TURNING IT OVER

Every man and woman who has joined A.A. and intends to stick has,
without realizing it, made a beginning on Step Three. Isn't it true
that in all matters touching upon alcohol, each of them has decided to
turn his or her life over to the care, protection, and guidance of
Alcoholics Anonymous? . . . Any willing newcomer feels sure A.A. is
the only safe harbor for the foundering vessel he has become. Now if this is
not turning one's will and life over to a newfound Providence, then what
is it?
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 35

Submission to God was the first step to my recovery. I believe our
Fellowship seeks a spirituality open to a new kinship with God. As I
exert myself to follow the path of the Steps, I sense a freedom that
gives me the ability to think for myself. My addiction confined me
without any release and hindered my ability to be released from my
self-confinement, but A.A. assures me of a way to go forward.
Mutual sharing, concern and caring for others is our natural gift to
each other and mine is strengthened as my attitude toward God
changes. I learn to submit to God's will in my life, to have self-respect,
and to keep both of these attitudes by giving away what I receive. ***********************************************************

As Bill Sees It

Thousands of "Founders", p. 67

"While I thank God that I was privileged to be an early member of
A.A., I honestly wish that the word 'founder' could be eliminated
from the A.A. vocabulary.

"When you get right down to it, everyone who has done any amount
of successful Twelfth Step work is bound to be the founder of a new
life for other alcoholics."

<< << << >> >> >>

"A.A. was not invented! Its basis were brought to us through the
experience and wisdom of many great friends. We simply borrowed
and adapted their ideas."

<< << << >> >> >>

"Thankfully, we have accepted the devoted services of many
nonalcoholics. We owe our very lives to the men and women of
medicine and religion. And, speaking for Dr. Bob and myself, I
gratefully declare that had it not been for our wives, Anne and Lois,
neither of us could have lived to see A.A.'s beginning."

1. Letter, 1945
2. Letter, 1966
3. Letter, 1966

***********************************************************

Walk in Dry Places
 
What Do I project?  ___  Personal Relations.
Were we ever told that our problems with other people really started within ourselves?  If we have trouble getting along with another person, for example, is it because we are projecting mixed signals of fear and suspicion toward that person?  We tend to reap what we sow-----   we get back the attitudes we project.

At the same time, however, we can't take total responsibility for the way others treat us or behave toward us.  We cannot reform or control impossible people.  When dealing with impossible people, we have control over our own feelings and responses. This helps us avoid potential trouble and enables us to deal with difficult situations.

But the principle of sowing what we reap…..  that is, getting back what we project… can really be proved by the person whose resentments and bitterness have driven away most of his or her friends.  A simple change of attitude on our part can bring startling change for the better in there responses of others. With practice, the principle also applies to the broad area of human relations in many ways.  For purposes of inventory, therefore, we should always look first at ourselves and our own thoughts and feelings when we find ourselves in a bad situation with others.

…….I will take care today to see that my thoughts and feeling toward others reflect what I want in my own life.

***********************************************************

Keep It Simple

We lose the fear of making decisions, great and small, as we realize that should our choice prove wrong we can, if we will, learn from experience.---Bill W.
As our disease grew, we often felt like any decision we made was wrong. We felt like wrong people. We lost self-respect, because deep inside we knew that, for us alcohol and other drugs was wrong. We went against our spirit. Now we go with our spirit. We follow what we think our Higher Power want for us. Now we learn from our mistakes. Another wonderful gift has been given back to us: the gift of learning. From that gift, we stop playing God. How free it feels!
Prayer for the Day:  Higher Power, You have taken away my illness and replaced it with many wonderful gifts. I thank You for everything, even my mistakes.
Action for the Day:  Today, I'll share with a friend my mistakes of the past week.

***********************************************************

Each Day a New Beginning

To create is to boggle the mind and alter the mood. Once the urge has surged, it maintains its own momentum. We may go along for the ride, but when we attempt to steer the course, the momentum dies.  --Sue Atchley Ebaugh
A sense of spiritual well-being warms us when we are selfless, when we step away from our obsessing egos, when we let our pure, unfettered desires direct our thoughts and our steps. Our egos may be keeping us caged in old behavior, old fears. Egos struggle for self-preservation; unfortunately, it's our old, unhealthy self the ego is preserving.
The Steps make it possible for us to unload our baggage from earlier days, baggage that intrudes on our perceptions of today's events. The Steps clear the path so we can move responsibly forward.
Living creatively is living in the thick of the flow, trusting the flow, spontaneously moving with the flow, not controlling the flow. We are Spirit-full when we let ourselves roll forward, resisting not, doubting not. And our greatest contributions will be discovered when our ego takes a rest.
My creativity awaits my discovery. It's there. I will release it from the clutches of my ego.

***********************************************************

Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition

Chapter 7 - WORKING WITH OTHERS

Let no alcoholic say he cannot recover unless he has his family back. This just isn’t so. In some cases the wife will never come back for one reason or another. Remind the prospect that his recovery is not dependent upon people. It is dependent upon his relationship with God. We have seen men get well whose families have not returned at all. We have seen others slip when the family came back too soon.

pp. 99-100

***********************************************************

Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Stories

Jim's Story

This physician, one of the earliest members of A.A.'s first black group, tells of how freedom came as he worked among his people.

I don't think I actually started to drink pathologically until approximately 1935.  About that time I had lost practically all my property except the place we were living in.  Things had just gone from bad to worse.  It meant that I had to give up a lot of the things that I had been accustomed to, and that wasn't the easiest thing in the world for me.  I think that was basically the thing that started me drinking in 1935.  I started drinking alone then.  I'd go into my home with a bottle, and I remember clearly how I would look around to see if Vi was watching.  Something should have told me then that things were haywire.  I can remember watching her.  There came a time when she spoke to me about it, and I would say that I had a bad cold or that I wasn't feeling well.  That went on for maybe two months, and then she got after me again about drinking.  At that time the repeal whiskeys were back, and I'd go to the store and buy my whiskey and take it to my office and put it under the desk, first in one place and then in another, and there soon was an accumulation of empty bottles.  My brother-in-law was living with us at that time, and I said to Vi, "Maybe the bottles are Brother's.  I don't know.  Ask him about it.  I don't know anything about the bottles."  I actually wanted a drink, besides feeling that I had to have a drink.  From that point on, it's just the average drinker's story.

pp. 236-237

***********************************************************

Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Step Nine - "Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others."

As soon as we begin to feel confident in our new way of life and have begun, by our behavior and example, to convince those about us that we are indeed changing for the better, it is usually safe to talk in complete frankness with those who have been seriously affected, even those who may be only a little or not at all aware of what we have done to them. The only exceptions we will make will be cases where our disclosure would cause actual harm. These conversations can begin in a casual or natural way. But if no such opportunity presents itself, at some point we will want to summon all our courage, head straight for the person concerned, and lay our cards on the table. We needn't wallow in excessive remorse before those we have harmed, but amends at this level should always be forthright and generous.

pp. 85-86

***********************************************************

There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and
lifting people up.
--John Andrew Holme

Keeping hearts happy is a lot like keeping bodies happy. We need to
feed our hearts well through reading, prayer, and meditation, and to
exercise them by loving.
--Jane Nakken

The Twelve Steps have powerfully guided me from just surviving to
living.
--Elizabeth Farrell

God's gifts are slowly revealed.
--Michele Fedderly

God is with us in every problem we face.
--Naoko Ezaki

***********************************************************

Father Leo's Daily Meditation

DOUBT

"Sixty years ago I knew
everything; now I know nothing;
education is a progressive
discovery of our own
ignorance."
-- Will Durant

Spirituality is the art of knowing that we do not know. It is waking up
in the morning with our eyes fully opened and awaiting the adventure
of the new day. New things, new theories, new facts are being
discovered every day and it makes for a glorious, confusing and
exciting world.

There was a time when I could not say this; a time when knowledge
and facts were collected and regurgitated. I used knowledge to
protect myself from the challenge and inconsistencies of life. God had
to be not only a proven fact but evidenced in theories and dogmas ---
the mystery was lost.

Today I believe that God cannot be contained by dogma and rules.
The doubts have become part of my faith. The state of "not
knowing" becomes creative and stimulating. My relationship with
God today is real. To "not know" is the beginning of wisdom.

You, who have spoken through the wind and the fire, speak through
my doubts.

***********************************************************

God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your
minds in Christ Jesus.
  Philippians 4:7

***********************************************************

Daily Inspiration

Often times the happiness you seek is already near at hand. Lord, help me to appreciate what I already have because You never stop blessing me even when I don't notice.

When you can't seem to be a shining example, at least twinkle a little. Lord, when I am weary, You are there. When I am weak, You are there. When I stumble, You are always ready to pick me up.

***********************************************************

NA Just For Today

Learning To Love Ourselves

"What we want most is to feel good about ourselves."
Basic Text, p. 97

"We'll love you until you can learn to love yourself!" These words, heard so often in our meetings, promise a day we look forward to eagerly - the day when we'll know how to love ourselves.

Self-esteem, we all want this elusive quality as soon as we hear about it. Some of us seem to stumble upon it accidentally, while others embark on a course of action complete with affirmations made to our reflections in the mirror. But fix-it-yourself techniques and trendy psychological cures can only take us so far.

There are some definite, practical steps we can take to show love for ourselves, whether we "feel" that love or not. We can take care of our personal responsibilities. We can do nice things for ourselves, as we would for a lover or a friend. We can start paying attention to our own needs. We can even pay attention to the qualities that we cherish in our friends - qualities like intelligence and humor - and look for those same qualities in ourselves. We're sure to find that we really are lovable people, and once we do that, we're well on our way.

Just for today: I will do something today that helps me recognize and feel love for myself.

***********************************************************

You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
Laughter by definition is healthy. --Doris Lessing
A hearty laugh can warm a cold room and make our spirits soar. But many of us are afraid to laugh, especially when we make mistakes. We think we're supposed to be perfect, and we don't allow ourselves to make mistakes. However, we're not a mold punched out by a machine. We're human beings, with all our wonderful flaws. It is those flaws that make our lives interesting and surprising. Who knows when we might accidentally bump into a chair or catch our sweater on a doorknob? We needn't feel self-conscious, it happens to many of us.
The ability to laugh at ourselves is a gift from God. All we need to do is grab it and use it. Then we will see how healthy and powerful laughter can be.
Can I find the humor in my mistakes today?


You are reading from the book Touchstones.
Before the rain stops we hear a bird. Even under the heavy snow we see snowdrops and some new growth. --Shunryu Suzuki
The signals that new growth is underway are often very small at first. It's sometimes discouraging when we are trying to remake our lives and all we can see for our efforts is minor growth. That is how the natural world works, and we are part of this world. When the little sprouts of growth first develop under the snow in spring we don't even see them unless we search. Yet, they signal the beginnings of a total transformation. Time will bring vast changes, but only little signs are showing first.
Today, we may search for signs of progress in our lives. The little things we see may signal bigger transformations yet to come. To be true to them in the long run we must accept them - even welcome them - as they are today.
I will notice the subtle movements toward health and renewal in my life. Welcoming them will encourage them.


You are reading from the book The Language Of Letting Go.
Surrender
Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God, as we understood Him. --Step Three of Al Anon
Surrendering to a Power greater than ourselves is how we become empowered.
We become empowered in a new, better, more effective way than we believed possible.
Doors open. Windows open. Possibilities occur. Our energy becomes channeled, at last, in areas and ways that work for us. We become in tune with the Plan for our life and our place in the Universe.
And there is a Plan and Place for us. We shall see that. We shall know that. The Universe will open up and make a special place for us, with all that we need provided.
It will be good. Understand that it is good, now.
Learning to own our power will come, if we are open to it. We do not need to stop at powerlessness and helplessness. That is a temporary place where we re evaluate where we have been trying to have power when we have none.
Once we surrender, it is time to become empowered.
Let the power come, naturally. It is there. It is ours.
Today, I will be open to understanding what it means to own my power. I will accept powerlessness where I have no power; I will also accept the power that is mine to receive.


With every breath that I take, healing is taking place. I relax safely in the knowledge that positive, healing energy is working in my life today. I am being renewed and refreshed and energized. --Ruth Fishel

******************************************

Journey to the Heart

Your Dreams Are Important

A woman told me about a dream she had, one that was bothering her deeply. “What do you think it means?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” I replied. “Besides, it doesn’t matter what I think. The important thing is what you think. What’s it telling you?”

We dream two kinds of dreams– waking dreams and sleeping dreams. Both are powerful forms of consciousness. Our sleeping dreams, the images that dance in our minds while we sleep, hold many clues to life, growth, the future, the past, healing, and our connections with others. They may reveal suppressed emotions. They may be bits and pieces of prophecy. They may be symbols of truths we’re about to learn.

Our waking dreams are important,too. We go about daily with our expectations, wants, desires, hopes– our heart’s plan for the future. We may not express these dreams. We may not even realize we are superimposing them on our lives, much the same way we can forget what we dream when we sleep.

There’s power in allowing ourselves to become conscious of our dreams. What are our dreams telling us about what we want, fear, hope for, desire? Expressing our dreams will connect us to our consciousness and a higher consciousness. Expressing them will connect us to the creative force. Tapping into our dreams helps us tap into creativity– creativity for our lives, creativity for projects, the powerful creative force of the universe.

There’s power in dreaming, whether we’re asleep or awake. Take time to honor and express your dreams.

******************************************

More Language Of Letting Go

Learn to deal with manipulations

Even if you understand and follow all of the rules for more effectively engaging manipulators, life with them is not likely to be easy.
–George K. Simon Jr.

Sometimes they want something. Sometimes they want someone. Sometimes they want someone to give them something or to feel a particular way. They want power, in some way, shape, or form. Manipulators prey on our weak spots.

Obsession and guilt are weapons.

Manipulators get us to use these weapons on ourselves.

Sometimes we can disengage from manipulators– walk away, set a clear limit, be done with them. Other times, it’s not that easy. We may be at least temporarily stuck with a boss or authority figure who indulges in heavy manipulation. One of our children may be going through a relentlessly manipulative period. We may have a parent whom we care about deeply who has adapted manipulation as a way of life.

Learn how to effectively deal with manipulators. Not everyone means what they say. People fling words about to hit our guilty, vain, or frightened spots. Recognize that tinge of guilt or coercion you feel when other people are trying to force you to do it their way. Learn to recognize when others are telling you what they believe you want to hear. Learn to not react, stay clear, practice nonresistence, and stay true to yourself.

Be gentle with yourself, if you have a manipulator in your life. You’re not responsible for the other person’s attempts at manipulation. You’re responsible for staying clear.

God, help me let go of the weak spots in myself that allow me to fall prey to manipulations. Help me stay clear of guilt and obsession so I can decide what’s best for me.

******************************************

Defense Mechanisms
Beyond Behavior

by Madisyn Taylor

We can let go of our defense mechanisms when we are ready to be truly honest with ourselves.


We all have defense mechanisms that we’ve developed over time, often without being aware of it. In times of trouble, the behaviors that have worked to get us past challenges with the least amount of pain are the ones that we repeat; even when part of us knows they no longer work. Such behavior is a natural response from our mental and physical aspects. But because we are spiritual beings as well, we have the ability to rise above habits and patterns to see the truth that lay beyond. And from that moment on, we can make choices that allow us to work directly from that place of truth within us.

Most of our defense mechanisms were developed in childhood; from the moment that we realized crying would get us the attention we craved. Passive aggressive ways of communicating may have allowed us to get what we needed without being scolded, punished or laughed at, so we learned to avoid being direct and honest. Some of us may have taken refuge in the lives of others, discovering ways to direct attention away from ourselves entirely. Throwing ourselves into projects or rescuing others from themselves can be effective ways to avoid dealing with our own issues. And when people are truly helped by our actions, we get the added bonus of feeling heroic. But while defenses can keep away the things we fear, they can also work to keep our good from us.

When we can be honest with ourselves about what we truly desire, then we can connect our desires to the creative power of the spirit within us. Knowing that we are one with the energy of the universe allows us release any need for defense. Trusting that power, we know that we are exactly where we are meant to be, and that challenges bring gifts of growth and experience. When we can put down arms raised in defense, then we are free to use our hands, minds, hearts and spirits to mold and shape our abundant energy to create and live our lives. Published with permission from Daily OM

******************************************

A Day At A Time

Reflection For The Day

Merely to change my behavior, and what I say and do, doesn’t prove there’s been a change in my actual inner attitude. I’m deceiving myself if I believe I can somehow completely disguise my true feelings. They’ll somehow come through, prolonging the difficulties in my relationships with others. I have to avoid half-measures in getting rid of the trouble-some emotions I’ve been trying to hide. Have I taken an honest inventory of myself?

Today I Pray

May I know that feelings will come out somehow — sometimes barely disguised as behavior that I cannot always understand. But that perhaps in more acceptable to me than the root emotion that caused it. May I be completely and vigilantly honest with myself. May I be given the insight that comes through depending upon a Higher Power.

Today I Will Remember

Feelings can come out “sideways.”

******************************************

One More Day

We cannot learn without pain.
– Aristotle

It is said that pain and experience are life’s two greatest teachers. What good would it be if we felt pain each day but never learned from it? And what good would it be if we coasted through life without experiencing joy along with sorrow?

There can be no depth of personality or depth of character if our lives have been perfect. Experience etches our hearts and souls, gives us depth, and deepens the horizon of our days. No individual has lived a life completely without pain, without sorrow. We can move beyond our pain and sorrow to grow in new directions.

I can accept the lessons I am learning of tolerance to living a less-than-perfect life. These lessons help me grow.

************************************

Food For Thought

"Normal" Eating

The idea that we will one day be able to eat spontaneously, like normal people, is a delusion. We compulsive overeaters tend to think that once we lose our excess pounds, we can go back to "normal" eating. Not so.

It is our experience that once a compulsive overeater, always a compulsive overeater. There is no way we will ever be able to eat spontaneously without eventually getting into trouble. When we reach our desired weight, we continue to eat three measured meals a day with nothing in between, and we continue to avoid entirely our personal binge foods.

When we accept our permanent need to abstain, when we accept the fact that we can never return to what we thought was normal eating, then we can stop making irrational attempts at experimentation which always fail. By accepting our disease and learning to live with it, we become sane and free. We see that our new eating plan is really very normal. It was the old compulsive overeating habit which was abnormal in the extreme.

Thank you, Lord, for sanity.

*****************************************

One Day At A Time

~ FEELINGS ~

We honor ourselves and our friends
when we can tell them how we feel.
Theodore Isaac Rubin

I always felt that if I didn't rob a bank or tell a lie that I was being honest. But when I began working the Twelve Steps, I learned what honesty really meant. Expressing my negative thoughts and feelings in the fast-moving world I found myself caused problems ... or I imagined it would. Therefore, I tried to pretend everything was wonderful and right and perfect.

One of the great blessings of my life is to know that I can now "feel" my emotions, express them to others who understand and somehow always feel better for having done so. Of course, I am still selective in choosing to whom I express my deepest feelings, but I do not pretend anymore that things are right when they're wrong. I do not gloss over bad things and make them good.

One day at a time...
I feel my feelings and express them honestly, knowing that they're neither right nor wrong ... and I rejoice at the feeling of freedom I experience when I allow my emotions to flow from me.
~ Mari ~

*****************************************

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

The greatest enemies of us alcoholics are resentment, jealousy, envy, frustration, and fear. - Pg. 145 - To Employers

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

'Living life on life's terms,' just what does this mean to us? It doesn't mean we will get a brownie button for every day we stay abstinent. It simply means life can be tough and we can still stay sober if we chose to live by principle.

Help me live life on life's terms by accepting the good along with bad realizing that 'realities' are not good excuses to use mind-affecting chemicals.

My Feelings Have Force

Today, even though I am feeling out of sorts I will take responsibility for what I am putting out to others. Am I appreciating the efforts people are making for me. Am I looking into and beyond their faces as they are looking into mine. Am I giving them half a chance to help me and am I giving myself half a chance to be helped? As I move through the experiences of my day, I will try to remain conscious of others efforts and well as my own. I will appreciate what is being done for me.

I let good in

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Life begins right outside your comfort zone. Start changing.

If I fail to change the person I was when I came in, that person will take me out!

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Prayers that get answered are Prayers with feet.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I trust all that comes up for me today. I now know there is no value in hiding the truth from myself. I choose today to know everything about me and I am excited about this new adventure.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Serenity is being able to stand still and sit amidst the storms and conflicts of life - And we're going to have plenty.
If we're not having storms and conflicts, we're not living. - Kate B. ( Quoting Fr. Barney. )

*****************************************

AA Thought for the Day

March 8

If
Alcoholism respects no ifs. It does not go away, not for a week, for a day, or even for an hour,
leaving us nonalcoholic and able to drink again on some special occasion
or for some extraordinary reason -- not even if it is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration,
or if a big sorrow hits us, or if it rains in Spain or the stars fall on Alabama.
Alcoholism is for us unconditional, with no dispensation available at any price.
- Living Sober, p. 63

Thought to Ponder . . .
Nothing is so bad, that a drink won't make worse.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
A A = Absolute Abstinence.

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

Inventory
"We continue to take personal inventory and continue to set right any new mistakes as we go along. We vigorously
commenced this way of living as we cleaned up the past. We have entered the world of the Spirit. Our next function is to
grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter. It should continue for our lifetime. Continue to
look for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear."
Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 84

Thought to Consider . . .
When I am too busy to pray - I am just too busy.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
CHANGE Choosing Honesty Allows New Growth Everyday

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

Focus
>From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":
"The Washingtonian Society, a movement among alcoholics which started in Baltimore a century ago [the 1850s],
almost discovered the answer to alcoholism. At first the society was composed entirely of alcoholics trying to help one
another. The early members foresaw that they should dedicate themselves to this one aim. In many respects the
Washingtonians were akin to A.A. Their membership passed the five hundred thousand mark. Had they stuck to their
one goal, they might have found the full answer. Instead, the Washingtonians permitted politicians and reformers, both
alcoholic and nonalcoholic, to use the society for their own purposes. Abolition of slavery, for example, was a stormy
political issue then. Soon Washingtonian speakers violently and publicly took sides on this question. Maybe the society
could have survived the abolition controversy, but it did not have a chance from the moment it decided to reform all
America's drinking habits. Some of the Washingtonians became temperance crusaders. Within a very few years they
had completely lost their effectiveness in helping alcoholics, and the society collapsed."
2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pgs. 124-25

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

"Great love is the sunlight of AA's tree of life."
Jackson, Miss., November 1964
"Let Go and Let God"
AA Grapevine

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

"Now we go out to our fellows and repair the damage done in the
past. We attempt to sweep away the debris which has accumulated out of our effort to live on self-will and run the show
ourselves. If we haven't the will to do this, we ask until it comes. Remember it was
agreed at the beginning we would go to any lengths for victory over alcohol."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg.76~

"We meet frequently so that newcomers may find the fellowship they seek."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Bill's Story, pg. 15~

Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food,
or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers. And when we turn away
from meditation and prayer, we likewise deprive our minds, our emotions, and our intuitions of vitally needed support.
As the body can fail its purpose for lack of nourishment, so can the soul.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p. 97

Misc. AA Literature - Quote

Thousands of 'Founders'
'While I thank God that I was privileged to be an early member of A.A., I honestly wish that the word 'founder' could be
eliminated from the A.A. vocabulary.
'When you get right down to it, everyone who has done any amount of successful Twelfth Step work is bound to be the
founder of a new life for other alcoholics.'
'A.A. was not invented! Its basics were brought to us through the experience and wisdom of many great friends. We
simply borrowed and adapted their ideas.'
'Thankfully, we have accepted the devoted services of many nonalcoholics. We owe our very lives to the men and
women of medicine and religion. And, speaking for Dr. Bob and myself,I gratefully declare that had it not been for our
wives, Anne and Lois, neither of us could have lived to see A.A.'s beginning.' 1. LETTER, 1945 - 2. LETTER, 1966 - 3.

LETTER, 1966

Prayer For The Day: Dear Lord, I ask for strength, and You give me difficulties that require strength. I pray for courage, and You give me dangers to overcome. I ask for favors, and You give me opportunities. I pray for patience, and You lead me into a traffic tie-up, but You never forsake me. Your love surrounds me, and You give me both encouragement and hope. ... Help me to remember times in the past when You have stood by me, comforted me, strengthened me, healed me, and blessed me. Thank You, Lord, and help me to be a blessing to others, that they may want to know You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.