Daily
Reflections reading December 20th
The Rewards Of Given
This
is indeed the kind of giving that actually demands nothing. He does not expect
his brother sufferer to pay him, or even to love him. And then he discovers that
by the divine paradox of this kind of giving he has found his own reward,
whether his brother has yet received anything or not. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE
TRADITIONS, p. 109
Through
experience with Twelfth Step work, I came to understand the rewards of giving
that demands nothing in return. At first I expected recovery in others, but I
soon learned that this did not happen. Once I acquired the humility to accept
the fact that every Twelfth Step call was not going to result in a success,
then I was open to receive the rewards of selfless giving.
© Alcoholics Anonymous World Services
My thoughts on December 20th Reading
The rewards of Given I get life free from myself, the more I
try to give this away the more I receive back, going on a commitment to share
experience, strength, and hope, I can't think of a better way to give back what
was so freely given to me
Now given can become carrying the mess some times, I needed
to learn when to let go, let my God handle things some just are not ready yet
or as Dr bob would say they haven't jelled YET the twelfth step is all about
carrying the message to the next suffering alcoholic
Twelve Steps is where we carry the action in all our affairs
this is the payoff of freely given, even the newest of newcomers can find many
rewards as he tries to help another, like the one who just walked into the
halls that he put his hand out to welcome
I found by this kind of giving my own sobriety was growing,
whether this new person has received anything or not does not matter, I try to
only carry the message not the drunk, I just need to be there for them, when
they come thru the doors
There is no joy greater than in a twelfth step call that is
accepted by the newcomer, to watch their eyes open with wonder as they move
from darkness into light, to see their lives fill with purpose and meaning, to
see them received back into life
To watch people awaken to the presence of a loving God in
their lives, this is another reward of given when I try to carry AA's message
to the alcoholic, there are many opportunities for everyone to get active in
their group, many feel uncomfortable speaking at meetings
But can be the ones who take other jobs, like making the
coffee for the meetings, or help cleaning up after meetings just talking to
others one on one when asked, newcomers have found confidence and comfort in
the laughter and talk before the meetings
God gave us this gift to pass on to the next sick and
suffering person what I get by given is also a life free of fear and anger, the
more I give the more I am free from myself, the more I try to give this away,
the more I receive back
I am grateful for this program and all of the steps, they
helped me walk thru my fears, anger, shame, and hopelessness to find a new way
of life with out the booze, I hade to look into my past it was hard to walk
thru all the hopelessness and despair the fear was so great
I knew I needed help to do this, thank God for the given of
others to help me walk thru my past, today my past is a reminder of my old way
of life, it will always remind me how much I had to change because people
before me found the rewards of given
I show how grateful I am, gratitude is action, not just a
word we hear around the halls, God will keep given me the tools to reach out to
others, He sure has given me a life full of hope, love freedom, and
understanding
My narrow mindlessness has been replaced with open-mindedness,
by given back I can always stay focused on my recovery, it reminds me to be
grateful for what God in His grace has given me and for all the blessing He has
given me
God has given many opportunities to show my gratitude by
helping other to find hope from their disease and to get active in the
fellowship by doing service work, speaking, making coffee, greeting, and so
many other ways to show how grateful I am
God is never changing but I am and I need His guidance to
change myself daily, God gave me the serenity to accept change my life style,
to be in tune with his will, acceptance is change in the making, I was told to
change, or fear going back out
Giving is from the heart, the unconditional love, not the
desire for a reward, for me this is the driving force behind my trying to given
back what was freely and lovingly given to me
Another reward of giving is receive God's unconditional
love, there is no limit to the returns of given to others, to give on the basis
of unconditional love means I was involved in doing things that bring help and
happiness to other people
God knows me better than I know myself, He meets my true
needs, not my many selfish wants, I can never use the excuse, I don't have
anything left to give, God promises to supply all the needs for my continuing
reaching out all I have to do is show up to help
Please feel free to mail
suggestions or comments
