Even More Recovery Readings and Meditations - January

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January 28

Step by Step

Today, at day’s end, I will look back and know by the grace of God that I did the best I could in all my affairs. If in prayer and meditation I find that I have not fully surrendered to my Higher Power some problem or character defect, I will know I have asked for the wisdom and humility to surrender it once and for all and that, if there is a tomorrow for me, I may be one day closer to that total surrender. I will not have reason to regret some communication with someone else because I was either cruel or indifferent to their needs or feelings. I will be grateful that I was not have tempted to take the first drink that always leads to disaster, and I will go to sleep tonight with the comfort that my Higher Power blessed me with the words, “Well done, my child.” And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

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

FORGIVENESS

Forgiveness is another word for letting go.

~ Matthew Fox ~

What a wonderful discovery it is when we realize our Higher Power has forgiven our past actions! What a joy to know that as we have been delivered from our addiction, we also have been forgiven for our mistakes! We experience a love we never dreamed possible, one which accepts us for being exactly who we are and doesn’t put us down for all the trouble and pain we have caused.

As we have been forgiven, so must we forgive. Our Program instructs us as to how we can receive our forgiveness and how we can extend forgiveness to others. Forgiveness is to recovery as oxygen is to the air we breathe.

We seek to get rid of all the conditions we place on our ability to forgive. There are no “ifs” in forgiveness. “If he apologizes first” or “if she changes her ways” are some of the ways we put conditions on forgiveness.

I realize that to keep my own forgiveness, I must give it away. Forgiveness is for sharing.

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

The grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.

~ Allen K. Chambers ~

A wise old man who had survived years of abuse and hard labor in a Nazi concentration camp and lost several loved ones to the gas chambers was asked how he could live without getting depressed. He answered that it was because he had a purpose in his life.

We are rebuilding our lives after the devastation of codependency and addiction. The promises of this recovery program tell us that we will experience the restoration of meaning and purpose, and we will feel like full-fledged human beings again. Now we are finding those promises coming true every day. There is always plenty to be depressed about. However, we have something to do, we have the love of others, and we have hope for our future.

Today my gratitude and purpose carry me along with plenty to be happy about.

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

I can change only myself, but sometimes that is enough.

~ Ruth Humlecker ~

Happiness is more fleeting for some of us than for others. We may ponder this notion but fail to grasp the reason. However, careful attention to how “the happy ones” go through life will enlighten us. We will note how seldom they complain about others’ actions. We will discover their willingness to accept others as they are. We will see that their attention is generally on the positive aspects of people and circumstances rather than on the negative.

We can join the parade of “happy ones” by letting go of our need to change people and situations that disturb us. Even when we are certain other people are wrong, we can let go of controlling them. Doing this means changing ourselves, of course. But this is the one thing in life we do have control over.

I will change myself if I think something needs changing today!

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

I am grateful for my life

Yes, there’s been much pain in my life. I have had extreme ups and downs. Yes, I have lived with addiction and with serious emotional problems. I have even been suicidal. These problems have cost me spiritually, emotionally, and physically. But I still have life, my life, and I am grateful.

In dual recovery I can see that I am not done realizing my potential. I still have the chance to change and grow. With the help of my higher power, I am developing the necessary acceptance, strength, and courage. Dual recovery shows me how I can integrate my experience to make today better.

I will say a prayer today in gratitude for my life.

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

I was so mixed up I tried to be perfect at avoiding perfectionism!

~ Kathryn G. ~

Oh, the struggle with perfectionism! Of all the clubs we can use to beat ourselves with, that one may be the worst. With all the “musts,” “must nots,” “shoulds,” and “should nots” we demand of ourselves, it’s a wonder we can get through some days at all.

One woman said she called one of her cats by the other cat’s name and as a result spent the next two hours depressed. Most of us don’t go that far with perfectionism, but we still make unreasonable demands of ourselves.

The “one year” test is a good one for perfectionism: “If I (fill in the blank), what difference will it make in a year?” Some things will be important in a year. Making meetings, contacting our sponsor, communing with our Higher Power, and being honest with ourselves and others are all important. And we should be concerned when we fail. But more often we punish ourselves for the little failures — forgetting someone’s name or saying the “wrong thing.” These are the “crimes” we remember the most. But now we can learn to forgive ourselves and concentrate on what’s really important: our new lives in recovery.

Today help me remember what’s important. Help me forgive myself for minor mistakes.

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

Alcoholism isn’t a spectator sport. Eventually the whole family gets to play.

~ Joyce Rebeta-Burditt ~

Alcoholism is a disease that affects everyone. Just as germs can be spread, so too can the effects of alcoholism spread to others. When you were using, here are some of the qualities you may have shown to your children and partner:

• You are autocratic and inflexible, and you discourage growth in others.

• You do not give quality time to others, and you focus on self.

• You do not show or express feelings.

• You are incapable of caring and nurturing others.

Being in recovery provides you with the opportunity to develop and strengthen new qualities that you can show to your children and partner. Starting today, you can:

• Listen to your partner and children, and be flexible.

• Set aside quality time to spend with your partner and children.

• Discuss areas that may be difficult to talk about.

Today I will see myself as part of a family “team.” I will be open and honest, giving, forgiving, and loving.

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

Either you reach a higher point today, or you exercise your strength in order to be able to climb higher tomorrow.

~ Nietzsche ~

It has been said truth will set us free. Truth is not simply being honest with ourselves and others. It is also the ideals by which we would like to live. Some people spend their lifetimes never knowing truth, while others search for it in vain. To find truth, we must set out on individual journeys.

In many Eastern countries, people believe truth is found after scaling a high mountain peak and consulting with the guru. In a way, that’s what we must do- set off on a tiring journey to consult our Higher Power. Yet our goal is not to reach the top, but to realize truth on the way. As we gain such knowledge, the journey becomes easier and less painful.

No matter how good or bad today was, we have gained ground in our search for truth. We may now have some insights to our lives. Even if we didn’t come as far in our journey as we would have liked to today, we still have tomorrow. The search for truth is an ongoing quest filled with great rewards.

Help me find the strength to press onward and upward for truth.

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

Believing in change

At first, drugs or booze turned us on; later they turned on us. We couldn’t find any peace anywhere. We began turning into the kind of person we didn’t want to be, but we didn’t know what was happening to us or how to change.

When we came to believe that our lives could and would turn around if we quit drinking or using, things began to get better.

Do I believe I can change?

Higher Power, help me to be open-minded and humble enough to believe that what has worked to change the lives of others will work to change mine.

Today I will seek change by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

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

Sincerity is the foundation of the spiritual life.

~ ALBERT SCHWEITZER ~

Newcomer

I started out with a temporary sponsor. She was the one who spoke to me first. She seemed to like me and to have real concern for how I was doing as a newcomer. At first, we talked a lot. She knew what being a newcomer was like and said some things that went pretty deep.

Then she became hard to reach. She took her time returning my calls, and when I finally asked if something was wrong, she said she thought I should get a regular sponsor. I was angry and hurt. We’d worked together so well at first.

Sponsor

Some people prefer working with newcomers, helping them through the roller coaster of early recovery, but aren’t available as long-term sponsors. Whatever the underlying reasons, it’s a preference—just as some parents take more naturally to parenting very young, dependent children, while others have an easier time with kids who can walk and talk and read books. There’s nothing wrong with that— it’s just a fact.

Of course, it helps if a sponsor is clear with us from the beginning about the limits of his or her availability. Confusion sets in when people send us mixed signals. I don’t know all the specifics of what occurred between you and your interim sponsor, or whether there was a clear understanding between the two of you at the outset. But what is perfectly clear is her last message: when she suggested that you find another sponsor, then stopped returning calls, she let you know that she was no longer available to you.

I respect your desire to extend the relationship with your temporary sponsor; I, too, can still feel the power of my first attachments in this program. But when someone says no to us, it’s wise to believe what they say. It’s freedom.

Today, I remember that many people are willing to help me on my path.

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~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Man was created in the image of God. We are told that the heart of man is the Temple of the Holy Ghost. A realization of this fact makes the desecration of the body as sacriligious as the desecration of any church.

We alcoholics have a lot of mess to clean up in our Temples in order to make them a fit place for communion with the God in us.

If we really want God to work in and through us in the rehabilitation of other alcoholics, we must provide Him at least a clean workshop.

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~ WALK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG BOOK ~ (Official & Unofficial Sloganeering From the 12 Step Programs) ~

1) The differences between selfishness, self-seeking, and self-centered. Selfishness is: It’s all for me. Self-centeredness is: It’s all about me. Self-seeking is: What’s in it for me?

2) If you want what we’ve got, you’ll do what we’ve done.

3) FINE: Frustrated, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional

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

Peace in God’s Will

My Higher Power, quicken my spirit and fix my thoughts on Your will, that I may see what You would have done, and contemplate its doing without self-consciousness or inner excitement, without haste and without delay, without fear of other people’s judgments or anxiety about success, knowing only that it is Your will and therefore must be done quietly, faithfully, and lovingly, for in Your will alone is my peace.

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

THE DUAL LAW OF THOUGHT

Every thought is made up of two factors, knowledge and feeling. A thought consist of a piece of knowledge with a charge of feeling, and it is the feeling alone that gives power to the thought. No matter how important or magnificent the knowledge content may be, if there is no feeling attached to it nothing will happen. On the other hand, no matter how unimportant or insignificant the knowledge content may be, if there is a large charge of feeling something will happen.

It makes no difference whether the knowledge content is correct or not as long as you believe it to be correct. Remember that it is what we really believe that matters. A report about something may be quite untrue, but if you believe it, it has the same effect on you as if it were true; and that effect again will depend on the quantity of feeling attached to it.

When we understand this law we see the importance of accepting the truth with joy in every phase of our experience.

Thou wilt show me the path of light: in thy presence is fullness of joy . . . (Psalm 16:11)

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

Boomerang Efforts

That the yielding is more powerful than the rigid, is a fact known by all and practiced by none.

~ Lao Tse ~

“I’ve been smoking pot nearly every day for six years,” Bonnie confessed. “I’ve tried to quit many times. No matter how hard I try, I fail. I need help.”

“Then quit trying,” I suggested.

“You mean I should just keep smoking?”

“No, just quit fighting it. Your struggle against smoking is keeping it strong in your mind. Rather than battling what you don’t want, cultivate what you do want. Meditate, pray, read uplifting books, keep supportive company, walk in nature, listen to joyful music—all the things that make you happy. Don’t let the pot smoking be a major issue. If you smoke, love yourself anyway. If the habit is not in your best interests, it will fall away in the presence of the light you are generating.”

Six months later, I saw Bonnie and asked her how she was doing. “I haven’t smoked in three months,” she excitedly proclaimed. “It worked just like you said. I didn’t make smoking a big deal; I concentrated on what I wanted instead of what I didn’t want, and I am done with it. ”

Fighting against something only gives it more power over our life. Those who fight Satan reinforce the thought that Satan is real and stronger than we are. The most direct way to dispel satanic thoughts is to focus on the light. In the presence of light, all darkness must vanish. If you lift up a log in the woods, you will find a host of bugs and worms living underneath it. The moment they are exposed to the light, they scatter. So it is with the illusion of evil. Place love where you once found evil, and you will prove that there is only love.

I place all my problems in Your care and trust You to do for me what I cannot do for myself.

God is the only power. Love is the only reality. Nothing in the outer world can have power over me because God is in me.