Daily Reflections
June 8
OPENING UP TO CHANGE
Self-searching is the means by which we bring new vision,
action, and grace to bear upon the dark and negative side of our natures. With
it comes the development of that kind of humility that makes it possible for us
to receive God’s help. … we find that bit by bit we can discard the old life —
the one that did not work — for a new life that can and does work under any
conditions whatever.
-AS BILL SEES IT, pp. 10, 8
Twenty-Four Hours A
Day
June 8
A. A. Thought for the Day
Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic. We always get worse, never better. We are never cured. Our alcoholism can only be arrested. No matter how long we have been sober, if we try liquor again, we’re as bad or worse than we ever were. There is no exception to this rule in the whole history of A. A. We can never recapture the good times of the past. They are gone forever. Will I try to recapture them?
Meditation for the Day
Your life has been given to you mainly for the purpose of training your soul. This life we live is not so much for the body as for the soul. We often choose the way of life that best suits the body, not the way that best suits the soul. God wants you to choose what suits the soul as well as the body. Accept this belief and a wonderful molding of character is the result. Reject it and God’s purpose for your life is frustrated, and your spiritual progress is delayed. Your soul is being trained by the good you choose. Thus the purpose of your life is being accomplished.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may choose what is good for my soul. I pray that I may realize God’s purpose for my life.
Walk in Dry Places
June 8
Quality Of Sobriety
Self-Improvement
There is such a thing as length—or quantity—of sobriety, and there is also quality. It’s generally accepted that sobriety ought to be something more than the single process of staying free from alcohol or drugs.
We’re on shaky ground, however, when we begin passing judgment on another person’s quality of sobriety. We only have responsibility for the quality of our own sobriety, and it is not for us to decide how another should think or live.
We may not be able to avoid noticing others’ actions that we consider to be wrong, but we can keep our thoughts and opinions to ourselves. If we do wish to voice any opinions, it should be in terms of our own inventory—not the other person’s.
Some old-timers in Twelve Step programs develop crankiness that borders on resentment. Out of this crankiness come complaints about the way newcomers work the program. Our only responsibility is to treat these complaints with good humor and to avoid becoming cranky ourselves. Recovery alcoholics must continue to have the freedom to select any quality of sobriety they choose.
Today I’ll strive for a high-quality sobriety that includes cheerfulness, confidence, patience, and good humor. I won’t be responsible for monitoring another’s sobriety.
Keep It Simple
June 8
It’s not enough to talk to plants, you also have to listen.
—David Bergman
Sometimes, we find ourselves doing all the talking. When this happens, we need to stop, think, and listen.
When we do all the talking, we’re trying to control what happens. But when we listen, we get better results. No one has to be in control. What a relief!
And we’re learning to listen better every day. It’s great—the care, love, and help we find—just by listening.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me learn the “give-and-take” of talking and listening.
Action for the Day: Today, I’ll focus on listening, not only to other people but to my Higher Power’s voice.
“Love does not measure; it just gives.”
–Mother Teresa
We do not let things change us, we change things.
–Joyce Meyer
Well done is better than well said.
–Benjamin Franklin
“Worry is rehearsing fear about a made-up, fabricated event in the future that most of the time never happens.”
–Jeff Alexander
“Forget regret, or life is yours to miss.”
–Jonathan Larson
“When a man points a finger at someone else, he should remember that four of his fingers are pointing at himself.”
–Louis Nizer
Father Leo’s Daily
Meditation
June 8
DOUBT
“I respect faith but doubt is what gets you an education.”
–Wilson Mizner
It is okay to question things. It is okay to say that I do not agree. Today I have the freedom to doubt opinions and attitudes.
In my childhood I was never allowed to do this. I had to accept the Bible because the preacher said it was God’s word. I had to accept that only Christians went to Heaven because Grandma said so! I had to believe that Jews and Blacks were “inferior” because family and friends said so – and to doubt them was to be different. I was dependent upon an attitude towards life that I was uncomfortable with. It brought me pain, anger, loneliness and guilt in later life.
Then I learned that growth comes to those who are prepared to doubt or disagree with an existing system. God is to be found in the questions. Spirituality is discovered in the shades of life.
O God, part of Your glory and splendor is Your unending mystery.
Daily Inspiration
June 8
Little acts of kindness throughout the day will make your life so much better and bring a little sunshine to others as well. Lord, may I make a habit of being gentle and loving with those around me.
Everything we need to deal with life’s problems lies within us. Our trials are tests to see if we can discover the solution. Lord, I call out Your name when I face my difficulties and together we will overcome them.
Elder’s Meditation
of the Day
June 8
“So we are connected to the moon. That gives us power, a connection to the Earth and the moon, men don’t know about.”
–Cecilia Mitchell, MOHAWK
The Elders tell us that the Woman has access to special powers. The Earth Mother gives her love in a special way to the Woman. The Moon also gives special powers to the Woman. She uses these powers to nurture, heal, and guide the people.
Great Spirit, today, give a special Blessing to our Women.
Today’s Gift
June 8
Caring is everything; nothing matters but caring.
—Baron Friedrich Von Hugel
The caring we receive from someone we love when we’re sick can heal us just as much as the medicine we take. For children, Mom is usually the one who makes sure we get enough rest by having us stay in bed. By bringing us juice and aspirins she helps us keep our fevers down. She also lifts our spirits when she tells us a funny story.
Perhaps the next time a loved one is sick we can do the special and caring things. We can bring a favorite magazine or a cold glass of water, tell a joke, or just sit and be there for a while. Whether the sick person is a parent or a brother or sister, when we help care for another, we complete a circle of caring begun by a parent so long ago.
Does someone need my care today?
Touchstones
Meditations For Men
June 8
Come, Love! Sing On! Let me hear you sing this song – sing for joy and laugh, for I the creator am truly subject to all creatures.
—Mechtild of Magdeburg
Recovery without joy and song and playfulness is incomplete. The beauty of music uplifts our spirits and shows us the face of our Creator. For many men, music is their means of meditation and conscious contact with their Higher Power. When we experience the creativity of a musical piece, as it speaks to us, we take a step beyond the practical world, into the profound level of creation.
Some people say, “How can you celebrate when there is so much suffering, so much to grieve about?” We have grieved; we continue to grieve alongside our joy. But we need not pour all our energies into the painful and sad. Life is also wonderful. Music and dance and the joy of good fellowship enrich our lives and strengthen us to go on.
Praise the spirit of our Creator for all that is given to us!
Daily TAO
June 8
Writer
She withdrew into herself,
First writing just for one,
Then touching thousands.
She incarnated ghosts, hurt, and joy
Into paper-and-ink stories of wonder.
One author said, “I can get ride of anything by writing about it,” meaning the process of externalization could liberate him from the pain in his soul. That realization produced a delicious dichotomy: to free himself, or to hold on to both joys and tortures by remaining silent about them.
Writers write because they must: They need to express something from deep within themselves. They hear voices that others do not. They listen urgently, and they must communicate what they hear.