*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *December 1, 2016* *Fellowship* Life 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. /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 89 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Life will take on new meaning. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *T L C* = **T**ears, **L**aughter, **C**aring. Thanks to ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 30, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ *Ask for Help** Finally beaten, I asked for God’s help.  His presence told me to believe. My obsession for alcohol was taken away and my paranoia has since been lifted. I am no longer afraid.  I know my life is healthy and sane. /- Daily Reflections,/ p. 46 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Simply asking for help seems to be a help in itself. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *H E L P** = **H**is **E**ver-**L**oving **P**res ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 29, 2016* *Love* To my mind, love is /giving/, not necessarily in material things, but in kindness, in ignoring faults, in thinking primarily in terms of the welfare and happiness of the beloved.  The more you give, the more you love. Maybe that’s why parents seem to love their children more than their children love their parents. /- The Best of the Grapevine/ [Vol. 2], pp. 196-197 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Love is a gift that must keep on giving to be ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 28, 2016* *Prayer* Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers. . . . As the body can fail its purpose for lack of nourishment, so can the soul. /- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions,/ p. 97 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Trying to pray is praying. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *A S A P* = **A**lways * ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 27, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ *Becoming** I must look inside myself, to free myself. I must call upon God’s power to face the person I’ve feared the most, the true me, the person God created me to be. Unless I can or until I do, I will always be running, and never be truly free. /- Daily Reflections,/ p. 107 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Life will take on new meaning. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *H J F** = **H**appy, **J**oyous, **F**ree. ** **A Member S ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 26, 2016* *Giving Thanks* I try to hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful heart cannot entertain great conceits. When brimming with gratitude, one's heartbeat must surely result in outgoing love, the finest emotion that we can ever know. /- As Bill Sees It,/ p. 37 *Thought to Ponder . . .* I have learned how a heart full of gratitude feels. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *H O P E* = **H**eart **O**pen; **P**lease **E**nter. Thanks to all of you for ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 25, 2016* *A Touch of Serenity* I was learning that I had a disease and that I could do something about it. A great weight seemed to be lifting off my shoulders — and out of my life. I often took long walks in the woods.  It was December and snow had already fallen. One afternoon as I was walking in the woods, it suddenly came to me that I was more at peace with myself than I could recall ever having been. A first touch of serenity had come to me. I exp ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 24, 2016* *Holiday 'Blues'* If there is any message here for those coming to our Fellowship new and shaky in the late fall, it is this: Hang on; stick close; live for the day or the moment; don't let the mechanical reactions of the past sneak up on you; don't spoil the present, imperfect as it may seem, with a single shot, a single glass of enticingly sparkling wine. The sense of accomplishment and /comfortableness/ that follows on making it through one's fi ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 23, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ *Growth** When 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,/ p. 52 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Change is inevitable, growth is optional. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *G R O W T H** = **G**od **R**eveals **O**ther **W**ays **T**o **H**eal. ** **A Member Shares:** G ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 22, 2016* *The Riddle* Opinions vary considerably as to why the alcoholic reacts differently from normal people. We are not sure why, once a certain point is reached, little can be done for him. We cannot answer the riddle.  We know that while the alcoholic keeps away from drink, as he may do for months or years, he reacts much like other men. We are equally positive that once he takes any alcohol whatever into his system, something happens, both in the ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 21, 2016* *Prayer* In AA, we have found that the actual good results of prayer are beyond question. They are matters of knowledge and experience. All those who have persisted have found strength not ordinarily their own. They have found wisdom beyond their usual capability. And they increasingly found a peace of mind which can stand firm in the face of difficult circumstances. - /Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions,/ p. 105 *Thought to Ponder . . .* I never ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 20, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ *A Symptom** Our liquor was but a symptom. We had to get down to causes and conditions. /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 64 *Thought to Ponder . . .* I want the gift of an untroubled mind. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *H O W** = **H**onesty, **O**pen-mindedness, **W**illingness, ** **A Member Shares:** Hi everyone, I'm Lisa, an alcoholic.  I went to my trusted old dictionary for a definition — this time for the definitio ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 19, 2016* *The Right Thing* Reminding ourselves that we have decided to go to any lengths to find a spiritual experience, we ask that we be given strength and direction to do the right thing, no matter what the personal consequences may be. We may lose our position or reputation or face jail, but we are willing. We have to be.  We must not shrink at anything. - /Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 79 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Happiness is the result doing our ne ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 18, 2016* *A Bright Idea* I woke up Saturday morning after the beginners meeting with the answer absolutely clear: Religion was something taught me, acquired, an external experience, while spirituality welled up from within, and required no education, no Torah or Bible, no shaman or priest. I believe my Higher Power led me to this explanation, as it was too clear and bright idea for so early in the morning! - /Thank You for Sharing,/ p. 199 *Thought to Pond ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *November 17, 2016* *Silence* To meditate means I have to become willing to sit alone in silence — and endure silence patiently. It means trusting the silence around me for a while, as if it were an answer I had long sought. - /The Best of the Grapevine/ [Vol. 3], p. 217 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Meditation is our step out into the sun. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *G R A C E* = **G**ently **R**eleasing **A**ll **C**onscious **E**xpectations. Thanks to all of you f ...Continue Reading