Daily Recovery Readings - July

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July 31

Daily Reflections

A PRAYER FOR ALL SEASONS

God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change.
Courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the
difference.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 125

The power of this prayer is overwhelming in that its simple beauty
parallels the A.A. Fellowship. There are times when I get stuck while
reciting it, but if I examine the section which is troubling me, I find the
answer to my problem. The first time this happened I was scared, but
now I use it as a valuable tool. By accepting life as it is, I gain serenity.
By taking action, I gain courage and I thank God for the ability to
distinguish between those situations I can work on, and those I must
turn over. All that I have now is a gift from God: my life, my
usefulness, my contentment, and this program. The serenity enables
me to continue walking forward.
Alcoholics Anonymous is the easier, softer way.

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

A.A. Thought For The Day

This leaves only one day - today. Anyone can fight the battles of just
one day. it is only when you and I add the burden of those two awful
eternity's, yesterday and tomorrow, that we break down. It is not the
experience of today that drives us mad. It is the remorse or bitterness
for something that happened yesterday or the dread of what tomorrow
may bring. Let us therefore do our best to live but one day at a time.
Am I living one day at a time?

Meditation For The Day

Give God the gift of a thankful heart. Try to see causes of
thankfulness in your everyday life. When life seems hard and troubles
crowd, then look for some reasons for thankfulness. There is nearly
always something you can be thankful for. The offering of
thanksgiving is indeed a sweet incense going up to God throughout a
busy day. Seek diligently for something to be glad and thankful about.
You will acquire in time the habit of being constantly grateful to God
for all His blessings. Each new day some new cause for joy and
gratitude will spring to your mind and you will thank God sincerely.

Prayer For The Day

I pray for a truly thankful heart. I pray that I may be constantly
reminded of causes for sincere gratitude.

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As Bill Sees It

Faith and Action, p. 212

Your prospect's religious education and training may be far superior
to yours. In that case, he is going to wonder how you can add
anything to what he already knows.

But he will be curious to learn why his convictions have not
worked and yours seem to work so well. He may be an example of
the truth that faith alone is insufficient. To be vital, faith must be
accompanied by self-sacrifice and unselfish, constructive action.

Admit that he probably knows more about religion than you do,
but remind him that, however deep his faith and knowledge, these
qualities could not have served him very well, or he would not be
asking your help.

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Dr. Bob did not need me for his spiritual instruction. He had
already had more of that than I. What he did need, when we first
met, was the deflation at depth and the understanding that only one
drunk can give to another. What I needed was the humility of
self-forgetfulness and the kinship with another human being of my
own kind.

1. Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 93
2. A.A. Today, p. 10

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Walk In Dry Places

Group Intelligence
Getting Ideas
"All of us know more than any one of us" is the saying that applies to 12 Step groups. No matter how much experience any single individual has, it's surpassed by the collective knowledge of the group.
That's a good reason in itself for drawing upon these groups. And there are others as well. We need the pool of intelligence that the groups build up over time. We need the group's strength when our own is waning.
We also learn help that comes in surprising ways. The person in the group who seems just knowledgeable may express an idea that is just what we need at the time.
The group can meet many of our needs if we give it a chance. Regular attendance at meetings will keep us in touch with the group's ideas.
I'll stay in touch today with ideas that come from members of my group. Joined together, we have lots of knowledge.

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Keep It Simple

Less is more.---Mies Vander Rohe
Our program is simple. It has four equal parts: sobriety, fellowship, service, and faith.
Sobriety means we don't use alcohol or drugs any more.
Fellowship means we let people into our lives. We work at having a life that's rich with friends.
Service means we help when we see the need. It means knowing we have much to offer.
Faith means we believe in a loving, caring Higher Power. It means using our Higher Power as a guide in life.
Ours is a simple, easy program. Just remember sobriety, fellowship, service and faith.
Prayer for the Day: I pray that I may keep my program simple. I pray for sobriety, fellowship, service, and faith.
Action for the Day: Throughout the day, I'll remind myself that less is more.

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Each Day a New Beginning

The child is an almost universal symbol for the soul’s transformation. The child is whole, not yet divided….
When we would heal the mind… we ask this child to speak to us. ~ Susan Griffin
Was there ever a time when we did not feel divided from ourselves? Occasionally we get a glimpse of what such spiritual wholeness would be like, but most of the time we struggle with feelings of conflict, unevenness, a divided heart. Perhaps “the child” is a metaphor for a spiritual guide, like our own higher power, that can help us in our journey toward self-acceptance.
“I may not be perfect, but parts of me are excellent,” writes author Ashleigh Brilliant. If we can be happy with this proud, funny boast then perhaps we can stop berating ourselves for our imperfections. If we dwell on our own contradictory impulses, we give them too much importance, too much power.
Let me trust to my glimpses of harmony and wholeness and be grateful for the richness of my spirit.

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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

MORE ABOUT ALCOHOLISM

As we look back, we feel we had gone on drinking many years beyond the point where we could quit on our will power. If anyone questions whether he has entered this dangerous area, let him try leaving liquor alone for one year. If he is a real alcoholic and very far advanced, there is scant chance of success. In the early days of our drinking we occasionally remained sober for a year or more, becoming serious drinkers again later. Though you may be able to stop for a considerable period, you may yet be a potential alcoholic. We think few, to whom this book will appeal, can stay dry anything like a year. Some will be drunk the day after making their resolutions; most of them within a few weeks.

p. 34

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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Step Eight - "Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all."

This is a very large order. It is a task which we may perform with increasing skill, but never really finish. Learning how to live in the greatest peace, partnership, and brotherhood with all men and women, of whatever description, is a moving and fascinating adventure. Every A.A. has found that he can make little headway in this new adventure of living until he first backtracks and really makes an accurate and unsparing survey of the human wreckage he has left in his wake. To a degree, he has already done this when taking moral inventory, but now the time has come when he ought to redouble his efforts to see how many people he has hurt, and in what ways. This reopening of emotional wounds, some old, some perhaps forgotten, and some still painfully festering, will at first look like a purposeless and pointless piece of surgery. But if a willing start is made, then the great advantages of doing this will so quickly reveal themselves that the pain will be lessened as one obstacle after another melts away.

pp. 77-78

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In the rush and noise of life, as you have intervals, step within
yourselves and be still. Wait upon God and feel His good presence;
this will carry you through your day's business.
--William Penn

The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.
--Thomas Paine

God is gentle with me. I am gentle with myself. I am in awe of God's
power; however it is God's gentleness that moves me. God's will for
me is that which is best for me; yet God does not force anything upon
me. Patiently, God waits for me to be still, to turn within and listen.
God's gentle spirit is my foundation. When the cares of the world
seem to overwhelm me and when challenges cause me to forget the
truths that support me, God's spirit gently caresses me, uplifting
and sustaining me. Because God is gentle with me, I am gentle with myself
and others. I do not condemn or speak hurtful words to others. My
actions are ones that encourage the unfoldment of God's divine plan in
myself and others. Through gentleness and love, God's work is done.
--unknown

"Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies
inside of us while we live."
-- Norman Cousins

"Worry is like a rocking chair it gives you something to do but it
doesn't get you anywhere."
--Dorothy Galyean

There's as much risk in doing nothing as in doing something.
--Trammell Crow

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Father Leo's Daily Meditation

TEMPTATION

"What makes resisting
temptation difficult for many
people is that they don't want to
discourage it completely."
--Franklin P. Jones

Usually I am tempted because I want to be. I allow myself to get too
close to the object of my desire or I invite the problem into my life
knowing that I will not resist it. Then I use my "imperfection" as an
excuse! In this way I manipulate my spiritual program and become
dishonest.

When I first got sober, I did not allow alcohol in my house; I did not go
to bars; I did not spend time with heavy drinkers; I avoided airplanes
or places that I would associate with alcohol. This disciplined approach
to sobriety worked. If you don't invite the enemy in, you won't get
beaten up. I need to continue to remember these simple rules and not
get complacent in my sobriety.

Let me keep temptation out of my life by avoiding it.

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"And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:20b

If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in
Me, as the Scripture said, "From his innermost being shall flow rivers
of living water."
John 7:37-38

"Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God
must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek
Him."
Hebrews 11:6

Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the
glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31

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Daily Inspiration

The more of God's love that you share, the more you receive. Lord, help me to be compassionate when someone needs an ear and encouraging when someone needs a little support.

When you are troubled, comfort someone more troubled, when lonely, reach out to one that is lonelier and when unsure, give encouragement to the weary. To care for another makes us forget our own sorrows. Lord, You comfort me. Help me now to be a comforter.