Avail us nothing…

I first published this last year. It remains true.
January 7th’s Reflection speaks of turning points. Sometimes they are beginnings and sometimes they are endings. I can understand that. I don’t like it but, then again, it doesn’t matter whether I like them or not, everything will unfold the way it was meant to.
Thy Will, Not Mine Be Done

After you’ve had the magnificent opportunity to have been a satisfied customer of Alcoholics Anonymous for some time you gather what is called “experience.” With that experience along with the Twelve Steps, there also comes a moment now and then when you “intuitively know how to handle situations that used to baffle us.”
One such moment occurred in the last day or so when I “listened” to a fellow alcoholic share in a general way and use words that offer someone whose seen them before, some intuitive insight that this person wasn’t quite right emotionally.

The Health and Wellness Channel is writing about independence for our theme day and, as I read through the wonderful synopsis by Kendra I found myself thinking “Couldn’t all these folks apply this one same principle to each one of their challenges?”
And, from personal experience, I’d love to tell them that this one will work and work well! It assuredly does for us alkies
Let Go and Let God
“Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understand Him.”
From A.A.’s 12&12;

Then their Higher Power opens new doors and provides new and better opportunities.
Of course it takes a bit of faith and some positive thinking to believe that. Negative thinking won’t make it work. Neither will ego and pride. Might just require a small amount of pain too.
From today’s Daily Reflection: “It was painful to give up trying to control my life, even though success eluded me, and when life got too rough, I drank to escape.”

Sacrifice = Unity = Survival
The Daily Reflection for June 30th is certainly one to take forward into July and even after that.
“The unity, the effectiveness, and even the survival of A.A. will always depend upon our continued willingness to give up some of our personal ambitions and desires for the common safety and welfare. Just as sacrifice means survival for the individual alcoholic, so does sacrifice mean unity and survival for the group and for A.A.’s entire fellowship.”
Making it a real challenge for me at this moment to quantify (wrong word, I know but) with this;
“Take away my difficulties, that …read more

My first thoughts subsequent to deciding on a title for this are…
For those profundity pushers who offer newcomers this phrase “do the right thing and the right thing will happen,” I want to say – for who? Because it is my experience that it is a matter of perspective whether this will hold true for you.
It might be that if you do the right thing, the right thing will happen – for someone else! The trap is coming to believe that if you do the right thing, the right thing will happen for you!
For ex., my biggest challenge personally – …read more

A No-Coincidence Moment…
It wasn’t a “bot” that left the putrid, hate-filled, obscenity in the moderated comments yesterday that questioned my manhood and character assassinated my good soul. It was an idiot with a dark heart. Possibly related to me but I couldn’t tell.
It is my hope that you get the help that you so desperately need “ryan.” I certainly wouldn’t want to live in that brain of yours again or anymore. Been there, done that.
But, you see, my God helps me through moments like your stupidity – today’s Daily Reflection;

I think today’s Daily Reflections is one of those that has the capacity to enlarge your expectations…
Forming True Partnerships
“But 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.”
Can these words apply to me, am I still unable to form a true partnership with another human being? What a terrible handicap that would be for me to carry into …read more

This one is personal… I do not mean to slight anyone who has lost a loved one. This is simply close to my heart and the hearts of a couple of my new friends in recovery, especially Linda H.
Yesterday I told you about a gal in New York who had 19 years clean in Narcotics Anonymous who was “back out there.” Her name was Lorraine. That’s right – was – and still is. Sadly, two members of her home group took on the task of having to identify Lorraine in the coroner’s office yesterday. She died from an overdose in …read more

The Serenity Prayer
GOD, grant me the serenity
to accept the things
I cannot change,
Courage to change the
things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference.
Living ONE DAY AT A TIME;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardship as the
pathway to peace.
Taking, as He did, this
sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it.
Trusting that He will make
all things right if I
surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy
in this life, and supremely
happy with Him forever in
the next. Amen
Just mho, it never gets old and the repetition can’t hurt…