Today's Thought - September

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September 16

How important is it?

The young man in the meeting was very angry and upset. His lawnmower had broken down. He was having a cookout in his back yard that evening, the yard "looked terrible," and he'd paid a lot of money for that mower! After he went on for some time, an older woman gently interrupted him and asked, “Was anyone hurt? Was there danger? Would your guests walk out?” And finally, “Did you lose your sobriety over it?” The young man smiled, as he answered “no” to all the questions. “No, it was not that important after all.”

We all overreact sometimes to situations, people, and events that, later, we see were really not important. The next time we are bothered by someone or something that threatens to ruin our day, we will try to remember to ask ourselves. “How important is it?” If it’s not important, we’ll spend our time and energy on what is important. There is a world of difference.

Today help me to know what is important, to forget what’s not, and ask others for perspective when I‘m not sure.

You are reading from the book:

Body, Mind, and Spirit by Anonymous

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September 17

The universe is transformation; our life is what our thoughts make it.
--Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

It's awesome, the power we each wield in the life that unfolds before us. The inclination of our thoughts invites that which we encounter, which is that which we expect to find. What we can become or experience is limited only by our imagination. Our dreams shine like beacons in the dimness of our minds.

Just as our thoughts can nurture positive experiences and outcomes, negative episodes might be drawn to us, too. We can be sure, though, that we use this individual power to create the flavor of each day as it's met.

Our attitude is the by-product of our thoughts. It is in our attitude that we discover strength or weakness, hope or anxiety, determination or frustration. Alone, we determine whether our attitude will be loving or jaundiced.

The breadth of personal power is awesome. Today will be what I choose to make it. No more and no less.

You are reading from the book:

The Promise of a New Day by Karen Casey and Martha Vanceburg

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September 18

You've got to get up every morning with a smile on your face,
And show the world all the love in your heart,
Then people gonna treat you better.
You're gonna find, yes, you will,
That you're beautiful as you feel.
--Carole King

"Act as if." There's magic in behaving the way we want to be, even though we don't yet feel it. The behavior seems to lead the way. The attitude, the mental state, follows.

Many days we may not get up with love in our hearts for our family, our friends, our co-workers. We may, in fact, want them to show their love for us first. But if we reach out, give love unconditionally, focus on another's needs, love will return tenfold. And the act of loving them will lift our own spirits. We will know love; we will feel love for ourselves and the many other persons close to us.

The attitude we cultivate, whether one of love or selfishness, inferiority or superiority, will determine how the events of our lives affect us. The principle is so simple. If we meet life with love, with a smile, we'll find love and something to smile about.

My attitude will make this day what it becomes. Meeting it head-on, with love, will assure me of a lovely day.

You are reading from the book:

Each Day a New Beginning by Karen Casey

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September 19

You are reading from the book Today's Gift

Young man, the secret of my success is that at an early age I discovered I was not God.
—Oliver Wendell Holmes

Sometimes, in our families, we try to get parents or brothers or sisters to treat us the way we want them to, to do things we want them to. When they're upset or angry with us, we try to get them to stop, rather than allow them to be angry.

But our feelings are ours alone, and we are responsible only for how we feel. Those around us are not the cause of our feelings. We are.

This knowledge is a big responsibility, because we know we cannot blame others for our bad moods. But it is a fact. And this fact is also a wonderful freedom for us, for it means that we also have the power to make ourselves happy, no matter what goes on around us.

How can I make myself happy today?

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September 20

In everyone's heart stirs a great homesickness.
--Rabbi Seymour Siegel

We ask ourselves what drove us to do some of the things we did? We went to extremes even when we knew our actions were not rational. Still today, we are drawn to extremes. At times we still long for things that we know will hurt us. Are we puzzled by these desires?

Wise men and prophets have searched their own deep truths to understand their desires and longings. Many say that our desires and hungers are, at the base of our being, a search for a spiritual home, a place where we know we are welcome, safe, and loved. Perhaps we are all born longing for that home. Maybe we first taste it when we first experience the warmth of loving and caring parents, even when it was only a taste, and only partially satisfied. Then we spend the rest of our lives in pursuit of that good feeling again.

The wisdom of the Twelve Steps points us toward that spiritual home, a lifetime of growth and development follows in which we feel the spirit in our fellowship with other men and women, and we learn from others how they have found their way home.

Today the stirring in my heart will be a sign of my spiritual longing.

You are reading from the book:

Wisdom to Know by Anonymous

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September 21

Becoming willing to act

The miracles in our program don’t simply rub off at meetings. The key to getting clean and sober – and staying clean and sober – is a willingness to act.

Once we feel scared enough or strong enough to do something – once the willingness appears – miracles can happen. Action is the magic word. We must not wait for something to "rub off." Rather, we must act as soon as possible. An important phrase in the program describes this - "acting as if."

Am I learning to "act as if"?

Higher Power, help me become willing to act so that I don’t fall into a spiritual sleep.

You are reading from the book:

Day by Day - Second Edition by Anonymous

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September 22

Reflection for the Day

What is the definition of humility? "Absolute humility," said AA co- founder Bill W., "would consist of a state of complete freedom from myself, freedom from all the claims that my defects of character now lay so heavily upon me. Perfect humility would be a full willingness, in all times and places, to find and to do the will of God."
Am I striving for humility?

Today I Pray

May God expand my interpretation of humility beyond abject subservience or awe at the greatness of others. May humility also mean freedom from myself, a freedom, which can come only through turning my being over to God's will. May I sense the omnipotence of God, which is simultaneously humbling and exhilarating. May I be willing to carry out God's will.

Today I Will Remember

Humility is freedom.

You are reading from the book:

A Day at a Time (Softcover) by Anonymous

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September 23

The Simple Things

Lord, I pray to stay uncomplicated and do well these simple tasks:

If I open it, I will close it.

If I turn it on, I will turn it off.

If I unlock it, I will lock it up.

If I break it, I will admit it.

If I borrow it, I will return it.

If I make a mess, I will clean it up.

If I value it, I will take care of it.

If it will brighten someone's day, I will say it.

--Author unknown

You are reading from the book:

The 12 Step Prayer Book Volume 2 by Bill P. and Lisa D.

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September 24

When one door closes, fortune will usually open another.
-- Fernando De Rojas

Sometimes, especially in early recovery, we concentrate on our losses instead of our gains. We see a chapter in our life closing, and we mourn. We must leave some friends behind, or say good-bye to a social life we enjoyed. We must give up active addiction, which had become our best friend and only comfort. We may even have to leave our families, at least for a time, in order to concentrate on our own needs.

We need to grieve all these losses. Then we can see more clearly what recovery has brought us. For every loss, we've gained blessings. For every friend gone, we have the chance to make many more. A whole new sober life awaits us when we're ready to be part of it.

When we gave up the fake comforts of addiction, we found genuine comfort in sound sleep and healthy bodies, in peaceful days and serene nights. When we were ready to give up anger and resentment, we found generosity and forgiveness toward other people, and toward ourselves, too. In recovery, it's true, one door has closed. But another, better door has finally opened.

Today help me be grateful for my new life. Help me anew my losses so I can appreciate all that awaits me.

You are reading from the book:

Body, Mind, and Spirit by Anonymous

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September 25

I don't think you're suddenly going to begin to look at the world with new eyes when you're 80 if you haven't been doing it when you're 30.
--Janice Clark

We are creatures of habit as evidenced by our getting stuck in old viewpoints long after they have quit serving us. However, that fact doesn't restrict us for all time. Anytime we want to cultivate a new idea, an alternative approach to a situation, we are free to do so. Janice may be right regarding some people she has known, but we are capable of freshening our perspective at any age.

We have all known some elderly men and women who have the spirit and enthusiasm of the very young. Unfortunately, we have also known the reverse. How sad to observe the forty or fifty year old person who has quit living. Their whining belies their age. Who will we be? The choice is always available to us. And we can remake it as often as we wish.

What a relief to know that if we're old and resentful today, we still have the opportunity to be young and full of laughter tomorrow. We maybe can't do everything we used to do, but this decision is still in our power.

I will open my eyes to whatever I choose to see today. Yesterday's experiences have only the power I give them.

You are reading from the book:

Inner Harvest by Elisabeth L.

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September 26

Self-knowledge and self-improvement are very difficult for most people. It usually needs great courage and long struggle.
--Abraham Maslow

This is a simple program but it isn't easy. We cannot take the principles we learn and thereby possess them as if we were taking a class or reading a book. We need to live them. We can only get this program by participating with others who are also on the journey. Gradually we absorb it into every fiber of our being. This takes time and dedication.

The honesty required is sometimes frightening and painful. Anyone who remains faithful to this program has great courage and deserves deep respect. But we do not have to wait long to begin receiving the rewards. New freedoms, good feelings, and friendships quickly develop, and we are promised in this program to continue growing and to receive more benefits throughout our lives. What rewards have come from our courage and struggle?

I will give much to my spiritual growth because it gives much to me.

You are reading from the book:

Touchstones by Anonymous

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September 27

Let go of the fear. Feel it, and then breathe it out. Let go of the frustration, the overwhelmed feelings, and the panic. Quiet yourself. Then pick one task, one simple thing to do. Then focus on only that. Or go to your calendar and circle today. Today is the only day you've got, and today is enough.

Action:

If you're working on a project, break it down into components, and work on one small part. Don't think about the rest. If what's overwhelming you is a flurry of tasks and problems, make a list, then pick one thing and focus on doing that. Then cross it off your list and do another.

If you're going through a tough stretch in your life, don't think about all the days that loom ahead. Make whatever appointments and plans you need to make, then focus only on today. If you're experiencing something tough, like a divorce or early sobriety, you may want to break your days into smaller parts, such as hours, mornings, afternoons, and evenings. Don't think about facing anything more than that chunk of time. Then when you get to the next chunk, focus on that.

If the beast of anxiety starts roaring, quiet it by deliberately turning your attention to small steps.

You are reading from the book:

52 Weeks of Conscious Contact by Melody Beattie

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September 28

Practice being spontaneous. Practice having fun.

The joy of recovery is that we finally get to experiment. We get to learn new behaviors, and we don't have to do them perfectly. We only need to find a way that works for us. We even have fun experimenting, learning what we like, and how to do what we like.

Many of us have gotten into a rut with rigidity, martyrdom, and deprivation. We may hold ourselves in check so tightly that we wouldn't allow ourselves to try something fun anyway.

We can let ourselves go a little now and then. We can loosen up a bit. We don't have to be so stiff and rigid, so frightened about being who we are. Take some risks. Then, take another risk. Pick out a movie and then call a friend and invite him or her to go along. If that person says no, try someone else, or try again another time.

Decide to try something, and then go through with it. Go once. Go twice. Practice having fun until fun becomes fun.

Today, I will do something just for fun. I will practice having fun until I actually enjoy it.

You are reading from the book:

The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie

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September 29

To love is to place our happiness in the happiness of another.
--G. Wilhelm Leibniz

To desire personal happiness is normal and healthy. Most of our plans, choices, and dreams about the present and future regarding jobs, relationships, and hoped-for achievements are geared to make us happy. It's never wrong to want happiness; however, to receive it at someone else's expense or to selfishly steal it from another will result in sorrow. And our greatest happiness will visit us when we least expect it - when we are attentively seeing to another's happiness.

Doing for others - perhaps shopping for a friend who is ill or aged, maybe offering child care to an overworked parent, or cooking a surprise meal for a lonely neighbor - will never fail to heighten our own pleasure.

You are reading from the book:

Worthy of Love by Karen Casey

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September 30

Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.
--Albert Schweitzer

Throughout our life we've been influenced by other people's behavior and opinions. Many of us were influenced by very poor examples in earlier years. And we may have to pray for help rather than continuing to follow those poor examples now. But all around us are people who are healthy, loving, and honest. We are invited to emulate their behavior.

Acting As If can help us develop new behaviors. We may not feel very comfortable reaching out to a program newcomer or making conversation with someone we've just met, but we can do it. And in time, with practice, we'll discover we've added a positive dimension to our character, one that influences the lives of other people who struggle just like us. All of us, Acting As If in positive ways, offer wonderful examples of behavior change. We reinforce our own changes, and each other's, every time we are thoughtful before we act.

With my Higher Power's help, I will be a good example for someone today.

You are reading from the book:

In God's Care by Karen Casey