Daily Reading from Recovery Days September 8th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

Vieccburn@me.com 
w VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – enjoy the moment


Into action


There is a common perception that drug
dependence is linked to low moral fibre and a ‘bad
attitude.’ Some say that all one needs, in order to
quit, is willpower. They tend to be people who have
never known the courage that an addicted person
on the streets requires, just to face each new day.
Denigrating people with addiction makes the
situation worse. Do I extend the hand of help and
understanding to those struggling with addiction?


To think is easy, to act is difficult, to act as
one thinks is most difficult.
Wolfgang Von Goethe.
How easy it can be to agree with a sensible idea for
action, and then do nothing. Satisfaction lies in the
effort I make, not the thoughts I have. So much of
my past life has been about making excuses and
procrastination. If I am really going to change, then
I must become a ‘doer’ instead of a ‘thinker’. It
requires a shift of basic attitude. Today I ask for the
motivation to act in making change happen.

Daily Reading from recovery Days September 7th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

Vieccburn@me.com 
w VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – sit comfortably


Recovery is an opportunity


Almost every aspect of our lives is to do with
belonging to something – teams, social circles,
workplaces, and families are just a few. Our physical,
mental, and spiritual health requires a sense of
belonging. Through it, we gain support,
protection, affirmation, and trust. Once we
experience the feeling of belonging, we start to
understand its power for good. When opportunities
arise, we should seize them. Am I ready to use to
the full the opportunities given to me in recovery?


Our potential for growth has been stunted by
addiction, our talents buried and our capacity to
experience true feelings withered away. A part of
the excitement of recovery comes when we start to
grow again, like the coming of Spring:
Who would have thought my shriveled heart
Could have recovered greenness?
It was gone
Quite underground: as flowers depart,
To see their mother-root. George Herbert.
May I learn to use the recovered opportunities that
are given to me in recovery and use them to the full.

Daily Reading from recovery Days September 6th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – feel your body from top to toes


Perception


The Buddha himself was once insulted vigorously
by a visitor but seemed unmoved. When his
followers asked how he kept his serenity he said:
Imagine that someone sent you a letter that you did not
open, you would be unaffected by its contents. Think of
that when you are insulted. The Buddha.
A feeling such as anger is a choice. If I choose to be
angry at somebody’s unkind words, I am giving
them power over me to make me unhappy. If a
small child should smack me, I don’t mind because
I have the greater maturity to understand that the
action comes from ignorance. Taking insults too
personally is making myself a victim. Do I have
maturity to treat insults with detachment?


Our reality is in our thoughts and perceptions. If I
look at the sky, I can think of it as beautiful or
threatening. How I think will affect my feelings and
thus my actions. I can understand how this process
works and I can train myself to be positive because
if I habitually see things as threats, I will make my
days much more uncomfortable. Today I ask God
to keep a sense of awareness.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days September 5th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – breathe slowly


Understanding


Tolerance is not a specific principle of the Twelve Step
fellowships, but it is behind all the Twelve Principles,
which are: Acceptance, Hope, Faith, Courage,
Honesty, Patience, Humility, Willingness, Brotherly
Love, Integrity, Self-Discipline and Service. It is
hard to see how you can embrace any one of those
without tolerance. The essence of the programme is
tolerance and a first timer at a meeting who listens
to the preamble would appreciate that. We know the
dangers of judging others and we have seen how
rules and dogma lead to argument and
enforcement. Am I grateful to be one of a group
that tries to live by spiritual principles?


Who am I to pass judgement on another? Well,
perhaps there are times when I should do so,
otherwise society might become chaotic. On the
other hand, I am not without fault. I may be right
to confront unacceptable behaviour in others, but I
should not label every person as bad who does not
act the way that I want. Understanding other
people is more important than judging them. With
understanding, I will find the good in people not
the bad. Today I ask not to be judgmental

Daily Reading from Recovery Days September 4th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – close eyes briefly


Awareness


Self-awareness never happens for some people. For
others, it can happen quite unexpectedly. Take the
movie ‘Groundhog Day’ which could have been
subtitled ‘how I learned to love myself, a day at a
time.’ This is a story of a man trapped in precisely
the same day, that recurs over and over again. The
movie shows how the basically unpleasant man
realises that he cannot change his location or time
and indeed, can only change himself. He eventually
manages to do this, using creativity, compassion and
self-awareness. From at first hating his situation and
locality, he comes eventually to love it and to wish for
nothing more than to live there. And reaching this
state of contentment appears to break the spell and
he lives happily ever after, we assume. Am I
working on self-awareness, a day at a time?


Do I have the honesty to understand that in every
situation that I face, the thing that needs to change
is me? If I allow my life to be dictated by outside
events, I become a victim. I have the power to
choose my response to everything that happens. It
will define the sort of person that I am. I ask God
today for awareness and guidance in my responses.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days September 3rd by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – enjoy the moment


Learning responsibility


When we start Step Nine, we are putting personal
responsibility in action. We actually go about
making amends to people we have hurt, where
appropriate. In other words, we do what we need to
do for our recovery, but we consider the needs of
others as well. We approached things very
differently when we were in active addiction. In those
days, gratification came first and nothing else
mattered. If we do this Step in the right way, we can
say that change is really happening. Can I display
true responsibility when I do Step Nine?


Facing the challenges of the Steps would have been
impossible without the strength and guidance of
my Higher Power, that came to me through the
support and example of my fellows in recovery and
my sponsor. I was too set in my selfish ways and too
immature. It would have been like expecting a small
child to drive a car. But I must remember that I am
still learning and must take things a step at a time.
Today I ask God to guide me while I grow in
maturity and learn to practice personal
responsibility in my daily life.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days September 1st by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – sit comfortably


Personal change


You sometimes hear people in the fellowships say:
I came to AA (or NA, CA etc.) to change my drug
use and I ended up changing my whole life.
That is indeed what needs to happen. It is
a common misconception that simply
stopping addictive intake or behaviour will be
enough. To make recovery work, you have to
change the desire as well as the activity. If, for
example, you stop drinking but your attitude
remains that alcohol is fun and it’s not fair that
you can’t control your intake, then it won’t be long
before you relapse. Personal change must go deep
– we will have to explore our thoughts, attitudes,
and core beliefs to ensure that our principles are
valid and our perception of ourselves is worthy of
the effort. Do I accept that personal change goes
to the heart of my belief system?


Some people stop their addiction through
willpower alone and change nothing else – the
‘white knuckle’ option. But our goal is happy
sobriety through spiritual growth. AA is sometimes
said to stand for ‘altered attitudes’ because that is
the path of change that leads to contentment.
Today I will take personal responsibility for
change in my recovery.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days August 31st by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – breathe slowly


Wholehearted response


You didn’t deal the cards, but you get to play the hand.
In other words, it’s the response that matters. Life
is not fair and the sooner we appreciate that fact,
the better. It is up to us how we respond. Addiction
means that most of us could have done better, but
so it goes. In recovery, we can choose again because
miraculously, we have been given a second chance.
And even better, we have been given an instruction
manual on how to play those cards – the Twelve
Steps. If you were playing real cards in a real
competition and you had a manual that would help
you to win, you would follow it to the letter. Do I
follow the spiritual principles of the Twelve Steps
in all my affairs?


If I am following to the best of my ability a
programme that puts a high value on love, honesty
and humility – a programme of personal
responsibility too, then am I not on the right road
to spiritual growth? The only way that I can fail is
through not approaching it wholeheartedly. Today
I give thanks to God for this second chance at life.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days August 30th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – relax your whole body gradually


An example to others


In the movie Trainspotting young Mark Renton and
some of his friends struggle with heroin addiction.
They keep relapsing, despite efforts to quit. That is
the reality for many people. The story is shown in
an entertaining way, but it reinforces the stigma
attached to drug and alcohol addiction. Other
movies, such as Rocket Man, or 28 Days are more
uplifting, because they show successful recovery. Art
influences public opinion, but so does the example
of real people. Any artistic production should be
welcomed, but as recovering people, we have a
responsibility to demonstrate the triumph over
addiction that we represent, because in that way,
we reduce the stigma. Thus, we help our fellow
comrades to gain the help and support they need.
Am I ready to show by my example that the dark
face of addiction can produce positive results?


As a recovering person, I am concerned to be an
example of recovery, in which we become ‘better
than well.’ I earnestly wish that when people see
recovery, they will become more inclined to help
those still struggling with addiction.’ Today I will
try to be an example of recovery.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days August 29th by Chris B

Posted on by
Reply

View VIDEO on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=A100094027278120

Follow on TikTok Videos at https://www.tiktok.com/@recoverydays?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=p

YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@Recoverydays_chRemember M

Remember Mindfulness – close eyes briefly


Giving service


You only miss the water when the well runs dry is an
old way of saying ‘take nothing for granted’. What
would happen if your local fellowship meeting
closed? Would you look for one further away, would
you use the internet? How much would you miss
face to face contact with other recovering people?
Supposing your sponsor fell ill, and you had to find
another, but none was available?

Voluntary
organisations and self-help groups are as strong
and as successful as their members. If we don’t
volunteer for service, how can we expect others to
give the service that we benefit from? Service is one of
the three legacies of AA for a very good reason. Our
survival depends upon it. Do I take the benefits of the
fellowships for granted or am I willing to give
service as a necessary part of my recovery?
Asking and giving is part of decent human
behaviour, if we wish to live as brothers and sisters
rather than enemies. Some people will always try to
beat the system – that is another human trait, but
we must act honestly. Today I ask for guidance i n
g i v i n g s e r v i c e as a part of spiritual growth.