A Prayer & Some Thoughts - October
 

October 1


Today's Prayer

Lord,
Shape me this day in ways that are in keeping with your will and purposes.
When I am weary, please lift me up.
When I am drawing inward, show me the way to community and serving.
When I am confused, grant a clarity that cuts through the many things that masquerade as truth.
When I am feeling alone, keep me company.
I ask you for this gift of hope to sustain and strengthen me.
Amen

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Just a Thought

Step Two is, "Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity." Step Three is, "Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him." Step Eleven is, "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out." The fundamental basis of A.A. is a belief in some Power greater than ourselves. Let us not take this lightly. We cannot fully get the program without this venture of belief.

So ............

Have I made the venture of belief in a Power greater than my own?

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Just a Contemplation

Freedom in Acceptance

When we accept ourselves, with all our imperfections, we can then begin to accept others just as they are. This is especially exciting when we apply this discovery to our own families. A family is like a bouquet of flowers arranged in a common vase. Each flower is different.

It isn't important that we know why one flower is blue and one white. We don't have to understand how a rose becomes a rose to appreciate the arrangement. We just accept it for what it is. Acceptance of others does not mean agreement or approval. How boring if we only accepted those who reflected our own ideas and opinions! How dull to look upon a bouquet of exactly the same flowers.

Today, I will accept the differences between us as part of our beauty together.

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Antidote For Fear

When our failings generate fear, we then have soul-sickness. This sickness, in turn, generates still more character defects.

Unreasonable fear that our instincts will not be satisfied drives us to covet the possessions of others, to lust for sex and power, to become angry when our instinctive demands are threatened, to be envious when the ambitions of others seem to be realized while ours are not. We eat, drink, and grab for more of everything than we need, fearing we shall never have enough. And, with genuine alarm at the prospect of work, we stay lazy. We loaf and procrastinate, or at best work grudgingly and under half steam.

These fears are the termites that ceaselessly devour the foundations of whatever sort of life we try to build.

As Bill Sees It Page 196

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Just a Quote

“The heart of human excellence often begins to beat when you discover a pursuit that absorbs you, frees you, challenges you, or gives you a sense of meaning, joy, or passion.” ~~ Terry Orlick

October 2


Prayer On Unrest

There are times, O Lord, when I feel a deep sense of unrest.
Trials and tribulations beset me, and I do not know where to turn.
I cannot see the reason why suffering must exist, but I do trust in you.
I pray that you will guide me in all ways and help me to make the best of the situation.
Help me to find happiness in the small things.
I pray that you bring me the peace and joy that I seek in life.
Amen.

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Just a Thought

Over a period of drinking years, we've proved to ourselves and to everybody else that we can't stop drinking by our own willpower. We have been proved helpless before the power of alcohol. So the only way we could stop drinking was by turning to a Power greater than ourselves. We call that Power God. The time that you really get this program is when you get down on your knees and surrender yourself to God, as you understand Him. Surrender means putting your life into God's hands.

So ............

Have I made a promise to God that I will try to live the way He wants me to live?

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Just a Contemplation

Thoughts

We control our thoughts by controlling our self talk. At any moment we choose we can talk to ourselves differently.

The fight comes with the emotions that are attached to our thoughts. If our emotion is high and seems to be out of control, we can say to ourselves STOP IT!, take a few deep breaths, then ask the Creator for the right thought or the right decision or the right action.

If we practice this for a while, our thought life will be different. It helps if in the morning we ask God to direct our thinking. God loves to help us.

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Resolving Fear

Fear somehow touched about every aspect of our lives. It was an evil and corroding thread; the fabric of our existence was shot through with it. It set in motion trains of circumstances which brought us misfortune we felt we didn't deserve. But did we not often set the ball rolling ourselves?

Alcoholics Anonymous, pages 67-68

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Just a Quote

“People have to be responsible for their thoughts, so they have to learn to control them. It may not be easy, but it can be done.” -- Rolling Thunder, Cherokee

October 3


Irritation Prayer

Lord,
I confess my irritation with those who bully their way with words,
who fail to take responsibility for their actions,
who think no one sees what they do in the shadows,
and who live in a world of denial.
I’m angry and scared and tired of doing the right thing.
Strengthen my heart so that I not lose hope.
Let me not become ones of those that cause irritation.
Amen

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Just a Thought

We must turn to a Higher Power for help, because we are helpless ourselves. When we put our drink problem in God's hands and leave it there, we have made the most important decision of our lives. From then on, we trust God for the strength to keep sober. This takes us off the center of the universe and allows us to transfer our problems to a Power outside ourselves. By prayer and meditation, we seek to improve our conscious contact with God. We try to live each day the way we believe God wants us to live.

So ............

Am I trusting God for the strength to stay sober?

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Just a Contemplation

Hurrying up to wait

We often urge ourselves to hurry up when there's no good reason for it. At such times, all we really do is create needless tension and anxiety.

It's not hurrying, but steady effort that finally brings achievement. We've had entirely too much hurry and impatience. What we really need is confident, persistent effort in the right direction. We see anxious, impatient people speeding through traffic only to be forced to wait at traffic lights, risking life and limb to save a few seconds. A good steady pace is what we need, and it will win the game.

I’ll try to be active, but not overactive. I'll look for rhythm and efficiency in everything I do.

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Benign Anarchy and Democracy

When we come into A.A. we find a greater personal freedom than any other society knows. We cannot be compelled to do anything. In that sense our Society is a benign anarchy. The word "anarchy" has a bad meaning to most of us. But I think that the idealist who first advocated the concept felt that if only men were granted absolute liberty, and were compelled to obey no one, they would then voluntarily associate themselves in the common interest. A.A. is an association of the benign sort he envisioned.

But when we had to go into action--to function as groups--we discovered that we also had to become a democracy. As our oldtimers retired, we therefore began to elect our trusted servants by majority vote. Each group in this sense became a town meeting. All plans for group action had to be approved by the majority. This meant that no single individual could appoint himself to act for his group or for A.A. as a whole. Neither dictatorship nor paternalism was for us.

A.A. Comes Of Age Pages 224-225

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Just a Quote

"Without involvement, there is no commitment. Mark it down, asterisk it, circle it, underline it." -- Ralph Ellison

Octber 4


Prayer for This Day

God, I’m agitated and doubtful right now.
Help me to stop and remember that I’ve made a decision to let You be my God.
Give me the right thoughts and actions.
God save me from fear, anger, worry, self-pity or foolish decisions that
Your will, not mine be done.
Amen

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Just a Thought

Step Four is, "Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves." Step Five is, "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our, wrongs." Step Six is, "Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character." Step Seven is, "Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings." Step Ten is, "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it." In taking a personal inventory, we have to be absolutely honest with ourselves and with other people.

So ............

Have I taken an honest inventory of myself?

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Just a Contemplation

Order

Busy people often declare, with some exasperation, that they cannot do everything at once. People with emotional problems, often feel that they are trying to do everything at once. Quite often, this pressure means that we waste our time fretting about all the things facing us, becoming totally ineffective as a result.

In every situation or problem, there is always one step we can take that is more important than the others. Following that, we find a step of second importance, another of third importance, and so on. Sometimes, a certain action comes first simply because other things depend on it.

If we have to reduce our activities, we can decide which few ought to retain. Having made these decisions, we can be at peace about our choices. We cannot do everything at once and we need not feel guilty about it.

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Light From A Prayer

"God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the
courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the
difference."

We treasure our "Serenity Prayer" because it brings a new light to us
that can dissipate our oldtime and nearly fatal habit of fooling
ourselves.

In the radiance of this prayer we see that defeat, rightly accepted,
need be no disaster. We now know that we do not have to run away,
nor ought we again try to overcome adversity by still another
bulldozing drive that can only push up obstacles before us faster than
they can be taken down.

“As Bill Sees It” Page 20

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Just a Quote

“To experience peace does not mean that your life is always blissful. It means that you are capable of tapping into a blissful state of mind amidst the normal chaos of a hectic life.” -- Jill Bolte Taylor

October 5


A Prayer For Strength

Lord, please strengthen our hearts, and remind us to encourage one another when the troubles of life start to overwhelm us.
Please guard our hearts from depression. Give us the strength up to rise up each day and fight against the struggles which seek to weigh us down.
Amen.

-- John Barnett

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Just a Thought

In taking a personal inventory of ourselves, we have to face facts as we really are.

We have to stop running away. We must face reality. We must see ourselves as we really are. We must admit our faults openly and try to correct them. We must try to see where we have been dishonest, impure, selfish, and unloving. We do not do this once and forget it. We do it every day of our lives, as long as we live. We are never done with checking up on ourselves.

So ............

Am I taking a daily inventory of myself ?

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Just a Contemplation

Letting Go of Urgency

One thing at a time. That's all we have to do. Not two things at once, but one thing done in peace.
One task at a time. One feeling at a time. One day at a time. One problem at a time. One step at a time. One pleasure at a time.

Relax. Let go of urgency. Begin calmly now. Take one thing at a time. See how everything works out?

I will peacefully approach one thing at a time. When in doubt, I will take first things first.

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Guard Against A Slip

Suppose we fall short of our chosen ideals and stumble? Does this mean we are going to get drunk? Some people tell us so. But this is only a half-truth.

It depends on us and on our motives. If we are sorry for what we have done, and have the honest desire to let God take us to better things, we believe we will be forgiven and will have learned our lesson. If we are not sorry, and our conduct continues to harm others, we are quite sure to drink. These are facts out of our experience.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 70

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Just a Quote

“Don’t try to force anything. Let life be a deep let-go. God opens millions of flowers every day without forcing their buds.” —- Osho

October 6


A Prayer For Uncertain Times

Lord God,
In this time of bewilderment and fear, we ask you to give us the courage to take care of one another.

For those who are ill, especially those who are frightened and alone, for those who cannot access healthcare, for those who are homeless and lost, hear our prayer!

In the midst of our sadness and grief, we ask you to give us words to comfort one another. For those who are dying, and for those who have already died from this virus, for those who tend them and for those with no one to tend them, hear our prayer!

In the midst of our own anxiety we ask you to give us the courage to support one another as you would. For those who are unexpectedly unemployed, for employers who share what they can, for our government and financial institutions and those who lead them, hear our prayer!

In the midst of our struggle to ensure a healthy future for all who live on this planet, we ask you to give us the hope that surpasses our current understanding. For healthcare workers, spiritual leaders and our faith communities, for artists and poets, for prophets and teachers, hear our prayer!

In the midst of our growing awareness that all life on Earth is connected, we ask for the heart to respect and cherish all life. That all peoples recognize that we are all your children, hear our prayer!

We trust in you and your power working in us. Please hear and answer our prayers.
Amen! Amen!

-Sister Cynthia Serjak, RSM

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Just a Thought

Making amends and restitution for the wrongs we have done is often very difficult. It hurts our pride. But the rewards are great. When we go to a person and say we are sorry, the reaction we get is almost invariably good. It takes courage to make the plunge, but the results more than justify it. A load is off your chest and often an enemy has been turned into a friend.

So ............

Have I done my best to make all the amends and restitution possible?

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Just a Contemplation

Being Human

Being human means we'll have hard times along with pleasant ones. Whether with friends, at school, or at home, we'll find reasons for sadness or anger as easily as for laughter. In every part of our lives, we're offered just what we need for growth.

Being the best we know how to be doesn't mean we'll escape confusion or pain. Through the troubling times we learn to trust in a Higher Power; we learn patience; we learn to let go and let God decide outcomes. The troubling times offer us growth and serenity, our keys to happiness.

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"Loners"--but Not Alone

What can be said of many A.A. members who, for a variety of reasons, cannot have a family life? At first many of these feel lonely, hurt, and left out as they witness so much domestic happiness about them. If they cannot have this kind of happiness, can A.A. offer them satisfactions of similar worth and durability?

Yes-- whenever they try hard to seek out these satisfactions. Surrounded by so many A.A. friends, the so-called loners tell us they no longer feel alone. In partnership with others--women and men--they can devote themselves to any number of ideas, people, and constructive projects. They can participate in enterprises which would be denied to family men and women. We daily see such members render prodigies of service, and receive great joys in return.

Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Page 120

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Just a Quote

“It’s amazing what we can do if we will trust God enough to step out of our comfort zones!” -- Brett Harris

October 7


Tolerance Prayer

Lord, give me tolerance towards those whose thoughts and ways, in the Program and life, conflict with mine. For though I would, I cannot always know what constitutes the Absolute Truth. The other person may be right, while I may be all wrong, yet unaware.

Lord, make my motives right, for only this can ease my conscience when I sometimes err.

Lord, give me tolerance, for who am I to stand in judgment on another person's mistakes? No one knows better than my inward self how many little blunders I have and can make.

Life is full of stones that somehow trip us, and meaning not, we stumble now and then.

Lord, give me tolerance, for only you are rightly fit to judge my fellow travelers.

(From: Global Steps, Bristol, CT)

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Just a Thought

"Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs."

The basis of our effectiveness in carrying the message to others is the reality of our own spiritual awakening. If we have not changed, we cannot be used to change others. To keep this program, we must pass it on to others. We cannot hoard it for ourselves. We may lose it unless we give it away. It cannot flow into us and stop; it must continue to flow into us as it flows out to others.

So ............

Am I always ready to give away what I have learned in A.A.?

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Just a Contemplation

Tolerance

Tolerate our quirks, our feelings, our reactions, our peculiarities, and our humanness. Tolerate our ups and downs, our resistance to change, and our struggling and sometimes awkward nature.

Tolerate our fears, our mistakes, our natural tendency to duck from problems, and pain. Tolerate our hesitancy to get close, expose ourselves, and be vulnerable.

Tolerate our need to occasionally feel superior, to sometimes feel ashamed, and to occasionally share love as an equal. Tolerate the way we progress - a few steps forward, and a couple back.

Tolerate our instinctive desire to control and how we reluctantly learn to practice detachment. Tolerate the way we say we want love, and then sometimes push others away. Tolerate our tendency to get obsessive, forget to trust God, and occasionally get stuck.

Some things we do not tolerate. Do not tolerate abusive or destructive behaviors toward others or ourselves.

Practice healthy, loving tolerance of ourselves, said one man. When we do, we'll learn tolerance for others. Then, take it one step further; learn that all the humanness we're tolerating is what makes ourselves and others beautiful.

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Tolerance & Acceptance

Tolerance is a fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward those whose opinions, practices, race, religion, nationality, etc., differ from one's own; freedom from bigotry.

Tolerance is a virtue. It is a version of the golden rule in that, insofar as we want others to treat us decently, we need to treat them decently as well.

Acceptance in human psychology is a person's assent to the reality of a situation, recognizing a process or condition (often a negative or uncomfortable situation) without attempting to change it, protest, or exit.

Acceptance goes a step beyond tolerance. If a sign of tolerance is a feeling of “I can live with X (behavior, religion, race, culture, etc.),” then acceptance moves beyond that in the direction of “X is OK.” You can tolerate something without accepting it, but you cannot accept something without tolerating it.

-- Jefferson M Fish
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/looking-in-the-cultural-mirror/201402/tolerance-acceptance-understanding

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Just a Few Quotes

"Tolerance is the positive and cordial effort to understand another's beliefs, practices, and habits without necessarily sharing or accepting them." -- Joshua Liebman

"Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others." -- John F. Kennedy

October 8


Prayer for This Day

Lord,
Please keep me safe From all danger, hurt, and harm.
Help me to start this day and every day With a new attitude and plenty of gratitude.
Let me make the best of each and every day, To clear my mind so that I can follow your will.
Amen

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Just a Thought

Everyone who comes into A.A. knows from bitter experience that he or she can't drink. I know that drinking has been the cause of all my major troubles or has made them worse. Now that I have found a way out, I will hang on to A.A. with both hands. Saint Paul once said that nothing in the world, neither powers nor principles, life nor death, could separate him from the love of God.

So ............

Once I have given my drink problem to God, should anything in the world separate me from my sobriety?

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Just a Contemplation

Problems With Others

Do our problems with other people really started within ourselves? If we have trouble getting along with another person, for example, is it because we are projecting mixed signals of fear and suspicion toward that person? We tend to reap what we sow----- we get back the attitudes we project.

However, we can't take total responsibility for the way others treat us or behave toward us. We cannot reform or control impossible people. When dealing with impossible people, we have control over our own feelings and responses. This helps us avoid potential trouble and enables us to deal with difficult situations.

A simple change of attitude on our part can bring startling changes for the better, in our responses to others. With practice, the principle also applies to the broad area of human relations in many ways. So, I will take care today to see that my thoughts and feeling toward others reflect what I want in my own life.

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A New Life

Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps.

As Bill Sees It Page 8

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Just a Quote

"There were times my immaturity kept me from being all I wanted to be." -- Len Elmore

October 9


Prayer To Live Well Today

Lord,
Your Word tells me not to worry about my life or the things of tomorrow. Forgive me for my lack of confidence in Your daily guidance and Your ability to work everything into something good.

Please help me to deal with those things I can, and make changes where necessary. Help me to leave those things I cannot change in Your care.

I choose to seek first your will, as I live one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time.
Amen

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Just a Thought

As we learn to live one day at a time, it's essential that we come to God with a willingness and intention to surrender our will and our life into His care. What does this way of living daily surrendered to God look like?

1. ONGOING FORGIVENESS: It's important to daily confess our sins and receive God’s mercy, forgiveness, and fresh cleansing.

2. DAILY GETTING TO KNOW GOD'S WILL: What are we doing from day to day, even moment by moment, to train ourselves to listen and respond to the Word of God? What tools are we using to help us learn and grow? In what ways are we challenging ourselves to do what needs to be done, particularly when we don’t feel like doing it?

3. MAKING GOD'S AGENDA FOR ME, MY AGENDA FOR TODAY: Our new life in recovery may differ from the way of life we see many people in our society exhibit. Some people make power, prestige, or money their idol. In the past some of us made sex, drugs, and alcohol our idols. Today, all of us are invited to make God's priorities our priorities, and in so doing gain a life that is good, pleasing, and perfect.

One of the greatest gifts of this new life in recovery is that having had a spiritual awakening we can now share this message of hope with others who "silently suffer" in what appears to be reasonably good life circumstances. Amazing but true, living one day at a time in relationship with God, is the only lifestyle that results in a truly good, pleasing and perfect life for all – the wealthy and the poor.

4. GIVE UP WORRY AND REGRET: It is easy to slide into worrying about tomorrow, dwelling on the "what ifs" and the "if onlys" of our life. It is tempting to deny present happenings and try to escape reality. This is part of the insanity of an addict’s way of life. Each day brings with it a host of things which we personally cannot change. We need to come to terms with the limitations of our humanity. We are human beings confined within the slice of time we call today. We have some training, certain talents, and a few resources. God has promised to take care of all our todays and tomorrows. We simply need to live one day at a time under His guidance and care to ensure it all works well, according to His plan.
(from: Vancouver Area Recovery Meetings)


So ............

How am I doing ??

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Just a Contemplation

Abstinence

By abstaining from compulsive behavior, we are doing ourselves the biggest favor imaginable. We are literally saving our lives, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We should never think of abstinence as punishment.

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Be Willing

We reviewed our own conduct over the years past. Where had we been selfish, dishonest, or inconsiderate? Whom had we hurt? Did we unjustifiably arouse jealousy, suspicion or bitterness? Where were we at fault, what should we have done instead? We got this all down on paper and looked at it.

In this way we tried to shape a sane and sound ideal for our future sex life. We subjected each relation to this test - was it selfish or not? We asked God to mold our ideals and help us to live up to them. We remembered always that our sex powers were God-given and therefore good, neither to be used lightly or selfishly nor to be despised and loathed.

Whatever our ideal turns out to be, we must be willing to grow toward it. We must be willing to make amends where we have done harm, provided that we do not bring about still more harm in so doing. In other words, we treat sex as we would any other problem. In meditation, we ask God what we should do about each specific matter. The right answer will come, if we want it.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 69

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Just a Quote

"Thinking is difficult, that’s why most people judge." -- Carl Jung

October 2


Prayer When Things Seem Hopeless & Chaotic

Lord, some days my world seems to be spinning out of control. Everywhere I look, I see chaos—even in my own life. There are days where I long to just throw in the towel and say, "Enough." Where can I turn? Who can I talk to?

Give me a new perspective, Lord, and blow away the cobwebs that keep cluttering my mind and my vision. Every time I'm tempted to become discouraged or depressed because of negative events or situations, help me to gain that new perspective.

With your perspective, I can push past the impossible and find the strength and courage to believe that no matter what happens, your hope will lift me to a higher plane—where joy and purpose reign again.
Amen

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Just a Thought


When we were drinking most of us were full of pride and selfishness. We believed we could handle our own affairs, even though we were making a mess of our lives. We were very stubborn and didn't like to take advice. We resented being told what to do. To us, humility looked like weakness. But when we came into A.A., we began to be humble. And we found out that humility gave us the power we needed to overcome drinking.

So ............

Have I learned that there is power in humility?

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Just a Contemplation

Miracles

Give yourself a gift of five minutes of contemplation in awe of everything you see around you. Go outside and turn your attention to the many miracles around you. This five-minute-a-day regimen of appreciation and gratitude will help you to focus your life in awe.
(from: Wayne Dyer)

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Tolerance

Finally, we begin to see that all people, including ourselves, are to some extent emotionally ill as well as frequently wrong. When this happens, we approach true tolerance and we see what real love for our fellows actually means.


Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions Page 92

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Just a Quote

“Let your dreams be bigger than your fears, your actions louder than your words, and your faith stronger than your feelings.” -- Unknown

October 11


Prayer to Awaken The Dawn

Dear Lord,
Sometimes I arise before dawn, I awake in the darkness but know that the light will emerge. I wait on you Lord in hard times, just like those dark mornings when my heart feels cold, when I need to trust that the dawn will break, that light, life and love will shine bright. Help me to remember at these times that morning has broken through the darkness, and to trust you with the anxieties, fears and grief of the night. I will draw near to you, I will wait for the dawn.

-- Thomas Traherne

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Just a Thought

...........practice these principles in all our affairs.

We do not just practice these principles in regard to our drinking problem. We practice them in all our affairs. We do not give one compartment of our lives to God and keep the other compartments to ourselves. We give our whole lives to God and we try to do His will in every respect. "Herein lies our growth, herein lies all the promise of the future, an ever widening horizon.

So ............

Do I carry the A.A. principles with me wherever I go?

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Just a Contemplation

Decision Making

Self-pity is often rooted in the strong feeling that people or conditions have victimized us. "I never had a chance" and "You deceived me!" are common complaints that reveal self-pity. It is astonishing and humbling to learn that we always have choices, even when other people or bad conditions are grinding us down.

We choose our attitudes and responses. We have neither the power nor the right to control others, but we can choose to soften our attitudes toward them, and we can forgive and release people we don't like.
We can always choose how we want to think and feel. It may take effort to break the habit of feeling victimized and sorry for ourselves, but our higher power will show us the way if we decide that is what we really want.

I can always make choices that will enhance my life and place me on a better footing for the days ahead. Nobody can ruffle my feathers today or make me feel oppressed and victimized.

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Happy, Joyous and Free

We are sure God wants us to be happy, joyous, and free. We cannot subscribe to the belief that this life is a vale of tears, though it once was just that for many of us. But it is clear that we made our own misery. God didn't do it. Avoid then, the deliberate manufacture of misery, but if trouble comes, cheerfully capitalize it as an opportunity to demonstrate His omnipotence.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 133

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Just a Few Quotes

“In life, you can blame a lot of people and you can wallow in self-pity or you can pick yourself up and say listen, I have to be responsible for myself.” -- Howard Schultz

“Discontent, blaming, complaining, self-pity cannot serve as a foundation for a good future, no matter how much effort you make.” -- Eckhart Tolle





https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/pr...P6=w5000-h5000

October 12


The Prayer for Today

Just for today, help me, God, to remember that my life is a gift, that my health is a blessing, that this new day is filled with awesome potential, that I have the capacity to bring something wholly new and unique and good into this world.

Just for today, help me, God, to remember to be kind and patient to the people who love me, and to those who are around me. Teach me to see all the beauty that I so often ignore, and to listen to the silent longing of my own soul.

Just for today, help me, God, to remember You are in charge.
Let this be a good day, God, full of joy and love.
Amen

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Just a Thought

The term "spiritual experience" as given in Appendix II of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous: "A spiritual experience is something that brings about a personality change. By surrendering our lives to God as we understand Him, we are changed. The nature of this change is evident in recovered alcoholics. This personality change is not necessarily in the nature of a sudden and spectacular upheaval. We do not need to acquire an immediate ad overwhelming God consciousness, followed at once by a vast change in feeling and outlook. In most cases, the change is gradual.

So ............

Do I see a gradual and continuing change in myself?

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Just a Contemplation

Difficult Circumstances

All of us have some difficult circumstances to face. We have many uncontrollable circumstances in our lives, but we don't have to give ourselves over to them.

We are always within the circle of God's love. Always! Knowing that helps us make peace with the limits on what we can do about our situations. Then we can go forth working to make peace in our relationships, accomplish what is possible in our lives, and make a contribution to others.

The frustrations around me are not all of who I am. When I am at peace within, I live among spiritual riches.

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No Guarantee

Sobriety is no guarantee that the recovering alcoholic will become a wise sage, but it is almost certain that trying not to repeat their past follies will make them a little smarter. It is suggested that anyone who is trying to stay sober should go to the meetings of A. A. because the disease of alcoholism has a built in forgetter and those who forget their past follies are usually doomed to repeat them. Today, show everyone how wise you are by practicing the spiritual principles in all of your affairs. Recovery is one day at a time. Sobriety is a blessing from our Higher Power.

(Not sure of the source)

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A Few Quotes

“No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change.” -- Barbara de Angelis

“Sometimes you have to do what’s best for you and your life, not what’s best for everyone else.” -- Anonymous A.A.

October 13


A Prayer for a Heavy Heart

Father, my heart is heavy. I feel like I have to carry the burden alone.
Words like overwhelmed, distraught, exhausted seem to describe where I am.
I am not sure how to let you carry my heavy load, so please show me how.
Take it from me. Let me rest and be refreshed so that my heart won’t be so heavy in the morning.
Amen.

-- Ron Moore

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Just a Thought

For most of us, our spiritual experiences are of the educational variety, and they develop slowly over a period of time. Quite often friends of newcomers are aware of the difference long before they are themselves. They finally realize that they have undergone a profound alteration in their reaction to life and that such a change could hardly have been brought about by themselves alone.

So ............

Is my outlook on life changing for the better?

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Just a Contemplation

Character Defects

We are inclined to feel that our problems and difficulties are largely due to circumstances and other people. We see that the root of our difficulty lies in being centered on self. Our egos can take us only so far before we reach a point where continued growth demands that we begin to abandon them. It is a relief to get rid of the anxiety, frustration, and fear that goes with an ego-centered life!

Focusing on our "God" removes our character defects as we become willing to let go of them. Honest awareness is our first task, and this is facilitated by maintaining abstinence from compulsive behavior. As we change, circumstances and relationships improve.

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Better Than Gold

As newcomers, many of us have indulged in spiritual intoxication. Like a gaunt prospector, belt drawn in over the last ounce of food, we saw our pick strike gold. Joy at our release from a lifetime of frustration knew no bounds.

The newcomer feels he has struck something better than gold. He may not see at once that he has barely scratched the limitless lode which will pay dividends only if he mines it for the rest of his life and insists on giving away the entire product.

Alcoholics Anonymous, pages 128-129

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Just a Quote

“A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.” -- David Brinkley

October 14


Gratitude Prayer

Thank you God for another day
For helping me live in a decent way
Thank you for the joy of living
And the happiness that comes from giving
Teach me to wake to the morning sun
With the prayer 'Thy Will Be Done'
Thank you God for another day
Thank you God for AA

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Just a Thought

It is essential that the A.A. program become part of us. We must have its essentials at our fingertips. We cannot study the Big Book too much or too often. The more we read it and study it, the better equipped we are to think A.A., act A.A., and live A.A. We cannot know too much about the program. The chances are that we will never know enough. But we can make as much of it our own as possible.

So ...........

How much of the Big Book have I thoroughly mastered?

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Just a Contemplation

Human Race

Try to remember that we're part of a larger fellowship called " the human race."

We all hurt the same. We all love the same. We all need understanding and care. Yet, in other ways, we are not all the same.
Let's remember to understand differences among people. If not, we'll be afraid of anyone who's not like us.
And this isn't God's way.

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Conviction and Compromise

One qualification for a useful life is give-and-take, the ability to compromise cheerfully. Compromise comes hard to us "all or nothing" drunks. Nevertheless, we must never lose sight of the fact that progress is nearly always characterized by a series of improving compromises.

Of course, we cannot always compromise. There are circumstances in which it is necessary to stick flat-footed to one's convictions until the issue is resolved. Deciding when to compromise and when not to compromise always calls for the most careful discrimination.

"As Bill Sees It" Page 59

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Just a Quote

"Compromise is not about losing. It is about deciding that the other person has just as much right to be happy with the end result as you do." -- Donna Martini

October 15


Prayer When Lonely

Lord, there is so much swirling all around me begging for my attention – people, places, things, tasks. Still, in the midst of it all, I feel so alone—as if I stand in this swirling vortex by myself. For whatever reason, though people surround me, I’m unable to connect with them. It seems that when I try to open up, I am rejected and this rejection insulates me from ever trying again. For now I feel so alone.

Lord, right now I need this feeling of loneliness to diminish. Help me to reach out to those around me, help me to do so with boldness.
Amen

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Just a Thought

Spiritual experience: With few exceptions, our members find that they have tapped an unsuspected inner resource, which they presently identify with their own conception of a Power greater than themselves. Most of us think this awareness of a Power greater than ourselves the essence of spiritual experience. Some of us call it God consciousness. In any case, willingness, honesty and open mindedness are the essentials of recovery.

So ............

Have I tapped that inner resource which can change my life?

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Just a Contemplation

Honest Admission

Out of honest admission of our weakness comes strength. We are able to see ourselves realistically and with clarity. When we are humble enough to admit our wrongs, we get rid of the false front we had tried to maintain. This frees us to be who we are, without pretense.

When we admit our faults, we are cleansed. We no longer have to try to hide and cover up our weaknesses and mistakes. Instead of pretending to be perfect, we can be human and satisfied with our progress.

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Irrational

I well remember the shock I received when a prominent doctor in Chicago told me of cases where pressure of the spinal fluid actually ruptured the brain. No wonder an alcoholic is strangely irrational. Who wouldn't be, with such a fevered brain? Normal drinkers are not so affected, nor can they understand the aberrations of the alcoholic.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 140

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Just a Quote

"I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up all alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is ending up with people who make you feel all alone." -- Robin Williams