Daily Reflections
February 9
GETTING THE “SPIRITUAL ANGLE”
How often do we sit in AA meetings and hear the speaker declare, “But I haven’t yet got the spiritual angle.” Prior to this statement, he had described a miracle of transformation which had occurred in him — not only his release from alcohol, but a complete change in his whole attitude toward life and the living of it. It is apparent to nearly everyone else present that he has received a great gift; ” … except that he doesn’t seem to know it yet!” We well know that this questioning individual will tell us six months or a year hence that he has found faith in God.
LANGUAGE OF THE HEART, p. 275
A spiritual experience can be the realization that a life which once seemed empty and devoid of meaning is now joyous and full. In my life today, daily prayer and meditation, coupled with living the Twelve Steps, has brought about an inner peace and feeling of belonging which was missing when I was drinking.
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
February 9
A.A. Thought For The Day
In the past, we kept right on drinking in spite of all the trouble we got into. We were foolish enough to believe that drinking could still be fun in spite of everything that happened to us. When we came into A.A., we found a lot of people who, like ourselves, had had fun with drinking, but who now admitted that liquor had become nothing but trouble for them. And when we found that this thing had happened to a lot of other people besides ourselves, we realized that perhaps we weren’t such odd ducks after all. Have I learned to admit that for me drinking has ceased to be fun and has become nothing but trouble?
Meditation For The Day
The lifeline, the line of rescue, is the line from the soul to God. On one end of the lifeline is our faith and on the other end is God’s power. It can be a strong line and no soul can be overwhelmed who is linked to God by it. I will trust in this lifeline and never be afraid. God will save me from doing wrong and from the cares and troubles of life. I will look to God for help and trust Him for aid when I am emotionally upset.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that no lack of trust or fearfulness will make me disloyal to God. I pray that I may keep a strong hold on the lifeline of faith.
Walk In Dry Places
February 9
Getting started Today
Responsible activity
For the recovering person, every assignment or day’s work can have a disagreeable moment. The problem is getting started, overcoming our fear of taking the plunge.
The real problem is deeper than the wish to avoid mere unpleasantness. Some of our resistance to getting started may be fear of failure. It could also be a deep-seated desire to live in a problem free environment, where all of our needs can be met without effort on our part. It can even be a desire to return to the quest for constant excitement and stimulation.
We need to know that our answer is in guidance and acceptance. If we have truly committed our will and lives to the care and keeping of our Higher Power, we will find the right path for each day’s work. We can also accept any work or challenge that occurs, knowing it is part of a higher order for our lives. Our current situation may be depressing or boring, but it can easily be a stepping stone to our long-term good.
I will meet today’s challenges and responsibilities with gratitude and confidence, knowing that God is guiding and directing my life.
Keep It Simple
February 9
H.A.L.T.
– AA Slogan
H.A.L.T. stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, and Tired. These feelings can be danger to us. They can lead us away from our program. We need to eat regular meals. When we get too hungry, we get cranky. Then we say and do things we regret. We need to turn anger over to our Higher Power, or else our anger turns into rage. We need friends to help us in recovery. If we get to lonely, we may turn our addictive way for friendship. We don’t stay sober by ourselves. We need a clear mind to deal with life. If we get too tried, we tend to feel sorry for ourselves. Being tired get us into crazy thinking.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, remind me to H.A.L.T. Help me to not get too Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired.
Action for the Day: Today, I’ll review the four parts of H.A.L.T. In which areas do I practice good self-care? In which areas do I not? How can I improve?
Decision is the spark that ignites action. Until a decision is made, nothing happens.
–Wilfred A. Peterson“You’ve got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was.”
–Irish ProverbGratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough, and more.
It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.
It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
–Melody BeattieWhen we look around us with eyes of faith, we may see paradise.
–Scott Sawyer
Father Leo’s Daily Meditation
February 9
ENVIRONMENT
“Love your neighbor as thyself, but choose your neighbor.”
— Louise Beal
Part of my recovery and sobriety involves change. It is not enough to “put down the jug” to gain sobriety; I need to make substantial changes in my life.
Where I live, with whom I live, the friends I keep and the relationships I make are crucial to my sobriety. Human beings imitate. They imitate clothes, hairstyles and mannerisms. Sobriety is also imitated.
As a recovering alcoholic, I can only be spiritually happy with those who are joyous and free; I need to find them.
God, You are to be found in Your creation. Let me seek You in a noble lifestyle.
Daily Inspiration
February 9
When you feel down, look up. Lord, at all times and in the midst of all that is happening, You are there comforting, healing, and bringing peace to my life.
Know that you can do even if things are not always easy. Lord, in You I have the support of an unlimited power source and can accomplish great things because You strengthen me.
Elder’s Meditation of the Day
February 9
“It can be 100 degrees in the shade one afternoon and suddenly there comes a storm with hailstones as big as golf balls, the prairie is all white and your teeth chatter. That’s good-a reminder that you are just a small particle of nature, not so powerful as you think.”
–Lame Deer, LAKOTA
No event, no relationship, no joy, no sadness, no situation ever stays the same. Every setback is only temporary. Even setbacks change. Why? Because the Great Spirit designed the world to be constantly changing. We are not the center of the universe, we are but a small part. The whole is constantly changing, and we as humans are constantly participating in the change. We have two choices, to resist change or participate in the change. Every change can be resisted, and every change can be made in cooperation. What will I choose today, resistance or cooperation?
Great Spirit, teach me to make cooperative changes.
Today’s Gift
February 9
Leave yourself alone.
—Jenny Janacek
Three women were talking. One blamed herself for an unkind remark someone had made to her. Another blamed herself for not getting work done. The other compared her looks to those of the movie stars and thought she was ugly.
The women each noticed how the other two had put themselves down without being aware of it, and they began to laugh. Then they vowed to be as kind to themselves as they were to each other. Each time they caught themselves being mean to themselves, they imagined they were their own best friend, and were as understanding to themselves as they were to one another.
When we are kind to ourselves, only then can we be truly kind to others, and make ourselves a gift to those around us.
How have I been kind to myself lately?
Touchstones Meditations For Men
February 9
The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be either good or evil.
—Hannah Arendt
How often have we found ourselves in a predicament and innocently saying, “How did I get into this?” When someone has been injured by our actions because we failed to think about them, do we take the responsibility? If a friend is unfairly treated on the job, do we take a stand for him? When we know people are starving, what do we do about it? When our loved ones say they are lonely and wish we would talk to them, how do we respond?
In this program we have chosen to live by our values. We cannot sit passively and fail to live up to those values. Each situation is different, so we must think about what is called for. When we do not think about our reactions, we are in danger of adding to the evil in the world. When we act upon our principles, we feel more hopeful and wholesome.
Today, I will be alert to the difference between good and evil in my actions. I pray for the strength to take a stand.
Daily TAO
February 9
SUBCONSCIOUS
Heaven and hell;
Our subconscious.
Meditation opens seldom glimpsed areas of our subconscious. When that happens, extraordinary thoughts and awareness come to us with seeming spontaneity. We realize truths that were opaque to us before; we perceive events that were previously too distant. But no one ever became superhuman because of meditation. They only opened their own latent potential. Everything is locked inside of us and need only be opened. That is why it is said that heaven is within us.
In the same way, the pains and the struggles of the past sometimes haunt us with astounding vehemence. Problems and conflicts are difficult to exorcise. Although we may practice spirituality and move on to new endeavors and relationships, past hurts still come back in our memories and dreams. These are not demons from another world, nor are they karmic manifestations of previous lives; they are scars in our subconscious. No matter how diligently we try to make progress, there still are pains that curse us day after day. This is why it is said that hell is within us.
We ourselves are the battleground for good and evil. There is no need to look beyond our world. Everything to be understood is within us. All that must be transcended — the pains and scars of the past — is within us. All the power of transcendence is also within us. Tap into it and you tap into the divine itself.
Daily Zen
February 9
If you endeavor to embrace the Way through much learning, the Way will not be understood. If you observe the Way with simplicity of heart, great indeed is this Way.
– Sutra of Forty Two Chapters