Even More Recovery Readings and Meditations - August

[bluidkiti]

August 6

Step by Step

Today, just as preoccupation with the damage and guilt of yesterday can be deadly for us in recovery, so can be looking to tomorrow and fearing or dreading what it may bring. Therefore, let me seek my higher power's comfort to live only in today, and let me have the humility to ask his will of me and the gratitude that whatever I may face today is not more serious. Let me fully understand and believe that yesterday is gone and nothing in it can be undone except for amends I have made, and let me also understand and believe that tomorrow's fears may not come with the new day. Pray that I live only in today, in the now, for it truly is all I have. And our common journey continues. Step by Step. - Chris M.

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

GOD'S WILL

You are exactly where God wants you to be.

~ Anonymous ~

When we took our First Step, we admitted we were powerless over our disease. This single admission opened us up to a bigger realization: we just might not be in charge of anything. We were also powerless over people, places, and things. When we recognized this, a different future became ours. We came to believe that our Higher Power was in charge. We did not have to know the plan before it was revealed. We could trust that we would be well cared for, always.

There are still times when we feel insecure and uneasy about our lives. At those times, we may question God. We may wonder if we're being punished for something we've done wrong. We may ask if this is all there is to recovery. We can hold fast to the truth that we are just where God would have us.

The times I take control and attempt to force a change will only cause me to lose touch with my Higher Power. I will be patient. I believe answers will emerge at exactly the right time.

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

If a man does his best, what else is there?

~ General George S. Patton ~

Doing our best is not perfection. We have goals and tasks before us. We work at them and we give them our best shot. That is all we need to do, and we deserve to feel all the self-respect any good man feels.

Some of our goals are big challenges. We can set aside any hopes of achieving them perfectly, but when we look back at what we have already done, we may remember that we have come further than we ever dreamed possible. If we expected perfection of ourselves, it would not help us. In fact, it would only get in the way of our work.

Today I give my best to the work that is before me. I will ask nothing more of myself.

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

As we cultivate stillness and commune with the Presence within, we are mightily enhanced.

~ Marsha Sinetar ~

When we retreat to our quiet interior spaces, we grow in our understanding of God and life’s mysteries. The richness we come to know through keeping our spiritual life simple is unexpected.

Spiritual leaders from all faiths have suggested we go within to know God and, thus, ourselves. The founders of our program suggested likewise. It was their hope that we might find the peace and freedom that only God can guarantee. The Steps are our tools for knowing God.

Each day that we rely on our spiritual connection to clarify our direction, we’ll discover the serenity that enhances our being. Perhaps we didn’t need our dependencies to know God, but they are serving as the pathway to our freedom.

I consider myself lucky to be an alcoholic or other drug addict. It has given me a connection to God that is enriching my life.

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

I want to make today a day of recovery

A lot of time has passed with my dual illnesses. It feels like I've lost years of my life. First, the psychiatric problem and then the using, when everything got much worse.

But I am coming around. I'm stable and I haven't used drugs now for quite a while. I feel like I've finally come to rest after a long, uncontrolled slide. Now I need to let go of my past—I can't get it back—and concentrate on today. I only get a day at a time. I want to make the most of each one.

I will meditate on what I need to do today to make it a day of recovery.

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

In order to live free and happily
you must sacrifice boredom.
It is not always an easy sacrifice.

~ Richard Bach ~

One luxury we simply cannot afford today is boredom. It is a condition which occurs when we lose sight of what’s happening around us. When bored, we may invest in self-pity and dig ourselves into an emotional trench, unlit, lined in loneliness. Boredom can be toxic, and sometimes we can’t think ourselves into doing anything. But we can get busy and do ourselves into thinking. While this isn’t always easy at first, it gets us moving again.

And, as they say, when we “bring the body, the mind will follow.” The spirit follows, too.

Soon, we are actively engaged in life again, and our attention is once more in the present. Often, simply going for a walk or washing the dishes is all we need. Our bodies are designed for movement, our senses to be stimulated, our minds to seek knowledge, and our spirits to bring us peace. When we get them started, they can carry us a long way — after all, they’ve carried us into a joyful new life, haven’t they?

Today help me grow thankful for the meaning that sober activity has given my life.

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

We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.

~ Frederick Koenig ~

How you receive a gift conveys much about your ability to feel gratitude. This gift can be a material object, a kindness shown to you by another, one of your abilities, or a beautiful sunrise that starts your day. No matter how a gift comes to you, how you respond to the gift reflects how capable you are of being grateful for everything you have been given.

Gratitude consists of three parts: the recognition of something you have been given, an appreciative attitude for having received it, and the ability to express your appreciation.

But gratitude is not just about receiving. The more grate-ful you can be for what you have in your life, the more willing you can be to give to others. This builds a habit of gratitude that begins with you and can extend outward to others. What results is a beautiful continuum to gratitude: as you take in the gifts you are given and are filled with gratitude for them, you can reach out to spread this gratitude to others.

Each day I will think of three things for which I am most grateful. I will spread this attitude of gratitude to others.

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

I offer you no reward for being loyal to me, and surely I do not threaten you with pain, penalty, and dire disaster if you are indifferent to me.

~ Elbert Hubbard ~

We can learn a great deal about unselfish love from a pet. A cat or dog stays with us despite mixed messages of "Come here, I need you," and "Go away, you're bothering me." They're always there for us and expect nothing in return.

Are we as loyal to our friends, or do we demand they be there for us when we need them? If they don't show up, or they let us down, or they give disapproval, do we write them off? Being a friend or having one doesn't mean making demands. It also doesn't mean seeking retaliation if our demands aren't met.

We can allow others to show us friendship without making demands upon them. This means accepting their attention and love, as well as their lack of attention and their silence. Friends are not promises to be kept or admirers to be courted. Friends are blessings. The more we treat them like blessings, the more friends we'll be blessed with.

How well did I treat my friends today? I can let my friends be themselves, showing their own forms of love and respect.

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

Twelfth-Stepping

Our addictive personalities can produce un-expected twists in character: Many of us can’t stand practicing addicts of any kind. It feels old to Twelfth-Step someone who re-minds us so sharply of where we came from. Who wants to get up at three o’clock in the morning to Twelfth-Step someone who’s high and probably won’t remember what you said anyway?

What’s the use? we may ask. We’re the use! Twelfth-Stepping is something we need to do to stay clean and sober. We may not like it all the time, but it keeps us growing.

Do I always carry the message to those who still suffer?

God give me the strength, patience, and love it requires to Twelfth-Step those who still suffer.

Today I will work on tolerance by

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

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

He who accounts all things easy will have many difficulties.

~ LAO-TZU ~

Newcomer

Is there any special way I should go about making an amends list? I think it's going to be a long one, and I don’t know if I can trust my memory.

Sponsor

There are many ways to make an Eighth Step list. One is to look at the Fourth Step inventory we wrote and review the names of those we feared or resented. Or we can make a list by starting with friends, work associates, and family members in our present lives, then working backward in time.

We make an effort to remember every person we’ve harmed, but if we've forgotten some, we don’t worry. As we continue to recover, memories return, often triggered by other people's sharing: we can add those names as they come to us.

Some recovering people choose to use index cards for the amends list. The idea is to write the person's name (we can add his or her address and phone number, if we have them) at the top of the card, then write a phrase or a sentence about exactly what sort of harm we caused. We then turn the card over and note which of our characteristics or feelings lay behind the harm that we caused (for example, fear or low self-esteem). If we then arrange our stack of index cards according to the characteristics we've named on the reverse side we may see clusters of attitudes and habits that reveal more to us about our underlying beliefs.

Today, I acknowledge that my thoughts and actions affect others.

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~ THE EYE OPENER ~

It is not natural for a human being to be entirely contemptuous of public opinion. We all smart under criticism and we all enjoy applause. We cannot be blamed for purring like a cat when our fur is being rubbed the right way.

Neither public acclaim nor public censure is always deserved, however, and we should therefore temper our reactions to them until we have received the stamp of approval from the little man inside us, who really knows the facts as to our deserts.

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

1) Keep an unmade mind instead of a mind made up.

2) No matter how fast or how far you go, you can't outrun God.

3) A winner is a loser who keeps on trying.

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

Blessings by the Buddha

May every creature abound in well-being and peace.
May every living being, weak or strong, the long
and the small, the short and the medium-sized, the
mean and the great,
May every living being, seen and unseen, those
living far off, those nearby, those already born,
those waiting to be born,
May all attain inward peace.

Let no one deceive another,
Let no one despise another in any situation,
Let no one, from apathy or hatred, wish evil to
anyone at all.
Just as a mother, with her own life, protects her
child from hurt,
So within yourself foster a limitless concern for
every living creature.

Display a heart of boundless love for all the world
In all its height and depth and broad extent,
Love unrestrained, without hate or hostility.

Then as you stand or walk, sit or lie, until overcome
by drowsiness, devote your mind entirely to this;
It is known as living here life divine.

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

EXPRESSING WHAT YOU ARE

THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT

Thou shalt not kill (Exodus 20:13 ).

As rules of conduct, the commandments are just such "thou shalt nots" as you see written up, “No smoking" or "No thoroughfare." But when you get behind the surface meaning, then "Thou shalt not" becomes "Thou canst not."

So this commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," is fundamentally an expression of the cosmic law that you cannot kill, and the sooner you find that out the better. We are always trying to kill. However, this commandment is here to tell us that to think we can kill anything is to lay up trouble for ourselves that will have to be met and wiped out some time or other.

Nothing ever dies from the outside. No one can kill your character. No one can kill your peace of mind. No one can kill your business, or your reputation, or anything that is yours. You can, but nobody else can. No man or woman was ever yet destroyed from the outside.

Many people waste their lives in thinking how they are being hurt, or damaged, or injured by other people; how good they could be, what marvelous things they could do, if it were not for others. So long as you believe that, you cannot progress. As soon as you know that nobody can hurt you, then you are free to overtake any mistakes, and to be and do the thing you want.

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

Fame

Drop the idea of making a bit record, and call in the energy of truth.

~ Kenny Loggins ~

When someone asks me how to write a successful book, I tell them, "come from your heart, tell the truth, and write for yourself. Do not write with the goal of pleasing people or becoming rich and famous. If you’re true to yourself, the world will acknowledge and support you. If you seek fame and glory, your values are inside out, and you're setting yourself up for struggle, frustration, and pain. Seek to serve, and your happiness is ensured.”

Kenny Loggins is one of the most beloved and successful musicians of our time; over 25 years, he has sold over 30 million albums. When I met Kenny, I found him to be one of the most sincere, genuine, and emotionally available people I have encountered. He lives in his heart and values relationship above glory. Kenny wrote one of his most popular albums, Leap of Faith, while he was going through a painful divorce. The songs on the album chronicle the emotions he wrestled with, as well as the vision of the new life he sought to live. Kenny was quite vulnerable about his process, and the album, a reflection of his turning point, has touched and changed many lives. I believe it is his most real.

Paul Simon went through a similar process. His career was sagging, and he was going through significant life changes. Ignited by the fire of transformation, he decided to chuck standard fare and follow his heart and play the music that turned him on the most. The result was his landmark Rhythm of the Saints album, which won a Grammy Award for Best Album of the Year and set him off on an international tour that broke down many walls of fear and prejudice as he brought musicians from different cultures together.

When I feel stuck, I remind myself of my true purpose. I am not here to gather accolades; I am here to remember who I am and express it without apology. Come from your heart, and the world will bless you with peace.

Help me remember that inner integrity is far more important than worldly glory.

I dedicate myself to authenticity. As I live what I am, I prosper in every way.