Daily Reflections Toward Emotional Freedom Since defective relations with other human beings have nearly always been the immediate cause of our woes,
Including our alcoholism,
No field of investigation could yield more satisfying and valuable rewards than this one.
From Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions,
Page 80.
Willingness is a peculiar thing for me in that,
Over a period of time,
It seems to come first with awareness,
But then with a feeling of discomfort,
Making me want to take some action.
As I reflected on taking the eighth step,
My willingness to make amends to others came as a desire for forgiveness of others and myself.
I felt forgiveness toward others after I became aware of my part in the difficulties of relationships.
I wanted to feel the peace and serenity described in the promises.
From working the first seven steps,
I became aware of whom I had harmed and that I had been my own worst enemy.
In order to restore my relationships with my fellow human beings,
I knew I would have to change.
I wanted to learn to live in harmony with myself and others,
So that I could also live in emotional freedom.
The beginning of the end to my isolation,
From my fellows and from God,
Came when I wrote my eighth step list.
Twenty-four hours a day,
AA thought for the day.
When many hundreds of people are able to say that the consciousness of the presence of God is today the most important fact of their lives,
They present a powerful reason why one should have faith.
When we see others solve their problems by a simple reliance upon the Spirit of the universe,
We have to stop doubting the power of God.
Our ideas did not work,
But the God idea does.
Deep down in every man,
Woman,
And child is the fundamental idea of God.
Faith in a power greater than ourselves and miraculous demonstrations of that power in our lives are facts as old as the human race.
Am I willing to rely on the Spirit of the universe?
Meditation for the day.
You should not dwell too much on the mistakes,
Faults,
And failures of the past.
Be done with shame and remorse and contempt for yourself.
With God's help,
Develop a new self-respect.
Unless you respect yourself,
Others will not respect you.
You ran a race,
You stumbled and fell,
You have risen again,
And now you press on toward the goal of a better life.
Do not stay to examine the spot where you fell.
Only feel sorry for the delay,
The short-sightedness that prevented you from seeing the real goal sooner.
Prayer for the day.
I pray that I may not look back.
I pray that I may keep picking myself up and making a fresh start each day.
