Another great dividend we may expect from confiding- our defects to another human being is humility-a word often misunderstood. . . . it amounts to a clear recognition of what and who we really are, fol-lowed by a sincere attempt to become what we could be.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 58
I knew deep inside that if I were ever to be joyous, happy and free, I had to share my past life with some other individual. The joy and relief I experienced after doing so were beyond description. Almost immediately after taking the Fifth Step, I felt free from the bondage of self and the bondage of alcohol. That freedom remains after 36 years, a day at a time. I found that God could do for me what I couldn't do for myself.
One thing that keeps me sober is a feeling of loyalty to the other members of the group. I know I'd be letting them down if I ever took a drink. When I was drinking, I wasn't loyal to anybody. I should have been loyal to my family, but I wasn't. I let them down by my drinking. When I came into A.A., I found a group of people who were not only helping each other to stay sober, but who were loyal to each other by staying sober themselves. Am I loyal to my group?
Meditation for the Day
Calmness is constructive of good. Agitation is destructive of good. I should not rush into action. I should first "be still and know that He is God." Then I should act only as God directs me through my conscience. Only trust, perfect trust in God, can keep me calm when all around me are agitated. Calmness is trust in action. I should seek all things that can help me to cultivate calmness. To attain material things, the world learns to attain speed. To attain spiritual things, I have to learn to attain a state of calm.
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may learn how to have inner peace. I pray that I may be calm, so that God can work through me.
I know when I first came back I also had that feeling of loyalty to our little intimate groups in our area. We were all pulling and rooting together for all the newcomers. I went looking for the other new members who had just struggled as I had, and each meeting we looked for each other.
And thank God that they too are still around. I look forward to seeing them all on my home visits. :}
"I pray that I may be calm, so that God can work through me."
LOVE that. :)
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I think there's an invisible principle of living...if we believe we're guided through every step of our lives, we are. Its a lovely sight, watching it work.
