“There is a solution.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 25
Am I remembering today that no matter the problem—emotional, spiritual, or practical—there is a solution if I stay honest, open, and willing?
I used to live my life as a victim of circumstance. I didn’t look for solutions, I looked for things I could bitch & complain about. Today when I have something to complain about in my life, I don’t. Instead I look for solutions. Ways to change my thinking or actions for different results. I look for the solutions, and if I can’t find one-I call my sponsor and she helps me find one. I’m grateful for this today.
Having learned to live so happily, we’d show everyone else how. . . . Yes, we of A.A. did dream those dreams. How natural that was, since most alcoholics are bankrupt idealists. . . . So why shouldn’t we share our way of life with everyone?
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 156
The great discovery of sobriety led me to feel the need to spread the “good news” to the world around me. The grandiose thoughts of my drinking days returned. Later, I learned that concentrating on my own recovery was a full-time process. As I became a sober citizen in this world, I observed a rippling effect which, without any conscious effort on my part, reached any “related facility or outside enterprise,” without diverting me from my primary purpose of staying sober and helping other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
“We don’t recover overnight. We’re not cured. But we have a daily reprieve based on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, adapted from p. 85
What am I doing today—just today—to care for my spiritual condition? Am I staying connected, honest, and open?
Recovery isn’t a finish line we get to just cross over, it’s a daily practice. And for me, I’ve come to learn that if my spiritual condition isn’t being prioritized, my sobriety is at risk. Today is truly the only day that matters. I can’t stay sober on yesterday’s actions and tomorrow may not come if I don’t do what I need to end my day sober today. And a huge part of my sobriety is my spirituality. If I stop doing the work, it stops working. I’m grateful for this reminder today.
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.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 220
I have learned that I must sacrifice some of my personality traits for the good of A.A. and, as a result, I have been rewarded with many gifts. False pride can be inflated through prestige but, by living Tradition Six, I receive the gift of humility instead. Cooperation without affiliation is often deceiving. If I remain unrelated to outside interests, I am free to keep A.A. autonomous. Then the Fellowship will be here, healthy and strong for generations to come.
“We had to ask ourselves why we shouldn’t apply to our human problems this same readiness to change our point of view.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 42
Is there a situation today where I might need to let go of being right and be willing to see things differently?
Today I’ll keep my eyes open for that opportunity as there’s always the option to see things in a new and different way if I’m not clinging on to being right in my preconceived notions. More will always be revealed.
The principles we have set down are guides to progress.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 60
Just as a sculptor will use different tools to achieve desired effects in creating a work of art, in Alcoholics Anonymous the Twelve Steps are used to bring about results in my own life. I do not overwhelm myself with life’s problems, and how much more work needs to be done. I let myself be comforted in knowing that my life is now in the hands of my Higher Power, a master craftsman who is shaping each part of my life into a unique work of art. By working my program I can be satisfied, knowing that “in doing the best that we can for today, we are doing all that God asks of us.”
The principles we have set down are guides to progress.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 60
So much of that one little sentence are where many things are contained about AA that I needed. I was given new principals to apply in my life. But my sponsor reminded me often that I get to decide what I do with it. The quality of my life depends on me and my actions. I couldn’t be told what I HAD to do, I had to CHOOSE on my own to do it. I was that person, especially in the beginning, where if you told me what I HAD to do, you can bet I’d do the opposite lol. It also reminds me that progress, not perfection, is where the magic happens. I had to be ok with not only getting messy as I tried these new things for the first time, but also sharing that openly with others. Nothing changes if nothing changes. I’m so grateful for these lessons today as they’ve helped me change my entire life.
We find that no one need have difficulty with the spirituality of the program. Willingness, honesty and open-mindedness are the essentials of recovery. But these are indispensable.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 568
Am I honest enough to accept myself as I am and let this be the “me” that I let others see? Do I have the willingness to go to any length, to do whatever is necessary to stay sober? Do I have the open-mindedness to hear what I have to hear, to think what I have to think, and to feel what I have to feel?
If my answer to these questions is “Yes,” I know enough about the spirituality of the program to stay sober. As I continue to work the Twelve Steps, I move on to the heart of true sobriety: serenity with myself, with others, and with God as I understand Him.
“We began to see that the world and its people really dominated us.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 66
Am I giving away my peace by letting people or circumstances control my emotions today? How can I return to spiritual balance?
This quote reminds us that freedom in recovery comes when we stop reacting and start responding. For me, that often means practicing the pause and tapping into my faith vs reacting out of fear. I really was dominated by outside circumstances before. Today I get to do things differently and this is a great reminder for me. I will watch for more opportunities to practice this today.
Being still inexperienced and having just made conscious contact with God, it is not probable that we are going to be inspired at all times.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 87
Some say that experience is the best teacher, but I believe that experience is the only teacher. I have been able to learn of God’s love for me only by the experience of my dependence on that love. At first I could not be sure of His direction in my life, but now I see that if I am to be bold enough to ask for His guidance, I must act as if He has provided it. I frequently ask God to help me remember that He has a path for me.
“We no longer live in fear of people, nor of economic insecurity.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 84 (The Promises)
Where is fear creeping in today—around people, finances, or the future—and how can I return to trust and spiritual grounding?
I can be full of fear when it comes to money and people. I’ve never lived with anyone else in their space before, it’s always been my place I’d let others stay in, so I always felt secure. It’s taken a lot to work through the last few years. His mother is coming here for an extended stay next week and it brings up a lot of fears for me because of my dog as she’s bringing hers and we have no idea how long she’ll be here. It will make working from home a challenge and my anxious dog has never really had other dogs in his space. But, I keep giving it to God. Talking about it with my sponsor and with my partner. Being open with his mother. Finding solutions. And trusting that I’ll have exactly what I need as each moment arrives. This program is meant to be used in all areas in life and I’m grateful it exists.
I genuinely struggle with this, especially due to past wrongs done upon me or others. There is a deep need for vengence, revenge and bitterness takes form. Now not so much, but it is like this emotion is stored deep within me and does show up from time to time, the intensity can be crazy. I feel to accept something, is to give up. I guess that is where the ego comes in as when I give up (which i equate to acceptance) I am making room to experience loss and will have to make room for pain. Any thoughts?
. . . deep down in every man, woman and child, is the fundamental idea of God. It may be obscured by calamity, by pomp, by worship of other things, but in some form or other it is there. For faith in a Power greater than ourselves, and miraculous demonstrations of that power in human lives, are facts as old as man himself.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 55
I have seen the workings of the unseen God in A.A. rooms around the country. Miracles of recovery are everywhere in evidence. I now believe that God is in these rooms and in my heart. Today faith is as natural to me, a former agnostic, as breathing, eating and sleeping. The Twelve Steps have helped to change my life in many ways, but none is more effective than the acquisition of a Higher Power.
For me, I was able to release SOOOOO much of that by finally admitting I didn’t know best (doing things my own way wasn’t working) and surrendering to the program and steps of AA with my sponsor. I released SO much of that, and I continue to release more to this day. I’ve found freedom from the chains I didn’t even fully realize I carried, and I have a few links left but the majority of that heavy chain has been released. Hugs!
Our human resources, as marshalled by the will, were not sufficient; they failed utterly. . . . Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God’s will into all our activities.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 45, 85
I hear talk of the “weak-willed” alcoholic, but I am one of the strongest-willed people on earth! I now know that my incredible strength of will is not enough to save my life. My problem is not one of “weakness,” but rather of direction. When I, without falsely diminishing myself, accept my honest limitations and turn to God’s guidance, my worst faults become my greatest assets. My strong will, rightly directed, keeps me working until the promises of the program become my daily reality.
“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.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Appendix IV (Acceptance), p. 417
What am I resisting or trying to change today that I might instead need to accept? What would it feel like to let go—just for today?
This quote reminds me that peace often begins not with fixing the world, but with surrendering to it as it is. And, that when I’m disturbed by something, it’s not really about that “thing”, it is actually about me. This is a great reminder for me today.
The chief activator of our defects has been self-centered fear. . . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 76
When I feel uncomfortable, irritated, or depressed, I look for fear. This “evil and corroding thread” is the root of my distress: Fear of failure; fear of others’ opinions; fear of harm, and many other fears. I have found a Higher Power who does not want me to live in fear and, as a result, the experience of A.A. in my life is freedom and joy. I am no longer willing to live with the multitude of character defects that characterized my life while I was drinking. Step Seven is my vehicle to freedom from these defects. I pray for help in identifying the fear underneath the defect, and then I ask God to relieve me of that fear. This method works for me without fail and is one of the great miracles of my life in Alcoholics Anonymous.
“It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to futility and unhappiness.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 66
Am I holding onto any resentment today—toward others, myself, or a situation? What would it look like to release it and find peace?
This quote reminds me how much resentment poisons my life. Letting go clears the way for freedom, connection, and healing. Holding on seeps misery and illness like poison does into all areas of my life. I have a choice today. And today I choose love, understanding, peace and wellness over resentments. My sobriety and the happiness of my life depends on it.
. . . primarily fear that we would lose something we already possessed or would fail to get something we demanded. Living upon a basis of unsatisfied demands, we were in a state of continual disturbance and frustration. Therefore, no peace was to be had unless we could find a means of reducing these demands. The difference between a demand and a simple request is plain to anyone.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 76
Peace is possible for me only when I let go of expectations. When I’m trapped in thoughts about what I want and what should be coming to me, I’m in a state of fear or anxious anticipation and this is not conducive to emotional sobriety. I must surrender – over and over – to the reality of my dependence on God, for then I find peace, gratitude and spiritual security.
“We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.”
— Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 85
What am I doing today to maintain my spiritual condition—am I connecting, reflecting, praying, or helping someone else?
For me, this is a reminder that my sobriety is ONE DAY AT A TIME. I can not stay sober today on yesterdays actions. And a big part of maintaining that sobriety is my spiritual condition. So I started my day connecting with other alcoholics. Sharing our gratitude list together. Connecting with my HP. And if I continue to keep myself in alignment with my HP and my recovery today, I’ll end my day sober again today.
