~*~A.A.
Thoughts
For
The Day~*~
^*^*^*^*^
(\ ~~
/)
( \ (AA)/ )
(_ /AA\ _)
/AA\
^*^*^*^*^
Obsession
^*^*^
"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 and death. We learned that we had to
fully concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics. This is
the first step to recovery."
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 30
^*^*^*^*^*
Thought
to Consider . . .
An
obsession:
A persistent, recurring idea that does not
respond to reason.
*~*AACRONYMS*~*
T R U S T =
Try Relying Upon Steps and Traditions
*~*^Just
For
Today!^*~*
Almost
Tradition Ten: Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on
outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public
controversy.
The
Washingtonian Society, a movement among alcoholics which started in Baltimore a
century ago, almost discovered the answer to alcoholism. At first, the society
was composed entirely of alcoholics trying to help one another. The early
members foresaw that they should dedicate themselves to this sole aim. In many
respects, the Washingtonians were akin to A.A. of today. Their membership passed
the hundred thousand mark. Had they been left to themselves, and had they stuck
to their one goal, they might have found the rest of the answer. But this didn't
happen. Instead, the Washingtonians permitted politicians and reformers, both
alcoholic and nonalcoholic, to use the society for their own purposes. Abolition
of slavery, for example, was a stormy political issue then. Soon, Washingtonian
speakers violently and publicly took sides on this question. Maybe the society
could have survived the abolition controversy, but it didn't have a chance from
the moment it determined to reform America's drinking habits. When the
Washingtonians became temperance crusaders, within a very few years they had
completely lost their effectiveness in helping alcoholics.
1981, AAWS, Inc.,
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, page
178
* ~*^Daily
Reflections^*~*
"THE GOOD AND THE BAD"
"My
Creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and
bad."
ALCOHOLICS
ANONYMOUS, p. 76
The joy of life is in the
giving. Being freed of my shortcomings, that I may more freely be of service,
allows humility to grow in me. My shortcomings can be humbly placed in God's
loving care and be removed. The essence of Step Seven is humility, and what
better way to seek humility than by giving all of myself -- good and bad -- to
God, so that He may remove the bad and return to me the good.
Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*^As
Bill
Sees
It^*~*
True Tolerance
Gradually we began to be able to accept the other
fellow's sins as well as his virtues. We coined the potent and meaningful
expression "Let us always love the best in others -- and never fear their
worst."
<<<>>>
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.
1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962 - 2. TWELVE AND TWELVE, p.
92
*~*^Big
Book
Quote^*~*
"We alcoholics are sensitive
people. It takes some of us a long time to outgrow that serious
handicap."
~Alcoholics
Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Family Afterward, pg.
125~
*~*^Twenty
Four
Hours A
Day^*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
One of the finest things about A.A. is the
diversity of its membership. We come from all walls and stations of life.
All types and classes of people are represented in an A.A. group. Being
different from each other in certain ways, we can each make a different
contribution to the whole. Some of us are weak in one respect, but strong in
another. A.A. can use the strong points of all its members and can disregard
their weaknesses. A.A. is strong, not only because we all have the same
problem, but also because of the diversified talents of its members. Each
person can contribute part. Do I recognize the good points of all my group's
members?
Meditation for
the Day
"And greater works than these shall ye
do." Each individual has the ability to do good works through the power of
God's spirit. This is the wonder of the world, the miracle of the earth,
that God's power goes out to bless the human race through the agency of so
many people who are actuated by His grace. We need not be held back by
doubt, despondency, and fear. A wonderful future can lie before any person
who depends on God's power, a future of unlimited power to do good
works.
Prayer for the
Day
I pray that I may not limit myself by
doubting. I pray that I may have confidence that I can be effective for
good.
Hazelden
Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012