Worth the Climb

Each day is a day of progress, steady progress forward, if you make it so. You may not see it, but God does. God does not judge by outward appearance. He judges by the heart. Let Him see in your heart a simple desire always to do His will. Though you may feel that your work has been spoiled or tarnished, God sees it as an offering for Him. When climbing a steep hill, a person is often more conscious of the weakness of his stumbling feet than of the view, the grandeur, or even of the upward progress.

Had a decent day at work. Been spending some good quality time with someone very special lately.

My bro and I used to climb Stone Mt. in Georgia almost every day. It was so steep in the last stretch that all I could do was watch the next step in front of me, gasp for air, and wonder if I was going to make it to the top. Once up, it was an effort to even breathe. After sitting for a couple of minutes, I looked around and enjoyed the view. This really was worth the work.

When treading a challenging path, I like to be mindful of the next step in front of me. I also like to enjoy the process of getting to the top of that mountain.

Goodnight, peeps!

Love and Showing It

Before I met A.A., I was very unloving. From the time I went away to school, I paid very little attention to my mother and father. I was on my own and didn't even bother to keep in touch with them. After I got married, I was very unappreciative of my spouse. Many a time I would go out all by myself to have a good time. I paid too little attention to our children and didn't try to understand them or show them affection. My few friends were only drinking companions, not real friends. Have I gotten over loving nobody but myself?

This describes how I was most of the time. Did I only love myself? Of course not. I had a real problem showing it to others, though. I was unnappreciative... I was distant... defensive... arrogant. I spent much more of my time looking out for me and my instant gratification than building relationships and taking care of my loved ones.

Did I really love others? Of course I did... and do. I prefer to think that I wasn't some kind of monster before AA. I did, however, need alot of help learning to let go of myself and actually show some love.

Got a late night at work so I thought I'd go ahead and write early. Hope you're having a wonderful day!

Business and Acceptance

I really enjoyed my homegroup's business meeting this evening. Folks are getting to know me better, I'm getting more comfortable, and getting more active.

After that we had our regular meeting. The moderator's topic was acceptance. I shared that acceptance for me was realizing things like I can never drink again, that I'm an alcoholic, knowing I'd have to make some serious life changes... and being ok with all of that. The very first of the 12 steps is all about acceptance. Accepting and admitting the fact that we're powerless.

It's been a lovely, full day and I'm grateful. Here's today's meditation.

Be calm, be true, be quiet. Do not get emotionally upset by anything that happens around you. Feel a deep, inner security in the goodness and purpose in the universe. Be true to your highest ideals. Do not let yourself slip back into the old ways of reacting. Stick to your spiritual guns. Be calm always. Do not talk back or defend yourself too much against accusation, whether false or true. Accept abuse as well as you accept praise. Only God can judge the real you.

Words to live by! I absolutely love it. Have a great night and God Bless!

As Good as the Next Person

Before I met A.A., I was very dishonest. I lied to my spouse constantly about where I had been and what I'd been doing. I took time off from my work and pretended I'd been sick or gave some other dishonest excuse. I was dishonest with myself, as well as with other people. I would never face myself as I really was or admit when I was wrong. I pretended to myself that I was as good as the next person, although I suspected I wasn't. Am I now really honest?

I totally agree with everything that I read in today's thought... Except for one item.

I had myself fooled into thinking that I was as good as the next person? Sure. I did some really crappy things to a lot of people. Folks who by no means deserved that behavior. Was I a bad human being? No.

Even in the height of my addiction, I'd still have given another the shirt off my back. I was never some evil kind of monster...

I was very selfish in my actions. I didn't give a lot of thought to consequences. And yes... I called in to work often. Those behaviors began to away when I first started my steps and reconnected with God.

I'm very grateful! Have a good night...

Roam

One of my favorite vids from one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite groups of all time.

Sigh...

...Back when they were beautiful. Without all the botox and plastic surgery. Perhaps The B-52's and I are getting old together. Athens, GA peeps will know what I'm talkin' about when I say that I hope REM didn't go the same way...

Still love ya Fred, Kate, Cindy, Keith... and of course Ricky. You guys rock the casbah!

Pain Removes the Veil

Thought I'd write a bit about what I heard in the Cornerstone sermon last night. At the very hub of the message, I was reminded of a lot about myself.

How I never grew up from the "Look at me!" mentality that is perfectly reasonable for a kid, but not for an adult.

How, for all of my life, I lived on the idea that this was my world. you just live in it.

And most importantly, in my addiction, how I never dropped the self-will that kept me in the same painful cycle. The sermon's title is My Glory to His Glory. That means something. I'm not god anymore. I turn all of the insanity and pride over to my Higher Power. I recognize that it's not about what people can do for me... It's about what I can do for people in his name.

Ego builds a cardboard fortress that humility must everyday tear down.

Very telling about how fragile even the largest egos are. That was a quote that Rusty found. Another was from CS Lewis... "Pain removes the veil; it plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul."

For those who didn't catch the YouTube link last night, here's a link to the audio sermon...

Cornerstone Church Podcast: My Glory to His Glory

Hope the day is going great for you! May post something fun a bit later....

All Things New, Pt. 5: My Glory to His Glory (Cornerstone Sermon Podcast 03-25-12)

In the process of listening to the latest sermon from my favorite church. Thought I'd go ahead and post the link. :)

It's been a very busy day. Going to have to go to bed early. I hope everyone has a great night and God Bless! Here's the daily thought from Hazelden...

Strength comes also from working with other alcoholics. When you are trying to help a new prospect with the program, you are building up your own strength at the same time. You see the other person in the condition you might be in yourself and it makes your resolve to stay sober stronger than ever. Often, you help yourself more than the other person, but if you do succeed in helping the prospect to get sober, you are stronger from the experience of having helped another person. Am I receiving strength from working with others?