Latest / Sober Readings / Good Orderly Direction
Transcript
- Scott Hayes: Good morning, welcome back to Sober Readings. Today is Wednesday, the 11th of March. Today's reading from Daily Reflections. Good orderly direction. It is when we try to make our will conform with God's that we begin to use it rightly. To all of us, this was a most wonderful revelation. Our whole trouble had been the misuse of willpower. We had tried to bombard our problems with it instead of attempting to bring it into agreement with God's intention for us. To make this increasingly possible is the purpose of AA's 12 steps, and step three opens the door. That's from the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions, page 40. All I have to do is look back at my past to see where my self-will has led me. I just don't know what's best for me and I believe my higher power does. G-O-D, which I define as good orderly direction, has never let me down, but I have let myself down quite often. Using my self-will in a situation usually has the same result as forcing the wrong piece into a jigsaw puzzle. exhaustion and frustration. Step 3 opens the door to the rest of the program. When I ask God for guidance, I know that whatever happens is the best possible solution. Things are exactly as they are supposed to be, even if they aren't what I want or expect. God does do for me what I cannot do for myself, if I let him. Today's reading from 24 Hours. March 11th, AA Thought for the Day. By having quiet times each morning, we come to depend on God's help during the day, especially if we should be tempted to take a drink. And we can honestly thank Him each night for the strength He has given us. So our faith is strengthened by these quiet times of prayer. By listening to other members, by working with other alcoholics, by times of quiet meditation, our faith in God gradually becomes strong. So ask yourself today, have I turned my drink problem entirely over to God without reservations? The meditation for the day. It seems as though when God wants to express to men what he is like, he makes a very beautiful character. Think of a personality as God's expression of character attributes. Be as fit an expression of God-like character as you can. When the beauty of a man's character is impressed upon you, it leaves an image which in turn reflects through our own actions. So look for beauty of character in those around you. prayer for the day. I pray that I may look at great souls until their beauty of character becomes a part of my soul. I pray that I may reflect this character in my own life. And for today's final reading, thought I'd switch it up a bit and read a short writing in The Grapevine. This is The Grapevine article from November of 2024, and this short article is entitled, Best Day Ever. Today is very special day. My Nashville granddaughter, the love of my life, is nine years old today. Two years ago, I was diagnosed with a very rare, deadly form of bone marrow cancer. I was 79 years old and 31 years sober. Without intensive chemo and a bone marrow transplant, I might have only had six months to live. I wasn't sure I'd survive this very aggressive treatment, but holy cow. My treatment worked. I survived it, and now one day at a time, I'm in a total but temporary remission. Both from multiple myeloma as well as alcoholism. I thought for sure I would miss my granddaughter's birthday. Well, today is the big day, and I get to be there to celebrate it with her. My brilliant, gorgeous, and adorable granddaughter has never seen her grandpa Steve drunk. If I stay sober, trust the AA program, and firmly believe that God will take care of me, anything is possible. He has answered my prayers. I can't tell you how happy I am. Definitely Steve from Nashville, Tennessee. I hope you enjoyed that short reading from the grapevine. I'm going to mix those into the daily readings a little more often. Have thoughts and comments on today's readings? You can send them to me. send me an email at soberreadingswithscott at gmail.com or you can go to my website soberreadings.com and fill out that form. And if you haven't done so already, click the link to follow the show. And while you're there, if you'd like to drop a dollar in the donation basket for today's readings, just click the donate button. So thanks for listening everybody. Take care of yourselves and each other and remember just for today, don't drink, go to a meeting and keep coming back. Have a great day. And as my friend Larry says, and definitely Steve from Nashville, Tennessee, best day ever.