A Prayer & Some Thoughts - March

[bluidkiti]

March 16

Prayer to St. Brigid of Ireland

Saint Brigid,
You were a woman of peace.
You brought harmony where there was conflict.
You brought light to the darkness.
You brought hope to the downcast.
May the mantle of your peace cover those who are troubled and anxious, and may peace be firmly rooted in our hearts and in our world.
Inspire us to act justly and to reverence all God has made.
Brigid you were a voice for the wounded and the weary.
Strengthen what is weak within us.
Calm us into a quietness that heals and listens.
May we grow each day into greater wholeness in mind, body and spirit.

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Just a Thought

As we look back on all those troubles we used to have when we were drinking:

The hospitals, the jails, we wonder why we could have wanted that kind of a life. As we look back on it now, we see our drinking life as it really was and we're glad we're out of it. So, after a few months in A.A., we find that we can honestly say that we want something else more than drinking. We've learned by experience that a sober life is really enjoyable and we wouldn't go back to the old drunken way of living for anything in the world.

So ............

Do I want to stay sober a lot more than I want to get drunk?

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Just a Contemplation

Acceptance Today

Many of us made a mess of trying to run our own lives. We are amazed at how much better things go when we acknowledge that the Power greater than ourselves is in control.

Every experience, the bad one as well as the good one, becomes an opportunity to learn and to serve. We may not like what it is that we are given to do or to feel on a particular day, but we learn to accept it as necessary for our growth. We can look back and see that we have learned even more from our failures than from our successes.

Positive change and growth become possible when we accept our lives and ourselves as part of God's creation.

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Release and Joy

We think cheerfulness and laughter make for usefulness. Outsiders are sometimes shocked when we burst into merriment over a seemingly tragic experience out of the past. But why shouldn't we laugh? We have recovered, and have helped others to recover. What greater cause could there be for rejoicing than this?

Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 132

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Just a Quote

"The power behind me is greater than the problem in front of me." ~ Rose Hardman

[bluidkiti]

March 17

Old Irish Blessing for St. Patrick’s Day

May your days be many and your troubles be few.
May all God’s blessings descend upon you.
May peace be within you, may your heart be strong.
May you find what you’re seeking wherever you roam.
May the strength of God pilot us, may the wisdom of God instruct us.
May the hand of God protect us, may the word of God direct us.
May thy Salvation, O Lord, be always ours this day and for evermore.
Amen.

Written by St. Patrick

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Just a Thought

Sometimes we can't help thinking: Why can't we ever drink again?

We know it's because we're alcoholics, but why did we have to get that way? The answer is that at some time in our drinking careers, we passed what is called our "tolerance point." When we passed this point, we passed from a condition in which we could tolerate alcohol to a condition in which we could not tolerate it at all. After that, if we took one drink, we would sooner or later end up drunk.

So ............

When I think of alcohol now, do I think of it as something that I can never tolerate again?

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Just a Contemplation

Instructions

The instructions for recovery are in our Twelve Step program.
Yet, there are times when we feel our program isn't working. At these times, we need to read the instructions. Have you followed the "instructions," the wise words found in The Big Book, The Twelve and Twelve, and other recovery literature?
When we do, we recover. It's hard at times, and easy at others. Our problems go deeper than just staying sober. No matter what our problems, our program can help us start fixing them, if we follow the instructions. Don't use alcohol or other drugs. Go to meetings. Talk often with sponsors and program friends. Work the Steps. Think. Easy Does It. First Things First. Listen. Let Go and Let God. One Day at a Time.

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New Direction

Where my life had been full of mental turmoil there is now an ever-increasing depth of calmness. Where there was a hit or miss attitude toward living there is now new direction and force.

Experience, Strength and Hope Page 134

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Just a Quote

“Somebody once asked me how I define sobriety, and my response was ‘liberation from dependence’.” ~ Leslie Jamison

[bluidkiti]

March 18

Cast Out Fear Prayer

Lord,
I know that worrying gets me nowhere. Yet, I still allow worry and anxiety to consume me.

In times such as these, Lord, I ask you to grant me an enormous amount of strength, faith, and courage to fight off the doubt and fear within my mind. Faith casts out fear while fear casts out faith.

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Just a Thought

After that first drink, we had a single-track mind.

It was like a railroad train.
The first drink started it off and it kept going on the single track until it got to the end of the line, drunkenness. We alcoholics knew this was the inevitable result when we took the first drink, but still we couldn't keep away from alcohol. Our willpower was gone. We had become helpless and hopeless before the power of alcohol. It's not the second drink or the tenth drink that does the damage. It's the first drink.

So ............

Will I ever take that first drink again?

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Just a Contemplation

Change

Giving up alcohol is just the start.
Even if we give up alcohol, can we be happy if we have our old life back in every other way? We have to do more. We have to see how our illness has changed us. To do this, we turn to the Steps. Our program teaches us to become new people. We will change. And the changes will make us happy. That’s the best part of recovery---change.

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Twelfth-Stepping "Success"

We now see that in twelfth-stepping the immediate results are not so important. Some people start out working with others and have immediate success. They are likely to get cocky. Those of us who are not so successful at first get depressed.

As a matter of fact, the successful worker differs from the unsuccessful only in being lucky about his prospects. He simply hits newcomers who are ready and able to stop at once. Given the same prospects, the seemingly unsuccessful person would have produced almost the same results. You have to work on a lot of newcomers before the law of averages commences to assert itself.

As Bill See It Page 165

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Just a Quote
“Where there is charity and wisdom there is neither fear nor ignorance. Where there is patience and humility there is neither anger nor worry.” ~ Francis of Assisi

[bluidkiti]

March 19

Prayer for Direction

Lord,
Thank You for the people You have placed in my life who speak the truth, love and words of wisdom. Give me a heart of discernment to know when You are using someone to speak instruction into my heart and my circumstances, and give me the strength and courage to follow through with that advice, even when it’s hard. Fill me with peace in knowing that even if I take a wrong turn, Your purpose will prevail.
Amen

~ Tracie Miles

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Just a Thought

Drinking is the way we alcoholics express our maladjustments to life.

I believe that I was a potential alcoholic from the start. I had an inferiority complex. I didn't make friends easily. There was a wall between me and other people. And I was lonely. I was not well adjusted to life.

So ............

Did I drink to escape from myself?

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Just a Contemplation

Learning

We can’t control the present by looking into the future. We can only look back at the past. The past can teach us how to get more out of the present. But the past is to be learned from, not to be judged. As we look back, we see the troubles caused by alcoholism. But we also see recovery. We see how our lives are better. We see our Higher Power’s work in our lives. If we honestly look at our past, we learn.


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Awakening

I think I have had a spiritual awakening, as undramatic as it may have been, and that it will go on and on as long as I continue to practice this program in my daily affairs. To me, there is no "spiritual side" to the program of Alcoholics Anonymous; the entire program is spiritual.

Came To Believe Page 48

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Just a Quote

“As an alcoholic, you will violate your standards quicker than you can lower them.”~ Robin Williams

[bluidkiti]

March 19

Prayer For Change

Lord,
Change me from the inside out, so that I do not fret and worry about things that may never happen, but help me to focus my mind on what is good and lovely. Enable me to give others the support and encouragement that they need, and not always expect others to address the needs and concerns that I have. Lord, I know without You, I cannot change.
Amen

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Just a Thought

One drink started a train of thought that became an obsession.

From then on, we couldn't stop drinking.
We developed a mental compulsion to keep drinking until we got good and drunk. People generally make two mistakes about alcoholism. One mistake is that it can be cured by physical treatment only. The other mistake is that it can be cured by willpower only. Most alcoholics have tried both of these ways and have found that they don't work. But we members of A.A. have found a way to arrest alcoholism.

So .............

Have I got over my obsession by following the A.A. program?

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Just a Contemplation

Self-Pity

Sometimes it does no good to try to “deal” with your feelings. For the moment, we’re stuck. We can only see things one way. No matter what anyone says, we’re closed up. For the moment. But this puts our sobriety at risk.

How do we stop self-pity? Focus on someone else. When we really want to help someone else be happy, we'll ask our Higher Power’s help. Then things start to change, because our good deeds come back to us. Remember, service will always keep us sober.


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Solitude

In solitude, we take our inventories.
In solitude, we admit to ourselves the exact nature of our wrongs.
In solitude, our spirits seek that Power greater than we are;
In solitude, we seek through prayer and meditation to be aware of God's will for us. . .
We are alone, but not lonely.

Came To Believe Page 109

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Just a Quote

“Hatred is never anything but fear - if you feared no one, you would hate no one.” ~ Hugh Downs

[bluidkiti]

March 21

Prayer For Today’s Tasks

Lord, I stand before You today in Your presence to ask that You grant me strength.
I ask You to give me the strength to power through all of the tasks today — whether little or big.
It is by Your will that I live oh Lord. And I know it is also by Your will I will not go weak today.

Lord, thank you for giving me the opportunity every day to learn a little more of how to let go and let God.
Amen

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Just a Thought

When I was drinking, I was absolutely selfish, I thought of myself first, last, and always.

The universe revolves around me at the center. When I woke up in the morning with a hangover, my only thought was how terrible I felt and about what I could do to make myself feel better. And the only thing I could think of was more alcohol. To quit was impossible. I couldn't see beyond myself and my own need for another drink.

So ............

Can I now look out and beyond my own selfishness?

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Just a Contemplation

Moderation

Moderation is the process of eliminating or lessening extremes. It is used to ensure normality throughout the medium on which it is being conducted. ... A way of life emphasizing perfect amounts of everything, not indulging in too much of one thing, hence moderation.

When there's moderation in everything, from food and drinks to sleeping and working, a person is more likely to feel as if they are in control of their life, and all the decisions they're making are more likely to bring them joy than make them feel miserable, as is often the case with going to either of the extremes.

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New Design

We, in our turn, sought the same escape with all the desperation of drowning men. What seemed at first a flimsy reed, has proved to be the loving and powerful hand of God. A new life has been given us or, if you prefer, "a design for living" that really works.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 28

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Just a Quote

“Recovery is something that you have to work on every single day, and it’s something that doesn't get a day off.” ~ Demi Lovato

[bluidkiti]

March 22

Loving Difficult People Prayer

Lord,
I have to thank You for looking beyond my faults and for loving me unconditionally.
Forgive me when I fail to love others in the same way.
Give me eyes to see the needs of the difficult people in my life, and show me how to meet those needs in a way that pleases You.
Amen

~ Mary Southerland

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Just a Thought

Making restitution for the wrongs we have done is often very difficult.

It hurts our pride. But the rewards are great. When we go to a person and say we are sorry, the reaction we get is almost invariably good. It takes courage to make the plunge, but the results more than justify it. A load is off your chest and often an enemy has been turned into a friend.

So ............

Have I done my best to make all the restitution possible?

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Just a Contemplation

One Day at a Time

It’s crazy for us to think we can handle more than one day at a time. During our illness, we lived everywhere but in the here and now. We looked to the future or punished ourselves with our past. One Day at a Time teaches us to go easy. It teaches us to focus on what really means anything to us: the here and now.

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Compulsion

It helped me a great deal to become convinced that alcoholism was a disease, not a moral issue; that I had been drinking as a result of a compulsion, even though I had not been aware of the compulsion at the time; and that sobriety was not a matter of willpower. I was afraid to let go of what I had in order to try something new; there was a certain sense of security in the familiar. At last, acceptance proved to be the key to my drinking problem. When I stopped living in the problem and began living in the answer, the problem went away."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Page 417

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Just a Quote

“As we lose ourselves in the service of others, we discover our own lives and our own happiness.” ~ Dieter F. Uchtdorf

[bluidkiti]

March 23

Your Will Lord

Lord,
Grant me to greet the coming day in peace, help me in all things to rely upon your will.
In every hour of the day reveal your will to me.
Teach me to treat all that comes to throughout the day with peace of soul and with firm conviction that your will governs all.
In all my deeds and words, guide my thoughts and feelings.
In unforeseen events, let me not forget that all are sent by you.
Teach me to act firmly and wisely, without embittering and embarrassing others.
Give me strength to bear the fatigue of the coming day with all that it shall bring.
Direct my will, teach me to pray.
Amen

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Just a Thought

The basis of our effectiveness in carrying the message to others is the reality of our own spiritual awakening.

If we have not changed, we cannot be used to change others. To keep this program, we must pass it on to others. We cannot keep it for ourselves.

So ............

We may lose it unless we give it away.

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Just a Contemplation

Finding Oneself

We have lost a lot of misery. In its place inside us, a spirit grows. . . as love is added.
Especially self-love. In our illness, we came to hate ourselves. It was really our illness we hated. We couldn’t find ourselves. All we saw was what others saw---our illness.
In recovery, we’ve found ourselves again. We’ve found we’re good people. We’ve also come to love the world around us. We see we have something to offer this world---ourselves.
Why? Because we have found ourselves.

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Dividends

The A.A. preoccupation with sobriety is sometimes misunderstood. To some, this single virtue appears to be the sole dividend of our Fellowship. We are thought to be dried-up drunks who otherwise have changed little, or not at all, for the better. Such a surmise widely misses the truth. We know that permanent sobriety can be attained only by a most revolutionary change in the life and outlook of the individual--by a spiritual awakening that can banish the desire to drink.

As Bill Sees It Page 171

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Just a Few Quotes

“People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself. But the self is not something one finds; it is something one creates.” ~ Thomas Szasz

“Don’t spend all of your time trying to FIND yourself. Spend your time CREATING yourself into a person that you’ll be proud of.” ~ Sonya Parker

[bluidkiti]

March 24

Prayer To Let Go

Lord, I don’t know which way to turn nor do I know what to do, and I am coming to You confessing my need for You in my life, and pray that You will forgive me of my pride in trying to be the god of my own existence. Lord, I have made me the center of my life and I pray You would help me to change.

Lord, I don’t really know how to “let go”. I don’t really know what to do to give You control of my life, but I am coming to You in humility of heart to admit that I can do nothing in my own strength and to confess my need for You in my life. Lord, I pray that Your grace and mercy would lead and guide me.

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Just a Thought

We have been given a new life, just because we happened to become alcoholics.

We certainly don't deserve the new life that has been given us. There is little in our past to warrant the life we have now. Many people live good lives from their youth on, not getting into serious trouble, being well adjusted to life, and yet they have not found all that we drunks have found. We had the good fortune to find Alcoholics Anonymous and with it a new life. We are among the lucky few in the world who have learned a new way of life.

So ............

Am I deeply grateful for the new life that I have learned in A.A.?

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Just a Contemplation

Gossiping

The things we say about other people tell a lot about us. We are kind or unkind. We gossip or we don’t. This doesn’t mean we have to say everyone is wonderful all the time. As we work our program to see ourselves better, we begin to see other people more clearly too. We see their strong points and their weak points. But we can know these things without gossiping about them.

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Progress

Walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress. If you persist, remarkable things will happen. When we look back, we realize that the things which came to us when we put ourselves in God's hands were better than anything we could have planned.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 100

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Just a Quote

“Forget what hurt you but never forget what it taught you.” ~ Shannon L. Alder

[bluidkiti]

May 25

Prayer for Self-Acceptance

I accept myself completely.
I accept my strengths and my weaknesses, my gifts and my shortcomings.
I accept myself as a human being.
I accept that I am here to learn and grow, and

I accept that within my mind are both fear and love, and
I accept my power to choose which I will experience as real.
I accept mistakes as a part of growth.
I am willing to forgive myself and give myself another chance.

I accept my own life as a blessing and a gift.
My heart is open to receive, and I am deeply grateful.
May I always share the gifts that I receive fully, freely, and joyfully.

I accept all that I was, all that I am, and all that I choose to become.

~ Lise Storgaard

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Just a Thought

A spiritual experience is something that brings about a personality change.

By surrendering our lives to God as we understand Him, we are changed. The nature of this change is evident in recovered alcoholics. This personality change is not necessarily in the nature of a sudden and spectacular upheaval. We do not need to acquire an immediate and overwhelming God-consciousness followed at once by a vast change in feeling and outlook. In most cases, the change is gradual."

So ............

Do I see a gradual and continuing change in myself?

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Just a Contemplation

Trust

During our illness, we hurt others. We hurt ourselves. We make a mess of our lives.
So, a lot of us come to recovery not trusting ourselves very much. The truth is, as alcoholics we couldn't be trusted.
But in recovery, we can again live and love ourselves. We do this by finding our spiritual center. This is the place inside of us where our Higher Power lives. We turn our will and our lives over to this spiritual center. We do as our spiritual center tells us. And from our spiritual center, we'll find our values. We'll live better lives. We'll come to trust ourselves again.

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Realization

“The number of times that you win or lose is not important. The only thing that matters is the number of times that you try.”

For several years I had tried to get someone else to solve my problem for me, but I had not realized I was doing so until that moment of insight. '... That you try.' I was exhilarated. Now I knew that I was an alcoholic and that I had the only qualification for membership in A.A., a desire to stop drinking.

Came to Believe, 30th printing 2004, Page 50

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Just a Quote

“I now see how owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.” ~ Brené Brown

[bluidkiti]

March 26

Prayer For Self Confidence

Lord,
Let a ray of Your wisdom
Penetrate my understanding
Grant me a retentive memory
And the ability to grasp things
Correctly and completely.
Let me be convincing in my explanations
Steadfast and unwavering in my presentations
Give me Your confidence
To trust my God-given capabilities.
Help me with each task at hand
Guide me through its completion.
Amen

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Just a Thought

As we became alcoholics, the bad effects of drinking came more and more to outweigh the good effects.

But the strange part of it is that, no matter what drinking did to us, loss of our health, our jobs, our money and our homes, we still stuck to it and depended on it. Our dependence on drinking became an obsession. In A.A., we find a new outlook on life. We learn how to change from alcoholic thinking to sober thinking. And we find out that we can no longer depend on drinking for anything. We depend on a Higher Power instead.

So ............

Have I entirely given up that dependence on drinking?


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Just a Contemplation

Path

During our alcoholism, we were on a path leading to death---death of our spirit, mind, and body.
On that path, we tried not to think about where it would lead. We didn’t want to get there. We just followed the path toward death, with one drink at a time.
Now we’ve chosen a new path for our lives. Making that choice was hard. We knew only the old path. We were afraid to change. But we did it. That was the hardest part.
We are excited to follow our new path. We know it leads to good things. We can follow the map---the Twelve Steps---and enjoy the trip. It will last as long as we live, and the map will guide us.


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Inner Resource

I promise to watch for every opportunity to turn toward my Higher Power for guidance. I know where this power is: it resides within me, as clear as a mountain brook, hidden in the hills -- it is the unsuspected Inner Resource. . . I trust it today and hope it trusts me to make all effort to find the right thought or action today.

Daily Reflections Page 28

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Just a Quote

“Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” ~ Peter T. Mcintyre

[bluidkiti]

March 27

Helping Others Prayer

Lord,
There are so many people in this world who are in need.
Please show us how we can help.
Use us Lord, to be a blessing to others.
I pray You will show us how to use our resources to help others.
Give us eyes to see those who are in need.
I pray that our lives are used for a great purpose of service to others.
Amen

~ Jeanne Lucas

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Just a Thought

An alcoholic carries an awful load around with them.

What a load lying puts on your shoulders! Drinking makes liars out of all of us alcoholics. In order to get all the alcohol we wanted, we have to lie all the time. We have to lie about where we've been and what we've been doing. When you are lying you are only half alive, because of the fear of being found out. When you come into A.A., and get honest with yourself and with other people, that terrible load of lying falls off your shoulders.

So ............

Have I got rid of that load of lying?

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Just a Contemplation

Honesty

Honesty is the backbone of our recovery program. Honesty opens us up. It breaks down the walls we had built around our secret world. Those walls made a prison for us. But all of that is now changed. We are free.

Honesty has made us wise. We aren’t sneaking drinks anymore. We don’t have a stash to protect. People who didn’t trust us now depend on our honesty. People who worked hard to avoid us, now seek us out. Self-honesty is the greatest gift we can give ourselves.

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24-hour Plan

Getting away from the pull of the first drink is like putting a space vehicle in orbit. It takes a lot of thrust to overcome the pull of gravity and get the vehicle off the ground. But once it gets in orbit, all that's required is a small correction from time to time.
That's how the 24-hour plan works -- a small daily checkup and correction to keep us away from the pull of that first drink. The 24-hour plan is a discipline whose yield is freedom.

The Best of the Grapevine [Vol. 1], Page 152

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Just a Few Quotes

“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day.” ~ Sally Koch

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” ~ Dr. Seuss

[bluidkiti]

March 28

Open My Eyes Prayer

Lord,
Sometimes life gets me down and I find it hard to see things to be thankful for.
Open my eyes to see the gifts you’ve given me in my life.

Thank you, Lord, for all your blessings to me and my family; for the strength you give me each day and for all the people around me who make life more meaningful.
Amen

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Just a Thought

There are no leaders in A.A., except as they volunteer to accept responsibility.

The work of carrying on A.A.--leading group meetings, serving on committees, speaking before other groups, doing twelfth-step work, spreading A.A. among the alcoholics of the community--all these things are done on a volunteer basis. If I don't volunteer to do something concrete for A.A., the movement is that much less effective. I must do my fair share to carry the load. A.A. depends on all its members to keep it alive and to keep it growing.

So ............

Am I doing my share for A.A.?

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Just a Contemplation

Following

If we follow the Twelve Steps, we’ll leave failure behind. We may have tried and tried to be sober, good people, but failed if we were doing it our way. Now is the time to stop listening to ourselves and start listening to pros, those who have gone before us.

When we follow their lead, exciting changes happen. First, we stay sober. We regain self-respect. We meet people we respect and become friends. Our families start to trust us again. And why? Because we gave up doing it our way and listened. We listened to the “experts.”

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Tolerance in Practice

We found that the principles of tolerance and love had to be emphasized in actual practice. We can never say (or insinuate) to anyone that he must agree to our formula or be excommunicated. The atheist may stand up in an A.A. meeting still denying the Deity, yet reporting how vastly he has been changed in attitude and outlook. Much experience tells us he will presently change his mind about God, but nobody tells him he must do so.

In order to carry the principles of inclusiveness and tolerance still further, we make no religious requirement of anyone. All people having an alcoholic problem who wish to get rid of it and so make a happy adjustment with the circumstances of their lives, become A.A. members by simply associating with us. Nothing but sincerity is needed. But we do not demand even this.

In such an atmosphere the orthodox, the unorthodox, and the believer mix happily and usefully together. An opportunity for spiritual growth is open to all.

As Bill Sees It Page 158

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Just a few Quotes

"Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength." ~ Corrieten Boom

"There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy." ~Ralph H. Blum

[bluidkiti]

March 29

Prayer for Worry and Anxiety

God,
Sometimes I feel I cannot face this day; it is hard to keep going with such anxious thoughts running through my mind.
I ask for your peace to flood my being, that each moment I would surrender these worries, fears and anxieties to you.
I ask for your presence to walk with me through each part of my day, so that I would not feel alone but know that I am loved.
And I ask for your strength to wake me each morning and keep me going. I trust in you to see me through, lead me to calmer seas, balance and rest in heart, mind, body and soul.
Amen

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Just a Thought


We also strengthen our faith by working with other alcoholics.

We also find that we can do nothing ourselves to help them, except to tell them our own story of how we found the way out. If the person is helped, it's by the grace of God and not by what we do or say. Our own faith is strengthened when we see another alcoholic find sobriety by turning to God. And finally, we strengthen our faith by having quiet times every morning.

So ............

Do I ask God in this quiet time for the strength to stay sober this day?

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Just a Contemplation

Practice

None of us woke up one morning and found we had suddenly turned into an alcoholic. We got to be one by practice. And we practiced often. We ignored our families--we left work early--and went drinking. Daily, we chose alcohol over anything else. Likewise, getting sober is no accident. We work the program. At meetings, we're reminded to help others. We all get sober on the installment plan. A day at a time. We got sick one day at a time; we recovered one day at a time.

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Pride & Self-Pity

I, who had thought so well of myself and my abilities, of my capacity to surmount obstacles, was cornered at last. Now I was to plunge into the dark, joining that endless procession of sots who had gone on before. I thought of my poor wife. There had been much happiness after all. What would I not give to make amends. But that was over now.

No words can tell of the loneliness and despair I found in that bitter morass of self-pity. Quicksand stretched around me in all directions. I had met my match. I had been overwhelmed. Alcohol was my master.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 8

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Just a Quote

An alcoholic spends his life committing suicide on the installment plan." ~ Laurence Peter

[bluidkiti]

March 30

Let Go Of My Fears And Worries

Lord,
I pray that You would help me to simply let go of all the fears and worries, problems and doubts, guilt and disappointments that seem to be filling my heart and mind so often, during the course of a day.

Fill my hurting soul with love and peace I pray. Fill the emptiness and pain that is tearing my life asunder. Lord, You know what is in my heart and why I am going through this time of fear and worry. Help me Lord, to hand them over to You.
Amen

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Just a Thought

Since I've been in A.A., have I made a start toward becoming more honest?

Do I no longer have to lie to my loved ones? Do I try to have meals on time, and do I try to earn what I make at work? Am I trying to be honest? Have I faced myself as I really am and have I admitted to myself that I'm no good by myself, but have to rely on God to help me do the right thing?

So ............

Am I beginning to find out what it means to be alive and to face the world honestly and without fear?

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Just a Contemplation

Traders

There is an old saying that there are just two kinds of people in the world: givers and takers. Those of us who are givers delight in it. We have a buck to lend when someone is broke, a kind word when they're down, a helping hand when they need it. But sometimes we givers are uncomfortable when we're on the receiving end. We brush off thanks and gifts and help, even when they're needed or deserved.

Those of us who are takers, on the other hand, know how to graciously receive what others have to give; we know how to ask for what we need. Often, however, we don't know how to give. We may be afraid our gifts will be wrong or rejected or laughed at.

We can all strive to become traders, people who have learned how to both give and receive. We each have the capacity to give what we have freely and to ask, gratefully, for what we don't have. That is the greatest gift of all.

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More Than

But life among Alcoholics Anonymous is more than attending gatherings and visiting hospitals. Cleaning up old scrapes, helping to settle family differences, explaining the disinherited son to his irate parents, lending money and securing jobs for each other, when justified these are everyday occurrences. No one is too discredited or has sunk too low to be welcomed cordially if he means business.

Alcoholics Anonymous Page 161

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Just a Quote

“We must be willing to let go of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” ~ Joseph Campbell
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