May 5 ###Any lengths
“...I was ready to go to any lengths to stay clean.”-----Basic Text, p. 217
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“Any lengths?” newcomers ask. “What do you mean, any lengths?” Looking back at our active addiction and the lengths we were willing to go to in order to stay high can help to explain. Were we willing to drive many miles to get drugs? Yes, we usually were. Then it makes sense that, if we are as concerned about staying clean as we were about using, we will try anything to find a ride to a meeting.
In our addiction, didn’t we often do crazy, insane things or use unknown substances at the direction of others? Then why do we often find it so hard to take direction in recovery, especially when the direction is designed to help us grow? And when we used, didn’t we often, in desperation, turn to our Higher Power, saying, “Please, just get me out of this one!” Then why do we find it so hard to ask for God’s help in our recovery?
When we used, we usually had an open mind when it came to finding ways and means to get more drugs. If we can apply this same principle of open-mindedness to our recovery, we may surprise ourselves by how easily we begin to grasp the NA program. Our best thinking, it is often said, got us into the rooms of Narcotics Anonymous. If we are willing to go to any lengths, follow directions, and stay open-minded, we can stay clean.
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Just for today: I am willing to go to any lengths to stay clean. I will become as open-minded and ready to take direction as I need to be.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Monday, May 5, 2008
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Just For Today
May 4 ##What about the newcomer?
“Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry the message to the addict who still suffers.”
Tradition Five
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Our home group means a lot to us. After all, where would we be without our favorite NA meeting? Our group sometimes sponsors picnics or other activities. Often, home group members get together to see a movie or go bowling. We have all made good friendships through our home group, and we wouldn’t trade that warmth for the world.
But sometimes we must take inventory of what our group is doing to fulfill its primary purpose—to carry the message to the still-suffering addict. Sometimes when we go to our meetings, we know almost everyone and get caught up in the laughter and fun. But what about the newcomer? Have we remembered to reach out to the new people who may be sitting by themselves, lonely and frightened? Do we remember to welcome those visiting our group?
The love found in the rooms of Narcotics Anonymous helps us recover from addiction. But once we have gotten clean, we must remember to give to others what was so freely given to us. We need to reach out to the addict who still suffers. After all, “the newcomer is the most important person at any meeting.”
––––=––––
Just for today: I’m grateful for the warm fellowship I’ve found in my home group. I will reach out my hand to the still-suffering addict, offering that same fellowship to others.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
“Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry the message to the addict who still suffers.”
Tradition Five
––––=––––
Our home group means a lot to us. After all, where would we be without our favorite NA meeting? Our group sometimes sponsors picnics or other activities. Often, home group members get together to see a movie or go bowling. We have all made good friendships through our home group, and we wouldn’t trade that warmth for the world.
But sometimes we must take inventory of what our group is doing to fulfill its primary purpose—to carry the message to the still-suffering addict. Sometimes when we go to our meetings, we know almost everyone and get caught up in the laughter and fun. But what about the newcomer? Have we remembered to reach out to the new people who may be sitting by themselves, lonely and frightened? Do we remember to welcome those visiting our group?
The love found in the rooms of Narcotics Anonymous helps us recover from addiction. But once we have gotten clean, we must remember to give to others what was so freely given to us. We need to reach out to the addict who still suffers. After all, “the newcomer is the most important person at any meeting.”
––––=––––
Just for today: I’m grateful for the warm fellowship I’ve found in my home group. I will reach out my hand to the still-suffering addict, offering that same fellowship to others.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Just For Today
May 3 ##Sharing our gratitude
“My gratitude speaks when I care and when I share with others the NA way.”
Gratitude Prayer
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The longer we stay clean, the more we experience feelings of gratitude for our recovery. These feelings of gratitude aren’t limited to particular gifts like new friends or the ability to be employed. More frequently, they arise from the overall sense of joy we feel in our new lives. These feelings are enhanced by our certainty of the course our lives would have taken if it weren’t for the miracle we’ve experienced in Narcotics Anonymous.
These feelings are so all-encompassing, so wondrous, and sometimes so overwhelming that we often can’t find words for them. We sometimes openly weep with happiness while sharing in a meeting, yet we grope for words to express what we are feeling. We want so badly to convey to newcomers the gratitude we feel, but it seems that our language lacks the superlatives to describe it.
When we share with tears in our eyes, when we choke up and can’t talk at all—these are the times when our gratitude speaks most clearly. We share our gratitude directly from our hearts; with their hearts, others hear and understand. Our gratitude speaks eloquently, though our words may not.
––––=––––
Just for today: My gratitude has a voice of its own; when it speaks, the heart understands. Today, I will share my gratitude with others, whether I can find the words or not.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
“My gratitude speaks when I care and when I share with others the NA way.”
Gratitude Prayer
––––=––––
The longer we stay clean, the more we experience feelings of gratitude for our recovery. These feelings of gratitude aren’t limited to particular gifts like new friends or the ability to be employed. More frequently, they arise from the overall sense of joy we feel in our new lives. These feelings are enhanced by our certainty of the course our lives would have taken if it weren’t for the miracle we’ve experienced in Narcotics Anonymous.
These feelings are so all-encompassing, so wondrous, and sometimes so overwhelming that we often can’t find words for them. We sometimes openly weep with happiness while sharing in a meeting, yet we grope for words to express what we are feeling. We want so badly to convey to newcomers the gratitude we feel, but it seems that our language lacks the superlatives to describe it.
When we share with tears in our eyes, when we choke up and can’t talk at all—these are the times when our gratitude speaks most clearly. We share our gratitude directly from our hearts; with their hearts, others hear and understand. Our gratitude speaks eloquently, though our words may not.
––––=––––
Just for today: My gratitude has a voice of its own; when it speaks, the heart understands. Today, I will share my gratitude with others, whether I can find the words or not.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Friday, May 2, 2008
Just For Today
May 2 #Just maybe...
“There is one thing more than anything else that will defeat us in our recovery; this is an attitude of indifference or intolerance toward spiritual principles.”
Basic Text, p. 18
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When we first came to NA, many of us had great difficulty accepting the spiritual principles underlying this program—and for good reason. No matter how we’d tried to control our addiction, we’d found ourselves powerless. We grew angry and frustrated with anyone who suggested there was hope for us, because we knew better. Spiritual ideas may have had some bearing on other peoples’ lives, but not on ours.
Despite our indifference or intolerance toward spiritual principles, we were drawn to Narcotics Anonymous. There, we met other addicts. They’d been where we’d been, powerless and hopeless, yet they’d found a way not only to stop using but to live and enjoy life clean. They spoke of the spiritual principles that had pointed the way for them to this new life of recovery. For them, these principles were not just theories but a part of their practical experience. Yes, we had good reason to be skeptical, but these spiritual principles spoken of by other NA members really seemed to work.
Once we admitted this, we didn’t necessarily accept every single spiritual idea we heard. But we did start to think that, if these principles had worked for others, just maybe they’d work for us, too. For a beginning, that willingness was enough.
––––=––––
Just for today: Just maybe the spiritual principles I hear spoken of in NA might work for me. I am willing, at least, to open my mind to the possibility.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
“There is one thing more than anything else that will defeat us in our recovery; this is an attitude of indifference or intolerance toward spiritual principles.”
Basic Text, p. 18
––––=––––
When we first came to NA, many of us had great difficulty accepting the spiritual principles underlying this program—and for good reason. No matter how we’d tried to control our addiction, we’d found ourselves powerless. We grew angry and frustrated with anyone who suggested there was hope for us, because we knew better. Spiritual ideas may have had some bearing on other peoples’ lives, but not on ours.
Despite our indifference or intolerance toward spiritual principles, we were drawn to Narcotics Anonymous. There, we met other addicts. They’d been where we’d been, powerless and hopeless, yet they’d found a way not only to stop using but to live and enjoy life clean. They spoke of the spiritual principles that had pointed the way for them to this new life of recovery. For them, these principles were not just theories but a part of their practical experience. Yes, we had good reason to be skeptical, but these spiritual principles spoken of by other NA members really seemed to work.
Once we admitted this, we didn’t necessarily accept every single spiritual idea we heard. But we did start to think that, if these principles had worked for others, just maybe they’d work for us, too. For a beginning, that willingness was enough.
––––=––––
Just for today: Just maybe the spiritual principles I hear spoken of in NA might work for me. I am willing, at least, to open my mind to the possibility.
Copyright © 1991-2008 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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