Even More Recovery Readings and Meditations - March

[bluidkiti]

March 16

Step by Step

Today, if I believe that alcohol plunged me to depths deeper than I have ever been, I can also believe that AA can lift me to heights I have never known. The journey begins with the first four words of the program: “Admitted (I am) powerless …” Although the program is there for the taking, what I take from it will be only as good as I put in it, and the work of investing in my recovery starts when I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired, when I can’t live with myself any longer because all I have done won’t let me forget, when I accept responsibility for what I have done to myself and others, when I understand that sobriety means more than abstinence and when I understand that there is no easier or softer way to get sober. Today, I am ready to begin achieving a height I have never experienced, and the beginning is in the words, “Admitted (I am) powerless.” And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

ATTENDING MEETINGS

Three suggestions for speaking at meetings: be interesting, be brief, be seated.

~ Anonymous ~

The meetings we attend are like stones for the foundation of recovery. Some meetings we give more than we take; others, we take away more than we give. We always win either way. We remember that when we are called on to speak, we are but a fellow traveler. What makes us unique is not our pretty face, interesting voices, or important jobs. It is our story, the exact way we are experiencing our recovery.

Our lives are much more interesting than our opinions. When we share our actual experiences, people take much more away than if we just shared an idea. We are normally long-winded with an opinion and short-winded with an actual illustration. When we address a group we are humble. It is only by the grace of God that we are asked to share with the group.

At meetings I will share my recovery experiences and not my opinions.

************************************************

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

We are who we are, shaped and molded by the times, by the events, and by the persons we encounter on our way, and no one ever changes very much or escapes entirely from that mold.

~ Ruth Casey ~

Everything we experience today is woven with all that has gone before. We are a tapestry in progress. We grow and change, heightening some of our patterns, successfully diminishing others, and maintaining still others. We need feel no shame for this person we’ve become; we’ve done our best. From this point forward, with the help of the program, our Higher Power, and the wonderful friendships that sustain us, we will add many new colors and stronger threads to the tapestry that continues to be us.

Even though there is often much we want to change in ourselves, there is much that will and should stay the same. Let’s trust that God will guide our efforts in changing those traits that deserve our attention now, leaving the rest for another time. We have been loved, guided, and protected even though we are not perfect. That will be true always.

All that has gone before will help me handle whatever today offers. I am in God’s keeping now and forever.

************************************************

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

I can start a list of people I have harmed

I find it hard to acknowledge that I’ve hurt other people through my dual disorder. It seems I can remember only my own pain, whether due to my addiction or my emotional illness.

But in working the first seven Steps, I see more clearly that, indeed I have hurt loved ones and others. It’s just hard to admit it. I’m afraid that if I start thinking about my past behaviour I’ll get depressed again or I’ll feel guilty enough to drink. I know that I need to be strong and stable when I begin writing the list. And I will trust my higher power to help me.

Today I will start my Eighth Sep by putting just one name on the list.

***********************************************

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

No one has ever done anything too bad to be forgiven.

~ Ruth Sheppard ~

When we learn to forgive ourselves, we grow, spiritually and emotionally, in leaps and bounds. As we loosen our noose of self-loathing, we begin to breathe with a new sense of energy and purpose. No longer tied by the shackles of self-hate, we are able to see the world as friend instead of foe.

We each have a choice about how we view the world. Do we see it as friendly or unfriendly? Do we expect people to be safe or unsafe? Wounded by life, we may find it difficult to forgive ourselves and others. A willingness to forgive ourselves for real and imagined wrongs is like taking a fresh drink of water. Nothing parches and dries out the heart faster than the shame of self-loathing. Nothing refreshes and rejuvenates like self-love.

Living in today we begin with the simple wish to love ourselves better. Nurturing a friendship with ourselves gives the world a friendlier feel.

Today let me trust that I am lovable and worthy of the same forgiveness I would wish for others.

************************************************

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

Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else—you are the one who gets burned.

~ Buddha ~

Anger is, in its essence, a protective response to a perceived hurt. The key word is perceived. More often than not, there is no need to protect yourself. But that does not mean your anger should be ignored. When you have a hard time going with the flow, you can say or do hurtful things. When you feel sensitive and others offer advice, you may push them away. When you are at a heightened level of stress or worry, anything that happens or is said to you can be like a match lit to your short fuse. All these things create a life of chaos—both for yourself and for others.

Deal with your anger by talking about what makes you feel angry. Be aware of what can spark anger, and practice a mental countdown during such times. Take a deep breath and count backwards from ten. When you do this, you can replace anger with calmness and focus.

Until you acknowledge there is a price you pay from the fallout caused by your anger, you will not seek ways to effectively change your behavior.

Today I will use a mental countdown whenever I feel angry.

************************************************

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

Few begin with anything like a clear view of what they want to do, and the fortune they seek may come in a very different form from that which they have kept in view.

~ The Independent, August 1898 ~

Take a look at the most focused and purposeful people we know, and we’ll find one common trait. Al-though most worked toward some goal, they all simply began without knowing what would happen. Christopher Columbus set out to prove the world wasn’t flat, not to discover the New World. Alexander Graham Bell was fascinated with recording and projecting human voices, not creating a worldwide communications network.

What those people share is the fact that they started. They didn’t just sit back and dream. They chose an objective and had faith to begin and follow through, despite repeated failures and years of work. We can dream and fantasize to our heart’s content. But we will never realize our aspirations until we take that first step.

What would I like to achieve? Higher Power, I ask for faith to take the first step toward this achievement.

************************************************

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

Giving up possessiveness

Gradually we begin to see that everything be-longs to God. As long as we strive to possess, we are not free. It is possible to simply use things without possessing them. Ownership is really only stewardship, and whatever is in our care must be used for the good.

But this doesn’t mean we won’t have what we need. If we first seek the spiritual in life, we will not go wanting, and we will discover that less is more.

Am I giving up my possessiveness?

Higher Power, help me to keep in mind that the air which sustains me is not mine.

Today I will select two of my possessions to give to charity; they are

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Falling in love.. .is as much a drug as any that people swallow, snort, smoke, or shoot.

~ ANDREW WEIL ~

Newcomer

I’m attracted to another newcomer who goes to some of the meetings I go to. I can’t help it; I just can’t get this person out of my mind. My heart pounds when we’re in the same room, and I can barely concentrate.

Sponsor

More than once in early recovery, I became intensely pre-occupied with thoughts of another person. In each case it was someone I didn’t know well, but felt attracted to. Like you, I could hardly think about anything else. Though I was certainly distracted, I stayed sober. I went to lots of meetings—not always for the best reasons! These intense romantic preoccupations were something I have since learned to call obsession. Obsession doesn’t have much in common with the process of getting to know others and letting them get to know me.

We can learn something about ourselves by paying attention when an obsession starts taking over our mental space. Is some feeling—anger, fear, or sadness, for example- making us uncomfortable? Obsession can function to keep us “safe” from the present reality. Our addictions served the same function when we were active.

Today, I practice staying in the moment. I reach out to other newcomers in the spirit of friendship.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

The dollar is worth but about half its value of only a few years ago. Capital gains taxes have depreciated all properties by twenty-five percent. Moneys invested in stocks and bonds can be swept away between dawn and dark. The sound investment of today can be a white elephant on your hands tomorrow.

Your dollars invested in the rehabilitation of human souls are the only investment that can’t lose. The dividends are paid whether the project fails or not. This way you can’t fail to win.

************************************************

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

1) HALT: Horny, Arrogant, Lazy, and Tragic

2) We’re responsible for the effort, not the outcome!

3) My gratitude speaks when I care and share the NA Way

************************************************

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

Prayer for Healing

Higher Power,

You have told us to ask and we will receive, to seek and we will find, to knock and You will open the door to us.

I trust in Your love for me and in the healing power of Your compassion. I praise You and thank You for the mercy You have shown to me.

Higher Power, I am sorry for all my mistakes. I ask for Your help in removing the negative patterns of my life. I accept with all my heart Your forgiving love.

I ask for the grace to be aware of the character defects that exist within myself. Let me not offend You by my weak human nature, or by my impatience, resentment, or neglect of people who are a part of my life. Rather, teach me the gift of understanding and the ability to forgive, just as You continue to forgive me.

I seek Your strength and Your peace so that I may become Your instrument in sharing those gifts with others.

Guide me in my prayer that I might know what needs to be healed and how to ask You for that healing.

It is You, Higher Power, whom I seek. Please enter the door of my heart and fill me with the presence of Your spirit now and forever.

I thank You, God, for doing this.

***********************************************

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

LETTER OR SPIRIT

Jesus made a special point of discouraging the laying of emphasis upon outer observances; and, indeed, upon hard-and-fast rules and regulations of every kind. What he insisted upon was a certain spirit in one’s conduct, knowing that when the spirit is right, details will take care of themselves. Yet, in spite of this, the history of orthodox Christianity is largely made up of attempts to enforce all sorts of external observances upon the people.

Who also hath make us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit; for the letter kelleth, but the spirit giveth life (2 Corinthians 3:6).

************************************************

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

ILVU4FR

The trick, according to Chiang, was for Jonathan to stop seeing himself as trapped inside a limited body with a forty-two inch wingspan….The trick was to know that his true nature lives, as perfect as an unwritten number, everywhere at once across space and time.

~ from Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Bach ~

Robert signed Janet’s senior yearbook in the above personal shorthand, meaning: “I love you forever.” Shortly after graduation, the two married and bore a beautiful son, Teddy. Robert was offered a good job and flew to New York for the interview, from which he called with the exciting news that he had been hired. Tragically, he never arrived home; he was killed by a drunk driver. Several months later, Janet’s funds were dwindling and her life looked hopeless. Four-year-old Teddy was drawing with crayons one day when he said, matter-of-factly, “Daddy,” and wrote “ILVU4FR,” followed by “MDTNBK34STBX1142.”

Janet took the paper to Robert’s business partner and the two decoded: “Midtown Bank on 34th St.” Remembering Robert’s business trip, Janet dipped into her small savings and flew to New York. There she found Midtown Bank and learned that Robert had taken a safe deposit box, in which she found a life insurance policy for $200,000.

A very thin veil separates the physical world from the world of spirit. While everything on earth seems solid, it is interpenetrated with other dimensions that we can perceive with higher vision. If necessary, we can communicate with those in spirit, and they with us.

Love has the power to span dimensions. If you have a dream or the sensation of departed loved ones, it is likely that they are in your field of consciousness and wish to communicate with you. There is nothing spooky about interdimensional communication; it is as real and natural as two people on different parts of the globe communicating via telephone.

Open your mind and heart to a greater universe, and be blessed by love from all dimensions.

Open my eyes, mind, and heart to the highest communication in spirit.

Everyone I love is always with me.

[bluidkiti]

March 17

Step by Step

Today, I begin reconditioning my thought processes to think as a sober alcoholic instead of one still drinking. Much of my thinking has been under the influence but, without that influence, I have to believe that my thoughts will change – for the better. As such, I need to adapt myself to a perspective unfamiliar to me. Not doing so will make me little more than a dry drunk. And AA promises that recovery is more than being dry. I must make a conscious decision that I will no longer think in terms of “me” and that the thinking patterns that enabled my alcoholic drinking must change. Today, I start to retrain my brain to think in terms of sobriety and dismantle my thinking from the perspective of the drunk that I am working to dropkick into yesterday. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

THIS TOO SHALL PASS

Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace during a storm.

~ Anonymous ~

We learn in our recovery that life has a way of recreating itself. The discovery is one we are taught not to fight. We remember how badly we hurt when things would pass away from us, whether it was a lost doll, a lost dog, or a lost dad. We closed ourselves off from the possibility that anything of value could come from the loss. Yet the doll was replaced, a cat came into our lives, and a father figure emerged.

The key to staying in our Program is to remember that life does recreate itself. There will be many moments when we find ourselves squarely in the middle of a passing away. We will be hurt and wonder how we can go on.

Not to worry, this too shall pass. This cold winter of a moment will break soon into a sunny spring of a future.

There can be no comings if there are no goings. Life can’t be recreated if there is no passing away. I need to remember that sometimes it is darkest before daybreak.

************************************************

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

A “no” uttered from the deepest conviction is better and greater than a “yes” merely uttered to please or what is worse, to avoid trouble.

~ Mahatma Gandhi ~

We don’t like to make anyone unhappy with us. We don’t like to hurt anyone’s feelings. We feel best when others tell us they like what we do. And we have the idea that we are strong enough to put aside our own wishes and feelings when others have strong desires. In our denial we tell ourselves, “I can handle it.” We have even violated our sense of what is right because someone else insisted.

Many a man has gotten himself into serious problems because he didn’t muster the courage to say no at critical times. In sexual situations we said, “I couldn’t hurt her feelings.” In work situations we said, “I am only doing it the way everyone else does it.” Within our families we said, “I don’t want to cause an uproar.” But now, with our good values and our good intuition, we can find the strength to stand up for what we believe. We have our honor and our self-respect for staying honest.

Today I will speak my honest truth, not to be right but to be true to myself.

************************************************

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

I don’t always know what I want, but I do know what I don’t want.

~ Helen Neujahr ~

We don’t want pain or confusion in our lives. We don’t want friends to depart. We don’t want a boss to be too demanding. And we don’t want to lose control of the outcomes that are unfolding around us every day. There is so much we don’t want. How lucky we are to be in this program and to have a caring Higher Power to help us handle the situations that we don’t want in our lives.

We need the help of a Higher Power because we seldom know what is really best for us. Had we had our way in years past, we most likely would not be recovering. Instead, we may have stayed in a relationship that was quietly killing us, or we may have killed someone else or ourselves because of our addiction. God had a better plan for us then; God continues to have a better plan for us now.

We must be ready to relinquish that which we think we want if the evidence confronting us suggests God thinks differently. We must let hindsight offer us enlightenment regarding God’s better plan.

I will trust God to direct my thoughts and my actions. I will try to want what God wants for me today.

************************************************

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

I can find acceptance

I have a dual disorder of chemical dependency and psychiatric illness. Today I am clean and sober, attending outpatient treatment, and taking psychiatric medication. But even though I am taking care of myself, at times I feel ashamed. I feel like hiding. I feel like I’m less than other people – separate and unloved.

Except when I go to my dual recovery meeting. There, I can be seen and be safe. There, I don’t feel judged – we all have similar problems. There, I feel part of a caring community. They simply accept me with my two no-fault illnesses.

I will make a commitment to regularly attend a Twelve Step meeting for my dual recovery so I can be with people who accept me – the people I need.

***********************************************

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

The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.

~ Robert Louis Stevenson ~

When we first began recovery, we were sick and lost. The world seemed a grim and bleak place to us, with no comfort or relief in sight. We had given up our addiction, our best friend and worst enemy, and we had nothing to replace it. We retreated from the misery of our physical selves, ignoring our bodies and the outside world.

Gradually, in recovery, our vision has cleared and we can see the world around us again, not through the foggy eyes of compulsion and need, but as it really is, full of variety, majesty, and beauty. The seasons change. Life and light shift. Trees, grass, and flowers go from gaudy to gaunt and back again. The wind changes direction announcing rain or snow or sun.

We’ve rediscovered food, the crackling of wood in a fireplace, the color of a sunset, the smell of new earth and rain.

We can be grateful instead of bitter, and open instead of shut off from others. We are growing instead of dying. We’ve found love and warmth. From near-death, we’ve found rebirth.

Today let me take time to look up at the sky and down at the earth and appreciate the beauty I see.

************************************************

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

A painful time in our life is what I call a “healing crisis.” We are letting go of something old and opening to something new.

~ Shakti Gawain ~

Healing is a combination of three components: letting go of something that has a negative impact on you, believing in yourself, and appreciating the gift of time, to get better—in mind, body, and spirit.

When a cut is healing, pulling the scab off inflicts more hurt. Simply put, healing begins when you leave the cut alone. The same is true of healing yourself. You cannot get better when you stay in difficult situations or associate with unhealthy people. Healing begins when you can let go of the negative people, places, and things in your life so you can free yourself from pain.

Healing also requires time and patience. Focus on each moment by taking care in what you say, what you think, and what you do.

Just as healing is a matter of time, so too is it a matter of opportunity. One of the greatest healing therapies is your connection to yourself. Healing takes place when you open your heart in love and acceptance of who you are becoming through the process of healing.

Healing is the journey I will take today. The destination for this journey will be to know myself better and to love myself more.

************************************************

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

The great rhythms of nature, today so dully disregarded, wounded even, have here their spacious and primeval liberty. . . . Journeying birds alight here and fly away again all unseen, schools offish move beneath the waves, the surf flings its spray against the sun.

~ Henry Beston ~

We think about the many things that are happening around the world. Tonight it is tomorrow somewhere. A new day is dawning, birds are awakening. A rhythm is starting unlike our rhythm now.

Somewhere on the ocean, a supertanker is delivering products to a new location. Beneath it are miles of depth teeming with many varieties of fish. A rhythm is happening that is unobserved.

Birds are flying somewhere in the world right now. There is a nest of eggs with a parent patiently maintaining their warmth. Somewhere there are farmers plowing, children playing, musicians creating, teachers teaching. We are a part of it all. We belong to every creature and every place. We are here—and we are everywhere.

Tonight I can close my eyes and imagine all the life around me and know I am part of it all.

************************************************

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

Getting in touch with our feelings

When we were using alcohol and other drugs we lost our moral path. It caused us anguish to feel one way but act another. Eventually we got so confused that we wondered how we really felt.

But now in the program, we want to get honest with ourselves. We want to know our feelings and be able to express them. After a while, those around us will begin to feel that they can trust us and depend on us.

Can I reveal my true feelings?

God, give me the courage to be honest with myself and others about how I am feeling, especially if it’s not how I wish I felt.

The true feelings I will disclose today are

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

The easiest kind of relationship for me is with ten thousand people. The hardest is with one.

~ JOAN BAEZ ~

Newcomer

Where were you yesterday? I called you at nine in the morning and eleven at night; both times I got your answering machine and left a message. I know you’re a busy person, but I thought that people in this program would at least have the courtesy to return my calls.

Sponsor

I did have a busy day yesterday; I missed talking with you. This is going to happen once in a while, so I’m glad that you have other phone numbers and a meeting list.

When I was newly recovering, my motto was “I want what I want when I want it!” Sometimes my sponsor wasn’t available instantly and had to call me back later; sometimes she said things I didn’t want to hear at all. When my response was to withdraw—to stop calling, or miss meetings so I wouldn’t have to see her—I closed the door to healing. But when I could summon the courage to say, “I feel hurt, I feel angry, I’m afraid to trust you!” we could talk about what was going on and reason things out together.

Thank you for letting me hear how upset you were that our routine was disrupted; it’s an important part of the work you are doing in recovery. I won’t always be able to give you what you want when you want it, but I do respect your feelings.

Today, I have the courage to call my sponsor, even though I may have thoughts or feelings I’d prefer to ignore. I keep the lines of communication open.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Too few people can distinguish the difference between the moderate or social drinker and the compulsive drinker. In fact, the line is so indistinct that the drinker himself does not know until it is too late.

The Niagara River is a smooth-flowing stream until it reaches the Falls and then, in a matter of feet, it becomes a churning torrent of danger and death.

************************************************

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

1) No two of us are alike, that should make us grateful!

2) If you want to know what’s in your heart, listen to your mouth.

3) Take the program seriously, not yourself.

************************************************

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

Things to Give

Today, I pray I may give:

To my enemy: Forgiveness.
To my opponent: Tolerance.
To my customer: Service.
To a friend: Kindness.
To all people: Charity.
To my family: My heart.
To every child: A good example.
To myself: Respect.

To You, Higher Power: LOVE
With all my heart,
With all my soul,
With all my mind.

***********************************************

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

MIRACLES

Jesus taught through miracles.

If the miracles did not happen, the rest of the Gospel story loses all real significance. If Jesus did not believe them to be possible, and undertake to perform them, then the Gospel message is chaotic, contradictory, and devoid of significance.

But the deeds related to Jesus in the Four Gospels did happen, and many others too, “the which, if they should be written, every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.” Jesus himself justified what people thought to be a strange teaching by the works he was able to do; and he went further and said,

… the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works… (John 14:12).

Now what, after all, is a miracle? Those who deny the possibility of miracles on the ground that the universe is a perfect system of law and order, to the operation of which there can be no exception, are perfectly right. But the explanation is that the world of which we are normally aware, and with whose laws alone most people are acquainted, is only a fragment of the whole universe as it really is; and that there is such a thing as appealing from a lower to a higher law—from a lesser to a greater expression. In the sense of a real breach of law, miracles are impossible. Yet, in the sense all ordinary rules and limitation of the physical plane can be set aside or overridden by an understanding that has risen about them, miracles can and do happen.

************************************************

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

Move the Spotlight

If someone in your life talked to you the way you talk to yourself, you would have left them a long time ago.

~ Dr. Carla Gordan ~

I wondered why I had signed up for this expensive astrology consultation. As the astrologer discussed my chart, I found myself feeling bored and impatient. Finally, he made an assessment that rang my chimes: “You are the kind of person who, if you did a job with 99 percent excellence, would berate yourself for the other one percent.” I had never thought about myself that way, but he was correct. The entire reading and fee were worth that insight.

The amount of abusive self-talk we put up with is incredible. We must retrain our mind to spotlight what is working rather than what is not. The rational mind is programmed to search for errors and imperfections. But the nature of the heart is to find what is lovable and expand on that. The habit of fault-finding is learned, and, as such, we can re-educate our vision to find perfection. A Course in Miracles tells us that we are much too tolerant of mind-wandering. We allow our fearful mind to run in every which way without calling it to return to sanity. We will have as much insanity in our lives as we allow; we can eliminate it entirely if we choose.

In prayer or meditation, ask that you become aware of patterns of thought with which you hurt yourself: “Poor me,” “Never enough,” and Why can’t I?” are trains of thought that will take you over a cliff if you ride them. If you read the destination printed on the train before you step onto it, you can choose another train and replace those negative patterns with “Blessed me,” “Always enough,” and “How can I?” A Course in Miracles asks us to affirm, “I can elect to change all thoughts that hurt”

Instead of being a fault-finder, become a perfection-finder, and quickly the world you live in will reflect your vision.

Show me how to think in harmony with Your will. I want to live in the world You created.

I find the good because I seek it.

[bluidkiti]

March 18

Step by Step

Today, stop thinking about what I have lost to alcoholism with pangs of grief, mourning, regret, self-pity, anger and a feeling of injustice. AA has shown me how to turn the pain into gratitude that I had in the first place the people, things and opportunities that are now gone. I have also learned to look not at what I have lost but what I may still gain in recovery. The Fourth and 10th steps of recognizing my character disease, and the command to service in the 12th step hold the promise of gains yet to come. Today, the bitter of the sweet from the pains of my drinking yields to the prospect that I may yet experience that which might overshadow the losses that still hurt. But I have to work the steps of restoration, reconciliation and service to yield the benefits. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

LEARNING

I have learned . . . tolerance from the intolerant and kindness from the unkind. I should not be ungrateful to these teachers.

~ Kahlil Gibran ~

Once again, we are students. This time we are learning the secrets f living completely. These secrets have always been around us. We only had to clear our thinking of the obsessions, dependencies, denials, excessiveness, fears, jealousies and other destructive ideas and habits that ruled us. We had to open our minds to accept and our hearts to understand.

We have found teachers in our Program. Each teacher is a new friend. We learn from them and they learn from the growth of our awareness. We find lessons in the glaring faults we see in others. We learn from our own errors.

In my troubled years, I remembered my school days as perhaps the happiest of my life. I thought they were gone forever. But I’ve found them again in the Program, and I love being back in school.

************************************************

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

Who forces time is pushed back by time; who yields to time finds time on his side.

~ The Talmud ~

We are impatient for results. Upon entering a program of recovery, going without a drink or giving up other addictive behaviors for more than a day or a week seems like a huge challenge. When we see friends in recovery with several years of sobriety, we can’t imagine achieving that. Future time can seem like a mountain. Our attitude shifts when we see time not as a challenge that we must overcome, but as our friend, working for us. Time is more like a lake that we swim in. It holds us up and carries us along.

One day at a time, we live only in this present moment. We live more fully when we are present to this moment, yielding to what time will do, letting go of frets and worries about the future.

On this day, I will be alive and aware of my experience.

************************************************

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

Through learning to like myself, I’ve been more willing to understand others.

~ JoAnn Reed ~

Unrealistic expectations hinder our growth and relationships. We too often try to be superwoman and we want others to complement our drama. But no one can match our expectations. It’s helpful, then, to step back and remind ourselves that we’re all okay, we’re good enough. We are where we need to be for this point in our journey. With effort we’re coming to believe this, little by little.

How do we give up unrealistic expectations, especially when they are triggered by our shame over not being perfect? Coming to believe that we are acceptable, even lovable, to our Higher Power requires a suspension of our disbelief. We must first “act as if’ and then take time to notice all the goodness in our lives. The evidence will convince us that we are protected and guided, thus loved. Meditating on this truth will give us permission to accept and love ourselves. Understanding and then loving others is only a small step away.

I want to love and appreciate myself and all my friends today. We are here to help each other. God is here too.

************************************************

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

I can tell my doctor about my addiction

When I first saw my psychiatrist about my symptoms, he asked me if I use alcohol or other drugs. For a few moments, I felt ashamed and embarrassed, but I managed to reply that, in fact, I was recovering from alcoholism.

I knew it was important to make this information clear. Because of my addiction, I must abstain from addictive substances. But with a psychiatric illness, I might have to take a psychiatric medication, maybe just for a while, perhaps longer term. Happily, I learned that this potential jeopardy to my abstinence is avoided as long as the medication is not addictive. To get stable with my psychiatric illness, I will not have to risk relapse to my addiction.

Today I will pray for honesty and humility in all aspects of my recovery.

***********************************************

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

Forget the Past, enjoy the Present, the Future will take care of itself.

~ James Thurber ~

Time was, we didn’t live in today, but only in the past and the future. We hated ourselves for things we’d done or said — rewriting conversations in our heads, spinning endless rationalizations about what had happened. Or we’d think about the ever-elusive tomorrow. Tomorrow we’d have a good job, begin recovery, make friends, make up with our families, have a wonderful place to live, meet the perfect lover, and begin to enjoy life. Yesterday and tomorrow took up all our time; there was nothing left over for today.

Then in our Twelve Step program we began for the first time to live in the present. For the first time we can savor life and enjoy our surroundings right now. It’s amazing what there is to see when we look around. People are a delight, too, each of us so alike, yet so different. We see as though through new eyes and notice so much we overlooked before. Live for today. One day at a time. These simple words have the world in them.

Today help me live for today. Help me put the past behind me and the future ahead of me, where they belong.

************************************************

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

There was a period in high school when you had to figure out who you were. You’d think, “Well, I’m not fitting in with this group or that group.” And then you’d start to examine your own inventory and wonder, “Is there anything I can do that is going to make me desirable?”

~ David Letterman ~

When you were young, you may have done things to fit in that were not reflections of who you were, but of how you thought others wanted you to be.

While those days may be well in the past, it is not un-usual to still feel inferior or not good enough. Today, with no addictions to use as a comforting crutch, you may be at a loss for how to handle workplace interactions or social situations.

There is one place where you need not worry about fitting in. You are a member of a program that treats all equally. There is no need to feel inferior or to strive to change just to please others. Even when you are uncomfortable or at a loss for words, take heart in the knowledge that you will always belong.

I will not worry about what others think of me. I believe that who I am becoming is who I need to be. I take comfort in the sense of belonging the program gives me.

************************************************

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

I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure—try to please everybody.

~ Herbert Bayard Swope ~

Principles are rules or codes of conduct we set for ourselves; like being honest, striving to be on time, and taking responsibility for bills and expenses. It is up to us to abide by these principles.

When we compromise a principle for someone else’s benefit, we jeopardize the strength of that principle and its importance to us. If we want to be honest, then lying to cover up another’s actions compromises that principle. If we want to be on time and someone makes demands that cause us to arrive late, we have compromised ourselves and let someone else’s desire dominate.

We need to set certain standards for ourselves and abide by them, even if another person will not be pleased. To let principles triumph over the demands and desires of another is a victory for our inner peace. If we are true to ourselves, we will learn we can count on ourselves no matter what.

Is anyone making demands upon my principles? Help me be true to myself and not make compromises I will regret.

************************************************

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

Freeing ourselves of judgments

Since we tend to condemn in others what we dislike in ourselves we must free ourselves of judgments. Since whatever we express reflects back on us, why express anything but love?

When we judge, condemn, and misunderstand, we invite judgment, condemnation, and misunderstanding in return.

Have I stopped judging others?

Higher Power, let me not judge others today but express the love that I am capable of giving.

Today I will express love to

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

For a girl without a self, I was pretty stubborn.

~ ELEANOR ANTIN ~

Newcomer

I feel good today. Thank God I’ve got my willpower back again. I’ve seen the light: I just have to be strong and stay away from addictive substances.

Sponsor

I prefer the word “willingness” to “willpower.” For me, willpower means forcing myself to do something disagreeable and self-depriving because someone else thinks I should. The trouble with relying on willpower—for me—is that I’m still a rebel in my heart of hearts. Give me something to rebel against, and, in time, I will. Though I may feel guilty when I break the rules, my rebelling somehow comforts me: It’s familiar. It lets me feel like my old self. It lets me say, “This is me, whether they like it or not!”

Willingness, on the other hand, means making a free, open choice to let in the message of recovery. It doesn’t mean always having to be strong. It doesn’t mean having to have all the answers. If we have willingness, we can show up at meetings, listen, and feel supported by the presence of other recovering people and by the laughter in the room. We can grow in recovery through practicing the program and participating in the fellowship.

For today, I don’t try to be strong. I go easy on myself by attending a meeting where I can relax and be myself. I enjoy listening to others share their experience.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Nothing in life is obtained except by pain and toil. This is sad news to us alcoholics who have shunned both like smallpox most of our lives.

Let the famous musician tell you of his hours of dreary practice, the inventor of his hundred failures for each success, the boxing champ of his endless days of absorbing punishment in empty gymnasiums. Toil and suffering are a necessary prelude to success and we should bear our crosses, not as burdens, but as preparations for our ultimate victory.

************************************************

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

1) Thou shalt not ‘should’ on thyself.

2) God only lends us people when we need them.

3) “I” is for illness. ‘We” is for wellness.

************************************************

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

Your Gift

Thank You, Higher Power, for Your gift of recovery; that through this Program I have come to know myself better than ever before, and that I have come to know others better as well. I pray that I may be eternally grateful for this, Your blessing.

***********************************************

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

A BASIC MIRACLE

Let us suppose, for the sake of example, that on a certain Monday, your affairs are in such a condition that, humanly speaking, certain consequences are sure to follow before the end of the week. These may be legal consequences, perhaps of a very unpleasant nature following upon some decision of the courts; or a physician may decide that a perilous operation will be necessary. Now, if someone can raise the consciousness of the harassed individual above the limitations of the physical plane then the conditions on the plane will change, and, in some unforeseen and normally impossible manner, the legal tragedy will melt away, and to the advantage, be it noted, of all parties to the case; or the patient will be healed instead of having to undergo the operation.

In other words, miracles, in the popular sense of the word, can and do happen as the result of a change of consciousness, and a change of consciousness is usually accomplished through prayer. Thus prayer does change things.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:9).

************************************************

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

The C.C.C.C.

Hands of invisible spirits touch the strings of that mysterious instrument, the soul, and play the prelude of our future.

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ~

Me was my first and greatest love,” Michele told our seminar group. “But because I was young and he was older, my parents forbade me to see him. Tearfully we parted, and although I grew up and went through two marriages, I held him in my heart, and he always lived in the back of my mind. Eventually we lost track of each other, and I always wondered how he was. I moved from the Bronx and started a new life in Florida. One day I walked into a 7-Eleven in Clearwater, and there he was—it had been 37 years. We talked and then we went out to dinner. I knew that our meeting was not about us getting back together. It was an answer to my prayer of completing with this man whom I loved so much.”

What great mind could have known how to reunite these two people who cared about each other so deeply? Surely no human technology could draw two lovers together after 37 years and a thousand miles of distance. There is, however, a powerful organization that coordinates such events. It is called the C.C.C.C —the Cosmic Coincidence Control Center. This invisible agency neatly arranges the meeting of any two people who need to connect for an important reason. The center works day and night to keep track of all hearts’ desires and soul needs. All prayers for healing are referred to the C.C.C.C., and the agency makes sure that any incomplete soul issues magnetize the perfect people to work them out.

No one is ever more than a thought away. If it is right, you will draw them or someone similar to you so that your heart may rest.

Lift my vision beyond the limits of this world. Help me remember that I can and will be joined with everyone and everything I need. Thank you for bringing me the right and perfect people and events for the fulfillment of my purpose.

The spirit of love arranges all meetings in divine order for the highest good of all concerned.

[bluidkiti]

March 19

Step by Step

Today, if some destructive emotion like self-pity or anger pops up and tells me I can’t do anything right, I can say with honesty that alcoholism is one thing I did very right and did to a tee – and take the energy I applied to get drunk and thrust it on my recovery. The energy I used to get drunk will be spent instead on AA’s first four words – “Admitted (I am) powerless …” – and on the willingness to surrender my will to a higher power, on the diligence and honesty needed for the subsequent steps, and on being in service to others instead of myself. Today, I can have hope that I can do something good, something right because, if I can do drinking to perfection, I need only take a 180-degree turn and do recovery – certainly not to perfection, but at least getting started. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

LAUGHTER

The most useless day of all is that which we have not laughed.

~ Sebastien R.N. Chamfort ~

When we wallowed in the self-pity of obsession, we were sure we’d never laugh again. How easy it was to weep, alone and secretly, inspired by sad music like “Born to Lose” or “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry.”

What a shock it was to hear people laugh in our first few meetings! How could they laugh about something as serious as addiction? What an awakening when we were able to join the laughter!

We laughed with them as they laughed at the sad objects they once were. Today we can also laugh for pure joy at being free of restraints, and in gratitude for the resolve not to return to our old ways. We can laugh just for being alive.

Laughter is a source of growth for me. It keeps me thinking positively. It reduces the stress of problems. It tells me that any effort at progress is worthwhile. Laughter is progress.

************************************************

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

Next time you’re feeling at odds with yourself make a list of your good qualities… things like generosity and patience and thrift. It will surprise you to discover how nice you really are.

~ Audrey Com ~

Some days we just feel out of sorts and down on our-selves. In this program, we place great importance on self-inventories. We confront our defects and our wrongs, and we make lists of them to hold ourselves responsible. Any good inventory counts both assets and liabilities. On a day when we feel burdened with guilt or weakness, we ought to remind ourselves of the best of who we are. Remember good deeds that we have done. Remember what we do well, and don’t minimize those assets. If we are going to build on our strengths, we have to see them for what they are.

Our attitude toward ourselves and toward life is partly a matter of mental discipline. It does no good for anyone if we sit passively in our negativity. We can learn to affirm that we are children of creation, and we have a right to be here. In spite of our imperfections, we are a force for good.

Today I will carry in my thoughts some of my good qualities.

************************************************

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

With one foot in the past and the other in the future, how can we possibly know what new path we might follow today?

~ Jan Pishok ~

Now is all there is. But how often, really, are our minds in the present? Honestly, aren’t we much more focused on what just happened or what we fear will happen in the next hour or day or year? Being here, now, means giving up the past absolutely. It also means relinquishing all thoughts about the future. Occupying our minds with the experience of this instant only seems hard to do. We’re far more used to greater chaos than what we experience solely in the here and now.

We have a direction that’s right for us. Unfortunately, we miss the road signs because we are still looking over our shoulder at what we passed yesterday. The destiny we need, needs us too. Quietly focusing on our lives, one moment at a time, can assure us of fulfilling it.

Letting go of the noise I carry in my mind changes my life. I can feel and acknowledge what’s here when my mind is open.

************************************************

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

I want to right my wrongs

I’ve done some things in my life that I know hurt other people. Many are minor, a few are major. From time to time, I’ve been troubled by these regrettable acts. Until recently, I didn’t know what I could do about them.

But in the Twelve Step program, there’s Step Nine to help me out. It tells me to acknowledge the harm I’ve done. Chances are that if I apologize and make things right, if I do whatever is necessary, I can feel more at peace with myself. While making amends can be hard at times, I realize now that I can no longer afford a burden of guilt. I can’t risk relapse to addiction or to my psychiatric illness. With the help of my higher power, I can do Step Nine.

I can practice making amends by apologizing the next time I offend someone.

***********************************************

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

Happy the man who could search out the causes of things.

~ Virgil ~

Honesty is the foundation of recovery. In active addiction we lied to everyone, most of all to ourselves. Dishonesty was a way of life for us, as natural as breathing. To recover, we must eliminate it. But first we must learn what it means to be honest. We must eliminate the lies, cover-ups, minimizing, and rationalizations that kept us in active addiction. We must surrender to the truth of what we did and who we were.

Honesty asks that we be alert to the gray areas of dishonesty, the hidden lies. Are we easing up on the serious work of recovery because we’re too tired or too busy? We need to examine our behavior and feelings for the real truth: “Am I really too tired, or am I looking for an excuse to relapse? Have I accepted my Higher Power, or am I still trying to do it alone?”

It takes time to understand ourselves, to recognize the everyday dishonesty that can hurt our recovery. But as we learned to be dishonest, we can learn to be honest. Now we have the comfort and support of the fellowship and our Higher Power to help us.

Today help me be honest with myself and others. Help me recognize my dishonest behavior even when it’s disguised as truth.

************************************************

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

I am an idealist. I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m on my way.

~ Carl Sandburg ~

To paraphrase the Big Book, when you focus on what is bad in a day, you may view your day as a bad one. But when you focus on what is good in a day, you can view your day as a good one. It is all in how you look at things and how you will interpret what you have been given: good or bad.

The program teaches that in order to be clean and sober, you need to conquer negativity and negative phrases. Recovery is not focused on such advisories as “You should not drink or drug.” Instead, recovery is focused on a simple statement: “Just for today, I will not use or abuse.” That statement allows you to make a choice and shift your perspective from what you cannot do to what you can and will do.

When you make choices based on optimism, you empower yourself in ways that enable you to see your life as one that is filled with opportunities and growth.

Today I will change my interpretation of what I have been given from the negative to the positive. I will begin each day with a positive outlook, and I will bring positive energy into all that I do and say.

************************************************

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

Like the body that is made up of different limbs and organs, all mortal creatures exist depending upon one another.

~ Hindu proverb ~

We may have believed only we could solve our problems and satisfy our needs. Or we may have been super-responsible about caring for others, yet negligent in caring for ourselves. “I’ll take care of it,” may have been our most-used phrase.

There are some things only we can do for our emotional, physical, and spiritual health: eat right, exercise, get plenty of rest, pray and meditate on a daily basis. Yet there are needs we cannot take care of alone: solving all our problems, comforting ourselves, developing intimacy with others, feeling loved and cared for. Those things need to come from others.

Imagine how dependent we would be on others if we lost our eyesight or hearing or mobility. We don’t need a physical handicap to ask for help. We have in-visible handicaps that are linked to our emotional and spiritual needs. To mend them, we must ask others for help and guidance. We cannot do it alone.

Tonight instead of saying, “I’ll take care of it,” I can ask, “Will you help me?”

************************************************

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

Removing defects

Through working the Steps we can discover which of our character traits are valuable and which no longer work for us. And very, very gradually, as we grow in the program, we can let go of the traits that aren’t working.

We have suffered much because of our imperfections. When we are ready to quit suffering, we will be willing to ask that these defects of character be removed, one at a time. When we are willing to work at them a day at a time, we will discover miraculous changes beginning to take place in ourselves.

Am I letting go of all my defects?

Higher Power, I am entirely ready and willing to have my defects of character removed.

The defect I will work on letting go of today is

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

I still have my days when I have trouble, and I have to sit down and think about how far I’ve come.

~ WOMAN IN RECOVERY ~

Newcomer

I’m overwhelmed again. There’s so much that I should get done today, so much ahead that scares me. I feel sick and Indecisive, I’ve heard the slogan “First things first,” but I don’t know where to begin.

Sponsor

First, I suggest that you give yourself some credit for what you’ve already accomplished today. Yes, you have accomplished something. Here you are, awake: you’ve started an-other day of your new life in recovery. You know that no matter what happens today, you don’t have to use an addictive substance. You’re identifying some feelings and reaching out for help. All this is significantly different from old patterns of behavior.

“First things first” is a reminder that we can set priorities. The first priority for every single one of us in recovery is not picking up an addictive substance. Without recovery, none of the other things in our lives will have much chance to come to fruition. We have to save our lives first. If we need meetings, phone calls, or prayer to keep from losing recovery, we put those needs at the top of our list. Then we can sort out the rest and list things in order of importance.

Today, I celebrate how far I’ve come. I set priorities and keep recovery at the top of my list. I take small actions that get me closer to my goals.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

No man ever lived without a God of some kind. If it was not the God of Abraham or the Christian conception, it was the sun, or Nature or thunder or mythical gods. It was golden images or idols of wood, and to some it was money, or position or fame. We all had a God even if it was no more than a bottle.

No man, however brave, would have the temerity to face the forces of Nature and a hostile world unless he had recourse to something beyond his own puny strength.

Every time I hear an atheist sounding off I always think of the days when I denied the fact that I was an alcoholic, knowing, deep down inside, that I was kidding myself.

************************************************

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

1) HALT: Happy, Appreciative, Lovable, Teachable.

2) When in doubt, leave it out.

3) Alcohol: It provokes the desire but takes away the performance.

************************************************

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

I Promise Myself!

Today I pray:

To promise myself to be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person I meet. 
To make all of my friends feel that there is some-thing in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature I meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of myself that I have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

***********************************************

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

THE PURPOSE OF THE BIBLE

Externally, the Bible is a collection of inspired documents written by men of all kinds, in all sorts of circumstances, and over hundreds of years of time. The documents are seldom original, but redactions and compilation of older fragments; and the names of the actual writers are seldom known for certain. This, however, does not affect the spiritual purpose of the Bible. The book, as we have it, is an inexhaustible reservoir of spiritual Truth, compiled under divine inspiration, and the actual route by which it reached its present form does not matter.

History, biography, lyrical and other poetic forms are various mediums through which the spiritual message is given in the Bible; and above all, the parable is used to convey spiritual and metaphysical truth. In some cases what was never intended to be more than a parable was, at one time, taken for literal statement of fact; and this often made the Bible seem to teach things that are opposed to common sense.

The spiritual key to the Bible rescues us from these difficulties, dilemmas, and seeming inconsistencies. And the Truth turns out to be nothing less than the amazing but undeniable fact that the whole outer world—whether it be the physical body the common things of life, the winds and the rain, the clouds, the earth itself—is amenable to man’s thought, and that he has dominion over it when he knows it.

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet (Psalm 8:6).

************************************************

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

The Holiest Orange

From you I receive, to you I give. Together we share, from this we live.

~ Rabbis Joseph and Nathan Siegel ~

On the Jewish holiday of Purim, it is the custom for neighbors to visit each others’ houses with gifts of fruit. One Purim, three men on a business trip found themselves miles from civilization with but one orange between them. One man took the orange in his hands, held it close to his heart, turned to another man and told him, “My dear Chaim, with this orange I give you all my love, and I pray that God grants you a life of peace and plenty.”

Chaim appreciatively accepted the orange and faced the third man, telling him, “My brother Yosef, this is a symbol of my deepest thanks for your friendship in my life. I wish you all the happiness your heart desires.”

Yosef, nearly in tears, received the fruit and turned to the first man. “Beloved Jacob, you are a true man of God. May the angels of mercy walk by your side and return to you a thousandfold all the good you give.”

Jacob received the orange and, brimming with ecstasy, gave it to Yosef again with an additional blessing. So the three men went on all night, adding more and more love to the orange until their souls were filled beyond measure.

The only gifts we truly have to offer one another are the gifts of spirit. Physical objects are but cups we fill with love. A gift, no matter how expensive, is not a gift unless it is given with sincerity and kindness. Even if our physical means are meager, if we imbue a gift with intention, it will bless the receiver in the deepest way.

Let my words and actions be filled only with love. Let me use all the means of this world to magnify the divine presence.

I give from my heart, and I am filled in the giving.

[bluidkiti]

March 20

Step by Step

Today, work for balance in life, the balance that is the point of compromise between doing nothing at all and over-doing everything. Alcoholics are creatures of extremes: in our drinking, we wanted all or nothing. Although we drank too much, it was never enough. We either hated or “loved” too possessiveness. We took until there was nothing left to take, or we gave till we had nothing more to give. We laughed after the joke had ended, and we cried out every emotion. In seeking balance, defer to a higher power to show us what we have to do without procrastinating to tomorrow, and listen if he hints that we are hungry, angry, lonely or tired – HALT. Also accept that we cannot shrug off the program if, today, we say that we are not “getting it.” Adversely, accept that the full benefits of the program will not be ours today – or any other day – because the program is growth, and growth is an evolutionary process and never fully accomplished. Today, balance the scales. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

ACT AS IF . . .

In the arena of human life the honours and rewards fall to those who show their good qualities in action.

~ Aristotle ~

The only way we get what we need is to “act as if . . .” we have it. The key word for us is “act.”

We have discovered that knowledge often follows action rather than vice versa. When we fake it in our early days, we find ourselves making it in later days.

In the beginning, we are asked to “act as if” we are following instructions, trusting the Program, listening to sponsors, and coming to believe. The amazing thing is that soon we were doing those very things.

We were never able to think our way into recovery. Our minds created a tremendous amount of trouble for us. We needed to turn our minds down (not off). We soon discovered the difference between doing and thinking.

The key to “acting as if . . .” is faith. With faith, the Promises will come true for me. The way to faith is through my fears. I turn fears over to my faith and simply “act as if . . . .”

************************************************

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

We have ever more perfect eyes in a world in which there is always more to see.

~ Teilhard de Chardin ~

Today’s quotation could be seen as one of the promises of recovery. When we enter into a program of spiritual and emotional renewal, we choose to become honest with ourselves. In the process, our eyes begin to see more clearly and we become aware of the many ways we have been dishonest with ourselves. Each new bit of self-honesty builds the base for more insight and an ever-sharper understanding of ourselves and our world. When we started with our decision to be honest, we could never have predicted what we would find down the path.

We first surrender to the truth as we know it, and this clarity about ourselves and the world grows into great insight. The world opens up for us and we find ever more to see and learn. We feel very alive every moment.

Today I continue my commitment to see the truth wherever I find it.

************************************************

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

I can’t expect you to share yourself if I can’t do the same.

~ Cathy Stone ~

We have been told we benefit from sharing our stories with others. However, most of us have shared intimate details of our lives in the past, only to have them repeated all over town. We may have decided that nothing was safe to share.

Now we are asked once again to share our secrets. What seems even stranger is that we’re asked to tell them to people whose last names we don’t even know. How crazy this seems when we first enter a Twelve Step program. Until we do it, however, we will not reap the benefits that are in store. We can only discover how like others we really are by telling them about us and then listening while they share similar stories. The intimacy that follows transforms our lives. Our time for self-disclosure has come. Let’s rejoice and reap the rewards.

I will tell a trusted friend who I really am today. I can count on affirmation and acceptance if I choose my friend well.

************************************************

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

I am learning more about myself

At first I thought Step Four was about my guilty deeds. I often felt like skipping my meeting when it came around – I felt guilty enough already without being reminded.

But I have learned that Step Four is useful for more than just recognizing errors and faults. I can use it to recognize my assets, too. It is really a tool for simply learning more about myself. And in recovery, I need self-knowledge. Perhaps I’ll learn that I have more to offer than I thought.

I will write out my top two assets on cards and stick them on my bathroom mirror.

***********************************************

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

I thought it was a mistake, but I was afraid to trust my feelings.

~ Jennie L. ~

For a long time we couldn’t trust ourselves in any way. We were good at lying to ourselves and others. We became experts in denial, refusing to consider any opinion but our own. Our choices were based on addiction, not on logic. We were driven by compulsion, not reason. As our addiction progressed, our thinking grew so distorted that we could no longer count on our sanity. How could we trust ourselves when we couldn’t even control our addiction?

Then, as we began to recover from addiction, that same mistrust became one of our strongest allies. We hesitated before acting, we questioned ourselves closely to be sure we were doing the right things for the right reasons. Now that we’ve made progress in recovery, our judgment has improved. We can pay attention to what happened, how we felt, and what the results were. Soon we’ll notice that our reaction to dangerous situations is very clear; our “gut hunches” are accurate. We are trusting ourselves, perhaps for the first time.

Today help me pay attention to my feelings and respect my own judgment. Help me listen to myself.

************************************************

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

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say “thank you”?

~ William A. Ward ~

Thinking that you are thankful for something a person has done for you or for a gift you have received is not the same as expressing your gratitude. It is taking without giving back. Unexpressed gratitude, it has been said, “is plain, old-fashioned ingratitude.”

Even when you pray to your Higher Power, you may forget to add at the end of your prayer, “Thank you.” Even when it seems that your prayers go unanswered, you need to trust they have been heard. So to express gratitude to your Higher Power following a prayer conveys your understanding that a divine power is always there for you and always ready to listen to your thoughts and needs.

Begin the day by thinking of those things you often take for granted, and then offer thanks for them. Make today the time when you express long-overdue gratitude to the human angels in your life. Throughout the day, add the words “thank you” whenever others assist you. And be sure to remember to include an expression of gratitude during your prayers to thank your Higher Power for being there.

I will use the words “thank you” for all of the gifts I receive today, be they big or small.

************************************************

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

You telling me God love you, and you ain’t never done nothing for Him? I mean, not go to church, sing in a choir, feed the preacher and all that? . . . if God love me, I don’t have to do all that. There’s lots of other things I can do that I speck God likes. . . . I can lay back and just admire stuff. Be happy.

~ Alice Walker The Color Purple ~

When we were younger, we learned bad people go to hell when they die. So we may have helped old la-dies across the street, or didn’t kick our brother, or didn’t talk back, or went to church so we could get “good marks” from the great Power in the heavens.

Today we might still believe our Higher Power needs material evidence of our faith. We might still go to church because we think that’s what we should do. We may get down on our knees twice a day because we feel we should.

All the program asks of us is that we come to believe in a Power greater than ourselves. It doesn’t tell us how to pray or when to pray or the things we need to do to win our Higher Power’s approval. All we need to do is make our Higher Power a part of our world.

I can remember that everything is a result of a Power greater than myself. Can I include this Power in my life?

************************************************

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

Letting go of false pride

What’s going on when we say that some things aren’t good enough for us? Some of us feel that if we can’t “win” at work, romance, or sports we won’t even play. This is called false pride.

If we are operating with false pride, chances are we’ll also refuse help from others, the very help that might save our lives. If we can’t accept anything from anybody, how can we expect to recognize and receive God’s big gifts for us? We need to work on false pride by accepting little things from others. Am I letting go of false pride?

Higher Power, help me open up so that I can accept things from others, whether simple or grand.

Today I will work on my false pride by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

The flower must drink the nature of the soil Before it can put forth its blossoming.

~ JOHN KEATS ~

Newcomer

I’ve had to cut back on meetings lately, because my life is so full. There’s so much to do, so much lost time to make up for. And the meetings are repetitive; I feel as if I can predict in advance what’s going to happen there.

Sponsor

It’s natural to experience fluctuations in our enthusiasm for sober routines; there are ups and downs in any relationship. At times, meetings seem like something “they” are requiring me to do, rather than something I’ve chosen. When I’m sitting there, I don’t always pay close attention. I may feel irritated by a personality, bored hearing something I think I already know, or too distracted by my thoughts to focus on principles. But I keep going anyway, and the meetings—as if by magic—get better. Suddenly, I hear exactly what I need to hear. I suspect that the problem isn’t so much with meetings as with my attitude.

By attending meetings and making calls consistently—not just when we feel desperate—we keep the lines of communication open. That way we maintain a basis of support for ourselves and others; we can count on its being there when we need it most.

I have a life now, and I am responsible for it.

Today, the decision I make to maintain my recovery is my own decision. Establishing a sober routine and sticking to it is a tool for maintaining that life.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

The only way that AA can be considered a Reform is in the fact that our way of living is the result of a reformation in our thinking.

Our new pattern of action is the result of a new pattern of thinking. As our thoughts are focused more and more on more and more, our minds grow in the capacity to absorb more and more.

As our thoughts are directed to the God of our understanding and our suffering alcoholic brethren we find that self is pushed back into the little space it deserves.

************************************************

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

1) HALT: Have A Laugh Today

2) Gratitude is not the word but the desire to say the word.

3) The basic ingredient of all humility is a desire to seek and do God’s will.

************************************************

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

My Worth

I pray to remember that my worth is not determined by my show of outward strength, or the volume of my voice, or the thunder of my accomplishments. It is to be seen, rather, in terms of the nature and depth of my commitments, the genuineness of my friendships, the sincerity of my purpose, the quiet courage of my convictions, my capacity to accept life on life’s terms, and my willingness to continue “growing up.” This I pray.

***********************************************

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

TRUTH DEMONSTRATED

Truth never chasten, but what we have to deal with on this plane is man’s apprehension of the Truth, and throughout historical time, this has been steadily and continuously becoming more plain to us.

Jesus Christ summed up this Truth, taught it completely and thoroughly, and, above all, demonstrated it in his own person. Most of us now can glimpse intellectually the idea of what it must mean in its fullness. To accept the Truth is the great first step, but not until we have proved it in doing is it ours. Jesus proved everything that he taught, even to the overcoming of death in what we call the resurrection. By surmounting every sort of limitation to which mankind is subject, he performed a work of unique and incalculable value to the race, and is therefore justly entitle the Savior of the world.

…when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth….(John 16:13).

************************************************

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

Pray to Be Wrong

Would you rather be right, or happy?

~ A Course in Miracles ~

When a friend and I were about to watch a video, the television showed only snow and distortion. My friend suggested, “Put in the video head cleaner,” but I knew the problem was more serious, and I went on to spend a great deal of time fussing with wires and connections. Every now and then, she repeated, “Try the head cleaner,” but I told her that was not the trouble. Finally, to appease her, I ran the head cleaner, and to my great surprise the picture completely cleared up. I was glad that I was wrong!

A problem is a call for us to open up our consciousness and view a situation from a different perspective. If we stubbornly cling to a position, we may miss the very awareness we need in order to master the situation at hand. No one knows it all. Be innocent enough to consider that the universe may be bigger than what you “know” to be true. You may gain more by being wrong than by tenaciously clinging to being right.

Make a list of all of your problems, troubles, and dilemmas. Then hold it in your hands and pray, “Dear God, please let me be wrong about all of this.” Your prayer will be answered because we are already whole, and as we allow Spirit to work on our behalf, our challenges are handled by grace.

I pray to be humble enough to see a grander picture than the one I have known.

I open my mind to live in a bigger universe.

[bluidkiti]

March 21

Step by Step

Today, the Seventh Step and asking a higher power, in willingness and humility, for the knowledge to let go of our character defects, chief among them anger and resentment. But Step Six warns that we must be “entirely ready” to release those defects. So how do I become “entirely ready?” If we find ourselves obsessed with anger or resentment against someone or something, even justifiably – to the extent that anger and resentment can be justified – and we play out in tje mind a scenario of “revenge,” we are thwarting a potential higher quality of sobriety than we might otherwise have. And, if for no other reason, we empower the person or situation that we resent to the extent that they actually control us. Then it’s time to let go of the anger and resentment and leave to a higher power whoever or whatever angers me us. Today, entirely ready, ask a higher power to take the emotions we cannot handle and for the discipline not to take them back. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

FRIENDSHIP

The only reward for virtue, the only way to have a friend is to be one.

~ Emerson ~

Friendship is not a one-word motto to be hung on a wall. Friends are not statues to decorate a mantle. Friendships are as real to us as love and gratitude, and friends are as much a part of all our lives as the air we breathe.

Without friends we could not enjoy the full benefits of recovery. All the truths we follow daily we receive from friends through hearing and reading their messages but mostly by watching them in action. Our primary goal is to add to our wisdom by giving. Without friendships, our caring and sharing would be empty gestures.

None of us needs ever to be alone again, because each of us in our own way works for the good in others. We are bound together with a common problem and work together on a solution.

If I permit myself to become incapable of friendship, I will find that I will be unable to reveal myself to others and to my inner self.

************************************************

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

Spring is nature’s way of saying, “Let’s party!’’

~ Robin Williams ~

Our lives are always enriched when we get closer to nature. In springtime, just going for a walk around the block can lift our spirits. Sometimes we feel blue, or we are overwhelmed with emotions that are painful or frightening. Even when our feelings are based on real concerns, we need to manage them in order to confront difficult situations. One of the best things we can do for ourselves is to get outside.

Putting ourselves under the open sky, feeling the weather against our skin, and moving our muscles in a walk or a run changes our emotions and relieves tension. During the worst of times we may have a hard time making ourselves go out and move. But when we do, we always feel better. Spring is nature’s promise that nothing is forever. Change and new life are sure to come.

Today I welcome spring as the metaphor that life is constantly being renewed and refreshed.

************************************************

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

The willingness and courage to trust and accept our feelings brings peace of mind and the knowledge that all is well.

~ Abby Warman ~

There is no shame in whatever we feel. Our feelings are products of our thoughts. If our feelings are uncomfortable, perhaps we should consider monitoring our thoughts. We can always change them if they’re causing us pain. It’s important to remember that our feelings serve as signals of who we are at the moment and what we think about others. They serve us like friends, even when we don’t like what they tell us.

We came to this program for help to stop using chemicals. But that’s only the beginning of the help we are receiving. The other women at meetings and the literature suggested as resources for growth help us understand how lucky we are to have an illness we can recover from and a program that guarantees our well-being.

I will appreciate my feelings today. Whatever they are, I know that all is well.

************************************************

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

It will help if I don’t compare

I see my friends with houses and cars. They’re raising families, advancing their careers. I want what they have. I deserve what they have. They’re not better than I am. This is not fair.

When I get feeling like this, I know that I’m not accepting myself. It’s difficult to do with addiction and psychiatric illness, but I find I need to do it again and again. No, my friends are not better than I am. No, it’s is not fair. But I am who I am: a good person in recovery from two no-fault illnesses. And I am doing the best I can.

Today I will acknowledge my grief and focus on today’s recovery.

***********************************************

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

Being fearless isn’t courage; courage is doing the right thing even though you are afraid.

~ Jean L. ~

Every frightening situation offers us a chance to grow. Some of us thought that in recovery all roads would be paved with gold, that all problems would be instantly, magically solved. We soon discovered, though, that things weren’t that easy; life just doesn’t work that way. But as we met and solved problems, as we conquered our fears and faced life on its own terms, we learned we’re richer for every challenge that comes our way.

An easy ride can’t teach us how to handle a bumpy road. Strength and character come from experiencing and overcoming our fears, not running away from them. Working through our problems teaches us how to deal with a similar problem next time, how to capitalize on our strengths, and how to shore up our weaknesses. Adversity shows us our limits, how much stress and anger we can handle, how to take care of ourselves, and how to be truly independent. Now, in frightening situations, we still feel afraid, our hearts pound, our knees knock, and our hands shake. But we’ve learned that the flip side of fear is self-confidence and self-love.

Today grant me the help 1 need to solve the problems I might encounter.

************************************************

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

The difficult things of this world must once have been easy; the great things of this world must once have been small. Set about difficult things while they are still easy; do great things while they are still small.

~ Taoism ~

Before you entered the program, your life was likely filled with chaos and disruption. Because your top priority was your addiction, everything else became secondary. Today you are free from your addiction, but you may still live with chaos and disruption. You may not pay attention to things until they reach a crisis stage.

Handling events before they get out of hand is like practicing preventive medicine. Rather than be rushed to the hospital with a heart attack, it is better to eat right every day and exercise. Taking such action can avert future trouble or keep a bad situation from growing worse.

Today resolve to be a troubleshooter rather than a troublemaker. Think of those things you usually put off until the last minute. Consider what tasks you have not yet completed. Pay attention to those who need your attention. Ask, “What needs to be taken care of today?” Then step up and face your responsibilities.

I would rather handle things effectively than move from one crisis to the next. Today I will take care of my personal and professional responsibilities while they are still manageable.

************************************************

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

Do not lose your inward peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.

~ Saint Francis de Sales ~

Today may have been filled with tense people, hectic schedules, or confusion and anger from those around us. We live and interact with a variety of situations that can range from slightly stressful to very stressful. How we handle ourselves in those situations can determine our inner peace. We can be like an amoeba and suck up the surrounding mood and con-form to it, or we can remain detached from the situation and be in touch with ourselves.

Just because the environment around us is like a battlefield or is so uncomfortable we want to squirm, that doesn’t mean we have to prepare for battle or move about restlessly. Whatever is happening outside of us is somebody else’s issue. Our most important is-sue is us and our own inner peace. The only way our inner peace can change is if we allow it. We are in control of our inner selves—not the world around us.

I can remain calm and serene in the face of any crises because of my strong faith. I believe all is well with me.

************************************************

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

Nurturing new growth

Spring is a time of new and beautiful growth. There can be growth for us, too. We have spent too long in the fall and winter of our lives, the mind-altering chemicals filtering the sunshine and fading the flowers. Finally, our lives appeared empty and dead.

But like earth at the end of winter, there is still life within us. And when we make the conditions suitable, using abstinence, pa-tience, and love, our lives will again bring forth new growth.

Am I returning or preparing for new growth?

Higher Power, may I feel your love shine down on me to help me grow.

I will prepare for new growth today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

We feel and know that we are eternal

~ BARUCH SPINOZA ~

Newcomer

I’m feeling anxious and overwhelmed. My mind is tormenting me. I could hardly sit still at the meeting I went to. How am I going to get through the rest of the day?

Sponsor

When I’m anxious, I seem to forget to breathe properly, so let’s bring our attention to our breathing, and inhale and exhale gently but deeply. Let’s breathe in a way that feels natural, not holding our breath at any point, so that the inhalation continues naturally into the exhalation. Let’s visualize bringing breath into the belly, as if we were breathing in and out through the navel.

As thoughts and distractions come into the mind, we notice that they’re there, but we don’t worry about them. We let them keep flowing out gently and easily, like the breath.

For these moments, there is nowhere else we have to be, nothing at all that we have to do. The past no longer exists. The future hasn’t been born yet. We are here in this moment. Our bodies are breathing for us. Body and mind are one. There is only the present moment.

After our brief meditation, we feel centered and energized. We can use this technique to lower our stress levels whenever we wish.

Today, I gently bring myself into the present moment.
I remember to breathe.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Jobs are as good or as bad as the mental attitude we have toward them. No man holds a job but what some other man is envious of him on its account and every job has its good and bad points.

Too often we hear the excuse that the job was the cause of the drinking, when most frequently it was the drinking that made the job obnoxious.

One man swinging a pick is digging a hole in the ground and his fellow workman beside him is doing his part in the erection of a Temple.

Maybe it’s not the job at fault, maybe it’s your attitude toward it.

************************************************

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

1) Reason to be grateful: you learn to wake up instead of coming to.

2) It’s a shame that booze doesn’t turn off one’s mouth at the same time it turns off the brain.

3) To thine own self be true!

************************************************

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

Right Living

Higher Power, deliver me:
From the cowardice that dare not face new truth;
From the laziness that is contented with half-truth;
From the arrogance that thinks it knows all truth;
These things, good Lord, that I pray for,
Give me the strength to work for.

***********************************************

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

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

The setting forth of the Sermon on the Mount is an almost perfect codification of the religion of Jesus Christ. It covers the essentials. It is practical and personal. It is definite, specific, and yet widely illuminating. Once the true meaning of the instruction has been grasped, it is only necessary to begin putting them into practice to get immediate results. The magnitude and extent of these results will depend solely upon the sincerity and thoroughness with which they are applied. That is a matter which each individual has to settle for himself.

If you really do wish to become a different person altogether in the sight of God and man, then Jesus, in his Sermon on the Mount, has clearly shown you how it is to be done.

If you are prepared to break with the old man, an start upon the creation of the new one, then the study of the great Sermon will indeed be to you the Mountain of Liberation.

…But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves (James 1:22).

************************************************

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

Life Beginning

Fear not that thy life shall come to an end, but rather fear that it shall never have a beginning.

~ John Henry Cardinal Newman ~

I was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 17, I was sure my life had come to an end,” Edward told the seminar audience. “I hated the chemotherapy, all the medicalese, and the whole arena of sickness I seemed to enter. Sure, my body didn’t feel good, but my Spirit was dying in all those morbid thoughts. Then, one day I was scheduled for chemotherapy when I discovered that there was a Grateful Dead concert the same night. The concert was much more attractive than the chemo, and I struggled with the decision over what to do. I realized that I had lived my whole life trying to please my parents and make everyone happy. I decided that this was my chance to make myself happy, and I went to the concert. Soon my condition reversed, and I have been cancer free for years. I believe that it was my choice to be kind to myself that made all the difference.”

It is not the years in our life that count, but the life in our years. We may live a long time in a small shell of fear, or a short time in a blaze of celebration. When we follow our spirit and live from joy rather than self-protection, the whole world opens up to us, and we have the power to make our dreams come true.

Cheri Huber declared, “I don’t want to tiptoe through life just to arrive safely at death.” What dreams have you been postponing? What steps could you take now to make them a reality? Do you live from fear or delight? What gift could you give yourself that would remind you that life is beautiful and worth living? Answer these questions honestly, and the road to freedom will be illumined for you.

I want to live today. I want to put my dreams into action.

I want to leave behind all that is not me and fully celebrate my gifts. Thank you for showing me the way to freedom.
Today I begin my life anew. I take my life in my hands and celebrate every wonderful opportunity to soar.

[bluidkiti]

March 22

Step by Step

Today, put into practice the strategy of living sober and and not as an alcoholic struggling not to get drunk. There is more to life than living with a daily struggle not to drink. But before I can apply my program and recovery to every realm of my life, I have to make sure I’m walking the walk and not just talking the talk. I have to be honest that I have begun at the very beginning, with the program’s first four words – “Admitted (I am) powerless …” – and that I have“come to believe” in something greater than myself, that I have done all the steps thoroughly and honestly, and that I am truly an effective carrier of the message. Memorizing every word in the Big Book, burning in my mind every word of the 12 steps and traditions and of every 24-hour inspirational achieve nothing if I don’t put action to them. Today, if I am only in the program, I’ll get with it. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

BEING NEEDED

The most general survey shows us that the two foes of human happiness are pain and boredom.

~ Schopenhauer ~

Filling a need is more vital than being loved When we are needed, we are automatically loved. No effort of ours can ever be too great or too small.

We have never heard anyone who is involved in a program of spiritual growth complain of being bored. The discoveries and excitement of spiritual exploration are limitless. Also, carrying a message of hope to those who still suffer strengthens our own hold on the serenity and security of a personal recovery.

Feeling needed is the greatest encouragement we will ever receive that our goals can be achievable.

If people stopped volunteering to fill other people’s needs, the end of civilization would be close behind. My pain is forgotten and my boredom is gone when I am needed.

************************************************

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

If you treat every situation as a life-and-death matter, you’ll die a lot of times.

~ Dean Smith ~

We have lived through many crises. Many of us grew up in situations that were chaotic and filled with turmoil. We felt constantly on the edge of catastrophe and needed to be ever-vigilant to avoid it. We lost our ability to sift and screen what was genuinely in need of our attention and what we could just turn over to the work of the universe.

The spiritual part of recovery promises that we can rest in the care and security of a Higher Power. Not every situation has to automatically go to the top of our priority list of things to fix. Even if this is a random universe, forces are always in play to keep things working and put things in order. Often our anxiety and our attempts to fix things only get in the way of a good solution. So we can relax and trust that if we reserve our energy for the things we can improve, this change within ourselves will make the world a better place.

Today I will be more discerning about what really is critical and try to stay out of the way of my Higher Power.

************************************************

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

When we are all wrapped up in ourselves, we present a very small package to others.

~ Georgette Vickstrom ~

Self-centeredness affects many people, not just recovering women. In this program, we are honing the skills that can free us from its clutches. Being willing to use these skills is the hallmark of our recovery.

Everybody on our path today needs our attention. Each person we meet may have something to teach us, or perhaps the reverse is true. But if we are focused on ourselves we’ll miss these opportunities. Being open to other people helps us grow. If our attention is forever inward, we’ll never grow beyond our current limited understanding.

Let’s be willing to give more of ourselves to others today. The benefits we’ll reap will move us forward in our personal journey.

Today I can put aside my tendency to look at every circumstance in relationship to myself. With God’s help, I can put my attention on others.

************************************************

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

I can let go

I didn’t want to work on myself. (I didn’t want to admit I had a problem.) I didn’t want to accept help. I didn’t want to get “better” – because I didn’t know what “better” would be like. I was scared and could not trust.

One day I finally told my counsellor how scared I was. She looked at me and said, “Yes, I think I understand. And I want to help you.” Somehow, I believed her. Somehow, I trusted her. Once I’d told her how I felt, I was able to admit my problems, accept her help – and begin recovery. For that moment, I let go. And once I let go, I found a grip.

Today I will give someone a chance to earn a measure of my trust.

***********************************************

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

Mutual aid is as much a law of animal life as mutual struggle.

~ Prince Petr Alekseevich Kropotkin ~

Admitting we need help can be so hard sometimes, especially if we let our egos get in the way. No matter how huge the problem, we think we have to solve it alone. Yet, how different we feel when someone asks us for help. We find great joy in supporting other people. When someone needs us, we find vast resources of patience and time.

So next time we hesitate to lean on another for support, we can remember how good it feels to help someone else. That can be our gift to others: letting them have the great feeling that comes from giving of oneself to another. We all rely on each other for strength, comfort, and support. So now it’s our turn, to turn to our Higher Power and to our friends and loved ones. Today we can be human and vulnerable. Today we can admit we need help.

Today let me put my ego aside and ask for what I need. Let me be gracious to those who want to help me.

************************************************

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

Just because you have a… handicap… doesn’t mean that you can’t be happy; it just means that it takes a lot of work to figure out how to do that.

~ Jodie Foster ~

One day a blind woman prepared to cross a street. But as she did, her cane made contact with a car parked in the crosswalk. “Who owns this car?” she demanded in a loud voice. “This car is in my way. Can’t anyone notice I am blind?” A man tapped her on the arm. “I am blind, too,” he told her. “But my dog and I would be happy to take you across the street.”

The woman drew her arm back from his touch. “This is not right,” she snapped. “Yes, it is wrong,” agreed the blind man. “But why not cross the street safely with us?” Having a visible handicap, or an invisible one such as an addiction, can be stressful. You have to work extra hard doing things most people take for granted. Yet rather than bemoan the difficulties and challenges you face, you can be thankful for those who offer help by providing a guiding arm, holding a door open, or offering a seat in a crowded meeting.

Today I will accept the assistance of those who reach out to me.

************************************************

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

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which [were] overcome while trying to succeed.

~ Booker T. Washington ~

When hurdlers race, they look ahead to see each hurdle that must be leaped. High-jumpers see the height of the bar they have to clear. Businesspeople look at charts to see their positions and the number of positions they must pass in order to reach their goals. Students are well aware of the number of credits and course requirements needed for a degree.

Not all of the obstacles in life are as easy to see. Those of us who grew up in alcoholic homes had to overcome tremendous obstacles just to survive. Some of us may have such a low self-image that by just feeling satisfied with an accomplishment, we have over-come tremendous blocks to our growth.

As we measure each day’s successes, we need to keep in mind the obstacles we have to face. When we have leaped over a hurdle in life, we have earned a great success. Overcoming one obstacle means there is one less hurdle to stand in our way.

Tonight I can review my day and look for my small successes. I know I have overcome some obstacles today and have done well.

************************************************

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

Being honest inside

All the answers we will ever need are available to us. Even though they seem to come from outside us—through other people—the answers are already inside us. We need only recognize them when they emerge. Something inside us hears the truth, and for a long time we pretend that we don’t notice it. But then one day, we decide to get honest about how we really feel.

At that point we gain a bit of freedom. We begin to make progress when we become honest with ourselves about how we really feel. Our Higher Power can help us, but only if we present ourselves with humble honesty.

Am I honest with myself about how I really feel inside?

Higher Power, allow me to really feel today, even though I risk being vulnerable.

Today I will examine my true feelings about

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Put some gratitude in your attitude.

~ SAYING HEARD AT MEETINGS ~

Newcomer

Often I hear someone say, “I’m so grateful” or “I’m a grateful recovering [whatever they are).” I don’t understand. How can a person be grateful for alcoholism, compulsive overeating, codependency, or whatever has ruined his or her life?

Sponsor

I could not have begun this process we call recovery before knowing and accepting the fact that I have a disease. Lots of people out there die without ever hearing how we can stop the behavior that’s killing us. Others have to suffer even longer than I did. I’m grateful that I finally hit bottom and became willing to do something about it. I’m grateful that recovery has given me a way of life that brings me freedom and self-esteem. I’m grateful to be here, awake, showing up for my life. I’m grateful for so-called little things I rarely noticed or thought about when I was active in my addiction—a bird, a flower, a smile.

Gratitude is a spiritual tool. I can choose to pick it up; I can cultivate the habit of using it.

Today, I cultivate gratitude.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

We cannot give the new man our conception of the Program and expect him to get the same results as we. This is particularly true of the spiritual phases of our thinking. We must each seek and find our own solution, but we can tell him how we did it; we can direct his thinking along spiritual lines so that he too will find a God of his understanding and work out a system of procedure that will make the Program work for him.

************************************************

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

1) It isn’t “me” and “you” anymore, it’s “we” and “us.”

2) HALT: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired

3) When the horse dies, dismount.

************************************************

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

Against Temptations

May the strength of my Higher Power guide me.
May the power of God preserve me.
May the wisdom of my Higher Power instruct me.
May the hand of God protect me.
May the way of my Higher Power direct me.
May His shield defend me.
And may the presence of, and belief in, my Higher Power guard me against the temptations of the world.

***********************************************

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

THE BEATITUDES

The Sermon on the Mount opens with the eight Beatitudes. They are actually a prose poem in eight verses and constitute a general summary of the Christian teaching. A general summing up, such as this, is highly characteristic of the old Oriental mode of approach to a religious and philosophical teaching, and it naturally recall the Eightfold Path of Buddhism, the Ten Commandments of Moses, and other such compact groupings of ideas.

Jesus concerned himself exclusively with the teaching of general principles, and these general principles always had to do with mental states, for he knew that if one’s mental state are right, everything else might be right tool. Unlike the other great religious teachers, he gives us no detailed instruction about what we are to do or are not to do.

…. The hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.

…the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth (John 4:21, 23-24).

************************************************

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

Jesus and Judas

Life is a long lesson in humility.

~ James Matthew Barrie ~

When Rembrandt set out to paint the likenesses of Jesus and the apostles, he walked the streets of Amsterdam to find men who embodied the character of his Biblical subjects. Rembrandt began with a tall, handsome man who bore the stature and purity of Christ. Then, after setting the images of the disciples to canvas, Rembrandt was ready to paint Judas, and he searched for a man with a tortured soul. After combing Paris, he found a homeless man sitting outside a store. The man was dirty, unkempt, and his eyes spoke of deep sadness. After painting Judas, Rembrandt thanked the man for his assistance.

“Don’t you remember me?” asked the man.

“I don’t think so,” answered the artist.

“I sat for your portrait of Jesus,” the man answered.

Within every human being is the propensity to rise to the highest of the high and sink to the lowest of the low. That is why we can never judge others for their sins or errors. Given the same circumstances, we might be in exactly their position and take the same action they did. Mother Teresa became a nun when she recognized that “there is a bit of Hitler in every one of us.”

While we strive to be the Christ, we must have compassion for the Judas, who simply played out his role in the Christ drama. In the end, we are not the roles we play. We are the light that animates every soul in the dance we call life.

Help me to not judge my brothers and sisters, but let me recognize my unity with them. Help me to see the spark of the divine in all eyes I look into.

I am one with God and with everyone I meet.

[bluidkiti]

March 23

Step by Step

Today, nothing negative to influence my words, thoughts and behavior. Instead, I set out on this day grateful that I am sober to be able to do what I have to do, even if it’s something I don’t want to do. I will be grateful that I am now able to function, unlike all those days that started with a hangover, shakes and the physical and cognitive inability to do even the basics. I will not complain if I have too much to do and too little time to do it, but instead will approach each task, each person, each amend, each moral checkup with a positive attitude – because today I am sober. With that, I have no reason to be negative. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

MODERATION

Stay RIGHT SIZE!

~ Anonymous ~

Today, our target for a proper living pace is moderation. We know how easy it is to magnify, exaggerate, accent, and overindulge. The dependency and compulsion from which we are steadily recovering puts us among the world’s excessive people. Every day we need to tell ourselves that “more is not necessarily better.”

We also need to guard against unrestraint, greed and envy. But we can adapt even dangerous instincts like fear and anger into self-improving assets if we can maintain moderation.

In our desire for perfection, however, we also need to practice moderation. We can’t want more than we are capable of achieving. We could destroy ourselves by trying to be perfect. In this, above all else, we need to practice moderation, for we will never be perfect.

When I create impossible dreams, they backfire and blow up and leave me with negative feelings. I want to practice moderation in all things, even the good things in life.

************************************************

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

Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of good luck.

~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr. ~

Managing desires is one of the most crucial elements of being an adult. Children want many things that aren’t good for them, and their impulses can often get them into trouble. They need loving, caring adults to protect them from the harm that can come from getting what they want. As adults, our spiritual development includes learning how to regard our desires and how to manage them. On the one hand, it isn’t healthy to become so controlled and repressed that we never let ourselves have fun, and on the other hand, we know that indulging every desire will kill us.

Sometimes we want something very badly and when we don’t get it, we feel desperate or very disappointed. However, life continuously points us in directions we hadn’t expected. Disappointment can serve to reset our lives. Not getting our desires, if we keep our eyes open, points us in directions that can be better than what we had imagined for ourselves.

Today I will be open to the new directions that life points me toward.

************************************************

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

Friends should be chosen carefully, because loving them will change our hearts and souls.

~ Jane Nakken ~

We may not have picked our friends carefully in our youth. Many of us felt pressured to hang out with a crowd that didn’t share our values. We frequently lived up to their expectations of us rather than our own. The internal conflict was painful, and we may still suffer from it. The blessing for us now is that we have the Twelve Steps to rely on for clarification and support of our values.

Having friends we can trust, friends who share our values, is one of the many gifts of this recovery program. We no longer have to feel different, isolated, or self-conscious because of our values or our secrets. We can dare to let others know who we really are, and we are learning they won’t go away. Discovering the joy of friendships that nurture us helps us continue our careful selection of friends. Our youthful experiences with friends need never be repeated.

My choice of friends today reflects the health of my recovery.

************************************************

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

I am willing to change

Before recovery, the way I was living caused me many problems. Step Six asks me if I’m ready to start changing my life. Can I let go of old ways? Can I learn new coping skills? What am I really willing to do to allow change to happen?

Having done Step Five and dealt with some of the past, there is less to hide, less to be ashamed of, little to hold me back. I feel more open to learning new ways to handle my problems and meet my needs. I feel more open to letting myself be changed. I believe I am now ready to start this process of gradual transformation.

I will say the Serenity Prayer and I will complete my regular activities on today’s recovery plan.

***********************************************

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

The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it

~ Dale Carnegie ~

Nobody wins an argument when our energy is directed toward making someone else wrong. Our feeling of defensiveness is a red flag that can warn us when tempers are getting out of hand. We will meet many people in life who will not see things our way. Believing we are right and trying to prove it to someone else is usually a one-way ticket to hurt and resentment.

There are some people who seem determined to argue. They seem never to have learned the art of listening and negotiation. Deep insecurity and spiritual pain may cause them to become master fighters. Inside, though, they feel so little power that their egos become involved in being right and proving others wrong. If we’re like that, we need to work extra hard to restore our self-esteem. If we know people like that, we need to try to be patient. We need to try to understand their pain and tolerate their fears.

Power-based arguments are usually attacking and hurtful. Learning to back down and choose peace is the mark of a solid spiritual recovery program.

Today let me take a deep breath and choose peace when I feel my red flag of defensiveness flying.

************************************************

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

In general, any form of exercise, if pursued continuously, will help to train us in perseverance.

~ Mao Tse-Tung ~

One of New Zealand’s greatest runners, Murray Halberg, once won an alarm clock in a race. The problem was, the prize was for second place. Every day thereafter, Halberg never had a problem waking up and training. The clock symbolized his not-fast-enough performance and gave him the incentive to push himself harder in his training.

As much as you understand the value of daily exercise, you may find it hard to keep up your motivation and commitment. One day without exercise turns into three, then into a week, until months go by without engaging in any physical activity. But when you think about exercise as something as valuable to you as your recovery, you can figure out ways to stay committed to daily workouts. A workout buddy or group exercises can provide fellow-ship of like-minded individuals.

If you prefer to exercise alone, you may find it helpful to keep a daily log of what you do. Think of this as your exercise “inventory.” Or you can sign up for the services of a personal trainer at a local gym or YMCA, who can function as your physical health and well-being “sponsor.”

Today I will consider ways that will help to develop my motivation and dedication to exercise each day.

************************************************

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

There are parts of a ship which, taken by themselves, would sink. . . . But when the parts of a ship are built together, they float. So with the events in my life. Some have been tragic. Some have been happy. But when they are built together, they form a craft that floats and is going someplace. And I am comforted.

~ Ralph W. Sockman ~

If we only remembered the unhappy times we’ve had, we’d sink into depression. Likewise, if we saw only happiness, we’d have a limited vision of our lives. When we take the good along with the bad, we see reality. When we strive for a balance of opposites, we move closer to maturity. When we accept that for every bad day there will be a good one, we accept life as it is.

There is a saying, a ship in harbor is safe, but ships weren’t built to stay in harbors. We captain our own ships. When we sail, we are taking risks. There will be calm sailing, but there will also be ferocious storms. We can weather anything with a supportive crew and a determined belief to guide us.

I am not afraid to be captain of my ship. Tonight I can bless all the things in my life that help keep me afloat.

************************************************

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

Getting-well

It is important to remember we have been gravely ill, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. To get well, we must work on all three areas. Getting sober and clean is only a first step, because addiction is only a symptom of the real illness.

Once clean and sober, we must learn how to live. And then we must learn to be aware of God’s presence. Let us work on these changes, day by day, and the light of God’s presence will shine forth in our lives.

Am I recovering emotionally, physically, and spiritually?

Higher Power, help me remember that my addiction is just a symptom of my emotional, physical, and spiritual illness.

I will work on my spiritual health today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

My giant goes with me wherever I go.

~ RALPH WALDO EMERSON ~

Newcomer

This town is full of memories I’d like to get away from. I haven’t had a change of scenery for a long time, and I’m thinking about a move. The job situation is supposed to be a lot better on the other side of the country, and I think I’d like the climate better there, too.

Sponsor

Understandably, some of us yearn to make dramatic changes in our outer lives, now that we’ve made such a big inner change. We’re living without substances we depended on for so long, and we may suddenly feel freer—we may want to change everything as fast as possible. In my early recovery, it scared me to think of facing problems my addiction had caused at work and home, especially in relationships with people. I dreamed of starting a new, problem-free life somewhere else—a “geographic cure.” Luckily, I accepted the suggestion that we not make major changes during the first year of recovery.

There can be freedom in not making a change. Without the stress of an unnecessary move, or a major work or relationship change, I could jump into recovery with both feet. It helped me to get to know myself better, to get clear about my motives and readiness for change.

We can live rich, fulfilling lives; no one’s stopping us. Giving ourselves time at first to concentrate on the basics of recovery provides us with a solid basis for moving on in our lives.

Recovery is a bridge back to life; today, I work on making the foundations strong.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

To us alcoholics who were prone to give meanings to words that were not intended by the speaker, words are a particularly lethal weapon.

In our drinking days we invariably put the wrong interpretations on the best-intended words of our friends. We then sounded off with a flow of words that we did not mean and knew full well that we did not mean them. The thoughtless sentence or the fancied slight was forever coming between us and those we loved.

The world’s attitude toward us, either friendly or hostile, is largely determined by our own words.

************************************************

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

1) Ya gotta wanna.

2) Replace guilt with gratitude.

3) “Opened by mistake” applies to the mouth more often than it does to mail.

************************************************

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

Prayer to Know

Grant it to me, Higher Power: To know that which is worth knowing, To love that which is worth loving, To praise that which pleases You most, To work for that which helps others. Grant it to me:

To distinguish with true judgment things that differ, and above all to search out, and to do what is most pleasing to You.

***********************************************

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

THE POOR IN SPIRIT

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3).

To be poor in spirit does not in the least mean the thing we call “poor spirited.” To be poor in spirit means to have emptied yourself of all desire to exercise personal self-will, and, what is just as important, to have renounced all preconceived opinions in the whole-hearted search for God. It means to be willing to set aside you present habits of thought, you present views and prejudices, your present way of life if necessary; to jettison, in fact, anything and everything that can stand in the way of your finding God.

************************************************

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

Joy Is My Compass

Joy is the most ineffable sign of the presence of God.

~ Leon Bloy ~

Pick out a treat,” I offered four-year-old Kate at the candy display. Quickly she grabbed a packet of M&M’s with one hand and a Milky Way bar with the other.

“You can only have one,” I told her.

“Eenie, meenie, miney, moe,” she counted, finally landing on the M&M’s.

“Okay, we get the M&M’s,” I confirmed.

Immediately, Kate threw the M&M’s back in the bin and clutched the Milky Way bar. “I want this one.”

Within our hearts, each of us knows what we really want. While our minds and emotions may go through all manner of drama and machinations, when we are confronted with the reality of choice, our heart will speak. Sometimes it is only when we receive what we do not want that we recognize what we do want.

When confronted with a difficult decision, flip a coin and imagine that you will be committed to the alternative the spin lands on. Then notice your gut reaction to the result. If you feel delighted, that is your path. If you are disappointed, go with the other alternative. Joy is the best compass.

Help me to be in touch with my heart’s desires. I trust you to know for me and through me.

Divine guidance moves me in the direction of my highest good.

[bluidkiti]

March 24

Step by Step

Today, no looking beyond the current 24 Hours about the length of my sobriety, be it one day, one week, one month, one year, one decade or longer. Alcoholism is chronic and incurable but can be in arrested by abstinence, and all the 24 Hours of clean time we accrue are gone if we buy into the myth that we can get away with “just one.” And “just one” set in motion the basis for relapse. Even if we have racked up a significant number of 24 Hours and we “slip,” we am no more sober than the alcoholic who woke up this morning with a hangover. Remember the yesterdays when we awoke to the harsh reality that the 24 Hours we had before then were gone, and know that our yesterdays are the best predictor of our todays and tomorrows – and learn from yesterday to avoid repeating its mistakes today. Keep the ego in check – the other alcoholic who woke up hung over yesterday but is sober this morning is no less clean than we. Today, when it comes to being and staying sober, take it literally just for today. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

PEACE

Peace is when time doesn’t matter as it passes by.

~ Maria Schell ~

We came into the Program with very little peace in our lives. Somebody or something was always coming by and tipping over our apple cart. Everywhere we turned we found nothing but turmoil. All our relationships seem loaded with pain and anxiety. There were days we cursed God for bringing such chaos into our lives.

The Steps have revealed that we have been the author of turmoil. We have seen how are addiction created war with everything it touched. The energy was within us, and it could not be satisfied until it destroyed everything, including our own lives. The Steps have slain the dragon, quieted the turmoil, won the war. There is now a gentle quality to our relationships, and the attitude of “live and let live” prevails in our lives.

The need to turn my apple cart over to generate excitement has become a distant memory. I have finally found my sought-for peace of mind.

************************************************

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

Getting angry can sometimes be like leaping into a wonderfully responsive sports car, gunning the motor, taking off at high speed and then discovering the brakes are out of order.

~ Maggie Scarf ~

Anger can multiply our difficulties in many situations. All of us can look back and remember times when we only made our problems worse because we stepped on the gas and lost all ability to use the brakes. Our masculine roles sometimes glorify aggression for its own sake. We are proud of how aggressive we can be, and we may confuse it with anger.

Now we are growing into more adult manhood. We are learning to manage our feelings and use them well. This doesn’t happen overnight. We would do well to recall how energized we have felt when we let our anger fly and how much we loved that energy at the moment. Only later did we face the damage we caused. Saying we are sorry isn’t enough; we must also be willing to take on the harder task of changing our behavior. When we accept that we love the power and the energy of our anger and aggression, we can begin to rein it in and take charge of it rather than be ruled by it.

Today I will not indulge in the pleasure of anger allowed to run wild.

************************************************

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

My children have a Higher Power, and it’s not me.

~ Carolyn White ~

We all have certain people in our lives, whether they are adults or children, who we think would fare better if they followed our will. Discovering that everyone has a Higher Power, one of the first lessons of recovery, relieves us of a heavy burden. It means we aren’t to blame for what anyone else chooses to do. Of course, we can’t take credit for their successes either.

What would make us want to assume responsibility for how others live? Surely we all have enough to do in our own lives. Perhaps our insecurity drives us to try to control others. We fear their actions won’t include consideration of us unless we interfere. Fortunately, our interference is seldom successful. If it were, our lives would be far more complicated. Crises would be far more prevalent.

I will focus on my life and my Higher Power today. Others’ actions are not my responsibility.

************************************************

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

I stay strong by “carrying the message”

One way I maintain my duo recovery is to carry the message of recovery to others who still suffer. When I share my experience, strength, and hope with someone who wants help, I recall my own struggles. I remember what has worked for me before and recognize what is working for me today. I stay close to the truth about dual disorders and so stay grateful and humble and strong.

In my dual recovery I am finding out that the more I give, the more I get; the more I help others, the more I help myself.

I will introduce myself at meetings to newcomers and make sure my name is on phone lists.

***********************************************

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

People who fight fire with fire usually end up with ashes.

~ Abigail Van Buren ~

How did we get so convinced that our way is usually best? That surely didn’t come from a lifetime of constant success. How did we get fixed in our thinking on a given issue? Not from a track record of first exploring all other alternatives.

This rigidity probably helped us survive childhood. But now it’s a wall that isolates us. It closes our minds off from ideas that are more in keeping with where we want to be. And it closes us off from people who we would like to be with.

In recovery, we are noticing others who are not so fixed in their thinking. They don’t pass judgment or criticize quickly. Their tranquility is obvious, and we want more of it. Their openness lets them hear more from others, and that is the way to knowledge, change, and growth.

We find that listening to others is now a blessing, not a burden.

Today help me be open to the example of others.

************************************************

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

The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.

~ Eric Hoffer ~

Think about all of the components that go into creating a glowing campfire. There is the pit that must be dug in order to contain the fire. There are the sticks of varying sizes that must be gathered together and organized in the pit. And then there is the spark from a match that is needed to ignite the sticks. From this creation of a camp-fire are many by-products: something that cooks food, something that warms the body, something that produces an exquisite aroma, and something that provides light in the darkness.

Happiness can be seen in much the same way. It is a by-product of all of the positive and enjoyable things you gather together each day. It is the effort you exert into seeking the treasures of life. And it is the spark you add to your day-to-day existence.
Happiness is an outcome of the effort you put into life. It exists in the harmonious relationships you create, in the sense of purpose that awakens you in the morning, and in the feeling of connection to all of life.

Today I will remember that happiness is not something to strive for; rather, it is something I create. It is the outcome of purposeful living.

************************************************

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

We cannot swing up a rope that is attached only to our own belt

~ William Ernest Hocking ~

Imagine a drowning person waving for help. A passerby picks up a bundle of rope, tosses it all to the victim, then walks away. That drowning person has no way of reaching safety without another’s help. To many of us, that may be a scene from our childhood, where we reached out and asked for help many times, to no avail. Who do we depend on today?

We may not want to place any dependency on any-one but ourselves. But do we truly believe we can provide all the guidance, strength, and hope we need? Even if it is difficult to trust others, we can trust in a Higher Power. That Higher Power doesn’t have to be a god; it can be a belief that all is well, that we are doing just what we need to, that we are safe.

By making a connection with someone or some-thing, we can learn to depend on something other than ourselves. When we call for help, we can be rescued only if we believe we can trust another to answer our call.

I can believe I cannot save myself without help. I need to depend upon something or somebody else.

************************************************

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

Forming new habits

We form habits and then these habits begin to form us. For so long we had such self-destructive ways of being: We were self- centered, angry, and critical people, and so we behaved selfishly, angrily, and judg- mentally in the world

To stay clean and sober we must develop new habits, new patterns of living. We must give up old hangouts, old friends, old atti-tudes, and ideas. It seems this is the only way to form new habits—for example, kindness, love, and honesty—on which our program is based

What habits do I want to develop?

Higher Power, help me to form new habits to replace the old ones that nearly destroyed my life.

The new habit I will work on today is

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

This is a simple program for complicated people.

~ SAYING HEARD AT MEETINGS ~

Newcomer

I heard a speaker with years in recovery share that she’d al-ways done it her own way—that she met friends at bars if she felt like it, had never had a sponsor, and sometimes went for months without a meeting. I know newcomers who’ve done similar things. What’s the big deal?

Sponsor

Some people in recovery cling to rebellion. While they don’t want to return to the horrors of active addiction, they aren’t willing to surrender what they think of as individualism. They “get away with” skipping Steps and ignoring suggestions. One helps out at meetings, but keeps booze in the house. One gives advice to newcomers, but goes unsponsored.

The program doesn’t ask that we give up what truly makes each of us an individual. It offers us clear guidelines, and promises that if we follow them, we won’t have to risk a relapse. The program works for us, if we work it. Testing our recovery by trying to see what we can “get away with” is like playing a game of Russian roulette.

Today, I feel safety and strength as I follow the principles of this program. I know that true individuality comes from the self-knowledge that recovery affords me.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Lie is not a succession of days on earth but rather it is an accumulation of experiences. Days are simply time locations where experiences transpired. The day on which no event occurred is a day lost out of life, for it had nothing in it to justify its memory.

************************************************

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

1) We’ll love you until you learn to love yourself.

2) It says in the Big Book: ‘We insist on being happy.”

3) HALTS: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired and Serious

************************************************

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

Recovery Prayer

Today and every day, I pray to be ever mindful that recovery is the most important thing in my life, without exception. I may believe my job, or my home life, or one of many other things, comes first. But if I don’t stay with the Program, chances are I won’t have a job, a family, sanity, or even life. If I am convinced that everything in life depends on my recovery, I have a much better chance of improving my life. If I put other things first, I am only hurting my chances.

***********************************************

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

GREAT POSSESSIONS

One of the saddest passages in all literature is the story of the Rich Young Man who missed one of the great opportunities of history, and … went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions (Matthew 19:23).

This is really the story of mankind in general. We reject the salvation that Jesus offers us—our chance of finding God—because we “have great possessions”; not so much that we are very rich in terms of money, for indeed most people are not, but because we have great possession in the way of preconceived ideas—confidence in our own judgment, and in the ideas with which we happen to be familiar. We have pride, born of academic distinction; sentimental or material attachment to institutions and organization; habits of life that we have no desire to renounce; concern for human respect; or perhaps fear of public ridicule. And these possession keep us chained to the rock of suffering that is our exile from God.

The poor in spirit suffer from none of these embarrassments, either because they never had them, or because they have risen above them on the tide of spiritual understanding.

************************************************

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

Golden Moments

Do not wait for extraordinary circumstances to do good; try to use ordinary situations.

~ Jean Paul Richter ~

The phone blared at 6.45 A.M. I rolled over in the hotel bed, picked up the receiver, and heard the music for my wake-up call. Awkwardly, I pulled myself together and wandered toward the bathroom. Five minutes later, the phone rang again. Who could be calling at this hour?

“Good morning Mr. Cohen,” a pleasant voice resonated. “This is your wake-up call. Have a wonderful day.” After she hung up, 1 stood for a moment and looked at the receiver. The key word was wonderful’, she offered it quite sincerely, and I felt it. I tried to reason why a human being would call me after the automatic call, but I gave up and decided to just enjoy the gift. I went on to have a wonderful day.

It is not through world-shaking triumphs that we build our life, but in the common daily interactions. The tone of our voice can win or lose a business deal, and a thoughtful hello can change a stranger’s attitude. We never really know how far a little blessing will go. Go beyond the norm of expected kindness by even a little bit, and you will become a miracle worker.

Never underestimate the power of a kind word or act. Even if your gift does not seem to be received, your heart will soar. Love is always received in the heart of God, where we all live.

Today I will walk the path of kindness. I will take the little moments of life and weave them into gold.

My simplest words and acts change the world, beginning with my own.

[bluidkiti]

March 25

Step by Step

Today, focus on compulsiveness so as not to react to anyone or anything with the heightened emotions that nurtured the defects of my character. From a behavioral standpoint, we alcoholics drank with compulsion. As such, my alcoholism is both physical and behavioral. To get the discipline and humility to prevent compulsion from gaining an upper hand in all my affairs, I can exercise Step Three as I begin this day by handing over to my higher power my will and ask instead for His will. Today, as I set out, I surrender my will – or self-will run riot – to my higher power with faith that He will strengthen me to act accordingly and responsibly instead out of the compulsion that contributed to my spiritual and mental disease. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

ONE DAY AT A TIME

Time ripens all things. No man’s born wise.

~ Cervantes ~

We come to understand time in a different way. Each day we discover there is an order to life that is only revealed day-to-day. The moments when life forces us to reconsider our schedule are no longer met with anger and frustration. We begin to trust our Higher Power to actually dictate what will happen in our lives. We find ourselves staying close to people who developed some measure of humility, for they seem to have a better sense of timing.

We remember the times when we demanded, “I want what I want when I want it.” The funny thing was, we were usually disappointed when we got what we wanted.

We are even finding a new appreciation for the seasons of the year, and for our lives. We find ourselves enjoying winter just as much as summer, our old age as much as our youth. Each new day deposits within us new wisdom.

Today I will remember that rather than fighting time, I will become time’s passenger.

************************************************

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

My father didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.

~ Clarence Budington Kelland ~

The most powerful teaching is done by example. We all have strong feelings about our fathers and what we learned or didn’t learn from them. They are as unique to us as our own identity is unique. Some of us have fathers who stand as great examples of how we would like to live. Some of us have fathers who are negative examples that we want to avoid. Some of us feel we never really got to know our fathers. For most of us, it is a complicated mixture of all those things.

Now, as we continue to grow and change in adult-hood, we are faced with growing beyond what our parents taught us, both the good and the bad. We need to forge ahead and become our own growing version of adult men. There are many men who can serve as examples to us; some of them were in our past, and some of them are now friends and mentors. Sometimes the example is unconscious. It is always helpful to notice who we admire, who sets an example that we would like to follow. Take the best of what they have to offer and leave the rest.

Today I am grateful for what I received from my father and from all the other men who have set examples in my life.

************************************************

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

I don’t train for a marathon when I simply want to run five-mile races.

~ Patricia Roth Wuertzer ~

Our insecurity, our fear that we’re inadequate, pushes us to overextend ourselves. We spent many years using alcohol and other drugs rather than ful-filling our dreams and aspirations. We may try to make up for lost time by demanding too much of ourselves now.

Making some progress every day is the best way to succeed at our goals. We’ll discover almost immediately how good it feels to say we’ll do some-thing and then do it. But we must be wary of the compulsion to do too much. We’re still addicts, after all.

Life is a process. Recovery is a process. Every day we get chances to learn whatever we didn’t master yesterday. No one is keeping score. Let’s ease up, make some progress, and leave time to smell the roses.

Today I’ll remind myself that I don’t have to complete a big project every day. Making some progress is enough.

************************************************

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

I am grateful for my helper

When I first got into treatment, I told my counsellor how much I didn’t want to go. I insisted I wasn’t addicted and that I needed only two things: tranquilizers for my nerves, and freedom.

I’m glad I got this denial and anger out of my system. And I’m grateful for all my counselor’s help. First she just listened quietly and patiently. Then, slowly, she let me see that I was scared and in pain. Gently and with understanding, she helped me look at my drug use and my anxiety problems. She helped me feel better and then she helped me get on the path of recovery.

Today, I will thank my helpers and practise patience with my moods.

***********************************************

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

Depression is nourished by a lifetime of ungrieved and unforgiven hurts.

~ Penelope Sweet ~

Carrying old sacks of anger and hurt on our backs often gives us a gloomy attitude. But many of us had no idea how much resentment and hurt we were carrying until it was removed. The sad part is that it takes a lot of energy and muscle for us to stay tied to someone else through resentment.

The solution is forgiveness, which is an act of courage that can’t be faked. When we forgive someone, we feel differently. We are flooded with a new sense of freedom. We actually feel lighter and seem to walk taller.

Forgiveness begins with an ounce of willingness. For many of us, the final act of forgiveness is like a miracle. Out of the seed of our willingness, a flower grows. A subtle internal shift seems to have occurred in us and the intensity of the old emotions is replaced with peace of mind. Resentments were a barrier to this growth; forgiveness is the beginning of a new freedom.

Today give me the courage to be willing to let go of old hurts and resentments.

************************************************

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

To fall into a habit is to begin to cease to be.

~ Miguel de Unamuno ~

Sometimes it may feel as if your habit is constantly in your thoughts. You may find yourself driving by old haunts or running into people from your past. Or a scene from a movie or television show may spark a mental jour-ney down old habit memory lane.

Such times of remembrance—whether they cause you to feel pain, regret, sadness, yearning, or even happiness— are natural. Even though you have let go of your habits, they are still a part of your psyche and memory bank. That means that they will always be with you, even when they are no longer your constant companions.

That is why it is so important to identify yourself in meetings as someone who has an addiction. Through this acknowledgment you weaken the hold habits have on you and strengthen your resistance to temptation. You are also striving to minimize those times when memories of your habits gain unexpected entry into your mind. Telling yourself and others, with openness and honesty, that you are an addict confronts your habits head-on. It says, “I recognize what my habits are, and I will not let them rule my life or ruin my day.”

Expression, rather than suppression, will help to free my mind from the control of my addictions.

************************************************

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

Do not look to small advantages. Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done thoroughly. Looking at small advantages prevents great things being accomplished.

~ Confucius ~

The best work we can do is that which takes time. The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel is the result of years of work. Barns built centuries ago still stand firm. The finest and most brilliant gems are the results of hours of study, cutting, and polishing.

Doing anything well means not merely getting the job done. We are probably very capable of quantity work when we want to be. But it’s the quality work—the kind we can step back from and admire today and for years to come—that really counts.

Whether we are working on ourselves, improving our relations with others, or restoring a fine piece of furniture, our best effort is the one that takes time and lasts.

I can work on one thing patiently and thoroughly, knowing the results will be better with time.

************************************************

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

Experiencing change

In recovery, there are great upheavals. Just as our whole drug world is let go, so too are many of our old ideas. Many a premise of our lives will prove weak and unreliable.

The only thing unshakable is God. Though fundamental change is shattering, our Higher Power will guide us through.

Am I experiencing a great upheaval?

Higher Power, help me to accept the need for change and to accept your help to endure it.

The area of my life I will work on changing today is

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Anticipate the good so that you may enjoy it. ETHIOPIAN PROVERB

Newcomer

I’m getting closer to ninety days—I’m in the eighties now. I’m excited. It’s a miracle that I’ve been able to stay in recovery without interruption for this long. But I feel worried, too—or maybe I’m scared. I don’t know what I’m feeling!

Sponsor

“Anniversary anxiety” is something many of us experience in recovery. For the preceding days or weeks, we’re aware of the upcoming anniversary and its implications. We may anticipate speaking at a meeting or celebrating with recovering friends. Will we measure up to their expectations? To our own?

Perhaps we’ve been sharing our day count and enjoying the applause. As we approach ninety days, we may be afraid we’ll become “invisible” at meetings. Depending on local program and group customs, we may be eligible to chair meetings. Are we going to have to handle more responsibilities than we feel ready for? The day of the anniversary itself, and the days following it, may be a setup for feeling as if we’ve graduated or won an athletic event. We may be afraid that recovery will disappoint us, once the cheering dies down.

It helps to know that this phenomenon is a common one. If you’re experiencing it, one of the best antidotes is to share your concerns, both at meetings and with a sponsor. We’ve been there.

Today, I use the same tools of recovery that worked in the very beginning: meetings, sharing, reading recovery literature, prayer. They work.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

No man with certainty can see beyond this instant. Yesterday we had a friend, hale, hearty and bubbling over with energy and ambition. Today we write a letter of condolence to his widow. No one knows the day or the hour but this we do know – we are alive right now, we can help them right now.

************************************************

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

1) When we remove me from “blame” all that’s left is bla, bla, bla. . . .

2) Detachment comes with the development of spiritual trust.

3) Service is gratitude in action.

************************************************

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

Kindness and Service

O Lord, help me always to remember thankfully the work of those who helped me when I needed help. Reward them for their kindness and service, and grant that I may have the will, the time, and the opportunity to do the same for others.

***********************************************

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

COMFORT FOR MOURNING

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted (Matthew 5:4).

Mourning or sorrow is not in itself a good thing, for the will of God is that everyone should experience happiness and joyous success. Jesus says:

… I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly (John 10:10).

Nevertheless, trouble and suffering are often extremely useful, because many people will not bother to learn the Truth until driven to do so by sorrow and failure. Sorrow then becomes relatively a good thing. Sooner or later every human being will have to discover the truth about God, and make his own contact with Him at first hand. He will have to acquire the understanding of Truth, which will set him free, once and for all, from our three-dimensional limitations and their concomitants-sin, sickness, and death. There is really no need for man to have trouble, because if he will only seek God first, the trouble need never come. He always has the choice of learning by spiritual unfoldment or of learning by painful experience. Family troubles, quarrels and estrangements, sin and remorse, need never come at all if we seek first the Kingdom of God and Right Understanding; but if we will not do so, then come they must and for us this mourning will be a blessing disguise, for through it we shall be “comforted.” And by comfort the Bible means the experience of the Presence of God, which is the end of all mourning.

************************************************

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

At Faith Value

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

~ Hebrews 11:1 ~

“Hurry up, or we’ll miss the bus!” shouted Paul. The streets of New York City became a blur as we jogged toward the bus terminal.

Two blocks in five minutes—was it possible?

“You guys go up and catch the bus, and I’ll get the tickets,” offered Tom. We ran up the long escalator, brushing past less anxious passengers. At the top of the ramp, we saw the bus closing its doors. Running full speed, we reached the bus just as it was pulling out of its parking space. We pounded on the door, and the driver let us in. “Can you wait for our friend?” I implored. “He’s getting our tickets.”

“Sorry, fellas, I’m already late.”

Paul stepped off the bus, looked toward the escalator, and exclaimed, “There he is!”

The driver rolled his eyes and indicated he would wait. Within moments, Tom showed up, short of breath, tickets in hand. As we made our way back to the bus, I told Paul, “It sure was great that you saw Tom coming; the bus would have left if you hadn’t.”

“That was good acting, don’t you think?” Paul retorted.

“What do you mean?”

“I didn’t see him coming; I only said that to stall the driver. We were lucky he showed up when he did!”

Real faith is acting as if your good is on its way even before you have evidence it is so. Jesus told us to give thanks for the answers to our prayers before we see the results. Faith is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it becomes, and the more power you have to bring your good into visibility. Proclaim your good as if you already have it even before you see it, and you will see it.

Help me to celebrate my blessings before I can touch them. Make the invisible visible to me.

I believe in my good, and manifest it.

[bluidkiti]

March 26

Step by Step

Today, recognize that that much of my life has been expecting other people to meet my demands and expectations to fulfill my needs and wants. In selfishness and vanity, I often rejected those who failed or would not give me what I wanted or needed when I wanted or needed it. In those times of looking to the outside for fulfillment, I had not a clue how to look inside myself and beyond something stronger than other people to attain what since have become different needs and expectations. In AA, I understand now that I put my sobriety first and foremost above everyone and all else to earn acceptance, friendship, love and empathy. And my expectations of others were so unrealistic and selfish that I became needy to the point of being pathetic. Now I see the consequences, sometimes disastrous, of putting all my expectations on others but am able to look inside myself and to a stronger power stronger to earn what I need. Today, I will take from what AA has given me to meet my needs and not weigh anyone with expectations so selfish and heavy that I ignore that they, too, have their own needs. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

CHOICES

Use wisely your power of choice.

~ Og Mandino~

Escape from physical, emotional and mental control of our old obsessions and dependencies has given all of us the freedom to make choices. But the right to choose is only an opening. We need to exercise that right and to choose well.

We learn that we cannot misuse or neglect choices once we have determined a course to take. We come to know how to choose between positive and negative, humility and arrogance, gratitude and self-centeredness, pride and dejection, high and low spirits. Knowing is not enough, however. We carry out our choices and use wisely the power of choice.

As we work our Program, we find that the fear of making decisions slips away. If our choice proves wrong, we can learn from the experience.

I am the result of any choice. I am, at any given moment of life, the sum total of the choices I have made.

************************************************

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

Tuning and training the mind as an athlete tunes and trains his body is one of the primary aims of all forms of meditation.

~ Lawrence LeShan ~

The longer we follow the steps that guide our path, the more we grow as men. We all know about getting in shape and staying in shape physically. Working out brings results very quickly, and if we are working on our golf game or improving our running time, the more we practice, the more progress we make. We can attend to our minds in the same way. One difference between these kinds of development is that age is on our side as we train our minds. No aging process can diminish the kind of person we are.

Spiritual growth moves forward by paying attention to it and by devoting some time every day to prayer and meditation. Conscious contact with our Higher Power, sitting quietly for a few minutes every day, influences us throughout the day in the background of our minds.

Today I will quietly open my mind to the deep truths and allow them to train my thoughts.

************************************************

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

When we loosen our grasp on our concerns, there is room for the spiritual essence of all life to move through us in such a way that healing occurs.

~ Carol Sheffield ~

When we stay focused on a problem, we exaggerate it. The solution can’t reach us when the mind isn’t free to accept it. What we must do is develop the desire and the skill to release all thoughts from our mind. Then and only then can we be receptive to the spiritual solutions that reside within.

This recovery program, with its Steps and slogans and principles can reeducate us. We are up to the challenge. It’s human nature to hang on to old ideas, old ways of doing things. But we are growing, perhaps in spite of ourselves, and our old methods don’t live up to current demands. It’s time to trust what our sponsors tell us. Release the grip on a problem, any problem. The answer will come.

I will not be caught in a problem today if I am quiet and ready for the solution. Stillness engulfs me now.

************************************************

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

I want to stop feeling sad

Sometimes I am overwhelmed with sadness. Suddenly I feel alone and helpless. I don’t know where it comes from, but I know how much it hurts and frightens me.

I am grateful to my therapist. With his help I am exploring my sore spots, what he calls my buttons, and how they get pushed. It seems that the more I know myself and my moods, the better I can take care of myself. I want to stop feeling so sad, to stabilize my emotions, and avoid a relapse to my addiction.

I will review my day’s events and look for triggers of a sad mood.

***********************************************

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

Cast all your cares to God; that anchor holds.

~ Alfred, Lord Tennyson ~

To surrender is to win. To fight or run is to lose. When we lose we are isolated and lonely. When we fight, we can’t reach our potential. But when we surrender, we are alive and connected with society.

Surrender does not make us weak. It has helped so many before us reach quality sobriety. What surrender does is make us humble. It forces us to admit to ourselves and to others that we are not perfect. We make mistakes and it’s ok. Surrender brings us face to face with the humility we avoided when we were drinking and using. Humility deepens us, improves our character and self-esteem.

Humility is based on a foundation of trust in our Higher Power. We can’t let go unless we’re sure we won’t fall. With the help of our Higher Power, we know we’re protected. Now we can fully surrender and cast our cares to God.

Today help me surrender.

************************************************

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

Total absence of humor renders life impossible.

~ Colette ~

What one person considers funny can be quite different from what another appreciates as humor. Think about fellow addicts who, despite having a very tragic story that brought them into the program, can, with their wit and wry way of telling a story, bring laughter to a meeting. Then think about those who continually shed tears at meetings or with whom conversations always turn to the dark side, the things that cannot be done, and the impossibilities of life. Which person do you choose to be around? Which person seems to impart the greatest advice?

There are certainly those in meetings who act as if they are playing a room in Vegas. They provide entertainment, but after a while you may feel like saying, “Enough al-ready.” Too, there are those who rarely talk about any-thing with depth and keep what they say at a very surface level. With such people you may feel like asking, “But how do you feel?”

Striking a balance between being lighthearted and humorous and having a depth of feeling is part of the delicate dance of recovery. The greatest benefit comes when the two coexist. Feelings enable you to see the truth; humor keeps the truth from becoming too overwhelming.

Today I will strive to take things with a more lighthearted approach and outlook.

************************************************

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

One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon—instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.

~ Dale Carnegie ~

How we love to think about all the things we want to do! Our lists are probably quite long to include all the things we want, when we have the time or the money.

What are we waiting for? What are our excuses? Many times we make excuses to avoid planning, saving money, or changing schedules. Many times we use our excuses like bricks, building a higher and higher wall until it’s impossible to scale. To live is to experience new, exciting, interesting, and diverse things.

To live is to break schedules and change patterns and do things out of the ordinary. To live is to participate in all the fun, all the travel, all the people, all the activities. Are we going to live—starting tomorrow?

I will think about one thing I really want to do and write down what I need to do to accomplish it. To help achieve it, I’ll then share this plan with another.

************************************************

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

Worshipping

What we worship says a lot about the direction of our lives. Whatever else we worshipped, eventually we worshipped our addiction—going to any length to obtain and use our drug of choice. In our new life, however, we are learning to worship a new spiritual Higher Power.

As we work our Twelve Step program and learn about our new Higher Power—one who offers us no guilt, shame, danger, or losses— it might help to look at how others are coming to understand their Higher Power. We can learn from their example, just as we teach others indirectly by our own example.

What are my actions saying now about the direction of my life?

Higher Power, help me to express my developing and deepening beliefs.

I will express my love of God today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

I think even lying on my bed I can still do something.

~ DOROTHEA DIX ~

Newcomer

I’m not doing well with meditation. I tried going to a class, and I got fidgety after ten or fifteen minutes. I tried paying attention to my breath, but my back hurt, I was nervous and distracted, and I kept thinking how badly I wanted to leave. Forget about doing it at home—I can sit for five minutes, then I have to get up. How do people endure all-day meditations?

Sponsor

You may not be ready for long sessions of sitting meditation. For a beginner, even fifteen minutes may be too long. If you sense that the form of meditation you have tried is the one you’re best suited to, you might consider starting with very brief sessions, as little as three to five minutes. After a few weeks, you may want to try adding another minute or two. You can work up to fifteen minutes gradually, over a long period of time, and then see whether you wish to add a bit more or not. Surprisingly, the key is knowing when to stop.

When something makes me anxious, I limit the amount of time I do it. I may have the willingness to do something for a few minutes every day that would frighten me for half an hour once a week. Lengthening the time little by little, being sure that I don’t exceed the time limit I’ve set for the day, allows me to increase my tolerance gradually.

If sitting continues to be daunting for you, you may want to consider exploring forms of meditation that include walking or chanting.

Today, I do not judge my rate of progress.
I take one small step on my spiritual journey.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

We in AA have many religious affiliations and there are some of us who contend that AA is all the religion they need. Yet this fact remains: the spiritual facts on which AA is based would not have survived the ages but for the tenacity of formal religions.

Without religions, our moral, political and social structure would collapse. There is a lot in all denominations that can be criticized but without them life would be chaos.

************************************************

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

1) Take the cotton out of your ears and stuff it in your mouth.

2) You cannot learn to love yourself until you learn to forgive yourself.

3) It says: “here are the steps we took,” not suggested, not understand.

************************************************

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

Make Me

God, who touches earth with beauty,
Make me lovely too;
With Your Spirit re-create me,
Make my heart anew.

Like Your springs and running waters,
Make me crystal pure;
Like Your rocks of towering grandeur
Make me strong and sure.

Like Your dancing waves in sunlight,
Make me glad and free;
Like the straightness of the pine trees
Let me upright be.

Like the arching of the heavens,
Lift my thoughts above;
Turn my dreams to noble action,
Ministries of love.

God, who touches earth with beauty,
Make me lovely too;
Keep me ever, by Your Spirit,
Pure and strong and true.

***********************************************

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

THE BLESSED MEEK

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5).
On the surface, this Beatitude seems to be contradicted by the facts of everyday life. But either Jesus knew what he was talking about, and is to be taken seriously, or his teaching should be dropped altogether. If He is to be relied upon, then let us pay him the compliment of assuming that he knew best about the art of living.

The fact is that when correctly understood, the teaching of Jesus is found to be the most practicable of all doctrines: and the whole essence of his teaching and of its application is summed up in this text. When you possess the spiritual meaning of this text you have the secret of dominion—the secret of overcoming every kind of difficulty.

We notice that there are two polar words in the text—meek and earth. First of all, the word earth in the Bible really means the whole of your outer experience, and to “inherit the earth” means to have dominion over that outer experience. So we see that when the Bible talks about possessing the earth, governing the earth, making the earth glorious, it is referring to the conditions of our lives, from our bodily health outwar4d to the farthest point in our affairs. So this text undertakes to tell us how we may possess, or govern, or be masters of our environment.

************************************************

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

Stinkin’ Thinking

You can’t afford the luxury of a negative thought.

~ John-Roger ~

When I was a child, my mother told me never to flush the toilet when I was sitting on it because “you might catch a cold in your tush.” Trusting my mother’s advice, I was careful not to flush imprudently, and I successfully avoided the dreaded tush cold. One day when I was 30 years old, I began to flush while sitting on the toilet, and I could hear my mother’s voice warning me against it. But this time I decided to question her well-meaning advice. Would I truly catch a cold in my tush? Then it dawned on me: I didn’t even know what a “cold in the tush” was! Could her fears be unjustified? So I flushed and did not catch the ominous tush cold, which helped me let go of a long- held program that had run me for years without ever thinking about it.

As little children, we regarded our parents as gods. They were bigger than we were, they gave us valuable advice that helped us navigate our world, and they purveyed rewards that made us happy, and meted out punishments that hurt us. Our tiny minds did not have the ability to distinguish illusions from truth, so we accepted all of what our parents told us—even if some of it was untrue.

Our psyche is like an iceberg, a tiny portion of which is apparent, and most of which lies below the surface of our awareness. The belief systems we adopted as children can control our entire lives unless we call them to consciousness. If you have the courage to question what you have always accepted, you may discover that you have been living out many false beliefs. From your heart and your own experience, what do you really know to be true? Meditate on this question, dare to live the answers you discover, and you will find unprecedented healing and freedom.

Help me to discard all illusions and live the truth of my own soul.

I release all past beliefs and march forward in the light of my own wisdom.

[bluidkiti]

March 27

Step by Step

Today, if I am afraid, anxious, worried and uncertain about anything, I can draw strength from the mercy and blessing of my higher power that guided me through the darkness and fear of alcoholism to face the challenges before me now. If I believe that drinking was the darkest chapter of my life but that I survived with the strength of a higher power, I can also believe that the same strength can lead me through a lesser turmoil. Step 2 of coming to believe in a higher power is refuge from any storm I am weathering now, and the Third Step of yielding to a greater power calms any fears or doubts with faith. Today, I can draw strength and hope from the yesterday when I had my last drink to believe that, with faith and strength in the power that got me through those days, I can get through anything less – with unconditional faith and by seeking His will over mine. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

FORGIVING

Joy to forgive and joy to be forgiven hang level in the balance of love.

~ Richard Garnett~

If we are unable or unwilling to forgive others for whatever they do, we won’t be able to forgive ourselves for our actions. The agony of resentment, guilt, remorse, and shame will overpower us. These emotions will halt our progress toward the comfortable and rewarding living we are promised in recovery.

Early in recovery, we often were told to pray for those whom we thought had wronged us. This philosophy is as old as civilization. Forgiveness will always triumph over guilt and shame. Recovery is one-third love and two-thirds forgiveness.

We’ve been our own worst enemies during most of our lives. We’ve often hurt ourselves over what we thought was justifiable anger and resentment.

Self-forgiveness is strength, not weakness. Gaining the strength is simple. I need only remind myself that “God has forgiven me. Why not forgive myself?”

************************************************

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

Somewhere in each of us we’re a mixture of light and of darkness, of love and of hate, of trust and of fear.

~ Jean Vanier ~

We have gone to extremes in our lives. We’ve got a penchant for seeing things as all or nothing, black or white. A real man is made up of mixtures and blends, but we tend to think of ourselves as either the greatest or the worst, the smartest or the dullest.

In our progress toward recovery, we see that we are not separate from other people. We are like all people. As we learn to know ourselves, we see parts that we like and parts that appall us. But honesty with ourselves trumps any other defect. So in the very act of admitting a defect, we lay the foundation for accepting ourselves.

Today I will be honest with myself about my many facets and accept the mixture as truly human.

************************************************

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

To each particular person the world speaks a different, particular word and calls for a different, particular response.

~ Mary McDermott Shideler ~

It’s reassuring to hear that we are special. Most of us felt like failures for much of our lives. We lacked both confidence and enthusiasm. Occasionally we still tremble, fearing that we can’t handle what’s happening to us. However, we have been told that our experiences are unique and that no other woman could handle them in our specific way. We are coming to believe that this is true.

So many miracles are happening in our midst. The fact that we survived numerous dangerous moments should indicate that our work isn’t yet complete. But what will we be called upon to do today? Can we fulfill this request adequately? Never fear. That we are here means we can. It also means that whatever is about to happen needs each of us, specifically. This is wonderfully reassuring.

I am invited to experience particular situations today. My presence is needed if I am called.

************************************************

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

I am learning to deal with a slip with my emotional illness

Yesterday I got extremely upset when I had a serious disagreement with my roommate. I felt angry and sad. When I woke up this morning, I convinced myself I couldn’t get out of bed, so I just stayed there until evening.

Tonight I feel a little better, even though we haven’t resolved our problem. While I didn’t solve it by sleeping, I don’t want to be hard on myself for staying in bed so long. It was a slip, and I want to forgive myself for it. Today I see yesterday’s events more clearly, and I can see better what I need to do differently tomorrow.

When I make a mistake today, I will try to forgive myself and concentrate instead on the question, What can I learn from it?

***********************************************

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

The house fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

~ Matthew 7:25 ~

Recovery is like building a house. First we need a solid plan. Next we need the materials. Last we need the manpower to build the house.

In recovery, the plan is the Twelve Steps. The materials are literature — books, pamphlets, tapes — and time to think and meditate. And the manpower is what we get from our sponsor and from our fellowship of other recovering people. It’s also what we look to our Higher Power for.

When we feel we’re at the bottom again and can’t take another step forward, sometimes the only difference we can see between now and the old days is that we’re not alone. There are probably many other differences. But it’s easy to forget them or dismiss them when we’re in pain.

Our Higher Power can give us the manpower we need to continue building our house when there’s a work slowdown. There’s a lot of construction, cleaning, and decoration yet to be done, but with our Higher Power as foreman we can enjoy the process of creation. And we can trust that we’ll be there to nail down the last shingle.

Today help me use all the resources available to me to build my recovery.

************************************************

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

Long afterwards, she was to remember that moment when her life changed its direction. It was not predestined; she had a choice.

~ Evelyn Anthony ~

It used to be that choices in life were quite limited. The purchase of a consumable, product, for instance, often boiled down to this one or that one.

But today you exist in a world that has an over-whelming amount of choices. Do you want to drive to a particular destination? You can take any number of routes—toll road, highway, back roads, shortest route, fastest route. Do you want to order takeout for lunch? You can choose from Italian, Chinese, Thai, and more. Do you want to watch a movie? You can go to a multiplex or sit in the comfort of your living room and find a movie on cable TV or through an on-demand service.

While everyday life is much more complicated, the program offers clarity and consistency. It urges you to keep things simple in your recovery. The Twelve Steps are easy to understand and follow. Gathering in fellowship to share stories, experiences, and wisdom provides great support. Your choice to be in recovery is a simple one—one that you renew every day.

Today I choose to be clean and sober. I will show my commitment to this choice in all of my actions.

************************************************

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

When, against one’s will, one is high-pressured into making a hurried decision the best answer is always no because no is more easily changed to yes than yes is changed to no.

~ Charles E. Nielson ~

There are many people we have never refused a favor or help. We may have even sacrificed our time, our schedules, or a friendship to accommodate as many people as possible. Then we entered the pro-gram and learned we didn’t have to do what everyone wanted. We could say no and that would be okay.

But there may be one or two people we find hard to refuse: a parent or a spouse or an ex-lover or someone we feel we owe. No matter what they ask us, no matter what our schedules, needs, or prior commitments, we may find it almost impossible to say no.

What are we afraid of if we say no? Do we think we’ll lose their love or approval, or they’ll say bad things about us? We aren’t working the program if we can say no to some people and not to others. To be our own persons, we need courage to refuse when we feel it is in our best interest.

I can practice saying no to someone who is difficult for me to refuse.

************************************************

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

Accepting myself

Accepting myself means not having to be rich, famous, powerful, or even “good.” It means not having to impress others. It means living authentically. It means being comfortable saying, “I don’t know.”

To be free from fear means that we can live as we choose; it means we don’t have to be anything in particular. We can just be aware and accepting.

Do I feel free to be me?

Higher Power, help me to accept myself just as I am.

I will practice accepting myself today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Before a secret is told, one can often feel the weight of it in the atmosphere.

~ SUSAN GRIFFIN ~

Newcomer

When I had a wisdom tooth pulled a few days ago, the dentist gave me a medication that contains codeine. I’ve heard people at meetings say they take their doctors’ prescriptions, so I knew it was okay to use it if necessary. As it turned out, I didn’t need to take any—the pain wasn’t that bad. I don’t know why, but I kept the pills. They’re still in my medicine cabinet. Codeine isn’t something I ever took when I was active.

Sponsor

You’re right in thinking that you are in a danger area here. I recommend that you throw out the medication right now, and I don’t mean just tossing it into the wastebasket. Flush the pills down the toilet, or put them in a rubbish bag and take it out of your house; I’ll wait here while you do it.

There are medical reasons to use some drugs as prescribed. It’s when we prescribe for ourselves, or start imagining pains to justify unnecessary doses, that we’re in trouble. We can let the doctor know that we have a history of abusing substances and that it may cause us problems to take home more pills than we’re likely to need. Knowing this, he or she may prescribe nonaddictive medicines when there is a choice.

Even if our use of pain killers is legitimate, sharing with a sponsor or at a meeting the fact that we have prescribed medicines in our possession is a good idea. If it’s not a secret, it may seem less compelling to us.

Today, I don’t have to have secrets. I stay on the recovery path by sharing feelings and events that might otherwise threaten my serenity.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Many of us can recall being fired from jobs for drinking and at the same time being given a letter of recommendation that spoke in going terms about our ability. Of course the former boss was trying to be kind in avoiding any mention of the drinking problem, but such letters are actually dishonest, and it was equally dishonest when we used them to procure new jobs.

How much better it would have been if they had tried to do something constructive about the problem rather than lowering us in our own esteem by making us a party to the deceit.

************************************************

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

1) HALTS FEAR: Hope, Acceptance, Love and Tolerance Stops Forgetting Everything’s All Right

2) When you feel needy, feel needy. You deserve more. You matter.

3) Detachment is neither kind nor unkind.

************************************************

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

Guide Me

Thank You, Higher Power, for this beautiful day, for strength, for health.
Help me to live this day for You.
Place in my path some way to serve others.
Help me to know that no other walks in my shoes; that there is something that only I can do today.
Guide my thoughts and deeds that I may feel Your presence today and in all the tomorrows.

***********************************************

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

INHERITING THE EARTH

Let us see how we are to go about inheriting the earth. This Beatitude say that dominion, that is, power over the condition of our lives, is to be obtained in a certain way, by nothing less than meekness.

The word meek in the Bible connotes a mental attitude for which there is no other single word available. It is a combination of open-mindedness, faith in God, and the realization that the will of God for us is always something joyous and interesting and vital. This state of mind also includes a perfect willingness to allow this will of God to come about in whatever way divine Wisdom considers to be best, rather than in some particular way that we have chosen for ourselves.

This mental attitude of teachableness, willingness to be led, is the key to dominion, or success in demonstration. There is no word for it in common speech, because the thing does not exist except for those who are up on the spiritual basis of the teaching of Jesus Christ. If we desire to inherit the earth we must absolutely acquire this “meekness.”

The lord reighneth; let the earth rejoice…(Psalm 97:1).

************************************************

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

Where to Build a Sidewalk

Shift your sail with the wind.

~ Italian proverb ~

I attended a conference at a Pennsylvania college, J enjoyed walking through a huge grassy mall between the buildings. The area was landscaped beautifully, and the sidewalks were laid out in an interesting, irregular pattern. When I com-mented on this to a friend, she told me, “The sidewalks were designed by the people who walked on them. When the mall first opened, the architects did not designate sidewalks; instead they waited for a few weeks to see where students walked. After the engineers determined the footpath patterns, they laid down the sidewalks. They realized that no matter where they put the sidewalks, people would walk where they wanted and just trample the grass. So they decided to save themselves some work and make it easier for the pedestrians.”

The sidewalk designers understood that there is a flow to life, and when we are one with it, we are empowered. When we tune into the energy flow, we can use it to our advantage, rather than struggling to make the world fit into our expectations. The ancient Tao Te Ching, recorded by Lao Tse, is a magnificent poetic instruction book on how to be strengthened by changes.

Jungle lore tells that monkeys learned how to evade capture by making use of ease rather than force. Hunters would put some nuts in a glass jar with a rim smaller than its base. A monkey of inferior intelligence would reach into the jar and grab the nuts, but because the hand with the nuts in it was too large to fit through the rim, the animal would stand there struggling, and the hunter would grab him. The smarter monkeys, however, didn’t reach into the jar; they simply opened one palm and tilted the jar so the nuts fell into it. If you are trying to clutch onto something that won’t fit into your life naturally, that’s when you get caught. Accept what shows up, and you are free. Take advantage of the tide of events, and life will support you in ways that you could not manipulate through anxious struggle.

Build on what is, rather than what isn’t, and you will be one with life.

Show me how to live. Help me move with energy, that I may be free and happy.

The door to my good is open now.

[bluidkiti]

March 28

Step by Step

Today, I will not romanticize my drinking days as “fun” or good if a newcomer to the program or even a veteran talk about “the good old days.” By embellishing drinking before “things went bad” and even constructing a vision that any of it was good, I am probably pining for days when I might have drank “safely” without being honest that those days never existed at all. And by longing for non-existent “good old days,” I am vulnerable to a slip or relapse and denying the truth that I am now, and forever will be, “powerless over alcohol.” More pointedly, if I try to re-do my last drunk into something that is not true, I have basically forgotten my last drunk. And as one of the program’s old sayings goes, if I can’t remember my last drunk, I haven’t had it yet. Today, I will remember with honesty how it was and that it has been, so far by the grace of God, my last drunk. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

EGO

E.G.O. = Edge God Out

Ego can be one tough customer. It generally fights this business of recovery and a Higher Power tooth and nail. It can cry like a baby and tell us how much care it needs. It can scream like a pouting teenager demanding that we leave it alone. It can romance us like a long-lost lover seducing us into sleep.

The ego can take on many disguises to get its own way. It wants no competition for affection. When we were caught up in our disease, the ego and the drugs and alcohol met up and made an unholy alliance against us. The disease told the ego what it wanted to hear, and the ego fed the disease its poison.

My ego must be cut down to size. This will help stop my disease from doing further damage to my life. My ego will never provide serenity, only endless demand. Only my Higher Power, the Program, and my friends can end this war within me.

************************************************

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

My history is a gift, like my body—it’s what I am made of.

~ Shawnee Undell ~

If our bodies are the hardware, our histories are part of the software. We sometimes cringe when we look back at things we did or things that happened. We are tempted to indulge in magical thinking, hoping to turn back the clock and relive events to make them turn out differently. But our experiences, good and bad, are the stuff that teaches what we need to learn.

When we look back, we cannot change what happened. History is history. But we did choose what we made of what happened, and we can still choose: that is always open to revision. Even today we can deepen and improve upon how we respond to what happened. Our growth continues into the present and for as long as we live.

Today I am responding constructively to what has happened in my history.

************************************************

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

There are many realities. We should remember this when we get too caught up in being concerned about the way the rest of the world lives or how we think they live.

~ Natalie Goldberg ~

One of the most elusive truths we’ll ever struggle to grasp is that everyone has a unique perspective about every circumstance, a perspective that reflects a personal understanding of the universe. We never doubt that truth for ourselves, of course. We simply fail to acknowledge that it’s true for everyone else too.

There are times we can’t shake the need to be right; our egos seem to depend on it. Unfortunately, we can’t maintain any real peacefulness if we are always in conflict with others who have their own viewpoints. Winning the “battle” then becomes a painful victory. Believing in valid, separate realities is only difficult at first. But like any other opinion or attitude, it can become habit with enough practice. We have nothing to lose by giving it a try.

I don’t need everyone to agree with me today. I only think I do.

************************************************

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

I can learn and grow stronger by sitting still

Now that I’ve been in recovery for a while, I feel much better. I have added new friends and a support group meeting to my life – very important commitments. But sometimes I feel like I’m too busy – I feel like I’m pushing the river instead of letting it flow.

When I told a friend in my support group about my pace, he offered me a tool called meditation. I listened carefully and learned that instead of trying to grow or change through doing or thinking all the time, one method of meditation is to do nothing, to simply sit still and focus on breathing. By sitting quietly and just breathing, it is possible to learn about myself, to slowly, subtly, enhance recovery.

I’ll devote five minutes today to sitting still and just breathing.

***********************************************

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

To flee vice is the beginning of virtue.

~ Horace ~

Some people, places, and things are risky for our recovery. It’s tempting, especially at the beginning, to go back and visit, to test our new powers, to brag a little to the friends we had then, showing them (and ourselves) how far we’ve come and how much we’ve changed. But we need to remember that those people, places, and things haven’t changed — they are just as dangerous today as they were then.

This is a lesson we need to learn again and again. Even after years of sobriety, we’re tempted at times to test our new resolve, thinking this time we’ll be able to handle temptation. But that’s a gamble, like racing a train to a railroad crossing — and for us, the results can be just as deadly. We may not have quite enough recovery to resist the allure of old ways and old friends. We may not be strong enough to resist temptation. We may feel vulnerable and worthless and give up the fight to recover. But life doesn’t have to be like that today. We can walk past temptation, and find the strength, one day at a time, to start a new and joyous life.

Today help me remember the dangers of giving in to temptation. Help me keep myself safe.

************************************************

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

To do the same thing over and over again is not only boredom; it is to be controlled by rather than to control what you do.

~ Heraclitus ~

Cartoonist Leigh Rubin conveys a humorous look at bore-dom in his comic drawing of a goldfish in a bowl, entitled “Diary of a Fish.” The diary runs from Sunday through Saturday and conveys the same entries about how the fish spent its day: It swam. It ate. It slept.

Now you may view your existence as one of dull routines, causing you to feel bored and disinterested in life. When someone asks, “So what’s new with you?” you may let out a sigh and mumble, “Same old, same old.” But the things that once partnered with your addiction can be transformed and refashioned to add freshness and rich-ness to your life. Being spontaneous can open you up to new experiences. Taking a risk can offer learning and challenge. Doing something out of the ordinary can pro-vide an opportunity to grow. Embracing unpredictability can strengthen your ability to flow with life’s challenges.

If you feel there is nothing special going on in your life, do something different from what you did yesterday. Even simple changes can provide enough stimulation to make life more interesting and enjoyable.

Today I will make an effort to change the scenery of my life.

************************************************

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

My world is composed of takers and givers. The takers may eat better but the givers sleep better.

~ Byron Frederick ~

At the end of every Perry Mason show the murderers were caught. Whether their motives were greed, revenge, or justice, their guilt would surface and right would prevail.

Before the program, we may have refused to see our guilt. We may have taken from others because we believed they owed us. But after we entered the program we learned nobody owes us anything. We now tell the store clerks when we’re undercharged for a purchase. Our guilt over the dishonesty of taking what wasn’t ours would be too much for us.

The giver inside us isn’t bothered by guilt and shame. Because we aren’t taking from others today, we’re only receiving what we deserve. Today, we haven’t stolen, lied, or cheated. Tonight we can sleep better because we’re givers instead of takers.

How did I give to others or myself today? Tonight I can have a clear conscience knowing I was a giver and not a taker.

************************************************

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

Maturing

In terms of age, most of us are fifteen going on thirty or forty or fifty. People in the pro-gram have observed that members stopped growing emotionally about the time they started using mood-altering chemicals. It may sound funny, but these observations appear accurate. If we look around us, many newer members do seem stuck in their teenage years.

But abstinence, patience, and working the program help us mature to our proper ages. Given time, we can become the adults we have only pretended to be for so long.

Am I maturing?

Higher Power, help me to grow emotionally.

I will act maturely today by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Bring the body, and the mind will follow.

~ SAYING HEARD IN MEETINGS ~

Newcomer

What do people in recovery mean when they say they have “smart feet”?

Sponsor

In recovery, we develop daily habits that we don’t question: the habit of attending meetings, the habit of picking up the telephone to call a sponsor or to share with another recovering person, the habit of starting and ending the day with our preferred combination of prayer, literature, and meditation. We do these things whether we feel like doing them or not, and in time they become second nature to us, automatic as our addictive behavior was in the past. If we don’t have to discuss these habits with ourselves, argue about whether or not they’ll make us feel better, or question whether we’ve outgrown them, our burden is lighter.

Once we’re at a meeting or sharing with another recovering person or with our Higher Power, the unexpected happens. We’re lifted out of the tyranny of addictive thinking. “Smart feet” are feet that carry us to a place we need to be, whether we know it ahead of time or not.

Today, I’m grateful for simple habits that open my heart and mind to recovery.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Why is the world? Why are we here? What is our purpose? Why must we live and suffer and die? Without God, there would be no answer. We do not know the great extent of God’s purpose, but we do know that we as individuals, each and every one, must somehow fit into that purpose.

We can only know God as He has revealed Himself to us. We know His principle attribute is goodness. Therefore His purpose must be good and we can best serve that purpose by aspiring to the highest standard of goodness that we can conceive.

************************************************

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

1) Some people grumble because the roses have thorns instead of being grateful that the thorns have roses.

2) When you are in it up to your ears, keep your mouth shut.

3) Boredom is the feeling that everything is a waste of time; serenity, that nothing is.

************************************************

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

Anniversary Prayer

Dear God, I had another anniversary today, one more year in recovery. It has been difficult at times, but it has allowed many blessings. I am a human being again. I feel new strength in my body, spirit, and mind. The world has never looked so good. I have the respect of my friends and family. I am productive in my work. I do not miss the slippery people and places. When I have been tempted, You, my Higher Power, have sustained me. I have found a home in the Fellowship and friends support me. Stay close by me, God. I thank You. This is the life I love.

***********************************************

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

AS MEEK AS MOSES

Moses—who overcame the old age belief to the extent of manifesting the physical body of a young man in the prime of life when, according to the calendar, he was one hundred and twenty years old, and then transcended matter altogether, or “dematerialized” without dying—was known pre-eminently for this quality; “as meek as Moses.” apart from his own personal demonstration, Moses also did a marvelous work for his whole nation, getting it out of Egyptian bondage in the face of incredible difficulties. Moses had an open mind, ready to be taught new things and new ways of thinking and working. He was not, in the beginning at least, free from serious faults of character, but he gradually rose above these defects as the new truth worked in his soul.

Moses thoroughly understood that to conform oneself rigorously to the will of God, far from involving the loss of any good, could only mean a better and more splendid life. He did not, therefore, think of his as self-sacrifice, for he knew it to be the highest form of self-glorification—the glorification of god.
…the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works…I am in the Father, and Father in me (John 14:10-11).

There is a marvelous oriental saying that “meekness compels God himself.”

************************************************

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

Let It Go

We must not conceive of prayer as an overcoming of God’s unwillingness, but as laying hold of His highest willingness.

~ Richard Chevenix Trench, Archbishop of Dublin ~

Day after day, I sat at the foot of my mother’s hospital bed, worrying that she might die. She was not recovering after her surgery, and I was fogged with worry. Within a week, I contracted a staph infection and became ill myself. I had to go home and stay in bed, unable to do much of anything. After a few days of rest, I recovered, and so did my mom. My anxious doting in the hospital did no one any good. The best thing I could have done for both of us was to let her be.

Praying or holding an intention for a particular result is not intended to be a struggle or an endurance contest. True prayer can bring us peace and illumination as easily and effortlessly as flicking on a light switch brings light to a room.

After you have prayed sincerely, release your prayer to God. When you mail a letter, you must let it go so it can be delivered to where it is going. After dropping the letter in the mailbox, you do not stand there and make sure no one tampers with it, watch it to see that the letter carrier tucks it away safely, follow him or her back to the post office and trail the letter through the sorting process, insist on sitting next to the mail sack while it is being flown across country, follow it through its next sorting, do a security check on the next postal deliverer, and make sure the addressee picks it up. At some point you must just let go and trust the postal service to do its job. To breathe down the neck of postal service workers would only annoy them and waste your energy.

Pray and act decisively, and then release your intentions so God can take care of you in ways that you could not take care of yourself.

I release my sense of struggle, and trust You to answer my prayers and fulfill my dreams.

God is my trustworthy source of Good. I let go and let God.

[bluidkiti]

March 29

Step by Step

Today, if I start my day with dread, I probably need to do a 10th Step or re-do my Fourth. Clearly something is wrong and I have not yet reaped benefits of sobriety or, worse, I am little more than a dry drunk. The Serenity Prayer tells me that I have no control over what this day might serve up, but it also tells me what I can change is me. The program gives me the tools to do it, from its first four words – “Admitted (I am) powerless” – to the 12th Step’s promise of a new me through a spiritual awakening and its command to practice all the steps “in all (my) affairs.” And if I take the attitude that the day ahead is something to just get through, I will likely make it a self-fulfilling prophecy. Today, I am powerless over whatever this day has in store, but that my attitude toward it can make or break the peace of mind that recovery promises – and faith in my higher power will give me the courage to change me. Sobriety and life are not things to endure or just get through. Today, I will live, not just endure or get through. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

TOGETHERNESS

Nothing that is worth doing can be done alone, but has to be done with others.

~ Dr. Reinhold Niebulur ~

Countless troubled people have agonized and sometimes died, many by their own hand, because they were defeated loners. They never learned that they needed help in solving what seemed like overpowering problems. It’s not a sign of weakness to ask for help. It’s a sign of strength.

The more closely we identify with others today, the more certain we are that nobody can solve our problems for us. But caring friends can guide us by sharing their experiences. The secret behind the magical success of sharing is that sharing cannot be done without caring. To care is to experience, the most vital part of love.

Sharing problems is only a small part of giving. We must share strengths, successes, experiences and hopes.

Whenever I am practicing the principles of my Program, I am comforted by knowing that I never work alone. Sometimes, I am led. At other times, I can show the way.

************************************************

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

The true name of eternity is today.

~ Philo ~

Today is the only focus for our recovery. When we look into the future, we worry. What if I slip when temptations mount at some future time? What if I get lost and confused and fall back into my codependency?

The only real truth is how we live today. The sun will come up tomorrow and we will live the new day as we do this day, in the present moment, staying true to ourselves. Tomorrow’s problems are only in our imagination. What are we doing today?

Eternity is beyond time. It is at hand.

Today I am mindful of my immediate moment.

************************************************

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

Inside me is a stirring truth that is guided by my Higher Power. I am empowered by truth and joy.

~ Laurel Lewis ~

Remembering that our Higher Power’s wisdom and truth are as dose as our quiet moments offers us welcome relief in troubled times. However, we must guard against hearing the voice of our injured ego instead of the voice of God. Many of us have for decades been led by our disabled ego. When faced with fear and discouragement, we need profound willingness to follow God’s will rather than our own.

Having access to God’s truth every minute of our lives can make each decision less frightening. No experience, regardless how unfamiliar, can be too much for us if we remember to listen for our Higher Power’s direction.

As we strengthen our reliance on the Messenger within, we experience new levels of joy and inner peace. And we understand the real meaning of life.

I will listen to the still, small voice within and feel secure and joyful, knowing that my actions are God’s will.

************************************************

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

I can make a commitment to recovery

I am coming to believe that there is nothing more important in my life than my dual recovery – in other words, abstaining from addictive substances and maintaining emotional stability. This is because I see myself now as a valuable person who has two illnesses and who deserves to be treated well.

One good way to value myself is to devote time each day to my dual recovery activities. The ones that help me the most are meetings, physical exercise, and spending time with supportive friends. If I do these, I believe that my higher power will take care of the rest.

I will make a commitment to recovery by making a commitment to my daily recovery plan

***********************************************

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

A friend is one who knows all about you and loves you just the same.

~ Elbert Hubbard ~

No one is perfect, but most of us want to be, especially in recovery. If we were still able to work or go to school or do housework when we were drinking or using, imagine what we can do in recovery. But this kind of thinking, sets us up for failure. Recovery does not mean becoming superhuman. It means returning to simply being human, with all our strengths and our weaknesses. It also means accepting a Power greater than ourselves.

Learning to accept or at least tolerate another’s faults and weaknesses, rather than passing judgment on them, is crucial to our own recovery and our ability to make real, lasting friends. First, of course, we must slowly learn to accept ourselves, stop judging ourselves, and replace the “bad parent” inside with the good parent — to become our own best friend.

As we keep trying to improve in certain areas, we can learn to love ourselves today even though we are not perfect and never will be.

Today help me care enough about me to be a good friend to myself.

************************************************

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

I generally avoid temptation unless I can’t resist it.

~ Mae West ~

Each time you run errands, you face a multitude of challenges to your recovery. Grocery store aisles with tasty junk foods and sugary treats tempt your desire to overeat. Liquor store displays with beverages in pretty bottles beckon you to drink. Shopping malls are filled with store displays trying to convince you to take out your credit card. Scratch tickets seem to reach out from their cases, teasing that you can be rich beyond your wildest dreams.

Those who are not in recovery are tempted just the same. However, their lives are not ruled by an addiction. They can easily turn away from unhealthy foods or purchase a single bottle of wine and make it last for a week. They can stick to their spending limits and avoid money games with nearly impossible odds of winning.

So how do you handle such temptations? Recovery teaches that it is not enough to simply stop an addiction. You also need to develop an understanding and acceptance of how your addiction caused you—and others— great harm. The more conscious you are of the power of your addiction, the greater your willpower can be to ignore the temptations around you.

My will to overcome my addiction is greater than any temptation I face.

************************************************

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

I must slowly learn to lose control, to let go the petals when it is time . . . learn step by softly- treading step, that what I am, what we are, is this Power to move and be moved, to change and be changed.

~ Linda Roach ~

Letting go doesn’t mean releasing our grip on life and falling into the abyss below. Letting go is a gentle process of easing the grip on some facet of our lives: an obsession, a character defect, or negative feelings toward someone.

We can think of ourselves as pilots flying a plane full of passengers. As we take off and begin our flying pattern, we need to gradually ease the plane into the right coordinates. We can’t make a sudden turn, or our passengers will be tossed about. Instead, we need to gently shift directions, bearing in mind the wind as we work our way into the correct path.

We must guide ourselves gradually. We cannot re-solve that tomorrow morning we’re going to totally eliminate a character defect. But what we can do is be-come willing to let go. We need to prepare ourselves to change gently, step by step.

I need to remember letting go is a gradual process. With the help of my Higher Power, I can begin to let go.

************************************************

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

Smiling

It is not uncommon for people addicted to chemicals to want to get back at those who rejected them or hurt them. For many years we probably operated on the law of revenge, and there was no bad situation that we couldn’t make worse. Now what is our guide?

Have we tried the law of kindness to see how it could affect our neighbor? A smile can raise hope, and hope is a haven for us all. Let us smile to bring hope.

Am I willing to smile?

Higher Power, help me accept myself and others—and help me smile.

Today, I will give a smile to all I meet, and especially to

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

The best things in life are not things.

~ ANN LANDERS ~

Newcomer

Style has always mattered to me. When I was active, I felt scorn for people who had no taste or flair. I know there’s arrogance in that, but some part of me still loves glamour and doesn’t want to give it up.

Sponsor

I used to think my addiction had something to do with being cool. I thought my use of addictive substances and behaviors made me stylish and sophisticated. Meanwhile, I didn’t know how to live my life.

Romanticizing addiction and its trappings is a form of denial many of us have to address. Certain drinks, drugs, or behaviors may have seemed to us like instant power or sophistication-less boring and regular than the alternatives. Some of the rituals and accoutrements of addiction continue to be glamorized by advertising, films, and popular images and myths. We may tell ourselves that creative people have always been involved with drugs. We may feel a pang: is recovery going to strip us of our originality, our flair for the unusual?

We’re who we are in spite of, not because of, addictive substances and behaviors. The originality and flair that you associate with addiction come from a deeper part of you. We can be true originals in recovery, through coming to know ourselves.

Today, I let go of any illusions about my addiction.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Do you want to be happy? Then go buy that strange kid on the corner a bag of candy. It may help cause his teeth to decay but what’s a tooth between glad hearts.

************************************************

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

1) Our program takes the “M” in “Me” and “turns it over” to create “We.” This is a “We” program.

2) HELP: Hope, Encouragement, Love, Patience

3) Act as if…

************************************************

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

To Be Honest

Higher Power, help me to be honest with myself. It is so easy to alibi, to make excuses for my shortcomings. It is so easy to blame others and circumstances as a child does. Help me to see myself honestly, a human being who needs You this day and every day. Help me to surrender my weak will to Your strength.

***********************************************

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

HUNGER FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteouness: for they shall be filled (Matthew 5:6)

Righteousness is another of the key words of the Bible, one of those keys that the reader must have in his possession if he is to get at the true meaning of the book. Like earth and meek and comfort, it is used in a special and definite sense. Righteousness means not merely right conduct, but right thinking. In the Sermon on the Mount, every clause reiterates the truth that outer things are but consequences. As within, so without.

When people awaken to a knowledge of these truths, they naturally begin to apply them in their own lives. Realizing at last the vital importance of “righteousness” they begin immediately to try to put their house in order. The principle involved is simple, but unfortunately the exemplifying of it is anything but easy. Now, why could this be so? The answer lies in the potency of habit; and habits of thinking are at once the most subtle and the most difficult to break.

Perhaps failure to achieve righteousness is the failure of halfheartedness; you long but not too deeply. Your hunger and thirst do not rise from a sense of total need. Have a mental stocktaking or a review of your life. It could not happen that a wholehearted search for truth and righteousness, if persevered in, should not be crowned with success. God is not mocked, nor does He mock His children.

************************************************

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

The Answer Is You

I have good news and I have bad news: The bad news is that we have lost the key to the door behind which the secret of life is hidden. The good news is that it was never locked.

~ Swami Beyondananda ~

When human beings appeared on the planet, a group of gods got together and decided to play a game. “Let’s hide the secret of life!” one suggested.

“Great idea!” another agreed. “Where shall we hide it?”

“Let’s plant it at the top of the highest mountain,” one proposed. “No,” responded another, “people will even climb to Mount Everest.” “How about at the bottom of the ocean?” asked another.

“No, they will invent submarines.”

On and on the gods pondered, trying to find a suitable hiding place. Finally, one god had a bright idea: “I know!” he exclaimed. “Let’s hide the secret of life inside each person—they’ll never think to look there!” We remain in darkness when we seek external solutions for internal needs. We believe our problems exist because of causes outside ourselves, and then seek to rearrange the outer world. Even when we succeed, we feel empty because the external situation was not the cause of our pain. To truly be healed we must deal with our experience at its source—our own beliefs, attitudes, and actions.

In their important book, Conscious Loving, Gay and Kathlyn Hendricks put forth the core principle that each partner must take 100 percent responsibility for everything that happens in their relationship and their world. Empower yourself by identifying yourself not as a victim of circumstances, but as the source of your experience. The whole game changes when you realize the answer is within you.

Give me the strength to release anyone else as the source of my experience and to own my responsibility for creating the life I choose.

I am the answer.

[bluidkiti]

March 30

Step by Step

Today, I cannot crumble to temptation even if I think I do not feel tempted to try “just one” drink. Regardless of how many 24 Hours of sobriety, none of us is immune to the thought, however fleeting, that maybe one drink won’t do any damage. Of course it will, as we know from bitter experience. If temptation is a human foible, it is one that none of us in recovery can afford. For us, temptation is our failure to integrate into the deepest of our souls the program’s first four words – “Admitted we were powerless …” Temptation is also our own will run riot and rejection of surrendering our will to our higher power. Still, if temptation sneaks in, may I have imprinted in my conscience the outcome of all those times in the past when I did give into temptation. And the memory of that outcome is too costly and painful to give in. Today, I hope I am not tempted, but I will not take for granted that I won’t so that, if I am, I am strong and honest enough in my program to rise above it. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

************************************************

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

WORST ENEMY

Self is the only prison that can ever bind the soul.

~ Robert Graham ~

We refuse to keep putting ourselves down. Sometimes that seems like a virtue, but it isn’t. It’s a defect. The honest approach is to know our strengths and our weaknesses. The Program provides us the tools to work on both.

In recovery, each of us chooses to become our own best friend. Liking ourselves will assure us that we can become the best person we can be. Who have we hurt more than we have hurt ourselves? Would we let anyone do to us what we have done to ourselves?

We are learning to think about our assets rather than focusing on our liabilities. Our self-talk no longer always puts us down.

I can strike a solid blow at “me, my worst enemy,” by concentrating on the small triumphs of each today rather than on yesterday’s disasters.

************************************************

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

The last of the human freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.

~ Viktor Frankl ~

Today’s quotation was written by a man who survived a Nazi death camp. His philosophy was formed in the crucible of the bleakest kind of situation, in prison with hard labor, little food, and no comforts, where everyone was worked until they died. One could say Frankl had no choices remaining, but he didn’t accept that. He speaks to all of us as we deal with our own particular circumstances. When we gain the wisdom of powerlessness, we know that we often have little choice about what happens, but we have choices about the attitudes we adopt.

When we face a tough situation on the job, we can still choose to give our best. When family problems seem overwhelming, we may not be able to fix them all alone, but we have options to be the best partner, the best father, or the best son that we know how to be. And when we turn our lives and our will over to the care of a Higher Power, we can choose to be hopeful for the future.

Today I choose to have a constructive attitude in all that I am dealing with.

************************************************

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

By embracing the unfair, I no longer feel fear or rejection or lack of self-esteem.

~ Eileen Fehlen ~

It’s so human to quickly label an unwanted situation as unfair and to assume we know what’s best for us. We reason that if God would answer our prayers, our lives would unfold appropriately. It’s also terribly human to have to relearn repeatedly that God’s will and God’s timetable don’t always match our own; however, without fail they serve us well.

Learning to appreciate the good in everything that comes our way makes us courageous. In time few things will fill us with fear, and that is measurable progress. We were tormented by fear for so many years that we never expected this rebirth of spirit. Life is beginning to feel inviting, exciting, and safe. Let’s step forth together.

I can be certain that God will give me only what is right for me today.

************************************************

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

I want a better life for myself

When I was using drugs and experiencing symptoms of my psychiatric illness, I cared most about simply staying high, about feeling no pain – whether emotional, physical, or spiritual. My greatest need was a negative one and I met it with street drugs.

Now that I’ve achieved a period of abstinence and stability, I can see that there’s more to life than just drugs, staying high, and avoiding pain. Some basic, positive needs that I’ve neglected include healthy food, safe shelter, and clean clothing. In recovery, I am learning that these needs are important and that I can find a way to meet them.

I will list the five most important things I need to get along in life.

***********************************************

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

Money is not required to buy one necessity of the soul.

~ Henry David Thoreau ~

Today we live in a society that seems to worship things. Television, movies, and magazines tell us that sophistication, respect, admiration, and self- confidence come from owning things rather than from who we are inside.

Twelve Step meetings are wonderful antidotes for that message. Here is a fellowship of people who don’t judge us by our clothing or our credit cards. Here we are cared for because of what’s in our hearts, the condition of our values, and our common goal of sobriety. And our Higher Power loves us just as we are.

When we feel caught up in a nonspiritual way of life, we can pause and remember that we have a place to come home to. We can come in from the rat race and rejoice in a fellowship that values honesty, integrity, and spirituality.

Today help me remember what’s really important in my life.

************************************************

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

Religion is for people who are afraid they’ll go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have been there.

~ Teen Anon saying ~

Many times you may read newspaper stories in which neighbors describe someone who has committed a despicable crime as one who attended church regularly. You may wonder, “How could someone who believes in God act out so horribly?”

Consider the meaning of spirituality. Is closeness to God measured by the number of times you go to church? Is reading religious teachings the same as applying such knowledge in everyday life? Spirituality is not measured by who you are, but by how you live. Sinning, and then asking God to forgive your sins, conveys an attitude of self-importance—that because you have reached out to God, you earn a “free pass.”

But asking for forgiveness and then changing your ac-tions so you can protect yourself and others from harm is putting God’s help into action. Getting down on your knees and asking God for help is the first step in connect-ing with a Higher Power. But rising up and doing every-thing you can to follow a path of good and appropriate behavior is putting God’s guidance into action.

It has been said, “No God, no peace; know God, know peace.” Today I accept that God’s will and God’s knowledge need to be my will and my knowledge.

************************************************

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

Here the people seem to possess the secret of tranquility. . . . Perhaps it is only by going up the old back roads leading to the lost little hamlets of the mountains or the seagirt islands and peninsulas of the world that you can still find it. Perhaps even in such places it has not long to last.

~ Louise Dickinson Rich ~

As a child we may have had a secret place we went to be alone or when we were hurt or confused. Wherever it was, we knew we could be safe there.

As an adult we may have lost our secret places. In-stead of hiding maybe we learned to run or build up defenses. We learned to cope without secret spaces, but look how we suffered for it! Now we yearn for serenity as we stop running or defending.

We can make a secret space again. Our secret space can be in a favorite chair or even in our minds when we listen to a favorite song. Wherever or whatever we use for times of need, our secret spaces should provide safety and security. It’s okay to let the child in us run to secret spaces in times of need. In doing so, we’re taking care of ourselves.

Do I have a secret space where I am safe and secure?

************************************************

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

Debating the program

In school we may have joined in debates. They went on and on, and nobody ever had any answers. In our personal training grounds, the world of the streets, we often heard or participated in lengthy debates about the evils of our society. Of course, nothing ever changed.

Some people get clean and sober and then start debating about the Twelve Steps. The “answers” come to those who live the program, but such debate is of little value. Am I living the program?

God, grant me the courage to take action and thus truly live the program.

Today I will put the Steps into action by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

************************************************

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

Ukwenza kuya emuva kuye phambili.
The doing moves backward, then forward.

~ NDEBELE PROVERB ~

Newcomer

I thought I’d lost the desire to pick up my addiction. Now I’m on the verge of celebrating ninety days, and all I can think of is how much I’d like to go back to my old life.

Sponsor

Anniversaries can be times of intense expectation for people in recovery. Anxiety, sadness, and other feelings may be mixed with jubilation and pride. Some of us go into denial: “If I’ve made it this far without the drug, maybe I don’t really have the problem.” Or “I can do this on my own now— who needs all those **** meetings!” Some of us feel like frauds; we’ve been fooling everyone into thinking that we can stay away from our addictions successfully. Intense feelings—even those of pride and pleasure—can put us in danger of picking up our addictive substances.

Anniversaries are times when it’s especially important to stay in touch with the people who’ve been sharing our journey. They can help us to celebrate and also to keep the anniversary in perspective. It’s encouraging to know that they’ll continue to be there as we continue to stay away from addictive substances and behaviors—one day at a time.

Today, I stay close to the program. When I go out, I take phone numbers, coins for making calls, and a willingness to use them.

************************************************

~ THE EYE OPENER ~

The truly great man can afford to be humble, for hundreds of others are exalting him. You have only one horn to blow and other people can’t toot it if you are eternally tooting it yourself.

The proud man is aggressive in his own interest; the humble man is aggressive in the ideals he believes in. Humility is not passive resignation; it is rather, subjecting self for lofty purposes.

************************************************

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

1) Detach with love

2) The difference between feeling grateful and being grateful, is action.

3) You don’t make as many mistakes when you keep your mouth shut.

************************************************

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

Teach Me

Teach me, God, so that I might know
The way to change and the way to grow.
Give me the words to ask You how
To handle the here and live in the now.
Tempt me not with the valleys of death,
Give me freedom from fear in every breath.

And though mistakes I make in my daily life,
Deliver me from aiding strife.
Understand me, God, as I am now
And show me the furrows I need to plow
To reach my goal as a ripening food,
So I might feed others all that is good.
Fill me with energy known as the Power,
Until I come to rest at the midnight hour.

***********************************************

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

THE MERCIFUL

Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy (Matthew 5:7).

This is a brief summary of the law of life that Jesus develops more fully later in the Sermon (Matthew 7:1-5). As it stands, this Beatitude is as obvious in its meaning as the law in question is simple and inflexible in its action.

The point that the Christian needs to note is that the principle covered in this Beatitude lies in its application to the realm of thought. Let us be merciful in our mental judgments of our brother, for, in truth, we are all one, and the more deeply he seems to err, the more urgent is the need for us to help him with the right thought, and so make it easier for him to get free.

Because in deed and in truth we are all one,, component parts of the living garment of God, you yourself will ultimately receive the same treatment that you mete out to others; you will receive the same merciful help in your own hour of need from those who are farther along the path than you are.

************************************************

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

Results and Excuses

When you are just interested in something, you do it only when it is convenient; when you are committed, you accept only results, not excuses.

~ Dr. Kenneth Blanchard ~

I had an employee, Tony, who should have been in the Guinness Book of World Records for “The Greatest Number of Different Reasons the Same Job Didn’t Get Done.” When I asked Tony about the progress of a project he was supposed to handle, he answered, “Sorry, I haven’t been feeling well; I’ll get right on to it next week.”

The next week he told me, “I had some car trouble; your job is first on my list for next week.” The following week his explanation was, “I had some hassles with my girlfriend; I wasn’t emotionally available.” The week after that, “I had a little miscommunication with the phone company about my bill; they turned off my service, so I couldn’t get the calls made.” On and on the saga went, and a job that should have taken a few weeks remained undone after months. Finally, I hired someone else who did the job in a short time.

There are two kinds of people in the world: those who make excuses and those who get results. An excuse person will find any excuse for why a job was not done, and a results person will find any reason why it can be done.

I was an excuse person about being on time; I was 15 minutes late to everything. When I showed up, I would always have a different reason: “Traffic”‘, “Got a phone call just as I was leaving”’, “Had to feed the dog”; \and on and on. Many of this situations had actually occurred, but none of them accounted for the reason I was late. My tardiness was a result of my choice, not external conditions.

We can tell our intentions by the results we create. Words mean little in the face of what we manifest. If you are going to do something, own it. If you are going to not do something, own it. You become most powerful, effective, and trustworthy as you acknowledge that you are the source of your experience. Be a creator, not a reactor.

Help me to live in integrity. I want to empower myself and others by being true to my word.

I can because I choose.