Latest / Sober Readings / A Necessary Pruning
Transcript
- Scott Hayes: Welcome back to Sober Readings. My name is Scott. Thank you for joining me today. Today is Sunday, the fourth of October. 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: A Necessary Pruning. We know that the pains of drinking had to come before sobriety, an emotional turmoil before serenity. That's on page ninety four of twelve steps and twelve traditions. I love spending time in my garden feeding and pruning my beautiful flowers. One day, as I was busily snipping away, a neighbor stopped by. She commented, ⁓ your plants are so beautiful, it seems such a shame to cut them back. I replied, I know how you feel, but the excess must be removed so they can grow stronger and healthier. Later I thought that perhaps my plants feel pain, but God and I know it's part of the plan and And I've seen the results. I was quickly reminded of my precious AA program and how we all grow through pain. I ask God to prune me when it's time, so I can grow. Today's reading from twenty four hours a day. October fourth AA Thought for the Day. Am I critical of other AA members or of new prospects? Do I ever say about other members, I don't think they're sincere, I think they're bluffing, or I think they're taking a few drinks on the quiet? Do I realize that my doubtful and skeptical attitude is hurting those members, if only in my attitude toward them, which they cannot help sensing? Do I say about new prospects, they'll never make the program? Or do I say They'll only last a few months. If I take this attitude, I am unconsciously hurting those prospects' chances. So today's question Is my attitude always constructive and never destructive? The Meditation for the Day To be attracted toward God and a better life, you must be spirit guided. There is wonderful illumination of thought given to those who are spirit guided. To those who are material guided, there is nothing in God or a finer life to appeal to them or to attract them. But to those who are spirit guided, there is strength and peace and calm to be found in communion with an unseen Lord. To those who believe in this God they cannot see, but whose power they can feel, life has a meaning and purpose. They are children of the unseen Lord, and all human beings are their brothers and sisters. The prayer for the day. I pray that I may be spirit guided. I pray that I may feel God's presence and power in my life. For today's next reading, let's go to day by day daily meditations for recovering addicts. For october fourth, trying to escape. In an attempt to get out of the box we found ourselves in, many of us tried the geographic escape. We moved from place to place. Invariably we found ourselves in pretty much the same, if not worse, situation. We knew we had real emotional and practical problems, but we weren't aware that using substances was actually causing much of our distress. The substances induced a state of mind that led to behavior patterns that wouldn't have occurred had we not been out of our minds. Have I stopped trying to escape? Higher power helped me to know that it's not my location that makes the difference in my life. It's what I'm working with inside. Today, instead of seeking escape, I will try to improve my situation by and you fill in the rest. And for today's final reading, let's go to As Bill Sees It. We're on page twenty-five. We cannot stand still. In the first days of AA, I wasn't much bothered about the areas of life in which I was standing still. There was always the alibi after all, I said to myself, I'm far too busy with much more important matters. That was my near perfect prescription for comfort and complacency. And that comes from a grapevine article from June of nineteen sixty one. How many of us would presume to declare well? I'm sober and I'm happy. What more can I want or do? I'm fine the way I am. We know that the price of such self-satisfaction is an inevitable backslide, punctuated at some point by a very rude awakening. We have to grow or else deteriorate. For us, the status quo can only be for today, never for tomorrow. Change we must, we cannot stand still. And that is also from an article in the Grapevine of 1961, this one from February. And now for my take on today's readings. So let's go back to the book Day by Day, Daily Meditations for Recovering Addicts. And the last line asks us to fill in the blank. So it says, Today, instead of seeking escape, I will try to improve my situation by Facing whatever is in front of me and taking one small action to make it better. For a long time, escape was my answer. If I was stressed, overwhelmed, angry, lonely, uncomfortable, or any other emotion for that matter, I wanted those feelings to go away. Alcohol and drugs were an easy way to check out for a while. The problem was that when I came back, whatever I was trying to escape was usually still there, and most of the time. I had added a few new problems on top of that. Sobriety has taught me that I don't have to fix everything today, but I do have to participate in my own life. Sometimes improving my situation means making a phone call I've been avoiding. Sometimes it's going to a meeting, asking someone for help, maybe apologizing when I'm wrong, getting outside for a run, or simply doing the next right thing instead of sitting around wishing things were different. I can also ask myself. What part of this can I actually change? Then I can put my energy there and practice acceptance with the rest. Escape offers temporary relief. Action gives me a chance at something better. And I've learned that I can survive being uncomfortable. I don't need to drink over a bad day or run away from a difficult situation or have all the answers right now. Today, instead of asking, how do I get away from this? I'm going to ask how What's one small thing I can do to make this situation a little better? Sometimes that one small action is enough to change the direction of my entire day. And if you'd like to jump in on this conversation and tell me how you finished that sentence today, instead of seeking escape, I will try to improve my situation by and your answer. Just head on over to my website, sober readings dot com and click on that page. Be a guest and fill out that form and then click the submit button at the bottom. And 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 along your way. 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. Also, if you'd like to drop a dollar in the virtual donation basket for today's readings, go to my website, sobereadings.com, click on the support page, and you'll see a button that says 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 this episode a like. And it really does help more people to find this show. And if something you heard today made you think of someone, share this episode with them. Because 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 each other, and 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. And don't forget to ask yourself today, where are my feet right now?