God's Promises Are Absolute

We have to remember that no one does everything right.
We are all sinners.
God speaks and we do not listen.
On the other hand, the mercy of God is constant.
It cannot be overcome.
God's promises are absolute.
-- Thomas Merton




We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

Discover Fire

Someday, after we have mastered the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity, we shall harness for God the energies of love.
Then for the second time in the history of the world, we will have discovered fire.
-- Pierre Teilhard de Chardin




We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

Practice

I don't think we can do anything very well in this world unless we practice it.
And I don't believe we do AA very well unless we practice it. . . .
We should practice . . . acquiring the spirit of service.
We should attempt to acquire some faith, which isn't easily done, especially for the person who has always been very materialistic, following the standards of society today.
But I think faith can be acquired; it can be acquired slowly; it has to be cultivated.
That was not easy for me, and I assume that it is difficult for everyone else.
- Dr. Bob and the Good Oldtimers, pp. 307-308


People of faith have a logical idea of what life is all about.



We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

Acceptance

Acceptance of even the worst of crosses would lead to unanticipated, wonderful experiences of God's loving goodness.
He suggested that we fully embrace our pain, present it at the foot of Christ's cross, and pray daily for a patient acceptance of his divine will.
— from Burst




We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

Emotional Sobriety

My emotional sobriety has regularly been imperfect.
I've made many mistakes and behaved poorly to others. . .
I thought that once I stopped drinking all my problems would end.
It didn't occur to me that now, after almost a lifetime of drinking alcohol,
I'd have to face life without medicating. . .
I work daily on trying to rein in my impetuous temper, my obsession with reaction rather than reflection, and that silly ego that keeps rearing its ugly head. . .
Despite my shortcomings, with the help of the AA program and my brothers in AA, improvements will continue to be made.
- The AA Grapevine, April 2011, p. 17


There is only one corner of the universe I can be certain of improving,
and that's my own self.




We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

Seeds of Contemplation

Give me humility in which alone is rest, and deliver me from pride which is the heaviest of burdens.
And possess my whole heart and soul with the simplicity of love for which one thing alone is necessary.
-- Thomas Merton



We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)

First Five People Forgiveness Plan

When people don't forgive,
they probably shorten their lives.
--Doris Donnelly

Sometimes forgiveness seems impossible and we feel stuck in the quicksand of our own resentment.
When everything else fails, we can try the "First Five People Forgiveness Plan."
Each morning we make a decision to forgive the first five people we come in contact with who make us mad.
We forgive all five people without analyzing or deciding if they deserve to be forgiven.
We promptly forgive each one of them without exception.

This simple plan can work wonders for those of us who usually hold on to resentments and anger.
Letting go of anger and resentment lets us feel our loving side.
In learning to forgive others we can begin learning about how to forgive ourselves, too.

Today let me also remember that I, too, deserve forgiveness.

-- from Our Best Days by Nancy Hull-Mast



We cannot change the directions of the wind, but we can adjust our sails. Have a beautiful day unless you plan otherwise. ... B-)