AA Thoughts For Today - October

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AA Thought for the Day

October 16

The Root
Selfishness—self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles.
Driven by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking, and self-pity,
we step on the toes of our fellows and they retaliate. Sometimes they hurt us,
seemingly without provocation, but we invariably find that at some time in the past
we have made decisions based on self which later placed us in a position to be hurt.
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 62

Thought to Ponder
The smallest package in the world is an alcoholic all wrapped up in himself.

AA-related 'Alconym'
W I S D O M = When Into Self, Discover Our Motives.

~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~

Great Reality
"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.
We finally saw that faith in some kind of God
was a part of our make-up,
just as much as the feeling we have for a friend.
Sometimes we had to search fearlessly,
but He was there.
He was as much a fact as we were.
We found the Great Reality deep down within us.
In the last analysis it is only there that He may be found.
It was so with us."
c.1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 55

Thought to Consider . . .
God seldom becomes a reality until God becomes a necessity.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
P R O G R A M = People Relying On God Relay A Message

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*

Services
From: "AA's Legacy of Service"
Our Twelfth Step - carrying the message - is the basic service that the A.A. Fellowship gives; this is our principal aim and the main reason for our existence. Therefore, A.A. is more than a set of principles; it is a society of alcoholics in action. We must carry the message, else we ourselves can wither and those who haven't been given the truth may die.

Hence, an A.A. service is anything whatever that helps us to reach a fellow sufferer - ranging all the way from the Twelfth Step itself to a ten-cent phone call and a cup of coffee, and to A.A.'s General Service Office for national and international action. The sum total of all these services is our Third Legacy of Service.
Services include meeting places, hospital cooperation, and intergroup offices; they mean pamphlets, books, and good publicity of almost every description. They call for committees, delegates, trustees, and conferences. And, not to be forgotten, they need voluntary money contributions from within the Fellowship.

[Bill W., 1951]
2007, AAWS, Inc., AA Service Manual, page S1

*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*

"As I continue to struggle, I think of the words of an old-timer in my area. No matter what the topic, he always finishes sharing with the words, 'and I haven't had a drink today.' Remembering his words never fails to bring to my mind the words 'experience, strength, and hope.'"
"Out of Work, But Not Hope," Anonymous, December 2000
No Matter What: Dealing with Adversity in Sobriety

*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*

"We feel that elimination of our drinking is but a beginning. A much
more important demonstration of our principles lies before us in our
respective homes, occupations and affairs."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, There Is A Solution, pg. 19

Stress the spiritual feature freely. If the man be agnostic or atheist, make it emphatic that he does not have to agree with your conception of God.”
~Alcoholics Anonymous p. 93

In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of the total failure of their human resources, they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into them.
-Alcoholics Anonymous p.50

We perceive that only through utter defeat are we able to take our first steps toward liberation and strength.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p.21

Misc. AA Literature - Quote

Sometimes I would be forced to look at situations where I was doing badly. Right away, the search for excuses would become frantic.
'These,' I would exclaim, 'are really a good man's faults.' When that pet gadget broke apart, I would think, 'Well, if those people would only treat me right, I wouldn't have to behave the way I do.' Next was this: 'God well knows that I do have awful compulsions. 1 just can't get over this one. So He will have to release me.' At last came the time when I would shout, 'This, I positively will not do! I won't even try.'
Of course, my conflicts went right on mounting, because I was simply loaded with excuses, refusals, and outright rebellion.
In self-appraisal, what comes to us alone may be garbled by our own rationalization and wishful thinking. The benefit of talking to another person is that we can get his direct comment and counsel on our situation.

Prayer for the Day: Sailor's Prayer - Dear God, be good to me. The sea is so wide and my boat is so small.