~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~
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Gratitude
"Another exercise that I practice is to try for a
full inventory of my blessings and then for a right acceptance of the
many gifts that are mine -- both temporal and spiritual. . . I try to
hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful heart cannot entertain great
conceits. When brimming with gratitude, one's heartbeat must surely
result in outgoing love, the finest emotion that we can ever
know."
Bill. W.,
March 1962
c.1988AAGrapevine, The Language of the Heart, p.
271
Thought
to Consider . . .
I have
learned what a heart full of gratitude feels like.
*~*AACRONYMS*~*
H J F = Happy, Joyous, and
Free
Of course, it is reasonable and understandable that the question is often asked: "Why can't we take a specific and troubling dilemma straight to God, and in prayer secure from Him sure and definite answers to our requests?"
This can be done, but it
has hazards. We have seen AAs ask with much earnestness and faith for God's
explicit guidance on matters ranging all the way from a shattering domestic or
financial crisis to correcting a minor personal fault, like tardiness. Quite
often, however, the thoughts that seem to come from God are not answers
at all. They prove to be well-intentioned unconscious rationalizations. The AA,
or indeed any man, who tries to run his life rigidly by this kind of prayer, by
this self-serving demand of God for replies, is a particularly disconcerting
individual. To any questioning or criticism of his actions he instantly proffers
his reliance upon prayer for guidance in all matters great or small. He may have
forgotten the possibility that his own wishful thinking and the human tendency
to rationalize have distorted his so-called guidance. With the best of
intentions, he tends to force his own will into all sorts of situations and
problems with the comfortable assurance that he is acting under God's specific
direction. Under such an illusion, he can of course create great havoc without
in the least intending it.
1981 AAWS Inc.
Twelve Steps and Twelve
Traditions, pages
103-104
*^Twenty
Four
Hours A
Day^*
A.A. Thought For The Day
Do I put too much reliance on any one member of the group? That
is, do I make a tin god out of some one person? Do I set that person on
a pedestal? If I do, I am building my house on sand. A.A. members have "clay
feet." They are all only one drink away from a drunk, no matter how long
they have been in A.A. This has been proved to be true more than once. It's
not fair to any member to be singled out as a leader in A A. and to always
quote that member on the A.A. program. If that person should fail, where
would I be?
Meditation For The Day
You must always remember that you are weak but that God is
strong. God knows all about your weakness. He hears every cry for mercy,
every sign of weakness, every plea for help, every sorrow over failure,
every weakness felt and expressed. We only fail when we trust too much to
our own strength. Do not feel bad about your weakness. When you are weak,
that is when God is strong to help you. Trust God enough, and your weakness
will not matter. God is always strong to save.
Prayer For The Day
I pray
that I may learn to lean on God's strength. I pray that I may know that my
weakness is God's opportunity.
Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012