AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 21, 2023A Way Of LifeA.A.’s Twelve Steps are a group of principles, spiritual in their nature, which, if practiced as a way of life, can expel the obsession to drink and enable the sufferer to become happily and usefully whole.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Foreward) p. 15Thought to Ponder . . .Within our wonderful new world, we have found freedom from our fatal malady.AA-related 'Alconym'S T E P S  =   Solutions Through Each Powerful Step.To Unsub ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 20, 2023Emotional InsecurityThe most common symptoms of emotional insecurity are worry, anger, self-pity, and depression. These stem from causes which sometimes seem to be within us, and at other times to come from without. To take inventory in this respect we ought to consider carefully all personal relationships which bring continuous or recurring trouble. It should be remembered that this kind of insecurity may arise in any area where instincts are threatened.- T ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 19, 2023A Way Of LifeA.A. is not a plan for recovery that can be finished and done with. It is a way of life, and the challenge contained in its principles is great enough to keep any human being striving for as long as he lives. We do not, cannot, outgrow this plan.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (The Keys Of The Kingdom) p. 275Thought to Ponder . . .AA is not for people who need it, it's not even for people who want it; it's for people who will work it.AA-related 'Alconym ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 18, 2023Hit BottomWhy all this insistence that every A.A. must hit bottom first? The answer is that few people will sincerely try to practice the A.A. program unless they have hit bottom. For practicing A.A.'s remaining eleven Steps means the adoption of attitudes and actions that almost no alcoholic who is still drinking can dream of taking.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (There Is A Solution) pp. 24 - 25Thought to Ponder . . .You know you have hit bottom when you stop dig ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)September 17, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Step ThreeEvery man and woman who has joined A.A. and intends to stick has, without realizing it, made a beginning on Step Three. Isn’t it true that in all matters touching upon alcohol, each of them has decided to turn his or her life over to the care, protection, and guidance of Alcoholics Anonymous? Already a willingness has been achieved to cast out one’s own will and one’s own ideas about the alcohol problem in favor of those su ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 16, 2023Beyond Human Aid"Well, I’ll stop with the sixth drink." Or "What’s the use anyhow?" When this sort of thinking is fully established in an individual with alcoholic tendencies, he has probably placed himself beyond human aid, and unless locked up, may die or go permanently insane. These stark and ugly facts have been confirmed by legions of alcoholics throughout history. But for the grace of God, there would have been thousands more convin ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 15, 2023The Desperate ExperimentWhat sort of thinking dominates an alcoholic who repeats time after time the desperate experiment of the first drink? Friends who have reasoned with him after a spree which has brought him to the point of divorce or bankruptcy are mystified when he walks directly into a saloon. Why does he? Of what is he thinking?- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 35Thought to Ponder . . .We are without defense against the first drink. ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 14, 2023Certain IdeasIn the course of his third treatment he acquired certain ideas concerning a possible means of recovery. As part of his rehabilitation he commenced to present his conceptions to other alcoholics, impressing upon them that they must do likewise with still others. This has become the basis of a rapidly growing fellowship of these men and their families. This man and over one hundred others appear to have recovered.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (The Docto ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 13, 2023The MaladyIf you are satisfied that he is a real alcoholic, begin to dwell on the hopeless feature of the malady. Show him, from your own experience, how the queer mental condition surrounding that first drink prevents normal functioning of the will power.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 92Thought to Ponder . . .Willpower ... our will-ingness to use a Higher Power.AA-related 'Alconym'H E A L  =   Helping Every Alcoholic Live.To Unsu ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 12, 2023Program of ActionThough I had been only a nominal churchman, their proposals were not, intellectually, hard to swallow. But the program of action, though entirely sensible, was pretty drastic. It meant I would have to throw several lifelong conceptions out of the window. That was not easy. But the moment I made up my mind to go through with the process, I had the curious feeling that my alcoholic condition was relieved, as in fact it proved to be.- Alcoholic ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 11, 2023IndecisionIn thinking about our day we may face indecision. We may not be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy. We don’t struggle. We are often surprised how the right answers come after we have tried this for a while.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 86Thought to Ponder . . .The Three "P's" -- Pause, Pray, Proceed.AA-related 'Alconym'A S A P &n ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)September 10, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Trust GodPerhaps there is a better way—we think so. For we are now on a different basis; the basis of trusting and relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite selves. We are in the world to play the role He assigns. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would have us, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to match calamity with serenity.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (How It Works) p. 68Thought to PonderTake a ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 9, 2023JustificationIn some circumstances we have gone out deliberately to get drunk, feeling ourselves justified by nervousness, anger, worry, depression, jealousy or the like. But even in this type of beginning we are obliged to admit that our justification for a spree was insanely insufficient in the light of what always happened.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 37Thought to Ponder . . .When I choose the behavior, I choose the consequences.AA-re ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 8, 2023DisturbedWe had to see that when we harbored grudges and planned revenge for such defeats, we were really beating ourselves with the club of anger we had intended to use on others. We learned that if we were seriously disturbed, our first need was to quiet that disturbance, regardless of who or what we thought caused it.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Four) p. 47Thought to Ponder . . .The road to resentment is paved with expectations.AA-related 'A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 7, 2023Accept RealityAbove all, we reject fantasizing and accept reality. . . I lived in a dream world. A.A. led me gently from this fantasizing to embrace reality with open arms. And I found it beautiful! For, at last, I was at peace with myself. And with others. And with God.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (To Handle Sobriety) p. 559Thought to Ponder . . .The Twelve Steps -- a manuscript for rational living.AA-related 'Alconym'A G O  =   Another Growth Opportuni ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 6, 2023Absolutely UnableBut the actual or potential alcoholic, with hardly an exception, will be absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge. This is a point we wish to emphasize and re-emphasize, to smash home upon our alcoholic readers as it has been revealed to us out of bitter experience.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 39Thought to Ponder . . .Pride in my intelligence blinded me to how much I did not know.AA-related 'Alco ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 5, 2023Quality or QuantityTo clergymen, doctors, friends, and families, the alcoholic who means well and tries hard is a heartbreaking riddle. To most A.A.'s, he is not. There are too many of us who have been just like him, and have found the riddle's answer. This answer has to do with the quality of faith rather than its quantity. This has been our blind spot.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Two) p. 32Thought to Ponder . . .Faith is mighty. Action with f ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 4, 2023Instinct Run WildAlcoholics especially should be able to see that instinct run wild in themselves is the underlying cause of their destructive drinking. We have drunk to drown feelings of fear, frustration, and depression. We have drunk to escape the guilt of passions, and then have drunk again to make more passions possible. We have drunk for vainglory—that we might the more enjoy foolish dreams of pomp and power. This perverse soul-sickness is not pleasant ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)September 3, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Higher PowerThey flatly declare that since they have come to believe in a Power greater than themselves, to take a certain attitude toward that Power, and to do certain simple things, there has been a revolutionary change in their way of living and thinking. In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of the total failure of their human resources, they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into t ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 2, 2023Avoiding an InventoryWe also clutch at another wonderful excuse for avoiding an inventory. Our present anxieties and troubles, we cry, are caused by the behavior of other people—people who really need a moral inventory. We firmly believe that if only they’d treat us better, we’d be all right. Therefore we think our indignation is justified and reasonable—that our resentments are the “right kind.” We aren’t the guilty ones. They are!- Twelve Steps and Twelve T ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)September 1, 2023The First DrinkOnce more: The alcoholic at certain times has no effective mental defense against the first drink. Except in a few rare cases, neither he nor any other human being can provide such a defense. His defense must come from a Higher Power.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 43Thought to Ponder . . .The ultimate defense against the first drink is a spiritual one.AA-related 'Alconym'F A I T H  =   Found Always In Trusting Him. ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 31, 2023Self-seekerAdmitting he may be somewhat at fault, he is sure that other people are more to blame. He becomes angry, indignant, self-pitying. What is his basic trouble? Is he not really a self-seeker even when trying to be kind? Is he not a victim of the delusion that he can wrest satisfaction and happiness out of this world if he only manages well?- Alcoholics Anonymous, (How It Works) p. 61Thought to Ponder . . .When I choose the behavior, I choose the consequ ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 30, 2023A Simple RelianceWhen we saw others solve their problems by a simple reliance upon the Spirit of the Universe, we had to stop doubting the power of God. Our ideas did not work. But the God idea did.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 52Thought to Ponder . . .Hope leads to faith if you let it.AA-related 'Alconym'G R O W T H  =   God Reveals Other Ways To Heal.To Unsubscribe - Click Here_Subscription Reminder_   You're Subscribed to:&nbs ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 29, 2023If We Are PainstakingIf we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) pp. 83 - 84Thought to Ponder . . .We cannot find peace by avoiding life.AA-related 'Alconym'H J F  =   Happy, ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 28, 2023FellowshipWe are people who normally would not mix. But there exists among us a fellowship, a friendliness, and an understanding which is indescribably wonderful. We are like the passengers of a great liner the moment after rescue from shipwreck when camaraderie, joyousness and democracy pervade the vessel from steerage to Captain’s table. Unlike the feelings of the ship’s passengers, however, our joy in escape from disaster does not subside as we go our indivi ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)August 27, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~AcceptanceAcceptance is the key to my relationship with God today. I never just sit and do nothing while waiting for Him to tell me what to do. Rather, I do whatever is in front of me to be done, and I leave the results up to Him; however it turns out, that’s God’s will for me. I must keep my magic magnifying mind on my acceptance and off my expectations, for my serenity is directly proportional to my level of acceptance.- Alcoholics An ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 26, 2023Certain ConsequencesThe almost certain consequences that follow taking even a glass of beer do not crowd into the mind to deter us. If these thoughts occur, they are hazy and readily supplanted with the old threadbare idea that this time we shall handle ourselves like other people. There is a complete failure of the kind of defense that keeps one from putting his hand on a hot stove.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (There Is A Solution) p. 24Thought to Ponder . . .Insan ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 25, 2023The Jumping-off PlaceInwardly he would give anything to take half a dozen drinks and get away with them. He will presently try the old game again, for he isn’t happy about his sobriety. He cannot picture life without alcohol. Some day he will be unable to imagine life either with alcohol or without it. Then he will know loneliness such as few do. He will be at the jumping-off place. He will wish for the end.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (A Vision For You) p. 152Thoug ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 24, 2023True KinshipBut we soon discovered that while we weren't alone any more in a social sense, we still suffered many of the old pangs of anxious apartness. Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn't belong. Step Five was the answer. It was the beginning of true kinship with man and God. - Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Five) p. 57Thought to Ponder . . .To the world, you ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 23, 2023PridePride lures us into making demands upon ourselves or upon others which cannot be met without perverting or misusing our God-given instincts. When the satisfaction of our instincts for sex, security, and society becomes the sole object of our lives, then pride steps in to justify our excesses.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Four) p. 49Thought to Ponder . . .Swallowing my pride will not get me drunk.AA-related 'Alconym'J A D E  =   Just ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 22, 2023New MeaningLife will take on new meaning. To watch people recover, to see them help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up about you, to have a host of friends—this is an experience you must not miss. We know you will not want to miss it. Frequent contact with newcomers and with each other is the bright spot of our lives.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 89Thought to Ponder . . .Get it - Give it - Grow in it.AA-related 'A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 21, 2023A Few Set PrayersIf not members of religious bodies, we sometimes select and memorize a few set prayers which emphasize the principles we have been discussing. There are many helpful books also. Suggestions about these may be obtained from one’s priest, minister, or rabbi. Be quick to see where religious people are right. Make use of what they offer.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 87Thought to Ponder . . .Trying to pray is praying.AA-related 'Alconym'A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)August 20, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Worse, Never BetterAll of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals—usually brief—were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization. We are convinced to a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 30Thought to Po ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 19, 2023The Insane IdeaBut there was always the curious mental phenomenon that parallel with our sound reasoning there inevitably ran some insanely trivial excuse for taking the first drink. Our sound reasoning failed to hold us in check. The insane idea won out. Next day we would ask ourselves, in all earnestness and sincerity, how it could have happened.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 37Thought to Ponder . . .One is too many and 100 is not enough.A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 18, 2023An Answer For YouIf you still think you are strong enough to beat the game alone, that is your affair. But if you really and truly want to quit drinking liquor for good and all, and sincerely feel that you must have some help, we know that we have an answer for you. It never fails, if you go about it with one half the zeal you have been in the habit of showing when you were getting another drink. Your Heavenly Father will never let you down!- Alcoholics Anonymo ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 17, 2023Prepare OurselvesThis feeling of being at one with God and man, this emerging from isolation through the open and honest sharing of our terrible burden of guilt, brings us to a resting place where we may prepare ourselves for the following Steps toward a full and meaningful sobriety.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Five) p. 62Thought to Ponder . . .Once we clear a hurdle, it doesn't seem so high.AA-related 'Alconym'C H A N G E D  =   Choosi ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 16, 2023Our Motives and ActionsWhat real harm, therefore, had we done? No more, surely, than we could easily mend with a few casual apologies. This attitude, of course, is the end result of purposeful forgetting. It is an attitude which can only be changed by a deep and honest search of our motives and actions.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eight) p. 79Thought to Ponder . . .It is the highest form of self-respect to admit mistakes and to make amends for th ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 15, 2023The Deadly BusinessBeginning with Step Four, we commenced to search out the things in ourselves which had brought us to physical, moral, and spiritual bankruptcy. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory. Looking at Step Five, we decided that an inventory, taken alone, wouldn't be enough. We knew we would have to quit the deadly business of living alone with our conflicts, and in honesty confide these to God and another human being.- Twelve Steps and Tw ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 14, 2023Misuse of WillpowerAll of the Twelve Steps require sustained and personal exertion to conform to their principles and so, we trust, to God's will. It is when we try to make our will conform with God's that we begin to use it rightly. To all of us, this was a most wonderful revelation. Our whole trouble had been the misuse of willpower. We had tried to bombard our problems with it instead of attempting to bring it into agreement with God's intention for us.- Twe ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)August 13, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Are We Ready?If we would gain any real advantage in the use of this Step on problems other than alcohol, we shall need to make a brand new venture into open- mindedness. We shall need to raise our eyes toward perfection, and be ready to walk in that direction. It will seldom matter how haltingly we walk. The only question will be "Are we ready?"- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Six) p. 68Thought to PonderIf I want Go ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 12, 2023Dear Readers, I put the wrong reference in yesterday's Daily Thought.  It should have read that it was from Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action, p. 85).  I'll be more vigilant in making sure the reference is correct in the future.  Keenly RealizedBy this time, at Step Ten, we had begun to get a basis for daily living, and we keenly realized that we would need to continue taking personal inventory, and that when we were in the wrong we ou ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 11, 2023Headed For TroubleIt is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe. We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition. Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God’s will into all of our activities. "How can I best serve Thee—Thy will (not mine) be done."- Twelve Steps ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 10, 2023Only By ActionLike all the remaining Steps, Step Three calls for affirmative action, for it is only by action that we can cut away the self-will which has always blocked the entry of God—or, if you like, a Higher Power—into our lives. Faith, to be sure, is necessary, but faith alone can avail nothing. We can have faith, yet keep God out of our lives.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Three) p. 34Thought to Ponder . . .Willpower ... our will-ingness to ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 9, 2023True PartnershipBut it is from our twisted relations with family, friends, and society at large that many of us have suffered the most. We have been especially stupid and stubborn about them. The primary fact that we fail to recognize is our total inability to form a true partnership with another human being.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Four) p. 53Thought to Ponder . . .We're not living just to be sober; we are living to learn, to serve, and to lo ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 8, 2023Once An Alcoholic . . .We have seen the truth demonstrated again and again: "Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic." Commencing to drink after a period of sobriety, we are in a short time as bad as ever. If we are planning to stop drinking, there must be no reservation of any kind, nor any lurking notion that someday we will be immune to alcohol.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 33Thought to Ponder . . .If you want to drink, that's yo ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 7, 2023Two AlternativesIf you are as seriously alcoholic as we were, we believe there is no middle-of-the-road solution. We were in a position where life was becoming impossible, and if we had passed into the region from which there is no return through human aid, we had but two alternatives: One was to go on to the bitter end, blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable situation as best we could; and the other, to accept spiritual help.- Alcoholics Anonymous, ( ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)August 6, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Step SevenThe whole emphasis of Step Seven is on humility. It is really saying to us that we now ought to be willing to try humility in seeking the removal of our other shortcomings just as we did when we admitted that we were powerless over alcohol, and came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Seven) p. 76Thought to PonderI can't. God can. I'll ask Him to. ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 5, 2023Willing to BelieveCircumstances made him willing to believe. He humbly offered himself to his Maker—then he knew. Even so has God restored us all to our right minds. To this man, the revelation was sudden. Some of us grow into it more slowly. But He has come to all who have honestly sought Him. When we drew near to Him He disclosed Himself to us!- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 57Thought to Ponder . . .Hold your face up to the Light, even though for the ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 4, 2023Was I Crazy?Shortly afterward I came home drunk. There had been no fight. Where had been my high resolve? I simply didn’t know. It hadn't even come to mind. Someone had pushed a drink my way, and I had taken it. Was I crazy? I began to wonder, for such an appalling lack of perspective seemed near being just that.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Bill's Story) p. 5Thought to Ponder . . .Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.AA-relate ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 3, 2023The Ex-problem DrinkerBut the ex-problem drinker who has found this solution, who is properly armed with facts about himself, can generally win the entire confidence of another alcoholic in a few hours. Until such an understanding is reached, little or nothing can be accomplished.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (There Is A Solution) p. 18Thought to Ponder . . .Together we can do what we could never do alone.AA-related 'Alconym'E S & H  =   Experience, Stre ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 2, 2023The Alcoholic IllnessAn illness of this sort—and we have come to believe it an illness—involves those about us in a way no other human sickness can. If a person has cancer all are sorry for him and no one is angry or hurt. But not so with the alcoholic illness, for with it there goes annihilation of all the things worth while in life. It engulfs all whose lives touch the sufferer’s.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (There Is A Solution) p. 18Thought to Ponder . . .We were ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)August 1, 2023The ParadoxSuch is the paradox of AA regeneration: strength arising out of complete defeat and weakness, the loss of one's old life as a condition for finding a new one. But we of AA do not have to understand this paradox, we have only to be grateful for it.- Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, p. 46Thought to Ponder . . .Paradox: We surrender to win; we give away to keep; we suffer to get well; we die to live.AA-related 'Alconym'T H I N K  =   Thank He ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 31, 2023PrayerTherefore, we ought to consider each request carefully to see what its real merit is. Even so, when making specific requests, it will be well to add to each one of them this qualification: "…if it be Thy will." We ask simply that throughout the day God place in us the best understanding of His will that we can have for that day, and that we be given the grace by which we may carry it out.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eleven) p. 102Th ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 30, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Thy Will, Not MineEvery day is a day when we must carry the vision of God’s will into all of our activities. "How can I best serve Thee—Thy will (not mine) be done." These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. We can exercise our will power along this line all we wish. It is the proper use of the will.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 85Thought to PonderAA is not something we join; it's a way of life.AA-related ' ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 29, 2023One Primary PurposeTradition Five: "Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers." For us, if we neglect those who are still sick, there is unremitting danger to our own lives and sanity. Under these compulsions of self-preservation, duty, and love, it is not strange that our Society has concluded that it has but one high mission—to carry the A.A. message to those who don't know there's a way out.- Twelv ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 28, 2023Fellowship of the SpiritAbandon yourself to God as you understand God. Admit your faults to Him and to your fellows. Clear away the wreckage of your past. Give freely of what you find and join us. We shall be with you in the Fellowship of the Spirit, and you will surely meet some of us as you trudge the Road of Happy Destiny. May God bless you and keep you—until then.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (A Vision For You) p. 164Thought to Ponder . . .Faith is our greatest gif ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 27, 2023Trials and Low SpotsFaith without works was dead, he said. And how appallingly true for the alcoholic! For if an alcoholic failed to perfect and enlarge his spiritual life through work and self-sacrifice for others, he could not survive the certain trials and low spots ahead. If he did not work, he would surely drink again, and if he drank, he would surely die. Then faith would be dead indeed. With us it is just like that.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Bill's Story) pp ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 26, 2023Our ChoiceWhen we became alcoholics, crushed by a self-imposed crisis we could not postpone or evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition that either God is everything or else He is nothing. God either is, or He isn’t. What was our choice to be?- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 53Thought to Ponder . . .No God, no peace --- know God, know peace.AA-related 'Alconym'W I L L I N G  =   When I Live Life, I Need God.To Unsubscribe - Click Here_S ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 25, 2023Magnificent RealityNow, what about the rest of the Twelfth Step? The wonderful energy it releases and the eager action by which it carries our message to the next suffering alcoholic and which finally translates the Twelve Steps into action upon all our affairs is the payoff, the magnificent reality, of Alcoholics Anonymous.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Twelve) p. 109Thought to Ponder . . .Sobriety is not a destination, but an everlasting journey.AA ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 24, 2023Working FaithThis lack of anchorage to any permanent values, this blindness to the true purpose of our lives, produced another bad result. For just so long as we were convinced that we could live exclusively by our own individual strength and intelligence, for just that long was a working faith in a Higher Power impossible. This was true even when we believed that God existed.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Seven) p. 72Thought to Ponder . . .I ca ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 23, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~ForgivenessWe've repeatedly strained the patience of our best friends to a snapping point, and have brought out the very worst in those who didn't think much of us to begin with. In many instances we are really dealing with fellow sufferers, people whose woes we have increased. If we are now about to ask forgiveness for ourselves, why shouldn't we start out by forgiving them, one and all?- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eight) ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 22, 2023Ghosts of YesterdayIf we have swept the searchlight of Step Four back and forth over our careers, and it has revealed in stark relief those experiences we'd rather not remember, if we have come to know how wrong thinking and action have hurt us and others, then the need to quit living by ourselves with those tormenting ghosts of yesterday gets more urgent than ever. We have to talk to somebody about them.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Five) p. 55 &nb ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 21, 2023Entire Psychic ChangeAfter they have succumbed to the desire again, as so many do, and the phenomenon of craving develops, they pass through the well-known stages of a spree, emerging remorseful, with a firm resolution not to drink again. This is repeated over and over, and unless this person can experience an entire psychic change there is very little hope of his recovery.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (The Doctors Opinion,) p. xxixThought to Ponder . . .Insanity - Doi ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 20, 2023Looking BackWhen we look back, we realize that the things which came to us when we put ourselves in God’s hands were better than anything we could have planned. Follow the dictates of a Higher Power and you will presently live in a new and wonderful world, no matter what your present circumstances!- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 100Thought to Ponder . . .Perhaps stop trying so hard to understand God and just accept that God is.AA-related 'Alconym ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 19, 2023Carry This MessagePractical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics. It works when other activities fail. This is our twelfth suggestion: Carry this message to other alcoholics! You can help when no one else can. You can secure their confidence when others fail.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 89Thought to Ponder . . .All of AA's suggestions are free. The ones I don't take ar ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 18, 2023No DefenseOnce more: The alcoholic at certain times has no effective mental defense against the first drink. Except in a few cases, neither he nor any other human being can provide such a defense. His defense must come from a Higher Power.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 43Thought to Ponder . . .The ultimate defense against the first drink is a spiritual one.AA-related 'Alconym'G I F T  =   God Is Forever There.Thank you for shari ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 17, 2023HarmonyCourtesy, kindness, justice, and love are the keynotes by which we may come into harmony with practically anybody. When in doubt we can always pause, saying, "Not my will, but Thine, be done." And we can often ask ourselves, "Am I doing to others as I would have them do to me—today?"- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Ten) p. 93Thought to Ponder . . .I’m not what I think or feel, I am what I do.AA-related 'Alconym'L O V E   ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 16, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Willingness to BelieveLet us make haste to reassure you. We found that as soon as we were able to lay aside prejudice and express even a willingness to believe in a Power greater than ourselves, we commenced to get results, even though it was impossible for any of us to fully define or comprehend that Power, which is God.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 46Thought to PonderI came, I came to, I came to believe.AA-related 'Alconym'W ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 15, 2023Four HorsemenSome of us sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding companionship and approval. Momentarily we did—then would come oblivion and the awful awakening to face the hideous Four Horsemen—Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (A Vision For You) p. 151Thought to Ponder . . .When I share my story and remember the last days of my drinking, I remember the desperation of selling the last pieces of my soul.AA-related 'A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 14, 2023Step EightA quiet, objective view will be our steadfast aim. Whenever our pencil falters, we can fortify and cheer ourselves by remembering what A.A. experience in this Step has meant to others. It is the beginning of the end of isolation from our fellows and from God.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eight) p. 82Thought to Ponder . . .Life begins at the end of our comfort zone.AA-related 'Alconym'A A  =   Accountable Actions.Thank you fo ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 13, 2023Lost Faith"The here and now was good enough for us. The will to win would carry us through. But then alcohol began to have its way with us. Finally, when all our score cards read 'zero,' and we saw that one more strike would put us out of the game forever, we had to look for our lost faith. It was in A.A, that we rediscovered it. And so can you."- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Two) p. 29Thought to Ponder . . .Take the first step in faith. Yo ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 12, 2023Singlehanded CombatThe tyrant alcohol wielded a double-edged sword over us: first we were smitten by an insane urge that condemned us to go on drinking, and then by an allergy of the body that insured we would ultimately destroy ourselves in the process. Few indeed were those who, so assailed, had ever won through in singlehanded combat.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step One) p. 22Thought to Ponder . . .I can't. God can. I'll ask Him to.AA-related 'Alcon ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 11, 2023Humility and ResponsibilityAll A.A. progress can be reckoned in terms of just two words: humility and responsibility. Our whole spiritual development can be accurately measured by our degree of adherence to these magnificent standards. Ever deepening humility, accompanied by an ever greater willingness to accept and to act upon clear cut obligations—these are truly our touchstones for all growth in the life of the spirit. They hold up to us the very essence of ri ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 10, 2023Growing UpHere again we are presented with the temptation to overmanage things, and sometimes this results in rebuffs and other consequences which are hard to take. But in the longer run we clearly realize that these are only the pains of growing up, and nothing but good can come from them if we turn more and more to the entire Twelve Steps for the answers.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Twelve) p. 111Thought to Ponder . . .A. A. is an education witho ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 9, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Miraculous DemonstrationsActually we were fooling ourselves, for deep down in every man, woman, and child, is the fundamental idea of God. It may be obscured by calamity, by pomp, by worship of other things, but in some form or other it is there. For faith in a Power greater than ourselves, and miraculous demonstrations of that power in human lives, are facts as old as man himself.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 55Thought to Pond ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 8, 2023Profound Personality Change"It has often been said of A.A. that we are interested only on alcoholism. That is not true. We have to get over drinking in order to stay alive. But anyone who knows the alcoholic personality by firsthand contact knows that no true alky ever stops drinking permanently without undergoing a profound personality change."- As Bill Sees It, (Personality Change) no. 1Thought to Ponder . . .If I don't change, my sobriety date will.AA ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 7, 2023PainSomeone who knew what he was talking about once remarked that pain was the touchstone of all spiritual progress. How heartily we A.A.'s can agree with him, for we know that the pains of alcoholism had to come before sobriety, and emotional turmoil before serenity.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Ten) pp. 93 - 94Thought to Ponder . . .The gritty pain of alcoholism is the traction of recovery.AA-related 'Alconym'H O P E  =   Hold On, Pain En ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 6, 2023Worse RelapseWe are like men who have lost their legs; they never grow new ones. Neither does there appear to be any kind of treatment which will make alcoholics of our kind like other men. We have tried every imaginable remedy. In some instances there has been brief recovery, followed always by a still worse relapse.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) pp. 30 - 31Thought to Ponder . . .Sobriety without action is fantasy.AA-related 'Alconym'I S M   ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 5, 2023My apologies for the lateness of today's thought. I changed the clock on my computer while I'm in the states and miscalculated the time difference with the Daily Thought server.Best Possible RelationsSteps Eight and Nine are concerned with personal relationships. First, we take a look backward and try to discover where we have been at fault; next we make a vigorous attempt to repair the damage we have done; and third, having thus cleaned away the debris of the pas ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 4, 2023The High RoadUpon therapy for the alcoholic himself, we surely have no monopoly. Yet it is our great hope that all those who have as yet found no answer may begin to find one in the pages of this book and will presently join us on the high road to a new freedom.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Foreward to the Second Edition) p. xxiThought to Ponder . . .Within our wonderful new world, we have found freedom from our fatal obsession.AA-related 'Alconym'H J F  =   ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 3, 2023Building CharacterIf we ask, God will certainly forgive our derelictions. But in no case does He render us white as snow and keep us that way without our cooperation. That is something we are supposed to be willing to work toward ourselves. He asks only that we try as best we know how to make progress in the building of character.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Six) p. 65Thought to Ponder . . .If I want God to remove my character defects, I'll have to ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 2, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Suddenly RealizeWe are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace... ...We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) pp. 83 - 84Thought to PonderGod is my only sou ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)July 2, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Suddenly RealizeWe are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace... ...We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) pp. 83 - 84Thought to PonderGod is my only sou ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)July 1, 2023Spirit of IntoleranceWe are careful never to show intolerance or hatred of drinking as an institution. Experience shows that such an attitude is not helpful to anyone. Every new alcoholic looks for this spirit among us and is immensely relieved when he finds we are not witchburners. A spirit of intolerance might repel alcoholics whose lives could have been saved, had it not been for such stupidity.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 103Thought to Pond ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 30, 2023Willing to Believe?We needed to ask ourselves but one short question. "Do I now believe, or am I even willing to believe, that there is a Power greater than myself?" As soon as a man can say that he does believe, or is willing to believe, we emphatically assure him that he is on his way. It has been repeatedly proven among us that upon this simple cornerstone a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be built.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 29, 2023ReparationWhen your prospect has made such reparation as he can to his family, and has thoroughly explained to them the new principles by which he is living, he should proceed to put those principles into action at home. That is, if he is lucky enough to have a home. Though his family be at fault in many respects, he should not be concerned about that. He should concentrate on his own spiritual demonstration.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 98Thou ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 28, 2023Burn the IdeaBurn the idea into the consciousness of every man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is that he trust in God and clean house.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 98Thought to Ponder . . .Who we are is not dependent upon someone else's opinion.AA-related 'Alconym'T R U S T  =   Try Relying Upon Steps and Traditions.Thank you for sharing so generously of your experience, strength and hope in carryin ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 27, 2023Sense of ReliefPride says, “You need not pass this way,” and Fear says, “You dare not look!” But the testimony of A.A.'s who have really tried a moral inventory is that pride and fear of this sort turn out to be bogeymen, nothing else. Once we have a complete willingness to take inventory, and exert ourselves to do the job thoroughly, a wonderful light falls upon this foggy scene. As we persist, a brand-new kind of confidence is born, and the sense of relief at f ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 26, 2023MeditationBut its object is always the same: to improve our conscious contact with God, with His grace, wisdom, and love. And let's always remember that meditation is in reality intensely practical. One of its first fruits is emotional balance. With it we can broaden and deepen the channel between ourselves and God as we understand Him.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eleven) pp. 101 - 102Thought to Ponder . . .Prayer asks the question. Meditation list ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)June 25, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~SponsoringIf he is sincerely interested and wants to see you again, ask him to read this book in the interval. After doing that, he must decide for himself whether he wants to go on. He should not be pushed or prodded by you, his wife, or his friends. If he is to find God, the desire must come from within.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) p. 95Thought to PonderAA is not for people who need it, it's not even for people who want ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 24, 2023Constructively ReviewWhen we retire at night, we constructively review our day. Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Do we owe an apology? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all? What could we have done better? . . . After making our review we ask God’s forgiveness and inquire what corrective measures should be taken.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 86Though ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 23, 2023Great ObsessionTherefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 30Thought to Ponder . . .When ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 22, 2023Ceased FightingAnd we have ceased fighting anything or anyone—even alcohol. For by this time sanity will have returned. We will seldom be interested in liquor. If tempted, we recoil from it as from a hot flame. We react sanely and normally, and we will find that this has happened automatically. We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been given us without any thought or effort on our part. It just comes! That is the miracle of it.- Alcoholics Anonymou ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 21, 2023These BedevilmentsWe were having trouble with personal relationships, we couldn’t control our emotional natures, we were a prey to misery and depression, we couldn’t make a living, we had a feeling of uselessness, we were full of fear, we were unhappy, we couldn’t seem to be of real help to other people—was not a basic solution of these bedevilments more important than whether we should see newsreels of lunar flight? Of course it was.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (We A ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 20, 2023Enjoying LifeWe have been speaking to you of serious, sometimes tragic things. We have been dealing with alcohol in its worst aspect. But 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.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (The Family Afterward) p. 132Thought to Ponder . . .As long as you can laugh at yourself, you will never cease to be amused.AA-related 'Alconym'H J F  =   Ha ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 19, 2023Relationship With GodLet no alcoholic say he cannot recover unless he has his family back. This just isn’t so. In some cases the wife will never come back for one reason or another. Remind the prospect that his recovery is not dependent upon people. It is dependent upon his relationship with God.- Alcoholics Anonymous, (Working With Others) pp. 99 - 100Thought to Ponder . . .Dependence on God is our chief source of strength.AA-related 'Alconym'G I F T  = &nb ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy AA-Alive.net)June 18, 2023~ Scroll Down for Share ~Dependence on GodWhen we developed still more, we discovered the best possible source of emotional stability to be God Himself. We found that dependence upon His perfect justice, forgiveness, and love was healthy, and that it would work where nothing else would.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Twelve) p. 116Thought to PonderWe will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.AA-related 'Alconym' ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 17, 2023To Try Repeatedly"This is the Step that separates the men from the boys." So declares a well-loved clergyman who happens to be one of A.A.'s greatest friends. He goes on to explain that any person capable of enough willingness and honesty to try repeatedly Step Six on all his faults—without any reservations whatever—has indeed come a long way spiritually, and is therefore entitled to be called a man who is sincerely trying to grow in the image and liken ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 16, 2023We Ask Each MorningWe ought to sit down with the family and frankly analyze the past as we now see it, being very careful not to criticize them. Their defects may be glaring, but the chances are that our own actions are partly responsible. So we clean house with the family, asking each morning in meditation that our Creator show us the way of patience, tolerance, kindliness and love. The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it.- Alcoholics Anonymous, ( ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day(courtesy aa-alive.net)June 15, 2023Step EightWe shall want to hold ourselves to the course of admitting the thingswe have done, meanwhile forgiving the wrongs done us, real or fancied. We should avoid extreme judgments, both of ourselves and of others involved. We must not exaggerate our defects or theirs. A quiet, objective view will be our steadfast aim.- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Eight) pp. 81 - 82Thought to Ponder . . .The 3 A's -- Awareness, Acceptance, Action.AA-related 'Alco ...Continue Reading