AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 26, 2022 Character-building But whenever we had to choose between character and comfort, the character-building was lost in the dust of our chase after what we thought was happiness. Seldom did we look at character-building as something desirable in itself, something we would like to strive for whether our instinctual needs were met or not. We never thought of making honesty, tolerance, and true love of man and God the daily basis of living. - Twelve Steps and Twe ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 25, 2022 Control We learned that we had to fully concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics. This is the first step in recovery. The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has to be smashed. We alcoholics are men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking. We know that no real alcoholic ever recovers control. - Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 30 Thought to Ponder When we try to control our drink ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 24, 2022 Open Minded Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as open minded on spiritual matters as we had tried to be on other questions. In this respect alcohol was a great persuader. It finally beat us into a state of reasonableness. Sometimes this was a tedious process; we hope no one else will be prejudiced for as long as some of us were. - Alcoholics Anonymous, (We Agnostics) p. 48 Thought to Ponder Minds are like parachutes -- they won't work unle ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 23, 2022 Freedom From Fear When, with God’s help, we calmly accepted our lot, then we found we could live at peace with ourselves and show others who still suffered the same fears that they could get over them, too. We found that freedom from fear was more important than freedom from want. - Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, (Step Twelve) p. 122 Thought to Ponder Situations I fear are rarely as bad as the fear itself. AA-related 'Alconym' F E A R  =   ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 22, 2022 Dependence on God When World War II broke out, this spiritual principle had its first major test. A.A.'s entered the services and were scattered all over the world. Would they be able to take discipline, stand up under fire, and endure the monotony and misery of war? Would the kind of dependence they had learned in A.A. carry them through? Well, it did. They had even fewer alcoholic lapses or emotional binges than A.A.'s safe at home did. - Twelve Steps a ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 21, 2022 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ To Stay Sober Alcoholics can stop drinking in many places and many ways—but Alcoholics Anonymous offers us a way to stay sober. God willing, we members of A.A. may never again have to deal with drinking, but we have to deal with sobriety every day. How do we do it? By learning—through practicing the Twelve Steps and through sharing at meetings—how to cope with the problems that we looked to booze to solve, back in our drinking da ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 20, 2022 Asking Each Morning We 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. - Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 83 Thought to Ponder The Thre ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 19, 2022 Honestly Sought Him Circumstances 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. 57 Thought to Ponder I came; I came to; I came to believe. AA-re ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 18, 2022 All Inclusive As soon as we admitted the possible existence of a Creative Intelligence, a Spirit of the Universe underlying the totality of things, we began to be possessed of a new sense of power and direction, provided we took other simple steps. We found that God does not make too hard terms with those who seek Him. To us, the Realm of Spirit is broad, roomy, all inclusive; never exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek. It is open, we belie ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 17, 2022 Promises Fulfilled 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. Are these extravagant promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us—sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them. - Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 84 Thought to Ponder What is now proved was once only imagined. AA-re ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 16, 2022 Emotionally Secure It became clear that if we ever were to feel emotionally secure among grown-up people, we would have to put our lives on a give-and-take basis; we would have to develop the sense of being in partnership or brotherhood with all those around us. We saw that we would need to give constantly of ourselves without demands for repayment. When we persistently did this we gradually found that people were attracted to us as never before. And even ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 15, 2022 Resolution and Willingness How can we possibly summon the resolution and the willingness to get rid of such overwhelming compulsions and desires? But again we are driven on by the inescapable conclusion which we draw from A.A. experience, that we surely must try with a will, or else fall by the wayside. At this stage of our progress we are under heavy pressure to do the right thing. We are obliged to choose between the pains of trying and the certain pena ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 14, 2022 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Families For a time he may try to hug the new treasure to himself. He may not see at once that he has barely scratched a limitless lode which will pay dividends only if he mines it for the rest of his life and insists on giving away the entire product. If the family cooperates, dad will soon see that he is suffering from a distortion of values. He will perceive that his spiritual growth is lopsided, that for an average man like h ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 13, 2022 Real Purpose At the moment we are trying to put our lives in order. But this is not an end in itself. Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God and the people about us. - Alcoholics Anonymous, (Into Action) p. 77 Thought to Ponder Trust God. Clean House. Help Others. AA-related 'Alconym' A L C O H O L I C S  =   A Life Consisting Of Helping Others Lived In Continuous Sobriety. Thanks to all of you for sharing so gen ...Continue Reading

AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) August 12, 2022 Easier Methods Time after time newcomers have tried to keep to themselves certain facts about their lives. Trying to avoid this humbling experience, they have turned to easier methods. Almost invariably they got drunk. Having persevered with the rest of the program, they wondered why they fell. We think the reason is that they never completed their housecleaning. They took inventory all right, but hung on to some of the worst items in stock. They only tho ...Continue Reading