DAILY PONDERABLES
Together WE Trudge The Road OF Happy Destiny
Daily Reflections
"I HAD DROPPED OUT"
We might still ask ourselves what we mean when we say that we have "harmed" other people. What kinds of "harm" do people do one another, anyway? To define the word "harm" in a practical way, we might call it the result of instincts in collision, which cause physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual damage to people.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 80
I had been to Eight Step meetings, always thinking, "I really haven't harmed many people mostly myself." But the time came when I wrote my list out and it was not as short as I thought it would be. I either liked you, disliked you, or needed something from you---it was that simple. People hadn't done what I wanted them to do and intimate relationships were out of hand because of my partners' unreasonable demands. Were these "sins of omission?" Because of my drinking, I had "dropped out"---never sending cards, returning calls, being there for other people, or taking part in their lives. What a grace it has been to look at these relationships, to make my inventories in quiet, alone with the God of my understanding, and go forth daily, with a willingness to be honest and forthright in my relationships.
From the book Daily Reflections
© Copyright 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought for the Day
"The alcoholic is absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. We must admit we can do nothing about it ourselves. Will power and self-knowledge will never help in the strange mental blank spots when we are tempted to drink. An alcoholic mentally is in a very sick condition. The last flicker of conviction that we can do the job ourselves must be snuffed out. The spiritual answer and the program of action are the only hope. Only spiritual principles will solve our problems. We are completely helpless apart from Divine help. Our defense against drinking must come from a Higher Power." Have I accepted the spiritual answer and the program of action?
Meditation for the Day
Rest now until life, eternal life, flowing through your veins and heart and mind, bids you to bestir yourself. Then glad work will follow. Tired work is never effective. The strength of God's spirit is always available to the tired mind and body. He is your physician and your healer. Look to these quiet times of communion with God for rest, for peace, for cure. Then rise refreshed in spirit and go out to work, knowing that your strength is able to meet any problems because it is reinforced by God's power.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that the peace I have found will make me effective. I pray that I may be relieved of all strain during this day.
From the book Twenty-Four Hours a Day
© Copyright 1975 by Hazelden Foundation
NA - Just for Today
Up or down
Page 238
"This is our road to spiritual growth. We change every day...This growth is not the result of wishing but of action and prayer."
Basic Text, p. 37
Our spiritual condition is never static; if it's not growing, it's decaying. If we stand still, our spiritual progress will lose its upward momentum. Gradually, our growth will slow, then halt, then reverse itself. Our tolerance will wear thin; our willingness to serve others will wane; our minds will narrow and close. Before long, we'll be right back where we started: in conflict with everyone and everything around us, unable to bear even ourselves.
Our only option is to actively participate in our program of spiritual growth. We pray, seeking knowledge greater than our own from a Power greater than ourselves. We open our minds and keep them open, becoming teachable and taking advantage of what others have to share with us. We demonstrate our willingness to try new ideas and new ways of doing things, experiencing life in a whole new way. Our spiritual progress picks up speed and momentum, driven by the Higher Power we are coming to understand better each day.
Up or down-it's one or the other, with very little in between, where spiritual growth is concerned. Recovery is not fueled by wishing and dreaming, we've discovered, but by prayer and action.
Just for Today: The only constant in my spiritual condition is change. I cannot rely on yesterday's program. Today, I seek new spiritual growth through prayer and action.
From the book Just for Today
© Copyright 1991-2013 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Thought for Today
"I recall someone saying to me, 'Anger is fear under pressure.'
I've found it to be true. Behind anger fear is always lurking."
--Unknown
Bad thoughts are like TV channels,
If one comes in we don't like, simply change it. We are the remote holders.
AA Anniversary Poem
A time to remember and not to forget
all the lives you have touched,
all the people you’ve met.
Today you look back shining light from your face
To the first time you sat in that folding chair space
Where grateful souls gathered cause all of them knew
That God would show up, He would carry you through.
When life seems unfair and the journey is long
Reflect where you were when you knew you belonged
Cause the price has been high and your seat you did earn
See God’s people teach, when we’re willing to learn.
Three hundred and sixty-five days again
it’s a chip you have earned and the time that you spend
giving back with the tools once were handed to you
So they do not get rusty; others benefit too.
We in this room know just how desperate feels
We found the same grace that flows through to heal
For all the rough patches, broken pieces of heart
Have been healed and transformed in whole and in part.
Angie M.
Buddha/Zen Thoughts
Life's easy to live for someone unscrupulous, cunning as a crow, corrupt, back-biting, forward, & brash; But for someone who's constantly scrupulous, cautious, observant, sincere, pure in his livelihood, clean in his pursuits, it's hard.
- Dhammapada, 18, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Native American
"The best teachers have shown me that things have to be done bit by bit. Nothing that means anything happens quickly - we only think it does."
--Joseph Bruchac, ABENAKI
There are no short cuts. Every tree must grow according to the growth plan of the Creator. Every flower must grow according to the plan of God. The moon must make its trip around the earth according to God's plan. Every human being must grow according to the plan of the Creator. Sometimes we look at ourselves and we think we are not growing but we are always growing. Because we cannot see it with our mind does not mean it is not happening. we must be patient with ourselves and let the Creator direct our growth.
My Creator, let me be patient. Let me realize that You are in charge of all things. Let me realize that I must grow my roots a little at a time to become strong.
Keep It Simple
The strongest rebellion may be expressed in quiet, undramatic behavior.
--- Benjamin Spock
In recovery, we each rebel against our disease. Each day we fight for the freedom to stay close to our Higher Power, friends and family.
It's mainly a quiet battle. It's fought daily. We fight and win by acting in a spiritual way. We fight and win every time we help a friend, go to meetings, or read about how to improve our lives
We move slowly but always forward. Rushing will only tire us out. Our battle will go on for life.
We are quiet fighters, but we're strong, for we do not fight alone. And we know what waits for us if we lose.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me stay free. When I want to give up, help me realize this is normal. Help me to keep fighting at these times.
Action for the Day: Today, I'll be a rebel. I will go to an extra meeting, or I'll talk with my sponsor. I'll find a way to help someone without the person knowing.
Big Book
Chapter 11 A Vision For You (pg 164)
Still you may say: "But I will not have the benefit of contact with you who wrote this book." We cannot be sure. God will determine that, so you must remember that your real reliance is always upon Him. He will show you how to create the fellowship you crave.
Our book is meant to be suggestive only. We realize we know only a little. God will constantly disclose more to you and to us. Ask Him in your morning meditation what you can do each day for the man who is still sick. The answers will come, if your own house is in order. But obviously you cannot transmit something you haven’t got. See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to pass for you and countless others. This is the Great Fact for us.
Abandon yourself to God as you understand God. Admit your faults to Him and to your fellows. Clear away the wreckage of your past. Give freely of what you find and join us. We shall be with you in the Fellowship of the Spirit, and you will surely meet some of us as you trudge the Road of Happy Destiny.
May God bless you and keep you - until then.
To subscribe click the link below:
http://www.getresponse.com/site/dailyponderables/webform.html?wid=108246