Friday, April 21, 2017
Today's Gift
When we contemplate last month, last year, we can see many changes, good changes, have come our way. But we take the changes for granted sometimes. Or maybe we fail to reflect on them at all. We get caught up in the turmoil of the present, believing it will last forever, forgetting that yesterday's turmoil taught us much that we needed to know.
The past, for most of us, was rife with pain. But now we have hope. We have gained on life. We may be back in the good graces of our family. Perhaps we have patched up some failed relationships. A career has beckoned to us. Good experiences have come to pass. But we aren't free of difficulties. They need not get us down again. Hindsight assures us that this, too, will pass. It also guarantees that we will move forward, just as we have again and again, if we have but faith.
Willing to Grow
Many of us exclaimed, “What an order! I can’t go through with it."
Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain
anything like perfect adherence to these principles. We are not saints.
The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines.
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p.60
Thought to Ponder . . .
Spiritual progress isn't what gets us sober, it's what keeps us sober.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
S O B E R = Spiritually On Beam; Everything's Right
Excerpt of The Daily Motivator
Patience
by Ralph Marston
A sense of urgency is crucial to success, and yet just as important to success is patience. These may seem at first to be contradictory attributes, but really they are not. For we must learn to act with urgency, and react with patience. Yes, we reap what we sow -- sow with a sense of urgency, and reap with a rational patience.
We must have the patience to let our efforts bear fruit. Nothing worth having can be created immediately. There will be delays, disappointments and setbacks. Patience will help you put it all into perspective, and will give you the perseverence necessary to reach your goals.
Patience will make you confident and decisive. Patience will help you to avoid stress. Patience will give you a rational outlook that eventually leads to success. It will help you to become disciplined, and to avoid poor decisions made in haste.
The keys to patience are acceptance and faith. Accept things as they are, and look realistically at the world around you. Have faith in yourself and in the direction you have chosen.
“Patience is power.
Patience is not an absence of action;
rather it is "timing"
it waits on the right time to act,
for the right principles
and in the right way.”
― Fulton J. Sheen
Wait. If the time is not right, the way is not clear, the answer or decision not consistent, wait.
We may feel a sense of urgency. We may want to resolve the issue by doing something - anything now, but that action is not in our best interest.
Living with confusion or unsolved problems is difficult. It is easier to resolve things. But making a decision too soon, doing something before it's time, means we may have to go back and redo it.
If the time is not right, wait. If the way is not clear, do not plunge forward. If the answer or decision feels muddy, wait.
In this new way of life, there is a Guiding Force. We do not ever have to move too soon or move out of harmony. Waiting is an action - a positive, forceful action.
"Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer." --William S. Burroughs
Often, waiting is a God-guided action, one with as much power as a decision, and more power than an urgent, ill-timed decision.
We do not have to pressure ourselves by insisting that we do or know something before it's time. When it is time, we will know. We will move into that time naturally and harmoniously. We will have peace and consistency. We will feel empowered in a way we do not feel today.
Deal with the panic, the urgency, and the fear; do not let them control or dictate decisions.
Waiting isn't easy. It isn't fun. But waiting is often necessary to get what we want. It is not dead time; it is not downtime. The answer will come. The power will come. The time will come. And it will be right.
Today, I will wait, if waiting is the action I need in order to take care of myself. I will know that I am taking a positive, forceful action by waiting until the time is right. Higher Power, help me let go of my fear, urgency, and panic. Help me learn the art of waiting until the time is right. Help me learn timing.
From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie ©
From: Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation - Thought for the Day http://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/recovery/thought-for-the-day
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Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Keep It Simple
To look backward for a while is to refresh the eye, to restore it, and to render it the more fit for its prime function of looking forward. --Margaret Fairless Barber
To look backward for a while is to refresh the eye, to restore it, and to render it the more fit for its prime function of looking forward. --Margaret Fairless Barber
When we contemplate last month, last year, we can see many changes, good changes, have come our way. But we take the changes for granted sometimes. Or maybe we fail to reflect on them at all. We get caught up in the turmoil of the present, believing it will last forever, forgetting that yesterday's turmoil taught us much that we needed to know.
The past, for most of us, was rife with pain. But now we have hope. We have gained on life. We may be back in the good graces of our family. Perhaps we have patched up some failed relationships. A career has beckoned to us. Good experiences have come to pass. But we aren't free of difficulties. They need not get us down again. Hindsight assures us that this, too, will pass. It also guarantees that we will move forward, just as we have again and again, if we have but faith.
Action for the Day: I will take this moment to look back at last year. I can rest assured that I am moving forward. I will continue to do so.
From: Bluidkiti's Alcohol and Drug Addictions Recovery Help/Support Forums
Daily Recovery Readings - http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=2
****************************
One Day At A Time
Willing to Grow
Many of us exclaimed, “What an order! I can’t go through with it."
Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain
anything like perfect adherence to these principles. We are not saints.
The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines.
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p.60
Thought to Ponder . . .
Spiritual progress isn't what gets us sober, it's what keeps us sober.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
S O B E R = Spiritually On Beam; Everything's Right
From: AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net)
***************************
Daily Motivation
Excerpt of The Daily Motivator
Patience
by Ralph Marston
A sense of urgency is crucial to success, and yet just as important to success is patience. These may seem at first to be contradictory attributes, but really they are not. For we must learn to act with urgency, and react with patience. Yes, we reap what we sow -- sow with a sense of urgency, and reap with a rational patience.
We must have the patience to let our efforts bear fruit. Nothing worth having can be created immediately. There will be delays, disappointments and setbacks. Patience will help you put it all into perspective, and will give you the perseverence necessary to reach your goals.
Patience will make you confident and decisive. Patience will help you to avoid stress. Patience will give you a rational outlook that eventually leads to success. It will help you to become disciplined, and to avoid poor decisions made in haste.
The keys to patience are acceptance and faith. Accept things as they are, and look realistically at the world around you. Have faith in yourself and in the direction you have chosen.
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