share myself as I am.

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~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Beauty that only appeals to the eye is shallow and is of short duration. A thought is only beautiful if it inspires beautiful action. A masterpiece of painting is a masterpiece only if it inspires people to beautiful thinking. Mechanical perfection is only good craftsmanship unless it provides a need for humanity.

A thing of beauty is one that serves a beautiful purpose. If your actions are not motivated by lofty ideals and purposes you are denying yourself much that in beautiful in life.

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

Knowledge

God, may I not fear new ideas and the wisdom offered to me in my recovery. Help me keep my mind open to hear the help that is offered and leave judgment to You. I'm able to hear more clearly when I work the Steps and let You work in my life. May I keep growing and accepting the knowledge that comes my way. When I don't know something, I will admit it. Knowing that I don't know is also knowledge.

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

KEY WORDS IN THE BIBLE

LIFE

Jesus said that he had come that we might have life and that we might "have it more abundantly." The Bible often uses the word life, and always with the implication that it is the greatest of all blessings. With long life will I satisfy him (Psalm 91:16). Thou wilt show me the path of life. . . (Psalm 16:11). Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus says that those who follow him shall have the light of life. And the great goal of man is said all through the Bible to be eternal life.

Now what is this life of which the Bible speaks? You experience life when you feel yourself to be free and useful and joyous, and unconscious of either fear or doubt. Everyone has known such periods. Though they are much rarer than they should be, those are the times that you were alive. At other times you did not have life, in the Scriptural sense.

So when the Bible promises us long life, under certain conditions, it promises us a long period of joy and freedom. When it promises eternal life, it promises the enjoyment of these things forever, on the condition that we keep the Great Law—by seeking more knowledge of God, and putting Him first in our lives.

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

What a Job Is Worth

Get happiness out of your work, or you may never know what happiness is.

~ Elbert Hubbard ~

In a classic Woody Allen scene in the movie What's New, *****cat? Woody meets a friend on a Paris street and tells him he has just gotten a new job helping the lovely dancers of the Folies Bergere to get dressed before their performances. "How much is the pay?" asks his friend. "Twenty sous per week," answers Allen. "Twenty sous per week? That's next to nothing!" the friend chides him.

"I know," Woody answers. "But it was all I could afford."

You know you are in your right job when you have a sneaky feeling you should be paying someone for the opportunity to do it. While this does not mean you need to pay to do it (indeed, the universe will pay you to be in your right place), it points to the truth that right livelihood blesses the giver of a service as much as the receiver.

If you're searching for your right livelihood or evaluating your current work in light of your vision, a good question to ask is, "What would I be doing even if I weren't getting paid for it?" What turns you on so much that you would do it for sheer delight? That is the arrow to follow toward work that will bring you joy as well as prosperity.

Prosperity is not a level of income; it is a consciousness. If you are happy, productive, and giving service in a profession, you are living in the abundance consciousness. This attitude will move you to produce quality work and draw to you plentiful good in the form of money or other material support. When you do what you do not love, you affirm that the universe cannot provide you with joyful livelihood, and that compromise is required of a divine being. The universe will also mirror this attitude if you hold it.

I receive as much from writing and teaching as do the readers or students. Even if no one ever reads what I write, it would still be entirely worth writing it. Work from your heart, and the universe will work for you.

Help me to serve in a way that brings me joy, as well as others.

The universe supports me as I follow my bliss.