*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 13, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ The Doctor's Opinion Frothy emotional appeal seldom suffices. The message which can interest and hold these alcoholic people must have depth and weight. In nearly all these cases, their ideals must be grounded in a power greater than themselves, if they are to re-create their lives.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. xxviii *Thought to Ponder . . .* *So often times it happens that we live our lives in chains and we never even k ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 12, 2016* *Tradition One* /"Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity."/ *At first nearly every alcoholic we approached began to slip, if indeed he sobered up at all. Others would stay dry six months or maybe a year and then take a skid.  This was always a genuine catastrophe. We would look at each other and say, "Who next?"  We were afraid that alcohol might completely undo us. But today (195 ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 11, 2016* *Habits* *Our drinking was connected with many habits -- big and little. Some of them were thinking habits, or things we felt inside ourselves.  Others were doing habits -- things we did, actions we took. In getting used to not drinking, we have found that we needed new habits to take the place of those old ones. . . After we spent a few months practicing these new, sober habits or ways of acting and thinking, they became almost second nature t ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 10, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Tradition Twelve We of Alcoholics Anonymous believe that the principle of anonymity has an immense spiritual significance. It reminds us that we are to place principles before personalities; that we are actually to practice a genuine humility. This to the end that our great blessings may never spoil us; that we shall forever live in thankful contemplation of Him who presides over us all.* /- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditio ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 9, 2016* *Step One* /"We admitted we were powerless over alcohol -- that our lives had become unmanageable."/ *Who cares to admit complete defeat?  Practically no one, of course. Every natural instinct cries out against the idea of personal powerlessness. It is truly awful to admit that, glass in hand, we have warped our minds into such an obsession for destructive drinking that only an act of Providence can remove it from us.* /- Twelve Steps ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 8, 2016* *Defects* *What God wants me to do is rarely what I want to do. For instance, if I want to avoid or leave, God wants me to stay and handle. If I want to be understood or accepted by others, God wants me to try to understand or accept others a bit more. If I want to forget, God wants me to forgive. If I want to point the finger of blame at someone else, God wants me to see my part in creating the disaster. If I want to dislike someone because of a gra ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 7, 2016* *The Ladder* *No one who drank as I did wakes up on the edge of the abyss one morning and says: Things look pretty scary; I think I'd better stop drinking before I fall in. I was convinced I could go as far as I wanted, and then climb back out when it wasn't fun anymore. What happened was, I found myself at the bottom of the canyon thinking I'd never see the sun again. AA didn't pull me out of the hole.  It did give me the tools to construct a l ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 6, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Let Go, Let God When 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.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 100 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *L E T  G O** = **L**eave **E**verything **T**o **G**od, **O**kay? ** *A Member Shares: Hello everyone.  I'm ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 5, 2016* *Self-protection* *Now is the time, the only time there is.  And if we are not kind to ourselves right now, we certainly cannot rightfully expect respect or consideration from others. We have found we can enjoy, sober, every good thing we enjoyed while drinking -- and many, many more. It takes a little practice, but the rewards more than make up for the effort. To do so is not selfish, but self-protective.* /- Living Sober,/ p. 42 *Thought to P ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 4, 2016* *Action* *When we first come around AA, we're urged to do just what we are told. We might not like it, we might not even agree with it: just do it. When the action gets the predicted result, we're astonished and sometimes a little annoyed. But almost against our will, we come to understand and believe. We've never been able to achieve these ends by just thinking, but our action and its results can open the door to understanding and belief.* /- The Be ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 4, 2016* *Action* *When we first come around AA, we're urged to do just what we are told. We might not like it, we might not even agree with it: just do it. When the action gets the predicted result, we're astonished and sometimes a little annoyed. But almost against our will, we come to understand and believe. We've never been able to achieve these ends by just thinking, but our action and its results can open the door to understanding and belief.* /- The Be ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 3, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Miracles Since these things have happened among us, they can happen with you.  Should you wish them above all else, and be willing to make use of our experience, we are sure they will come. The age of miracles is still with us.  Our own recovery proves that!* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 153 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Life is an ongoing miracle. AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *W E** = **W**alls **E**vaporate. ** *A M ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 2, 2016* *Our Solution* *If 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. This we did ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *January 1, 2016* *Today* *Today is the day.  Doing our best, living each day to the fullest is the art of living. Yesterday is gone, and we don't know whether we will be here tomorrow. If we do a good job of living today, and if tomorrow comes for us, then the chances are we will do a good job when it arrives -- so why worry about it?* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 357 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Live each day with a little less fear and a little more faith.* *A ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *December 31, 2015* *Isolation* *Isolation sneaks up on us.  We can mask it with familiar props that are not in themselves bad. We can isolate ourselves in an attempt to clean up our apartments (and then not do the cleaning); we can isolate ourselves in churches or in sleep; we can use family, sweethearts, compulsive working, television. The list is long.  The nicest way to end it is the way you and I do: together.   Reach out -- people can't read your ...Continue Reading