AA Thoughts For Today - December

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AA Thought for the Day

December 22

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

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

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

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

Let Go
If you have decided you want what we have
and are willing to go to any length to get it --
then you are ready to take certain steps.
At some of these we balked.
We thought we could find an easier, softer way.
But we could not.
With all the earnestness at our command,
we beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start.
Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas
and the result was nil until we let go absolutely.
Remember we deal with alcohol -- cunning, baffling, powerful!
Without help it is too much for us.
But there is One who has all power -- that One is God.
May you find Him now!
c. 1976, 2001AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 58

Thought to Consider . . .
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
H O P E = Heart Open; Please Enter

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

Safe
>From "Good Housekeeping" article, 1954:
"When you stand outside a room where a group of Alcoholics Anonymous is meeting, the most frequent sound you hear
is laughter. Mellow laughter, which can come only from people who have looked destruction and catastrophe in the face,
not once but continuously over long years, and now are free and unafraid. The laughter, in short, of people who hold
God's hand and feel safe."
c. Letter to a Woman Alcoholic (A.A. Pamphlet P-14)

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

"My group included almost every type of alcoholic that old-timers feared most ... The amazing thing is most of us stayed
sober, despite all the dire predictions. Why? Because the two things we had in common were more important than all
our differences. We were alcoholics and we believed in the program of Alcoholics Anonymous."
Springville, UT, March 2000
"Courage to Change"
Beginner's Book: Getting and Staying Sober

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

"Once more: The alcoholic at certain times has no effective mental
defense against the first drink. Except in a few rare cases, neither
he nor any other human being can provide such a defense. His defense
must come from a Higher Power."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, pg. 43~

"We feel that elimination of our drinking is but a beginning. A much
more important demonstration of our principles lies before us in our
respective homes, occupations and affairs."
Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, There Is A Solution, pg. 19

Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God and the people about us.
-Alcoholics Anonymous p.77

When the Twelfth Step is seen in its full implication, it is really talking about the kind of love that has no price tag on it.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p.106

Misc. AA Literature - Quote

For a new prospect, outline the program of action, explaining how you made a self-appraisal, how you straightened out
your past, and why you are now endeavoring to be helpful to him. It is important for him to realize that your attempt to
pass this on to him plays a vital part in your own recovery. Actually, he may be helping you more than you are helping
him. Make it plain that he is under no obligation to you.
In the first six months of my own sobriety, I worked hard with many alcoholics. Not a one responded. Yet this work kept
me sober. It wasn't a question of those alcoholics giving me anything. My stability came out of trying to give, not out of
demanding that I receive.

Prayer for the Day: I surrender my life to Thee, O God. Living in self has separated me from your Divine guidance and
grace. Take my life and run it for me, according to Your will and Your plan. Thy will, not mine be done.