~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Fun
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"Every
day, I feel a little bit more useful, more happy, and more free. Life,
including some ups and downs, is a lot of fun. I am part of AA which is
a way of life. If I had not become an active alcoholic and joined AA, I
might never have found my own identity
or become a part of anything."
1976 AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 417
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Thought to Consider . . .
Joy is in knowing there is an answer.
*~*AACRONYMS*~*
F I N E = Free, Independent, New and Energetic
*~*^Just For Today!^*~*
*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*
OPEN-MINDEDNESS
We
have found that God does not make too hard terms with those who seek
Him. To us, the realm of spirit is broad, roomy, all inclusive, never
exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek. It is open, we
believe, to all men.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 7
Open-mindedness
to concepts of a Higher Power can open doors to the spirit. Often I
find the human spirit in various dogmas and faiths. I can be spiritual
in the sharing of myself. The sharing of self joins me to the human
race and brings me closer to God, as I understand Him.
Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*
Progress Rather than Perfection
On
studying the Twelve Steps, many of us exclaimed, "What an order! I
can't go through with it." Do not be discouraged. No one among us has
been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these
principles. We are not saints. The point is that we are willing to grow
along spiritual lines. The principles we have set down are guides to
progress. We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection.
<<<>>>
"We
recovered alcoholics are not so much brothers in virtue as we are
brothers in our defects, and in our common strivings to overcome them."
1. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 60
2. LETTER, 1946
*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*
"Most
of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person
likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows.
Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been
characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like
other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy
his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The
persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the
gates of insanity or death."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, More About Alcoholism, Page 30~
*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
But
even faith is not the whole story. There must be service. We must give
this thing away if we want to keep it. The Dead Sea has no outlet and
it is stagnant and full of salt. The Sea of Galilee is clear and clean
and blue, as the Jordan River carries it out to irrigate the desert. To
be of service to other people makes our lives worth living. Does service
to others give me a real purpose in life?
Meditation for the Day
Seek
God early in the day, before He gets crowded out by life's problems,
difficulties, or pleasures. In that early quiet time gain a calm, strong
confidence in the goodness and purpose in the universe. Do not seek God
only when the world's struggles prove too much and too many for you to
bear or face alone. Seek God early, when you can have a consciousness
of God's spirit in the world. People often only seek God when their
difficulties are too great to be surmounted in any other way, forgetting
that if they sought God's companionship before they need it, many of
their difficulties would never arise.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may not let God be crowded out by the hurly-burly of life. I pray that I may seek God early and often.
Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012