Latest / Sober Readings / Yesterday's Baggage
Transcript
- Scott Hayes: Morning, happy Monday, everyone. Welcome back to Sober Readings. Today is Monday, the 5th of October. My name is Scott, and I am glad you're here with me for today's readings. Let's get started today with the Serenity Prayer. God, grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference. Today's reading from Daily Reflections. Yesterday's Baggage. For the wise have always known that no one can make much of his life until self-searching becomes a regular habit, until he is able to admit and accept what he finds, and until he patiently and persistently tries to correct what is wrong. That's from page eighty-eight from Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. I have more than enough to handle today, without dragging along yesterday's baggage too. I must balance today's books if I am to have a chance tomorrow. So I ask myself if I have erred and how I can avoid repeating that particular behavior. Did I hurt anyone? Did I help anyone? And why? Some of today is bound to spill over into tomorrow, but most of it need not if I make an honest daily infantry. Today's reading from twenty four hours a day, october five, AA Thought for the Day Do I have any hard feelings about other group members or for any other AA group? Am I critical of the way a group member thinks or acts? Do I feel that another group is operating in the wrong way and do I broadcast it? Or do I realize that all AA members, no matter what their limitations, have something to offer? Some good, however little, that they can do for AA in spite of their handicaps? Do I believe that there is a place for all kinds of groups in AA, provided they are following AA traditions, and that they can be effective even if I do not agree with their procedure? And today's question, am I tolerant of people and groups? Meditation for the day. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in, from this time forth and even forevermore. All your movements, your goings and comings can be guided by the unseen spirit. Every visit to help another, every unselfish effort to assist, can be blessed by that unseen spirit. There can be a blessing on all you do, on every interview with one who is suffering. Every meeting of a need is May not be a chance meeting, but it may have been planned by the unseen spirit. Led by the Spirit of the Lord, you can be tolerant, sympathetic, and understanding of others, and so accomplish much. Today's Prayer for the Day. I pray that I may be led by the Spirit of God. I pray that the Lord will preserve my goings and my comings. And for today's final reading, let's read from As Bill Sees It. Today we're reading from page twenty-six. True Independence of the Spirit. The more we become willing to depend upon a higher power, the more independent we actually are. Therefore, dependence as AA practices it is really a means of gaining true independence of the spirit. At the level of everyday living, it is startling to discover how dependent we really are, and how unconscious of that dependence. Every modern house has electric wiring carrying power and light to its interior. By accepting with delight our dependence upon this marvel of science, we find ourselves personally more independent, more comfortable and secure. Power flows just where it is needed. Silently and surely, electricity, that strange energy so few people understand, meets our simplest daily needs. Though we readily accept this principle of healthy dependence in many of our temporal affairs, We often fiercely resist the identical principle when asked to apply it as a means of growth in the life of the Spirit. Clearly, we shall never know freedom under God until we try to seek His will for us. The choice is ours. That's on page thirty six of the twelve and twelve. And that's it for today's readings. Now it's time for my take. Let's go back to Daily Reflections. The title is Yesterday's Baggage. And there's a quote I want to read that fits in well here. But before I get into that quote, let me give you a little background on Marcus Aurelius. Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor who lived nearly 2,000 years ago, from 121 to 180 AD. And he also is remembered as one of the most important stoic philosophers. What makes his writing interesting is that much of what we now know as meditations. wasn't written for an audience. It was essentially his private journal, where he examined his thoughts, his actions, his character, and the kind of person he wanted to be. Despite being one of the most powerful people in the world, he continually reminded himself to practice humility, self discipline, acceptance, and personal responsibility. That's probably why so much of what he wrote still connects with recovery today. Stoicism asks us to look at what we can control, accept what we can't, and take responsibility for how we respond. And if that sounds familiar, it probably should. Because it ties directly into the words of the Serenity Prayer. God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change. That would be everything external to us. The courage to change the things we can, that would be the things internal to us, and the wisdom to know the difference. And that would be, do I know the difference between things I can control and things I can't? And so now let's get into the quote. Look well into thyself. There is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look. That's from Marcus Aurelius Meditations. What I like about this quote is that it reminds me that recovery requires me to keep looking inward. It's easy for me to look at everything outside of myself. The people who frustrate me, the circumstances I wish were different, or all the things I think need to change. But sobriety keeps bringing the focus back to me. What am I doing? What am I avoiding? Where am I being dishonest with myself? Where am I holding on to resentment, fear, ego, or control? That kind of self-searching isn't always comfortable, but neither is a fourth step, a tenth step. Or admitting when I'm wrong. The point isn't to beat myself up over what I find. The point is to see it clearly enough that I can do something about it. And I think Marcus Aurelius gets at something else that applies directly to our recovery. There is strength in that willingness to look. For me, strength isn't pretending that everything is fine or believing that because I've been sober for a while, I've somehow figured this thing out. Real strength is being willing to take an honest inventory, recognize when I'm drifting, and make a correction before that drift becomes something bigger. My sobriety gets stronger when I'm willing to search myself instead of judge everyone else. I may not always like what I find, but if I'm honest about it, I have the opportunity to change it. And sometimes that honest look inward is exactly what keeps me moving forward. So that's all for today's episode of Sober Readings. Thank you all for listening. I hope something you heard today stays with you and helps you throughout your day. If you'd like to be a guest on Sober Readings and share your experience, strength and hope, or just join me for a reading, there's a link in the show notes below to send me an email. You'll also find a link in the show notes to my website where you can learn more about sober readings and stay connected. And also if you'd like to drop a dollar in the virtual donation basket for today's readings, Go to the support page on the website and click the button to drop a dollar in the basket. If you enjoyed today's episode and want to support sober readings, please subscribe to the podcast and give the episode a like. It really does help more people find us. And if there's something you heard in today's episode that made you think of someone, share this episode with them. You never know who might need to hear these words today. So thanks for spending a few minutes of your day with me. Be good to yourselves and others today and remember we only have to do this one day at a time. So remember just for today, don't drink, go to a meeting, and keep coming back. Have a great day everyone, and as my friend Larry says, best day ever.