AA Thought For Today - December

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AA Thought for the Day

December 19

No Cop-outs
We have to stay sober no matter how life treats us, no matter whether non-alcoholics appreciate our sobriety or not.
We have to keep our sobriety independent of everything else, not entangled with any people,
and not hedged in by any possible cop-outs or conditions.
- Living Sober, p. 64

Thought to Ponder . . .
Keep your sobriety first to make it last.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
O D A A T = One Day At A Time.

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~

Alternatives
If you are as seriously alcoholic as we were,
we believe there is no middle-of-the-road solution.
We were in a position where life was becoming impossible,
and if we had passed into the region
from which there is no return through human aid,
we had but two alternatives.
One was to go on to the bitter end,
blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable situation
as best we could, and the other,
to accept spiritual help.
This we did because we honestly wanted to,
and were willing to make the effort.
c. 1976, 2001AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, pp. 25-6

Thought to Consider . . .
If you always do what you've always done,
you will always be where you've always been.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A B C = Acceptance, Belief, Change.

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*

Simple
>From "Freedom from Bondage":
"The A.A. members who sponsored me told me in the beginning that I would not only find a way to live without having a drink, but that I would find a way to live without wanting to drink, if I would do these simple things. They said if you want to know how this program works, take the first word of your question the 'H' is for honesty, the 'O' is for open-mindedness, and the 'W' is for willingness; these our Big Book calls the essentials of recovery."
2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pgs. 549-50

*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"When I call my sponsor, my friends, someone on my home group's phone list, or someone who scribbled their number on a napkin after a meeting, I make progress ... If we just call, we help one another stay sober, one call at a time, one connection at a time."
Morristown, N.J., May 2003
"Just Call Me"
Beginner's Book: Getting and Staying Sober

~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*

"...I humbly offered myself to God, as I then I understood Him, to do
with me as He would. I placed myself unreservedly under His care and
direction. I admitted for the first time that of myself I was
nothing; that without Him I was lost. I ruthlessly faced my sins and
became willing to have my new-found Friend take them away, root and
branch."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Bill's Story, pg. 13~

"We know what you are thinking. You are saying to yourself, "Im
jittery and alone. I couldnt do that." But you can. You forget that
you have just now tapped a source of power much greater than yourself.
To duplicate, with such backing, what we have accomplished is only a
matter of willingness, patience and labor."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, A Vision For You, pg. 163~

No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principles.
-Alcoholics Anonymous p.56-Alcoholics Anonymous p.60

Having been granted a perfect release from alcoholism, why then shouldn't we be able to achieve by the same means a perfect release from every other difficulty or defect?
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p.64

Misc. AA Literature - Quote

We see that the sun never sets upon A.A.'s Fellowship; that more than three hundred and fifty thousand of us have now recovered from our malady; that we have everywhere begun to transcend the formidable barriers of race, creed, and nationality. This assurance that so many of us have been able to meet our responsibilities for sobriety and for growth and effectiveness in the troubled world where we live, will surely fill us with the deepest joy and satisfaction.
But, as a people who have nearly always learned the hard way, we shall certainly not congratulate ourselves. We shall perceive these assets to be God's gifts, which have been in part matched by an increasing willingness on our part to find and do His will for us.

Prayer for the Day: The Fear Prayer - God, thank you for helping me be honest enough to see this truth about myself and now that you have shown me the truth about my fears, please remove these fears from me. Lord, please help me outgrow my fears and direct my attention to what you would have me be. Father, demonstrate through me and help me become that which you would have me be. Help me do thy will always, Amen.