Daily Recovery Readings
April 17, 2017

Daily Reflection

LOVE AND FEAR AS OPPOSITES

All these failings generate fear, a soul-sickness in its own right.
— TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 49

“Fear knocked at the door; faith answered; no one was there.” I don’t know to whom this quote should be attributed, but it certainly indicates very clearly that fear is an illusion. I create the illusion myself.

I experienced fear early in my life and I mistakenly thought that the mere presence of it made me a coward. I didn’t know that one of the definitions of “courage” is “the willingness to do the right thing in spite of fear.” Courage, then, is not necessarily the absence of fear.
During the times I didn’t have love in my life I most assuredly had fear. To fear God is to be afraid of joy. In looking back, I realize that, during the times I feared God most, there was no joy in my life. As I learned not to fear God, I also learned to experience joy.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“Those of us who have spent much time in the world of spiritual make believe have eventually seen the childishness of it. This dream world has been replaced by a great sense of purpose, accompanied by a growing consciousness of the power of God in our lives. We have come to believe He would like us to keep our heads in the clouds with Him, but that our feet ought to be firmly planted on earth. That is where our fellow travelers are, and that is where our work must be done. These are the realities for us. We have found nothing incompatible between a powerful spiritual experience and a life of sane and happy usefulness.”

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg. 130~

Keep It Simple

We create revolution by living it.—Jerry Rubin

There’s a lot wrong in the world—Child abuse, homeless and hungry people, pollution. Our old way of dealing with these troubles was to break the rules or to “drop out” by using chemicals.

Now we have a new way to change the world. We’re changing ourselves. One Day at a Time, we’re acting like the caring , responsible people we want to be. We use the ideas of the program in our lives.

We’re kinder. We’re more honest. We stand up for ourselves and for others who need our help. What if the whole world started working the Steps? What a wonderful world this would be!

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, please work through me today. Help me make the world a little better place.

Action for the Day:
I’ll list one thing that brothers me about the world today. How can using the ideas of the program help solve that problem? Remember, the program tells us to look at our own behavior.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

Your skin starts to crawl when people criticize your work in public. The truth is you’re open to receiving useful feedback, but you prefer it to be given in a more private setting. However, you may believe that it’s important to keep up appearances today, so no one will realize that you’re upset. Unfortunately, stifling your humiliation or frustration impacts the current interpersonal dynamics. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind.”

Daily Recovery Readings
April 16, 2017

Daily Reflection

ANGER: A “DUBIOUS LUXURY”

If we were to live, we had to be free of anger. The grouch and the brainstorm were not for us. They may be the dubious luxury of normal men, but for alcoholics these things are poison.
— ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 66

“Dubious luxury.” How often have I remembered those words. It’s not just anger that’s best left to nonalcoholics; I built a list including justifiable resentment, self-pity, judgmentalism, self-righteousness, false pride and false humility. I’m always surprised to read the actual quote. So well have the principles of the program been drummed into me that I keep thinking all of these defects are listed too. Thank God I can’t afford them—or I surely would indulge in them.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“Those of us who have spent much time in the world of spiritual make believe have eventually seen the childishness of it. This dream world has been replaced by a great sense of purpose, accompanied by a growing consciousness of the power of God in our lives. We have come to believe He would like us to keep our heads in the clouds with Him, but that our feet ought to be firmly planted on earth. That is where our fellow travelers are, and that is where our work must be done. These are the realities for us. We have found nothing incompatible between a powerful spiritual experience and a life of sane and happy usefulness.”

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg. 130~

Keep It Simple

No human creature can give order to love. ~George Sand

If we are trying to get others to love us, all we’re really doing is trying to be in control. Trying to control others can be a powerful drug. Remember, we can’t control others. We can’t make others love us. Our Higher Power has control, not us.

So, what do we need to do? Turn things over to our Higher Power and just be ourselves. Sure, it can scare us to just be ourselves. The truth is, not everyone will love us. But if we’re honest about who we are, others will respect us. We’ll like ourselves better. And we’ll have a better chance of loving others and being loved.

Prayer for the Day:
I pray to have my need for control lifted from me. I pray to be rid of self-will.

Action for the Day:
Today, I’ll list five ways my self-will—my need to control—has gotten me in trouble.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

You are inspired by your dreams and restrained by your memories. However, you also can choose to revisit your past and retell your story from a different perspective. Instead of glorifying a painful event by giving it power in the present moment, reframe your life in terms of future potential. Philosopher George Santayana wrote, “Wisdom comes by disillusionment. Once we see our history from a new perspective, we are free to make more informed choices in the present moment and thereby realize our greatest potential.”

Daily Recovery Readings
April 15, 2017

Daily Reflection

THE BONDAGE OF RESENTMENTS

. . . harboring resentment is infinitely grave. For then we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the spirit.
— AS BILL SEES IT, p. 5

It has been said, “Anger is a luxury I cannot afford.” Does this suggest I ignore this human emotion? I believe not. Before I learned of the A.A. program, I was a slave to the behavior patterns of alcoholism. I was chained to negativity, with no hope of cutting loose.

The Steps offered me an alternative. Step Four was the beginning of the end of my bondage. The process of “letting go” started with an inventory. I needed not be frightened, for the previous Steps assured me I was not alone. My Higher Power led me to this door and gave me the gift of choice. Today I can choose to open the door to freedom and rejoice in the sunlight of the Steps, as they cleanse the spirit within me.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“…we aren’t a glum lot. If newcomers could see no joy or fun in our existence, they wouldn’t want it. We absolutely insist on enjoying life.”

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg. 132

Keep It Simple

That day is lost on which one has not laughed. —French proverb

For a long time, we didn’t really laugh. It’s surprising when we think about it: We hadn’t really laughed for so long . . . we almost forgot how good we could feel. It feels so good to laugh again!

Now our spirits come more alive each day. Now we feel what alcohol and other drugs stuffed deep inside us. Pain, fear and anger come up. But so do happiness and joy, thankfulness and a sense of humor. In early recovery, we work through the hard feelings. As we grow in the program, we have more and more room for happiness.

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, wake me up to the joy and laughter that today holds for me. Don’t let me miss it!

Action for the Day:
Today, I’ll spread some laughter. I will learn a joke and tell it to three people.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

Your great expectations could get the best of you today, especially if they are so unrealistic that you don’t have a clue how to reach them. Indulgent Venus resumes her forward movement in your 9th House of Big Ideas, making it nearly impossible to focus on the relevant details du jour. But you might inadvertently set your goals so high that there’s little chance you will ever need to deal with the trappings that accompany success. Remember, limits, like fears, are often just an illusion.

Daily Recovery Readings
April 12, 2017

Daily Reflection

THE “NUMBER ONE OFFENDER”

Resentment is the “number one” offender. It destroys more alcoholics than anything else. From it stem all forms of spiritual disease, for we have been not only mentally and physically ill, we have been spiritually sick.
— ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 64

As I look at myself practicing the Fourth Step, it is easy to gloss over the wrong that I have done, because I can easily see it as a question of “getting even” for a wrong done to me. If I continue to relive my old hurt, it is a resentment and resentment bars the sunlight from my soul. If I continue to relive hurts and hates, I will hurt and hate myself-. After years in the dark of resentments, I have found the sunlight. I must let go of resentments; I cannot afford them.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“In thinking about our day we may face indecision. We may not be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy. We don’t struggle. We are often surprised how the right answers come after we have tried this for a while.”

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 86

Keep It Simple

It is enough that I am of value to somebody today.—Hugh Prather

Even in recovery, we addicts often feel we are not enough. Maybe it’s leftover shame from our using days. But we are enough. We are of great value. We all need each other to stay sober.

Each of us needs other recovering people to help us remember the hell of addiction. We can forget how bad it was, but telling our stories makes us remember. When you feel you don’t want to stay sober for yourself, then stay sober for your brothers and sisters in the program. They need you.

You’re their recovery, as they’re yours. There may be days you don’t feel glad to be sober. But your friends in this fellowship are glad you’re sober. They thank-you for your sobriety

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, may Your will, not mine, be done.

Action For the Day:
I’ll stop and think of all the people I’m glad for. I’ll start telling them today.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

You prefer to step into a new role gradually, taking your time as you slowly assume ownership. However, the shift may be quite abrupt now, requiring you to make a significant change on a moment’s notice. You don’t have the luxury of morphing into your new character and learning your lines. Thankfully, you can move at lightning speeds when pushed by circumstance. Don’t let your past limit your future; embrace the unknown.

Daily Recovery Readings
April 12, 2017

Daily Reflection

THE FALSE COMFORT OF SELF-PITY

Self-pity is one of the most unhappy and consuming defects that we know. It is a bar to all spiritual progress and can cut off all effective communication with our fellows because of its inordinate demands for attention and sympathy. It is a maudlin form of martyrdom, which we can ill afford.
— AS BILL SEES IT, p. 238

The false comfort of self-pity screens me from reality only momentarily and then demands, like a drug, that I take an ever bigger dose. If I succumb to this it could lead to a relapse into drinking. What can I do? One certain antidote is to turn my attention, however slightly at first, toward others who are genuinely less fortunate than I, preferably other alcoholics. In the same degree that I actively demonstrate my empathy with them, I will lessen my own exaggerated suffering.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“Step Eleven suggests prayer and meditation. We shouldn’t be shy on this matter of prayer. Better men than we are using it constantly.”

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 85

Keep It Simple

Keep It Simple

No labor, however humble, is dishonoring.—The Talmud

Work is good for the heart. Work is good for our minds. It can give us something to focus on besides ourselves. Labor doesn’t just mean having a job. It may mean planting a garden or helping a friend. It certainly means working our program. Hopefully, it’s a labor of love. We can get into trouble if we have to much time on our hands. We can turn it into mischief or self-pity. We can get bored. Being bored is a matter of choice. We’ll never be bored if we ask ourselves, “How can I make this world a better place?” We can turn our answers into action.

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, teach me to use my time wisely. Help me be well-balanced between labor and fun. I need both.

Action for the Day:
I’ll list five ways that labor and fun can help me get closer to my Higher Power. And I’ll look for people and things to fill my time in positive ways.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

Something is about to shift in your community or professional life. An unexpected change of position could come out of the blue, for better or for worse. A setback is the cosmos’ way of showing you what needs to be improved. However, the universe can just as well acknowledge your brilliance by pushing you into a leadership role. In either case, you must let go of the status quo today. Holding onto the past is like running into the future with shackles on your legs. As Gandhi taught, “Be truthful, gentle and fearless.”

Daily Recovery Readings
April 12, 2017

Daily Reflection

GIVING UP INSANITY

. . . where alcohol has been involved, we have been strangely insane.
— ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 38

Alcoholism required me to drink, whether I wanted to or not. Insanity dominated my life and was the essence of my disease. It robbed me of the freedom of choice over drinking and, therefore, robbed me of all other choices. When I drank, I was unable to make effective choices in any part of my life and life became unmanageable.

I ask God to help me understand and accept the full meaning of the disease of alcoholism.

Big Book Quote

“We think it no concern of ours what religious bodies our members identify themselves with as individuals. This should be an entirely personal affair which each one decides for himself in the light of past associations, or his present choice.”

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, There Is A Solution, pg. 28~

Keep It Simple

Life I love you, all is groovy.—Paul Simon

I haven’t always known how to enjoy life, but Working the Twelve Steps is more than recovery from alcohol or other drug addiction. It’s also about how to enjoy life. Our illness pulled us toward death. Our spirits were dying, and maybe our bodies were dying. Now our spirits are coming to life. We feel more alive than ever before. Our feelings are coming alive. We feel hope and faith, love, and joy, and even hurt and fear. We notice the sunshine as well as the clouds. We know life needs both sunshine and rain, both joy and pain. We are alive. You can teach me. All life is from You, so teach me to be free in Your light and love.

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, help me let go of my fears and enjoy life.

Action for the Day:
Right now, I can think of at least three things in life that make me feel like sunshine. What are they?

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

It seems as if people drop into your world now to play the part of an angel on earth, extending offers of assistance and dependable shoulders upon which you can lean. But you’re not all fun and games today; you need to assess your current commitments and decide how much time you can afford to devote to creative play. Don’t wait too long or reality will narrow your choices. If you want something you’ve never had, you must do something you’ve never done.

Daily Recovery Readings
April 11, 2017

Daily Reflection

A WORD TO DROP: “BLAME”

To see how erratic emotions victimized us often took a long time. We could perceive them quickly in others, but only slowly in ourselves. First of all, we had to admit that we had many of these defects, even though such disclosures were painful and humiliating. Where other people were concerned, we had to drop the word “blame” from our speech and thought.
— TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 47

When I did my Fourth Step, following the Big Book guidelines, I noticed that my grudge list was filled with my prejudices and my blaming others for my not being able to succeed and to live up to my potential. I also discovered I felt different because I was black. As I continued to work on the Step, I learned that I always had drunk to rid myself of those feelings. It was only when I sobered up and worked on my inventory, that I could no longer blame anyone.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“We have seen the truth demonstrated again and again. Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic. Commencing to drink after a period of sobriety, we are in a short time as bad as ever.”
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, pg. 33~

Keep It Simple

Many of us as children, were taught to hide our pain, to act as if we had none. We look for ways to hide our pain. Alcohol and other drugs helped us do this. But the pain always returned. We were ashamed that we hurt. We thought we were the only one who hurt so badly. and, worst of all, we thought our pain meant we were bad people. Ours is a program of honesty. As we live life, there will be troubles, and there will be pain. But now we know that we don’t try to hide it. If we hide our wounds, they will not heal. We will listen to others pain and ask them to listen to ours. This will help us continue our journey in recovery.

Prayer for the Day:
God, help me be honest about my pain. Help me see pain not as a personal defect, but as a part of life.

Action for the Day:
I’ll share my pain with a friend, a family member, my group, or sponsor. I’ll ask them to do the same with me. I’ll think of pain as part of life.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

An old conflict between home and career is suddenly back on your plate, demanding resolution once and for all. But someone’s hidden agenda complicates matters as secretive Pluto squares the Libra Full Moon in your 4th House of Domestic Affairs. It may seem as if you’re forced into a no-win situation now because you can’t choose between your personal and professional life without damaging the other. Acknowledging how your family matters are interconnected with your job is a healthy start. Don’t push for a final answer yet; as screenwriter Syd Field wrote, “Confusion is the first step toward clarity.”

Daily Recovery Readings
April 10, 2017

Daily Reflection

The essence of all growth is a willingness to change for the better and then an unremitting willingness to shoulder whatever responsibility this entails.
— AS BILL SEES IT, p. 115

Sometimes when I’ve become willing to do what I should have been doing all along, I want praise and recognition. I don’t realize that the more I’m willing to act differently, the more exciting my life is. The more I am willing to help others, the more rewards I receive. That’s what practicing the principles means to me. Fun and benefits for me are in the willingness to do the actions, not to get immediate results. Being a little kinder, a little slower to anger, a little more loving makes my life better day by day.

From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

Big Book Quote

“It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to futility and unhappiness. To the precise extent that we permit these, do we squander the hours that might have been worth while.” ~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 66~

Keep It Simple

You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head, but you can prevent their making their nest in your head.—Chinese proverb

Life is full of feelings. We can be happy, sad, mad, scared. These feelings can come and go quickly. Or we may hang on to them. As recovering addicts, we used to hang on to feelings that made us feel bad. We let them make”nest” in our hair. We used our feelings as excuse to drink or use other drugs. Now we’re learning to hang on to our good feelings. We can let go of anger, hurt, and fear. We can shoo away the birds of sadness and welcome the birds of happiness.

Prayer for the Day:
Higher Power, help me become a “bird watcher.” Help me learn from my feelings. And help me let go of the bad one so I can be happy.

Action For the Day:
If I need to get rid of the sadness or anger that I’m hanging on to, I’ll get help from my sponsor, a counselor, or a clergy person.

Daily Horoscope – Cancer

Although you are quite capable of keeping up appearances at work, it is in your best interest to take off your mask now and let the real you shine. Sometimes you wonder if others will accept you if they know your true thoughts and feelings. Wearing your heart on your sleeve leaves you in a vulnerable position; however, there’s no need to reveal everything all at once. Taking it step by step helps to remove the pressure and lighten your load. As Benjamin Franklin wrote, “Honesty is the best policy.”