Recovery
Meditations: May 10, 2015
GOOD DAYS
BAD DAYS
Most of the shadows of
this life are caused by standing in one's own sunshine.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Thank You, God, for always loving and accepting me right
where I am, and working with me, even when I am not willing to give You much to
work with. It is so comforting to know that wherever I am, whether I am willing
and open, or have once again shut myself off from the Light of Your Spirit, You
will meet me there and provide whatever is necessary for me to keep on.
Thank You for forgiving me those times when I am not willing
enough to put forth any effort--some days I just want to skate, God--some days
I just want to wallow in it. Why else would I resist changing into what You
would have me be? Some days I am lazy and comfortable just where I am.
One Day at a Time . .
.
God, Help me to be
willing to reach out to You, good day or bad. Keep me mindful that my conscious
contact with You makes even the best day better, and the worst day tolerable.
~ Jeanine ~
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Each Day a New Beginning
To wait for someone else, or to
expect someone else to make my life richer, or fuller, or more
satisfying, puts me in a constant state of suspension; and I miss all
those moments that pass. They never come back to be experienced again.
—Kathleen Tierney Crilly
The steps we are taking today will never again be taken in exactly the same way. The thoughts we are thinking are fresh, never to be repeated. All that these moments offer will never pass our way again.
We each have to grab our own happiness, create our own richness through experiences. We may share what we capture with loved ones, but like us, they too must search their own avenues for the satisfaction that lasts. We can neither give happiness to another, like a gift, nor expect it in return.
The fullness of life we all long for is the natural byproduct of living every moment as fully as possible. Our higher power will never direct us into waters too deep. When we have willingly turned our lives and our wills over, we'll find an abundance of the rich, the full, the satisfying. Faith in God answers all questions, solves all problems.
I will cherish every moment today. Each one is special and will not visit me again.
—Kathleen Tierney Crilly
The steps we are taking today will never again be taken in exactly the same way. The thoughts we are thinking are fresh, never to be repeated. All that these moments offer will never pass our way again.
We each have to grab our own happiness, create our own richness through experiences. We may share what we capture with loved ones, but like us, they too must search their own avenues for the satisfaction that lasts. We can neither give happiness to another, like a gift, nor expect it in return.
The fullness of life we all long for is the natural byproduct of living every moment as fully as possible. Our higher power will never direct us into waters too deep. When we have willingly turned our lives and our wills over, we'll find an abundance of the rich, the full, the satisfying. Faith in God answers all questions, solves all problems.
I will cherish every moment today. Each one is special and will not visit me again.
From Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women by Karen Casey
© 1982, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation
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Food for Thought
Habits
Habit can work for us or against us. We have given up a set of eating habits, which were counterproductive, and we are learning new ones which will work to our benefit. Some of us require more time than others to make the shift.
Each time we act according to the old, destructive pattern, we reactivate those negative habits. We need to abandon them completely so that they will atrophy from disuse.
Each time we practice a constructive eating habit, we reinforce our new pattern. Writing out a food plan, weighing and measuring the food, eating slowly, and saying no thank you to seconds and binge foods are a few parts of the new pattern. When these actions become habitual, we do not have to think consciously about them, since we perform them automatically. Our mental efforts may then be devoted to something else.
Appetite is largely a function of habit. The more wrong foods we eat, the more wrong foods we want to eat. The longer we follow a healthy, sensible plan, the more it satisfies us.
Teach me to build constructive habits.
Habit can work for us or against us. We have given up a set of eating habits, which were counterproductive, and we are learning new ones which will work to our benefit. Some of us require more time than others to make the shift.
Each time we act according to the old, destructive pattern, we reactivate those negative habits. We need to abandon them completely so that they will atrophy from disuse.
Each time we practice a constructive eating habit, we reinforce our new pattern. Writing out a food plan, weighing and measuring the food, eating slowly, and saying no thank you to seconds and binge foods are a few parts of the new pattern. When these actions become habitual, we do not have to think consciously about them, since we perform them automatically. Our mental efforts may then be devoted to something else.
Appetite is largely a function of habit. The more wrong foods we eat, the more wrong foods we want to eat. The longer we follow a healthy, sensible plan, the more it satisfies us.
Teach me to build constructive habits.
From Food for Thought: Daily Meditations for Overeaters by Elisabeth L.
©1980, 1992 by Hazelden Foundation.
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The Language of Letting Go
Enjoying the Good Days
Good feelings can become a habitual part of our life.
There is absolutely no virtue in the unnecessary suffering, which many of us have felt for much of our life. We don't have to allow others to make us miserable, and we don't have to make ourselves miserable.
A good day does not have to be the calm before the storm. That's an old way of thinking we learned in dysfunctional systems.
In recovery, a good day or a good feeling doesn't mean we're in denial. We don't have to wreck our good times by obsessively searching for or creating a problem.
Enjoying our good days doesn't mean we're being disloyal to loved ones who are having problems. We don't have to make ourselves feel guilty because other people aren't having a good day. We don't have to make ourselves miserable to be like them. They can have their day and their feelings; we can have ours.
A good feeling is to be enjoyed. More than we can imagine, good days are ours for the asking.
Today, I will let myself enjoy what is good. I don't have to wreck my good day or good feeling; I don't have to let others spoil it either.
Good feelings can become a habitual part of our life.
There is absolutely no virtue in the unnecessary suffering, which many of us have felt for much of our life. We don't have to allow others to make us miserable, and we don't have to make ourselves miserable.
A good day does not have to be the calm before the storm. That's an old way of thinking we learned in dysfunctional systems.
In recovery, a good day or a good feeling doesn't mean we're in denial. We don't have to wreck our good times by obsessively searching for or creating a problem.
Enjoying our good days doesn't mean we're being disloyal to loved ones who are having problems. We don't have to make ourselves feel guilty because other people aren't having a good day. We don't have to make ourselves miserable to be like them. They can have their day and their feelings; we can have ours.
A good feeling is to be enjoyed. More than we can imagine, good days are ours for the asking.
Today, I will let myself enjoy what is good. I don't have to wreck my good day or good feeling; I don't have to let others spoil it either.
From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie
©1990, Hazelden Foundation
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Today's thought from Hazelden is:
We.
-- First word of the Twelve Steps
We. This little word says a lot about the Twelve Steps. Our addiction made us lonely. The "we" of the program makes us whole again. It makes us a member of a loving, growing group of people.
Our addiction isolated us from others. We couldn't be honest. We felt a lot of shame. But all this is in the past. The "we" of the program helps us live outside ourselves. Now we tell each other about our pasts. We comfort each other. We try to help each other.
Prayer for the Day
Higher Power, help me to join the we of the program. Help me to admit and accept my illness, so the healing can begin.
Action for the Day
Today, I'll work to make the we of the program even stronger. I'll find someone to help.
We.
-- First word of the Twelve Steps
We. This little word says a lot about the Twelve Steps. Our addiction made us lonely. The "we" of the program makes us whole again. It makes us a member of a loving, growing group of people.
Our addiction isolated us from others. We couldn't be honest. We felt a lot of shame. But all this is in the past. The "we" of the program helps us live outside ourselves. Now we tell each other about our pasts. We comfort each other. We try to help each other.
Prayer for the Day
Higher Power, help me to join the we of the program. Help me to admit and accept my illness, so the healing can begin.
Action for the Day
Today, I'll work to make the we of the program even stronger. I'll find someone to help.
You are reading from the book:
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