Acceptance has never been my strong suit -thank GOD I was atleast able to accept my Alcoholism.

On powerlessness -walk up to someone and… and then walk up to someone and… now tell me you’re powerless! WE AFFECT ONE ANOTHER -THE ONLY QUESTION IS POSITIVELY OR NEGATIVELY! Spiritual principles are the most powerful “thing” in the universe [second only to GOD who created them]. Not in my time, not in my way, in GOD’S time, in GOD’S way! I am merely a channel of His love!*

There was a picture on the wall at “the sunshine group” with 12 principles. Each representing the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. GOD told me years ago “draw a line with those 12 principles horizontally on the left -then on the right the antonym for each. The principles on the left are what deliver us from our Alcoholism -transform our life. The principles on the left are responsible for our journey into madness.

*If I can make people get angry, sin, react… then I can effect change too through bringing them peace, demonstrating GOD’S principles, prompting them to act!

1)People are what’s important

2)GOD… GOD’S PRINCIPLES…?

For some people success means being in a relationship, having children… for others it means being single. The problem for some is that they don’t realize this [once they’ve achieved it].

There are many cold and shallow people working successfully to earn a living in this country. Apparently depth and warmth are not requirements to be successful 🤷‍♂️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏾‍♂️🤷🏽‍♀️

GOD gives us all a choice -HIS way [and suffer] or [my way and] suffer! I used to think “what kind of a choice is that?” Well to follow GOD’S way is to ascend, to go it on my own is to descend [even in my best efforts my ascension will be greatly compromised -“we find that we can accomplish in a very short time what would normally take years on our own power”.

People are easy -If you want to draw them to you figure out what appeals to them. If you want to repel them figure out what doesn’t appeal to them. It’s unfortunate that so many people operate from this rather shallow and simplistic formula -but it’s true. That’s another thing that made JESUS so wonderful, HE was the antithesis of this formula.

At 58 years old my mind is as active as ever. They say most people complete the majority of their work -at their peak- in their twenties and thirties.

I was reminded of a situation some 15 years ago. Some people use the time a person has an Alcoholics Anonymous to justify judging them [for any faults they may display]. I’m only going to say this, there is and perhaps always will be a group of women hurt by men, eager to judge a man for supposedly taking advantage of a woman in Alcoholics Anonymous. 🤷‍♂️ Bill Wilson specifically points out that to stand in judgment over another alcoholic in Alcoholics Anonymous is to pass a death sentence. Alcoholics are very sensitive people, and how could we hope to retain their confidence while treating them like the rest of the world?

God doesn’t send us down a memo telling us who to marry or what job to take. He gives us principles to deal with whatever choices we make we make, whatever situation we may find ourselves in.

I am often all struck when I hear an immediate from people with many decades of sobriety “I don’t know what God’s will is for me”. It’s to practice the principles and all of our affairs.

“If you cannot believe in MY SON, believe in HIS works”.

“if you don’t want to hear the truth, then maybe Akcoholics Anonymous is not the place for you”. -ANONYMOUS

About 15 or 16 years ago I heard an interview about an interview about Andy Roddick – The interviewer spoke highly of him. Even went so far as to say “he gets it”. I then asked GOD very briefly after, “I want to get it”. HIS SWIFT REPLY:

“PEOPLE ARE WHAT MATTERS MOST”.

“TBC”.

This is just one example of ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTION AT THE RIGHT TIME! 🤷‍♂️

Most of man’s progress forward and backwards takes place in progressive steps. The music of the eighties, was the 1st decade of music where artists [across the board] were openly expressing their desires, as opposed to pledging their love, or expressing their suffering [strictly] regarding love itself. And now, once again, once you Crack that door, what you end up with are aging generations who cracked that door -SHAKING THEIR HEADS! Yet most people, within a given time frame, establish their values -however warped they may appear/be. And with this trend that has gone on throughout history, people end up with the perverbial “what’s happening to kids these days”. But they just stood by idly and watched it happen. That is the World War II generations contribution to to this mess -one of them anyways. The other one, “My kids are not gonna grow up without anything like I did”. Didn’t they realize the pain and struggle are the cornerstone of character building is building and that many in our society is society from that point on or largely lacking in character!

It took me [the first] 27 years in recovery to begin to slow down enough to catch up to myself. And once a person catches up to themselves -HANG ON!!!

If you keep your mouth shut, remain humble, sometimes the group will speak up for you! And when it comes from somebody else, oftentimes it means more than if it had come from you -it has a greater impact. 🤷‍♂️🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏾‍♂️🤷🏻‍♀️

Don’t think so narrow when it comes to things you disagree with or regret. Everything serves a purpose, likely likely one beyond that which you you are focused on.

WE LEARN BY DOING!

I used to think that saying an Alcoholic Anonymous, “fake it till you make” it was BS. Until God pointed out to me one day that you have to start somewhere. And that starting out is the real deal it’s not faking it.

I also heard it said that “Alcoholics Anonymous is a selfish program”. Nothing GOD ever asks of us is selfish. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏾‍♂️🤷🏽‍♀️🤷‍♂️

They say pain is proportional to resistance.

When people die, why is it that so often we exactly what they wouldn’t want us to do? I used to ask people in treatment this question all the time.

Are your children more valuable than you are? This is another question I used to ask people in the treatment center.

I heard it said that suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.

Staying clean and sober hasn’t been hard -,practicing the principles and working the steps has been hard! But if I don’t practice them, then stay in clean and sober will become hard! I heard a man say once that if you have the right training in mixed martial arts, that is to say that the training should be harder than the fight itself. If that’s the case, and you can hang, you’ll be all right come fight-night!

Life isn’t a game -although some people might think it is. Playing with life is like playing with a rattle snake. Same thing with relationships. You can conquer life through principles, but you can’t bypass it. The only way to the next life is through it!

I suspect that whenever GOD looks at our behaviors in the present HE always checks oor past for any extenuating circumstances.

You can be useful to others the moment you decide to. You can begin to find peace within yourself the moment you decide to live your life accordingly. You can begin to find happiness the moment you begin to realize how fortunate you are.

Joey by Concrete Blonde on YouTube

Toy Soldier by Martika on YouTube

I used to bring in pictures to recovery unit showing Before & After of certain celebrities celebrities after years of drinking and drugging. Jan Michael Vincent was one of them.

Don’t forget to brush the top of your teeth -not just the sides!