The Work-In: Daily Motivation 1-29-2021

 Friday, January 29, 2021

Today's Gift

We must not accept; we must challenge. We must not be awed by that which has been built up around us; she must reverence that part in us which struggles for expression. —Margaret Sanger

Our desire to grow, to make a place for ourselves in the world of our friends, to know that we have counted in the lives of others, is healthy and necessary to our existence as whole person. The inner urging to move ahead, to try a new approach to an old problem, to go after a new job, to learn a new skill, is evidence of our Higher Power's eternal Spirit within.

Our meaning in this life is found through following the guidance that beckons us toward these new horizons, perhaps new friends, even new locations. We can trust the urge. We can reverence the urge. It will not lead us astray, provided we do not try to lead it. We each have a special gift to express in this life among those to whom we've been led.

For years, many of us quelled the inner urge out of fear; but, fortunately, it didn't desert us. To be human is to have a constant desire to be more than we are. The fears still come, but as we move through them, with the support of other people, other friends and families gives us the thrill of achievement. We know there is meaning in our existence.

The need to grow, to change, to affect the world around us is part of the Universe's plan for each of us. I will trust the urge; I will let it guide my steps.

From Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women by Karen Casey ©

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

We grow in time to trust the future for our answers. --Ruth Benedict

When we first started in recovery, we approached it as we did our codependent and addictive behaviors, wanting to possess it all - quickly and totally - and to do it right. Some of us thought we could learn all we needed to know about recovery in a few weeks. In living with this program, we begin to see we are engaged in a lifelong process. We are in a maturing process and this program is our guide. We can't rush it or move on to the next stage too soon. An apple tree does not blossom in the fall, and we do not expect the newly forming apples to ripen before they've grown.

Our existence in this world is like walking through the woods on a rambling path. We can only see as far ahead as the next bend. We no longer seek some big moment when we finally get the outcome or a "cure" for life's experiences. The experience along the way is all we need.

Action for the Day: Today, I will think about the tasks and rewards of this day and trust the future for what is unanswered.

From: Bluidkiti's Alcohol and Drug Addictions Recovery Help/Support Forums Daily Recovery Readings - http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=2

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One Day At A Time

Self-searching
More experienced people, of course, in all times and
places have practiced unsparing self-survey and criticism.
For the wise have always known that no one can make
much of their life until self-searching becomes a regular habit,
until they are able to admit and accept what they find, and until
they patiently and persistently tries to correct what is wrong.
- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Ten) p. 88

Thought to Ponder
I can’t fix something if I don’t know what’s wrong.

AA-related 'Alconym'
A G O = Another Growth Opportunity

From: AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) http://www.aa-alive.net/index.html

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Daily Motivation

Excerpt of The Daily Motivator

Give yourself time

by Ralph Marston

Give yourself time to think. Give yourself time to let your feelings run their course.

Give yourself time to be thankful. Give yourself time to be thoughtful and considerate.

Living well is not the result of overloading each day with the maximum number of experiences. It is more a matter of making every experience a quality experience.

Anything of value that appears instantly in your life can disappear just as quickly. Seek instead to attain sustainable value in work, in play, in relationships, in every aspect of life.

Give yourself the time to live with the quality you deserve. Whatever you build over time has a greater chance to endure over time.

Find great joy in the time it takes to complete each journey you choose to make. Give yourself time, and claim the great rewards of having spent that time well.

From The Daily Motivator website at http://greatday.com/