Readings

Today's For Today:

"The individual never asserts himself more than when he forgets himself." Andre Gide

"Before I found OA, my theme song was I, I, I, played to the tune of me, me, me. Not knowing what I really needed, I had to have what I waned when I wanted it. With the twelve steps of recovery, I have stepped out of myself. The miracle of abstinence is greater than I am. Spirituality is the nurturing part of me, and as I practice the principles of the program, it becomes stronger, pushing away self-destructive motives. My life becomes spiritually centered instead of self-centered.
Like abstinence, the results I most ardently desire usually come about when I forget I'm supposed to be in charge.

For today: I do the tasks that are before me with a light heart and an incomparable sense of freedom, knowing that control of my life is in God's hands, not mine."

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Today's Voices of Recovery:

"We become willing to start fresh with our Higher Power . . . asking ourselves what, exactly, we needed to wanted God to be to us and do for us." OA 12 & 12 p. 16

"What do I need from my Higher Power? First, I need His protection from the food. I have no other defense against it. Second, I ask for specific, daily direction in my life. I may have to wait an hour, a day, maybe even a week, but I get the direction I seek if I stand still and listen. If I receive no direction, I discover later that my Higher Power needed me to stand still either to protect me from going in the wrong direction or to keep me out of the way so things could unfold according to His greater plans.
I feel comforted to know that He will protect me, even from myself, and that He protects us all and wants what is best for us. My Higher Power knows what is best for me, and turning the direction of my life over to Him gives me the freedom and the serenity that are the cornerstones of my program.
Thank you, God, for taking away my obsessions and fears and for directing my life in alignment with Your greater plan.

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Today's In This Moment:

"In This Moment, my heart is open.

The deep despair of this deafening quiet opens my heart to ask God, 'Speak to me, please. What is it you want? Why is it so hard? What would you have me do in this moment right now? I feel lost. My relationship is trouble. Am I the aggressor? If so, I ask to have that character defect removed.'

I work my program. I speak with an open heart. I ask with an open mind. I turn to my Higher Power. I seek guidance. I breathe. In the quiet, my Higher Power answers.

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Today's The Language of Letting Go:

"New Energy Coming"

"Fun becomes fun, love becomes love, life becomes worth living. And we become grateful." Beyond Codependency

"There is a new energy, a new feeling coming into our life. We cannot base our expectations about how we will feel tomorrow, or even a few hours from now, on how we feel at this moment.
There are no two moments in time alike. We are recovering. We are changing. our life is changing. At times, things haven't worked out the way we wanted. We had lessons to learn. The future shall not be like the past.
The truly difficult times are almost over. The confusion, the most challenging learning experiences, the difficult feelings are about to pass.
Do not limit the future by the past!
Reflect on the beginning of your recovery. Haven't there been many changes that have brought you to where you are now? Reflect on one year ago. Haven't you and your circumstances changed since then?
Sometimes, problems and feelings linger for a while. These times are temporary. Times of confusion, uncertainly, times of living with a particular unsolved problem do not last forever.
We make these times doubly hard by comparing them to our past. Each situation and circumstance has had its particular influence in shaping who we are. We do not have to scare ourselves by comparing our present and future to a painful past, especially our past before we began recovering or before we learned through a particular experience.
Know that the discomfort will not be permanent. Do not try to figure out how you shall feel or when you shall feel differently. Instead, trust. Accept today, but do not be limited by it.
A new energy is coming. A new feeling is on the way. We cannot predict how it will be by looking at how it was or how it is, because it shall be entirely different. We have not worked and struggled in vain. It has been for and toward something.
Times are changing for the better. Continue on the path of trust and obedience. be open to the new.

Today, God, help me not judge or limit my future by my past. Help me be open to all the exciting possibilities for change, both within and around me.

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