Daily Reflection

AUGUST 12
A LOOK BACKWARD
First, we take a look backward and try to discover where
we have been at fault; next we make a vigorous attempt to
repair the damage we have done; . . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 77
As a traveler on a fresh and exciting A.A. journey of
recovery, I experienced a newfound peace of mind and the
horizon appeared clear and bright, rather than obscure and
dim. Reviewing my life to discover where I had been at
fault seemed to be such an arduous and dangerous task. It
was painful to pause and look backward. I was afraid I
might stumble! Couldn't I put the past out of my mind and
just live in my new golden present? I realized that those in
the past whom I had harmed stood between me and my
desire to continue my movement toward serenity. I had to
ask for courage to face those persons from my life who still
lived in my conscience, to recognize and deal with the guilt
that their presence produced in me. I had to look at the
damage I had done, and become willing to make amends.
Only then could my journey of the spirit resume.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 11
REMOVING "THE GROUND GLASS"
The moral inventory is a cool examination of the damages
that occurred to us during life and a sincere effort to look
at them in a true perspective. This has the effect of taking
the ground glass out of us, the emotional substance that
still cuts and inhibits.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 140
My Eighth Step list used to drag me into a whirlpool of
resentment. After four years of sobriety, I was blocked by
denial connected with an ongoing abusive relationship. The
argument between fear and pride eased as the words of the
Step moved from my head to my heart. For the first time in
years I opened my box of paints and poured out an honest
rage, an explosion of reds and blacks and yellows. As I
looked at the drawing, tears of joy and relief flowed down
my cheeks. In my disease, I had given up my art, a selfinflicted
punishment far greater than any imposed from
outside. In my recovery, I learned that the pain of my
defects is the very substance God uses to cleanse my
character and to set me free.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 10
REDOUBLING OUR EFFORTS
To a degree, he has already done this when taking moral
inventory, but now the time has come when he ought to
redouble his efforts to see how many people he has hurt,
and in what ways.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 77
As I continue to grow in sobriety, I become more aware of
myself as a person of worth. In the process, I am better able
to see others as persons, and with this comes the realization
that these were people whom I had hurt in my drinking
days. I didn't just lie, I lied about Tom. I didn't just cheat, I
cheated Joe. What were seemingly impersonal acts, were
really personal affronts, because it was people —people of
worth—whom I had harmed. I need to do something about
the people I have hurt so that I may enjoy a peaceful
sobriety.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 9
". . . OF ALL PERSONS WE HAD HARMED"
. . . and became willing to make amends to them all.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 77
One of the key words in the Eighth Step is the word all. I
am not free to select a few names for the list and to
disregard others. It is a list of all persons I have harmed. I
can see immediately that this Step entails forgiveness
because if I'm not willing to forgive someone, there is little
chance I will place his name on the list. Before I placed the
first name on my list, I said a little prayer: "I forgive
anyone and everyone who has ever harmed me at any time
and under any circumstances."
It is well for me to contemplate a small, but very
significant, two-letter word every time the Lord's Prayer is
said. The word is as. I ask, "Forgive us our trespasses, as
we forgive those who trespass against us." In this case, as
means, "in the same manner." I am asking to be forgiven in
the same manner that I forgive others. As I say this portion
of the prayer, if I am harboring hatred or resentment, I am
inviting more resentment, when I should be calling on the
spirit of forgiveness.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 8
"MADE A LIST . . ." Made a list of all
persons we had harmed, . . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 77
When I approached the Eighth Step, I wondered how I
could list all the things that I have done to other people
since there were so many people, and some of them weren't
alive anymore. Some of the hurts I inflicted weren't bad,
but they really bothered me. The main thing to see in this
Step was to become willing to do whatever I had to do to
make these amends to the best of my ability at that particular
time. Where there is a will, there's a way, so if I
want to feel better, I need to unload the guilt feelings I
have. A peaceful mind has no room for feelings of guilt.
With the help of my Higher Power, if I am honest with
myself, I can cleanse my mind of these feelings.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 7
A "DESIGN FOR LIVING"
We in our turn, sought the same escape with all the
desperation of drowning men. What seemed at first a flimsy
reed, has proved to be the loving and powerful hand of
God. A new life has been given us or, if you prefer, "a
design for living" that really works.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 28
I try each day to raise my heart and hands in thanks to God
for showing me a "design for living" that really works
through our beautiful Fellowship. But what, exactly, is this
"design for living" that "really works"? For me, it is the
practice of the Twelve Steps to the best of my ability, the
continued awareness of a God who loves me unconditionally,
and the hope that, in each new day, there is a purpose
for my being. I am truly, truly blessed in the Fellowship

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 6
DRIVEN
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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 62
My selfishness was the driving force behind my drinking. I
drank to celebrate success and I drank to drown my
sorrows. Humility is the answer. I learn to turn my will and
my life over to the care of God. My sponsor tells me that
service keeps me sober. Today I ask myself: Have I sought
knowledge of God's will for me? Have I done service for
my A.A. group?

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 5
LISTENING DEEPLY
How persistently we claim the right to decide all by
ourselves just what we shall think and just how we shall act
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 37
If I accept and act upon the advice of those who have made
the program work for themselves, I have a chance to
outgrow the limits of the past. Some problems will shrink
to nothingness, while others may require patient, well thought-
out action. Listening deeply when others share can
develop intuition in handling problems which arise
unexpectedly. It is usually best for me to avoid impetuous
action. Attending a meeting or calling a fellow A.A.
member will usually reduce tension enough to bring relief
to a desperate sufferer like me. Sharing problems at
meetings with other alcoholics to whom I relate, or
privately with my sponsor, can change aspects of the
positions in which I find myself. Character defects are
identified and I begin to see how they work against me.
When I put my faith in the spiritual power of the program,
when I trust others to teach me what I need to do to have a
better life, I find that I can trust myself to do what is
necessary.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 4
SEEDS OF FAITH
Faith, to be sure, is necessary, but faith alone can avail
nothing. We can have faith, yet keep God out of our lives.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 34
As a child I constantly questioned the existence of God. To
a "scientific thinker" like me, no answer could withstand a
thorough dissection, until a very patient woman finally said
to me, "You must have faith." With that simple statement,
the seeds of my recovery were sown!
Today, as I practice my recovery—cutting back the
weeds of alcoholism—slowly I am letting those early seeds
of faith grow and bloom. Each day of recovery, of ardent
gardening, brings the Higher Power of my understanding
more fully into my life. My God has always been with me
through faith, but it is my responsibility to have the
willingness to accept His presence.
I ask God to grant me the willingness to do His will

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 3
. . . TO BE OF SERVICE
Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum
service to God and the people about us.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 77
It is clear that God's plan for me is expressed through love.
God loved me enough to take me from alleys and jails so
that I could be made a useful participant in His world. My
response is to love all of His children through service and
by example. I ask God to help me imitate His love for me
through my love for others.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 2
WE BECOME WILLING . . .At the moment we are trying to put our lives in order. But
this is not an end in itself.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 77
How easily I can become misdirected in approaching the
Eighth Step! I wish to be free, somehow transformed by my
Sixth and Seventh Step work. Now, more than ever, I am
vulnerable to my own self-interest and hidden agenda. I am
careful to remember that self-satisfaction, which sometimes
comes through the spoken forgiveness of those I have
harmed, is not my true objective. I become willing to make
amends, knowing that through this process I am mended
and made fit to move forward, to know and desire God's
will for me.

Daily Reflection

AUGUST 1
LIVING IT
The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 83
When new in the program, I couldn't comprehend living
the spiritual aspect of the program, but now that I'm sober,
I can't comprehend living without it. Spirituality was what
I had been seeking. God, as I understand Him, has given
me answers to the whys that kept me drinking for twenty
years. By living a spiritual life, by asking God for help, I
have learned to love, care for and feel compassion for all
my fellow men, and to feel joy in a world where, before, I
felt only fear.