Daily Motivations 8-11-2010

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Today's Gift

Friends are people who help you be more yourself, more the person you are intended to be. —Merle Shain
Sometimes a teacher, sometimes a neighbor, almost always our moms and dads encourage us to try new activities or to improve our schoolwork, sports, drawing, or gardening. Because they are our friends, they want us to be the best we can be.

Not everyone knows how to be a friend. Some people only criticize and never praise. People who never encourage or praise us are usually unhappy with their own achievements. They don't mean us harm. Perhaps they just need a friend, too. Not only do we each need friends to help us grow, we need to be friends to others. To encourage and praise those who need it will help us in return.

Whose friend can I be today?

From Today's Gift: Daily Meditations for Families ©

 

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Twenty-Four Hours A Day

Keep It Simple
 Fairness is what justice really is. ---The last Supreme Court Justice Potter StewartSome of us get hung up on what's fair. We might feel, because we've worked hard to stay sober, we should be rewarded. We might keep score of what we get and what others get. And we complain if it's "not fair."

Maybe we should be glad life isn't fair. Why? Most of us caused a lot of trouble we've never had to pay for. And we've hurt a lot of people who haven't gotten even. Would we really want life to be fair?

Our Higher Power isn't fair either. That is, our Higher Power doesn't keep score. Our Higher Power doesn't try to get even. Our Higher Power is loving and forgiving, no matter what. Our Higher Power has the same love and help for everyone.

Prayer for the Day:  Higher Power, give me the wisdom to stop keeping score. Help me want the best for everyone.

Action for the Day:  I'll list five times I've been unfair to others. Do I need to make amends?

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One Day At A Time

Searching

~ Scroll down for share ~
Our personal adventures before and after make clear three pertinent ideas:
(a) That we were alcoholic and could not manage our own lives.
(b) That probably no human power could have relieved our alcoholism.
(c) That God could and would if He were sought.
-- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 60

Thought to Ponder . . .
I came, came to, came to believe!

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
S T E P S = Solutions To Every Problem in Sobriety.

A MEMBER SHARES:
My name is Lance, and I am an alcoholic in recovery. "God could and would if He were sought" is so powerful in its simplicity -- how often I have clung to those hopeful words, and for me it's almost like the Promises. It is a kind of promise of a hopeful outcome based on humility, surrender, and a deepening faith. It makes me feel so loved and cared for -- nothing I knew when I was drinking, and it seems to go hand in glove with "Thy Will Be Done." I can take that will back so quickly, until I stop and say, "No, Your way is definitely better than mine." My job is to allow God to do His part, and that I do my part. Together, it's a dynamic combination. And I feel the same way with our chat room here and AA as a fellowship, it's a mighty team of positive action, and a much better way than I ever knew before. It makes me so very grateful, and I want to stay in touch with that gratitude and at the end of the day say, "Lord, You are so beautiful and loving, thank you!"

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Daily Motivation

More determined than ever

Let your high expectations push you forward. But don't let them create disappointments that hold you back.

It's great when you expect the best. But it's important to keep in mind that you won't get all the way there immediately, on the first attempt.

When you're disappointed by the results, that's no reason to give up your high expectations. On the contrary, it's a good time to recommit yourself to those high expectations and perhaps to even raise them a bit.

Instead of being discouraged by less than spectacular results, be encouraged by the fact that you're aiming so high. Double down on your expectations by becoming more determined than ever.

You won't instantly achieve what you set out to achieve. The fact that it will take a while to reach makes your goal all the more valuable.

Expect the best and if you fail to get it, continue to expect the best. Eventually you'll reach the goal, and it will be well worth all your positive persistence.

-- Ralph Marston