Daily Reflections
January 23
HAVING FUN YET?
. . . we aren’t a glum lot. If newcomers could see no joy or fun in our existence, they wouldn’t want it. We absolutely insist on enjoying life. We try not to indulge in cynicism over the state of the nations, nor do we carry the world’s troubles on our shoulders.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS , p. 132
When my own house is in order, I find the different parts of my life are more manageable. Stripped from the guilt and remorse that clocked my drinking years, I am free to assume my proper role in the universe, but this condition requires maintenance. I should stop and ask myself, Am I having fun yet? If I find answering that question difficult or painful, perhaps I’m taking myself too seriously – and finding it difficult to admit that I’ve strayed from my practice of working the program to keep my house in order. I think the pain I experience is one way my Higher Power has to get my attention, coaxing me to take stock of my performance. The slight time and effort it takes to work the program – a spot-check inventory, for example, or the making of amends, whatever is appropriate – are well worth the effort.
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
January 23
A.A. Thought For The Day
Alcoholics are people whose drinking got them into a “blind alley.” They haven’t been able to learn anything from their drinking experiences. They are always making the same mistakes and suffering the same consequences over and over again. They refuse to admit they’re alcoholic. They still think they can handle the stuff. They won’t swallow their pride and admit that they’re different from ordinary drinkers. They won’t face the fact that they must spend the rest of their lives without liquor. They can’t visualize life without ever taking a drink. Am I out of this blind alley?
Meditation For The Day
I believe that God has all power. It is His to give and His to withhold. But He will not withhold it from the person who dwells near Him, because then it passes insensibly from God to that person. It is breathed in by the person who lives in God’s presence. I will learn to live in God’s presence and then I will have those things which I desire of Him: strength, power, and joy. God’s power is available to all who need it and are willing to accept it.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may get myself out of the way, so that God’s power may flow in. I pray that I may surrender myself to that power.
Walk In Dry Places
January 23
Thinking well of ourselves
Raising self-esteem
Although there may have been conceit and cockiness in our past behavior, most of us suffered from feelings of low self-esteem. We often felt alone and unworthy. Often, we had memories of parents and others who reminded us of our shortcomings or compared us unfavorably with others.
Whatever our past problems, we can raise our self-esteem in the present. We can begin by forgiving ourselves and others for past wrongs and mistakes. We must become willing to give up any belief or practice that causes us to dislike ourselves. We can remember that our self-esteem does not depend on achievements or on winning in competitions with others. Despite our failings, now and in the past, we are worthy in the sight of God and are entitled to God’s grace.
Growth in the program usually brings growth in self-esteem. If we think well of ourselves, in the right sense, others will tend to think well of us, too. With proper self-esteem, we will not be crushed or dismayed when someone seems to dislike us. Our feelings about ourselves will be much more than a mirror of others’ opinions.
I will think well of myself today, I will not put myself down, even jokingly. I will know that if God is for me, no one can be against me.
Keep It Simple
January 23
Sex, like all else between human beings, is never prefect.
— Theodore Isaac Rubin
Addiction made our sex lives a mess. Maybe we wanted prefect sex or we wanted no sex.
We were afraid. Maybe we wanted a high from sex we just couldn’t seem to get it. Some of us had lots of sex partners; some of us had none. What now?
We’re doing what we need to do by being in recovery. We’re getting to know ourselves. We’re living by our real values. We’re being honest with ourselves and others. We’re learning to love and care about others. It’s open, honest caring we express with our bodies. Thus, sex can be trusting and safe.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, I turn over my sex life and my will to You—Just for today. I know You want me to be happy.
Action for the Day: What do I believe about sex? How does it match with what’s said in the third paragraph above?
There is a guidance for each of us, and by lowly listening we shall hear the right word… Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom which flows into your life. Then, without effort, you are impelled to truth and perfect contentment.
–Ralph Waldo EmersonLook for the beauty inside of each person.
–I. June StephensonThe God who calls us into the unknown travels with us.
–Robert W. RaeSpiritual vision means looking at life as God does.
–Lisa D. WienerWhatever our future holds for us, we will find God already there.
–Patricia Garrison
Father Leo’s Daily Meditation
January 23
SLEEP
“Sleep that knots up the raveled sleeve of care.”
— William Shakespeare
When I was new in my recovery from alcoholism I was told to remember the letters H.A.L.T.: Do not get too: Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired.
Sleep is something my body needs, and even if I do not always know it, my body does. The tiredness in my body is telling me to slow down.
Sleep is part of my spiritual program because it enables me to feel rested, invigorated and alive. Through sleep I am able to be creative and positive in my life — showing a practical love to my body. Sleep is me taking care of self!
Thank You for the joy and rest that comes with sleep.
Daily Inspiration
January 23
Shine a little brighter today because someone needs your light. Lord, may I reflect You like sun hitting a mirror.
If you are not happy with what you have, how will you be happy with what you want to have? Lord, may I appreciate the good things in my life and refuse to feel sorry for myself or compare myself to others.
Elder’s Meditation of the Day
January 23
“Our true enemies, as well as our true sources of strength, lie within.”
–Willaru Huayta, QUECHUA NATION, PERU
A long time ago, the Creator put inside the human being the secrets to the laws of life. We usually know this is true even though we may not know what these laws are. If something goes wrong with our lives, we usually fix the blame on something outside of ourselves. We tend to give up accountability. One way or another we say, “It’s not my fault.” We need to realize that all permanent and lasting change starts on the inside and works its way out. If it’s meant to be, it is up to me.
Oh Great Spirit, let me realize fully that my problems are of my own making. Therefore, so are the solutions.
Today’s Gift
January 23
Little girl, little girl, where have you been?
—Mother Goose
She’s been everywhere and nowhere in and around the house. She’s been in her room crying with her doll, on the grass kicking her ball, on the floor big-eyed and blank in front of the TV. Her things are everywhere in the way, as if left there to block the path. She learns to be happiest alone in her room. There she can gather roses to give to the Queen and receive in return a diamond as big as a shoe. There she can wait for some prince, or dream of crossing the street without looking back.
We are all the same way, even as adults. We live with our dreams and fantasies, and our secret lives thrive in privacy. All around us, our loved ones live out their private lives often unnoticed by us until we enter them. When we honor others’ unspoken needs, when we allow others their privacy without being asked, or when we appreciate something they’ve done, we share the joy of living together in natural harmony.
How invisible are those in our presence every day?
Touchstones – Daily Meditation For Men
January 23
Spontaneity is the quality of being able to do something just because you feel like it at the moment, of trusting your instincts, of taking yourself by surprise and snatching from the clutches of your well-organized routine a bit of unscheduled pleasure.
—Richard Lannelli
The idea of turning our lives and our will over to the care of God is a very revolutionary thing to do. We are being told, “Let go of your excessive carefulness. Let the spirit guide you.” When we are in touch with ourselves, with the people around us, with God, we are free to experiment. We don’t learn from doing the same things correctly again and again. We learn from trying new things and making mistakes.
Over control is spiritually deadening. This is a program of life. Our renewal is a miraculous event. Why stop now? We can be in touch with the messages around us without trying to control the outcome. When we let God do the worrying, we find many possibilities open up,
As this adventure of life unfolds, I will not shy away from it.
Daily TAO
January 23
RENEWAL
City on a hill,
Untouched land beyond.
A fallow field is
The secret of fertility.
In the city, we see millions of lives represented in the windows, doors, and many floors of each building. We see excitement and the glories of civilization. But no matter how much those who follow Tao may enjoy the city, they understand the need for retreat into nature.
In the countryside, they find the nurturing quality of freedom. They can see new possibilities and can wander without societal impositions. In the past, pioneers saw the open prairies and were filled with dreams of dominating nature with the glories of man. Now we know different : We must preserve the wilds for our very survival.