Daily Reflection

APRIL 30
A GREAT PARADOX
These legacies of suffering and of recovery are easily
passed among alcoholics, one to the other. This is our gift
from God, and its bestowal upon others like us is the one
aim that today animates A.A.'s all around the globe.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 151

The great paradox of A.A. is that I know I cannot keep the
precious gift of sobriety unless I give it away.
My primary purpose is to stay sober. In A.A. I have no
other goal, and the importance of this is a matter of life or
death for me. If I veer from this purpose I lose. But A.A. is
not only for me; it is for the alcoholic who still suffers. The
legions of recovering alcoholics stay sober by sharing with
fellow alcoholics. The way to my recovery is to show others
in A.A. that when I share with them, we both grow in
the grace of the Higher Power, and both of us are on the
road to a happy destiny.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 29
GROUP AUTONOMY
Some may think that we have carried the principle of group
autonomy to extremes. For example, in its original "long
form," Tradition Four declares: "Any two or three gathered
together for sobriety may call themselves an A.A. group,
provided that as a group they have no other affiliation.,
. . But this ultra-liberty is not so risky as it looks.*

A.A. COMES OF AGE PP 104-05
As an active alcoholic, I abused every liberty that life
afforded. How could A.A. expect me to respect the "ultraliberty"
bestowed by Tradition Four? Learning respect has
become a lifetime job.
A.A. has made me fully accept the necessity of discipline
and that, if I do not assert it from within, then I will pay for
it. This applies to groups too. Tradition Four points me in a
spiritual direction, in spite of my alcoholic inclinations. 


* This is a misquote; Bill quoted the Third Tradition, but was referring to
Tradition Four.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 28
TWO "MAGNIFICENT STANDARDS"
All A.A. progress can be reckoned in terms of just two
words: humility and responsibility. Our whole spiritual
development can be accurately measured by our degree of
adherence to these magnificent standards.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 271
To acknowledge and respect the views, accomplishments
and prerogatives of others and to accept being wrong shows
me the way of humility. To practice the principles of A.A.
in all my affairs guides me to be responsible. Honoring
these precepts gives credence to Tradition Four—and to all
other Traditions of the Fellowship. Alcoholics Anonymous
has evolved a philosophy of life full of valid motivations,
rich in highly relevant principles and ethical values, a view
of life which can be extended beyond the confines of the
alcoholic population. To honor these precepts I need only
to pray, and care for my fellow man as if each one were my
brother.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 27
JOYFUL DISCOVERIES
We realize we know only a little. God will constantly
disclose more to you and to us. Ask Him in your morning
meditation what you can do each day for the man who is
still sick. The answers will come, if your own house is in
order. But obviously you cannot transmit something you
haven't got. See to it that your relationship with Him is
right, and great events will come to pass for you and
countless others. This is the Great Fact for us.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 164
Sobriety is a journey of joyful discovery. Each day brings
new experience, awareness, greater hope, deeper faith,
broader tolerance. I must maintain these attributes or I will
have nothing to pass on.
Great events for this recovering alcoholic are the normal
everyday joys found in being able to live another day in
God's grace.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 26
HAPPINESS IS NOT THE POINT
 don't think happiness or unhappiness is the point. How do
we meet the problems we face? How do we best learn from
them and transmit what we have learned to others, if they
would receive the knowledge?
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 306
In my search "to be happy," I changed jobs, married and
divorced, took geographical cures, and ran myself into
debt—financially, emotionally and spiritually. In A.A., I'm
learning to grow up. Instead of demanding that people,
places and things make me happy, I can ask God for selfacceptance.
When a problem overwhelms me, A.A.'s
Twelve Steps will help me grow through the pain. The
knowledge I gain can be a gift to others who suffer with the
same problem. As Bill said, "When pain comes, we are
expected to learn from it willingly, and help others to learn.
When happiness comes, we accept it as a gift, and thank
God for it." (As Bill Sees It, p. 306)

Daily Reflection

APRIL 25
ENTERING A NEW DIMENSION
In the late stages of our drinking the will to resist has fled.
Yet when we admit complete defeat and when we become
entirely ready to try A. A. principles, our obsession leaves
us and we enter a new dimension—freedom under God as
we understand Him.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 283
I am fortunate to be among the ones who have had this
awesome transformation in my life. When I entered the
doors of A.A., alone and desperate, I had been beaten into
willingness to believe anything I heard. One of the things I
heard was, "This could be your last hangover, or you can
keep going round and round." The man who said this
obviously was a whole lot better off than 1.1 liked the idea
of admitting defeat and I have been free ever since! My
heart heard what my mind never could: "Being powerless
over alcohol is no big deal." I'm free and I'm grateful!

Daily Reflection

APRIL 24
LEARNING TO LOVE OURSELVES
Alcoholism was a lonely business, even though we were
surrounded by people who loved us . . . We were trying to
find emotional security either by dominating or by being
dependent upon others . . . We still vainly tried to be secure
by some unhealthy sort of domination or dependence.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 252
When I did my personal inventory I found that I had
unhealthy relationships with most people in my life—my
friends and family, for example. I always felt isolated and
lonely. I drank to dull emotional pain.
It was through staying sober, having a good sponsor and
working the Twelve Steps that I was able to build up my
low self-esteem. First the Twelve Steps taught me to
become my own best friend, and then, when I was able to
love myself, I could reach out and love others.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 23
A.A. IS NOT A CURE-ALL
It would be a product of false pride to claim that A. A. is a
cure-all, even for alcoholism
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 285
In my early years of sobriety I was full of pride, thinking
that A. A. was the only source of treatment for a good and
happy life. It certainly was the basic ingredient for my
sobriety and even today, with over twelve years in the
program, I am very involved in meetings, sponsorship and
service. During the first four years of my recovery, I found
it necessary to seek professional help, since my emotional
health was extremely poor. There are those folks too, who
have found sobriety and happiness in other organizations.
A.A. taught me that I had a choice: to go to any lengths to
enhance my sobriety. A.A. may not be a cure-all for
everything, but it is the center of my sober living.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 22
NEW SOIL . . . NEW ROOTS
Moments of perception can build into a lifetime of spiritual
serenity, as I have excellent reason to know, loots of
reality, supplanting the neurotic underbrush, will hold fast
despite the high winds of the forces which would destroy
us, or which we would use to destroy ourselves.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 173
I came to A.A. green,a seedling quivering with exposed
taproots. It was for survival but it was a beginning. I
stretched, developed, twisted, but with the help of others,
my spirit eventually burst up from the roots. I was free. I
acted, withered, went inside, prayed, acted again,
understood anew, as one moment of perception struck. Up
from my roots, spirit-arms lengthened into strong, green
shoots: high-springing servants stepping skyward.
Here on earth God unconditionally continues the legacy
of higher love. My A.A. life put me "on a different footing
. . .my roots grasped a new soil"

Daily Reflection

APRIL 21
CULTIVATING FAITH
"I don't think we can do anything very well in this world
unless we practice it And I don't believe we do A.A. too well
unless we practice it. . . . We should practice . . . acquiring
the spirit of service. We should attempt to acquire some faith,
which isn't easily done, especially for the person who has
always been very materialistic, following the standards of
society today. But I think faith can be acquired; it can be
acquired slowly; it has to be cultivated. That was not easy
for me, and I assume that it is difficult for everyone else.
. . . "
DR. BOB AND THE GOOD OLDTIMERS, pp. 307-08
Fear is often the force that prevents me from acquiring and
cultivating the power of faith. Fear blocks my appreciation
of beauty, tolerance, forgiveness, service, and serenity.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 20
SELF-EXAMINATION
. . . we ask God to direct our thinking, especially asking
that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking
motives.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 86
When said sincerely, this prayer teaches me to be truly
unselfish and humble, for even in doing good deeds I often
used to seek approval and glory for myself. By examining
my motives in all that I do, I can be of service to God and
others, helping them do what they want to do. When I put
God in charge of my thinking, much needless worry is
eliminated and I believe He guides me throughout the day.
When I eliminate thoughts of self-pity, dishonesty and selfcenteredness
as soon as they enter my mind, I find peace
with God, my neighbor and myself.

Daily Reflection

APRIL 19
BROTHERS IN OUR DEFECTS
We recovered alcoholics are not so much brothers in virtue
as we are brothers in our defects, and in our common
strivings to overcome them
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 167
The identification that one alcoholic has with another is
mysterious, spiritual—almost incomprehensible. But it is
there. I "feel" it. Today I feel that I can help people and that
they can help me.
It is a new and exciting feeling for me to care for
someone; to care what they are feeling, hoping for, praying
for; to know their sadness, joy, horror, sorrow, grief; to
want to share those feelings so that someone can have
relief. I never knew how to do this—or how to try. I never
even cared. The Fellowship of A.A., and God, are teaching
me how to care about others.