*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 11, 2013* *Bankruptcy* *No other kind of bankruptcy is like this one. Alcohol, now become the rapacious creditor, bleeds us of all self-sufficiency and all will to resist its demands. Once this stark fact is accepted, our bankruptcy as going human concerns is complete. But upon entering AA we soon take quite another view of this absolute humiliation. We perceive that only through utter defeat are we able to take our first steps toward liberation and strength.* / ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 10, 2013 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Getting Involved I understand that service is a vital part of recovery but I often wonder, "What can I do?" I look around to see where there is a need. . . Suddenly, I'm involved! The best speaker may make the worst coffee; the member who's best with newcomers may be unable to read; the one willing to clean up may make a mess of the bank account -- these people and jobs are essential to an active gr ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 9, 2013* *Pride* *We alcoholics return to drink far more often because of petty difficulties than because of life's serious setbacks and tragedies. For God to remove our shortcomings, we need to identify the defect for what it is. Thus we attain the humility required by Step Seven. And certainly the most difficult fault to see in ourselves is pride, aptly termed the first deadly sin.* /The Best of the Grapevine/ [Vol. 3], p. 208 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Swall ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 8, 2013* *Humility* *Where humility had formerly stood for a forced feeding on humble pie, it now begins to mean the nourishing ingredient which can give us serenity. This improved perception of humility starts another revolutionary change in our outlook. Our eyes begin to open to the immense values which have come straight out of painful ego-puncturing.* /Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions,/ p. 74 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Humility is not a station we arrive ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 7, 2013 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Surrender 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 . . .* *Avoidance is not the key; surrender opens the door.* *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* **S W A T** = **S**urrender, **W**illingness, **A**ction, **T**rust. * A Member Shares: My name is Lance and I ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 6, 2013* *This Precious Gift* *None of us can ever fathom the glories and the uncharted regions of the universe. But we /can/ live on earth and love one another. We can let in the beginnings of /concern, compassion, consideration,/ and watch ourselves grow. With the tools and guideposts of Alcoholics Anonymous, we can learn a little of this precious gift -- our gateway to human spirituality.* /Came to Believe . . .,/ p. 120 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *The Three ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 5, 2013* *Today* *Today my thoughts are not consumed with craving for the next drink or regret for the damage I did on the last drunk. Today I reside among the living, no better, no worse than any of God's children. Today I look in the mirror when putting on my makeup and smile, rather than shy away from looking myself in the eye. Today I fit in my skin. I am at peace with myself and the world around me.* /Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 318 *Thought to Ponder . . .* ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 4, 2013* *Firecrackers* *When we first go into AA we are firecrackers with short wicks and when those short wicks get lighted with resentment or self-pity or any of the things that cause us to go off on a tangent, it doesn't take long before we explode. The longer we go to meetings, the longer the wick becomes.* /Thank You for Sharing,/ p. 61 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Meetings ... a spiritual gathering with a spiritual goal.* *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *K C ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 3, 2013 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Fear I no longer pray to have my fear removed. Today, I pray that my love grow bigger than my fear, and that my humility becomes greater than my shame.* The AA Grapevine, May, 1999 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *A fear faced is a fear erased.* *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* **F E A R** = **F**ace **E**verything **A**nd **R**ecover. * A Member Shares: Hiya, AA Family, I'm Peyton, a grateful alcoholic. Back when I w ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 2, 2013* *Acceptance* *And acceptance is the answer to /all/ my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, or situation -- some fact of my life -- unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in God's world by mistake.* /Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 417 *Thought to Pond ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *July 1, 2013* *The Mask* *Sometimes, I don't even realize that I'm thinking about alcohol when I'm justifying resentments, enjoying self-pity, or nourishing fear. Because I'm an alcoholic, that's exactly what I'm doing, and AA makes those connections for me. I need AA to strip the mask from alcohol. There it lurks behind my character defects and negative feelings -- "cunning, baffling, powerful!"* The AA Grapevine, November 2004, p. 47 *Thought to Ponder . ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 30, 2013 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ The "If" Trap Alcoholism respects no ifs. It does not go away, not for a week, for a day, or even for an hour, leaving us nonalcoholic and able to drink again on some special occasion or for some extraordinary reason -- not even if it is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, or if a big sorrow hits us, or if it rains in Spain or the stars fall on Alabama. Alcoholism is for us unconditional, with no dispensations availabl ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 29, 2013* *Challenges* *Life is meant to be lived by facing the challenges it brings. Otherwise, I'm not living, just existing. God didn't give me this gift of sobriety to sit in a rocking chair, imagining myself as some wise old woman who has arrived somewhere. There is no easier, softer way.* /- The Best of the Grapevine/ [Vol. 3], p. 320 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Courage is fear in action.* *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *G I F T* = **G**od **I**s **F**oreve ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 28, 2013* *Humility* *To those who have made progress in AA, humility amounts to a clear recognition of what and who we really are, followed by a sincere attempt to become what we could be.* /- As Bill Sees It,/ p. 156 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Humility is not a station we arrive at; it's a way of traveling.* *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *O D A A T* = **O**ne **D**ay **A**t **A** **T**ime. Thanks to all of you for sharing so generously of your experience, st ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 26, 2013 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Fellowship 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' . . .* **H E A R T** = **H**ealing, **E**njoying, **A**nd ...Continue Reading