Even More Recovery Readings and Meditations - October

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October 27

Step by Step

Today, understand that recovery gives us the freedom not to live within the confines of alcoholism and, instead, live in the boundless possibilities of sobriety. As a recovering alcoholic, I know – or at least, I better know – what I cannot do and, in trying to work toward or maintaining sobriety, I may be fighting what I cannot do. But in recovery, I am not confined by what I cannot do in alcoholism and any other “ism” and do not have to fight sobriety. As such, I need to understand the distinction between fighting not to drink and simply letting sobriety be. Today, I have the freedom to live not in the problem of alcoholism but living in the solution of simply not drinking. Today, I choose to live in the solution, not in the problem. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M.

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~ EASY DOES IT ~ (A Book of Daily 12 Step Meditations) ~

PATIENCE

How poor are they that have no patience.

~ Shakespeare ~

Patience is important to our growth and peace of mind. Without patience, we would have difficulty holding down anxiety, anger, envy, and unreasonable pride. Patience has often prevented disaster threatened by a loose tongue or an impulsive fist. Patience has taught us to stay cheerful in hard times, and to quickly forgive mistakes.

Faith, peace, love, and humility all "study" in the school of patience. We learn patience from nature's careful maturing of crops. Baby chicks are born from letting eggs hatch, not by quickly smashing the shell. We are reminded that time is a faithful servant.

When we set goals that we can reach and are patient with our progress, we save ourselves a lot of anxiety. Happiness is not having what we went, but wanting what we have.

I need to be patient, but I don't have to "grin and bear it." I can accept reality, then take careful, positive action.

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~ WISDOM TO KNOW ~ (More Daily Meditations For Men) ~

Those who are waiting are waiting very actively... The secret of waiting is the faith that the seed has been planted, that something has begun. A waiting person is someone who is present to the moment, who believes that this moment is the moment.

~ Henri Nouwen ~

We know that readiness is one of the important ingredients in change. We may have heard the same thing many times in the past, but one day, when someone says it again, we suddenly hear it with ready ears. At that moment, the familiar words hit their target and we understand a deep truth for the first time.

In recovery, we don’t just sit around passively waiting. We actively examine ourselves and our conscience. We practice honesty. We make amends for our wrongs and seek conscious contact with a Higher Power. All these practices are ways to prepare ourselves to receive the gifts of recovery.

Today, as I wait for the grace of God, I am actively opening myself to receive it.

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~ A WOMAN’S SPIRIT ~ (More Meditations For Women) ~

Find everyday reasons to dance.

~ Elisabeth L. ~

Just being alive is reason enough to dance, if we ponder it for a moment. It’s not an accident that we lived through sometimes terrifying experiences. Nor is it accidental that we are in our current set- llng. We are needed by our friends, our family, even the strangers among us. Let’s cherish our opportunities to be in the presence of these others today.

Our lives are akin to a ballet. While learning the steps, we may stumble a bit, but the dance needs us all. Let’s never assume another person isn’t necessary to our own performance. If she is here, we need her.

How has this all happened? we wonder. How did I get here? Can I pull off my part? Our doubts need not hinder us if we remember that we got here with help; we’ll fulfill our role with the same ready help.

I can kick up my heels today and know that I can dance. All I need to do is listen for the music.

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~ TODAY I WILL DO ONE THING ~ (Daily Readings for Awareness and Hope) ~

I am exercising for my recovery

Before I got into dual recovery I experienced numerous physical problems. For a long time I didn't know what was wrong. In a way, I didn't care.

But now in recovery I care very much. Dual recovery teaches me that addiction and psychiatric illness are also physical diseases. Just as I pray and meditate to help with my spiritual symptoms, and just as I go to Step meetings and counseling to help with my emotional symptoms, so too will regular exercise help my body. This is my physical recovery. If I exercise regularly I will help repair any damage I've done and I'll be strong for each day's effort.

Today I will come up with a brief, simple exercise routine I can do every day.

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~ BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT ~ (Inspiration and Support for Recovery) ~

The weight of this sad time we must obey,
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.

~ William Shakespeare ~

Letting others know how we feel is risky. There is a chance they won’t care or understand. In a Twelve Step program, however, this is unlikely. We go there to be healed and quickly learn that healing requires us to speak honestly about our pain.

When our peers ask us to share our feelings they have a good reason. They know from personal experience that the most important action in recovery is to talk honestly about what has happened and is happening to us. To maintain our recovery, we need to stay honest with at least one person.

Meetings give us a chance to talk honestly about our real selves — maybe for the first time. We soon realize that our fellowship is not standing in judgment, but is hurting along with us and feeling for us. They hear us and offer us their love and support. Honesty isn’t often easy at first, but it gets easier as we learn how comforting and strength-giving the rewards are.

Today help me be honest with others. Help me share my pain that I may grow through it.

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~ MORNING LIGHT ~ (Meditations to Begin Your Day) ~

Self-pity is easily the most destructive of the non-pharmaceutical narcotics; it gives momentary pleasure and separates the victim from reality.

~ John W. Gardner ~

You may think that your problems are much greater than those of others. You may believe your feelings, wants, and needs are of greater importance. You insist on being heard at every meeting. You expect your sponsor to be readily available to you.

I When your sponsor does not meet your needs or when [Others at the meeting cut you off, you are convinced such treatment is par for the course. You are tired of others treating you that way. So you cut ties with your sponsor and that fellowship.

One day your new sponsor tells you that you are self-ish and self-centered, and adds, “Believe it or not, the World does not revolve around you.” But before you can reply your sponsor says, “You can ask someone else to be your sponsor. I’m cool with that. But I guarantee you, unless you get off your pity pot and realize there are other people besides you in this world, things will end up the lame way. Do you want to spend your time in recovery hiring and firing sponsors? Or would you like to learn how to give and receive help, support, comfort, and understanding? It’s your choice.”

Today I will remember that I share the world with others.

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~ NIGHT LIGHT ~ (A Book Of Nighttime Meditations) ~

I observe myself and so I come to know others.

~ Lao-tzu ~

If we could view a film of ourselves at the end of the day, we would see ourselves as others see us. We would notice our facial expressions and tone of voice and body language. We would be able to see our actions and reactions. We could study ourselves closely and learn so much more.

How wonderful it would be if we could take an equally close view of those around us! Think of how much we could learn about those close to us if only we paid attention to their facial expressions, their tone of voice, and their body language. We would get to know them and understand them so much sooner if we only paid attention to them the way we sometimes pay attention to ourselves.

If we observe ourselves, we will be able to understand the same actions and reactions in others. The mirror we place before ourselves is but a reflection of those around us.

Can I take the time tonight to observe my actions? How can I use such insight to learn about other people?

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~ DAY BY DAY ~ (Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts) ~

Affecting those around us

Addiction is not a lone disease; it is surrounded by people who play a part in keeping the cycle going. These people—usually family, peers, co-workers, and sometimes even therapists—experience offshoots of the disease.

When a person gets stoned, those around him or her most likely react negatively. The addict reacts to their reaction by getting stoned again. So the downward cycle continues. We need to be aware that the loved ones around us may be in need of help also. They become a part of our illness and need a way out just as much as we do.

Do I try to empathize with those close to me?

Higher Power, may I not expect my abstinence to make the ones around me "shape up,” because they have been a part of my illness for a long, long time.

Today I will examine my impact on those around me and

God help me to stay clean and sober today!

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~ IF YOU WANT WHAT WE HAVE ~ (Sponsorship Meditations) ~

Hell has three gates: lust, anger, and greed.

~ BHAGAVAD GITA ~

Newcomer

I've really gotten into diet and exercise in a big way, and I'm spending a lot of time working out and preparing health food. I've started going to a weekly spiritual service, too, and getting involved with some community work. I feel as if I'm racing ahead in my recovery.

Sponsor

Each of these things sounds worthwhile, but the number of them and the demand you're making of yourself to "race ahead" make me wonder whether you can sustain so many activities at the same level without burning out.

Take the areas of food and exercise, for example. Transforming the way we eat, becoming conscious consumers, is one of the most radical changes we can make. It involves a surrender, a sense that our Higher Power is in charge of the process of change, rather than a clenched effort to control. When we start thinking in terms of rapid weight change, rather than of a commitment to conscious eating and healthful, moderate meals, then we risk moving into obsession. Gentleness and moderation at the beginning of an exercise program or other demanding new endeavor is a more reliable route to consistent, long-term commitment than an overly demanding schedule we'll soon tire of,

In recovery while we don't postpone dealing with obstacles to sober living, we don't have to rush to change every detail of our lives at once. We can take time to savor and enjoy new directions.

Today, I don't treat my recovery as some kind of race; I remember "Easy does it"—but do it.

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~ THE EYE OPENER ~

Gifts are usually given for favors already given or for favors expected. Even the sudden outburst of affection from friend wife, is frequently followed by a glowing description of a dress she saw downtown.

The gift of AA is one exception. We give AA away because it is the only way we can keep it ourselves.

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~ The 12 STEP PRAYER BOOK ~ (A Collection of Favorite 12 Step Prayers and Inspirational Readings) ~

The Grace of God

God’s grace is a gift. Grace is the love and generosity of God. Not until we felt defeated and made an active surrender were we open to this gift of help from our Higher Power.

I pray to receive God's grace in its many forms. It is the hope we feel after a good night's rest, the good feelings we get attending our meetings. I pray to stop trying to control everything and to stop missing the many gifts of God's grace. The grace of God surrounds me even in difficult times. Returning to that message renews my strength.

~ Adapted from Touchstones, September 18 ~

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~ AROUND THE YEAR WITH EMMET FOX ~ (A Book of Daily Readings) ~

AN EXPERIMENT

Try this experiment today. Select one particular thing in your life that is not going well and you wish to make right. Next consider the matter in the light of your knowledge of God and of prayer. Realize that this thing cannot remain inharmonious or negative once you know the Truth about it. Realize that you are now knowing the Truth and claim that the divine Power in you is now healing the condition completely and permanently.

Then give thanks. Remember that praise and thanksgiving are the most powerful prayers of all.

The next day, repeat your thanksgiving, until the answer comes.

In between prayers you must keep your thought right concerning the problem. This is vital. All-day-long guiding of your thought cannot fail to bring your demonstration.

My mediation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord (Psalm 104:34).

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~ A DEEP BREATH OF LIFE ~ (365 Daily Inspirations for Heart-Centered Living) ~

No Mistake

Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.

~ Christine Bovee ~

When I walked into the hotel room, my jaw dropped, and my eyes opened to saucer size. The room looked straight out of the Palace of Versailles—thick padded gold wallpaper, gold-leaf French colonial furniture, a separate sitting room, and ultra-plush decor. “There must be some mistake,” I thought, looking at my key.

When I called my sponsor to double-check if her organization had se–lected such an elegant room for me, she answered, “Of course it’s for you! We appreciate you and want you to be comfortable.” Okay, I can live with this, I thought.

If we believe we are unworthy, we will question or doubt our good when it comes to us. We will believe there is some hidden motive or catch, or we may fear that it will be snatched away as easily as it came.

If we know our worth, we will attract and accept our blessings in a spirit of joy and celebration. We will see our experience as an affirmation that we live in an abundant universe, and delight in passing generosity along at our next opportunity.

Today I will walk in the dignity in which You created me.
Thank you, God, for all of Your treasures and blessings.

I accept love in all forms. I allow an abundant universe to shower its gifts upon me.