The Wreckage We’ve Wrought May have Some Utility After all – Step 8

OUR PAST MAY INSPIRE PERSONAL CHANGE - "Even though we can't undo the past, our experience has shown that we still need to look at what we've done and acknowledge the damage we've caused. Despite the impossibility of changing what happened, we can start to make amends by not repeating the same behavior."  (It Works, How & Why, p. 58) LESSONS FROM THE DEBRIS - " ... having had cleaned away the debris of the past, we consider how, with our new found knowledge of ourselves, we may develop the best possible relations with every human being we know." (12…

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Why We Give Freely – Step 7

REDEEM TODAY - "We give freely and gratefully of our time, service, and what we have found here." "... working the Twelve Steps guides us from humiliation and despair ... ." "The more eagerly we wade in and work, the richer our spiritual awakening will be." (The Basic Text, p. 51) "What was freely given to me, I freely give." - Lauryn Hill (1975 - ) U.S., recording artist   Redemption Song - Lauryn Hill ft. Ziggy Marley (5:19) Tolerance & the Art of Giving Meditation (7:25)   How have you recently shared and given freely of yourself, lately?  …

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The Grace to Hold onto That which “Must be Defended Against the Heaviest of Odds” – Step 7

HOLDING ONTO THE NEW JEWELS IN OUR CROWN -  " ... when we have difficulty practicing spiritual principles, we turn to the God [or H.P.] of our understanding. In this step, we ask a loving [H.P.] to remove our impatience, our intolerance, our dishonesty, or whatever shortcoming is currently in the way." (It Works, How & Why, p. 52)  "One needs to be slow to form convictions, but once formed they must be defended against the heaviest odds." Mahatma Gandhi (1869 - 1948) - India Independence Movement Leader from British rule   Billionaire - Travis Mc Coy ft. Bruno Mars…

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Avoiding Financial Armageddon Looming from Above – Step 7

"Hostile, resentful, self-centered and self-seeking, we cut ourselves off from the outside world. Anything not completely familiar became alien and dangerous. Our world shrank and isolation became our life. We used in order to survive." (The Basic Text, p. 4) "Expose yourself to your deepest fear; after that, fear has no power, and the fear of freedom shrinks and vanishes. You are free."  - Jim Morrison (1943 - 1971) U.S. musician lead singer for "The Doors"   Riders on the Storm - The Doors (7:04)  Jim Morrison Bio (4:44)  Releasing Fear & Anxiety Meditation (19:59)   How has "self-centered" fear…

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Some Subtle Reasons Why We Get More from Being Loving than Being Loved – Step 7

"Other people in our lives help us to develop trust and loving attitudes, we demand less and give more. We are slower to anger and quicker to forgive". "We begin to feel lovable which  is a feeling totally alien  to our old egocentric selves."  (The Basic Text, p. 97) 'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."  - Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809 - 1892) British poet   I'm Going to Love You Just A Little Bit More - Barry White (4:09) Rabbi Talks About Sin (2:56) Never Regret Being Lovable Guided Meditation (7:16)  …

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Despite Near Insurmountable Odds, We can Thrive in the “Realm of Spirit” – Step 6

Like Krishnamurti, how have you followed your own Sacred Heart to the peaceful resolution of a challenge you've faced, lately? "We have found that God [or one's H.P.]* does not make too hard terms with those who seek Him. To us, the realm of spirit is broad, roomy, all-inclusive, never exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek. It is open, we believe, to all ... ." (As Bill Sees It, p. 7) "In oneself lies the whole world and if you know how to look and learn, the door is there and the key is in your hand. Nobody on…

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Coming Ashore to the Lighthouse of Limitless Dreams and Possibilities – Step 6

"Yes, we ... did dream those dreams.  How natural that was since most [of us] are bankrupt idealists. Nearly every one of us had wished to do great good, perform great deeds, and embody great ideals." (12 & 12, p. 156) "As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being." - Carl Jung (1875 - 1961) Swiss, psychologist What steps have you taken to live the life you have always wanted, lately?   Sweet Dream - are made of this - Eurythmics (3:35)   Carl Jung and…

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“Whatever God’s Dream about Man … It cannot Come True Unless … ” – Step 6

"If we ask, God will certainly forgive our derelictions. But in no case does He render us white as snow and keep us that way without our cooperation. That is something we are supposed to be willing to work toward ourselves." (12 & 12, p. 65)  "Whatever God's dream about man may be, it seems certain it can not come true unless man co-operates."- Stella Terrill Mann / English spiritual author   How has your own “cockiness” played a role in causing you pain, lately? Lucid Dreams - Juice WRLD (3:50) It Takes Two - Seduction (4:53) Classical Indian Healing…

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When It Really, Really is the Best Policy and Why – Step 6

MAKING AN HONEST ADMISSION - "When we first begin to practice these principles, they may seem very unnatural to us." "Even though we are admitting  our  addiction, we may  still  wonder if this program will real- ly work."  (It Works, How & Why,  p. 7) the first chap- ter of the book of wisdom." - Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826) 3rd US President   Surrender - Billy Talent (4:07) Story of "The Jaywalker" from the Big Book (1:30) Inner Truth and Honest Admission Guided Meditation (6:31)   What honest admission have you felt the need to make, lately?   https://www.youtube.com/v/H64wbGRjT_g…

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How to Jiu Jitsu “Our Personal, Private Solitary Pain” – Step 6

How have you had success lately using your own pain or fear as the motivation for what you really want? FEAR AS A DISTANT FRIEND AND MOTIVATION FOR LIVING - "The achieve- ment of freedom from fear is a life- time undertaking, one that can never be wholly completed." "Only the self-deceived will claim perfect freedom from fear." (As Bill Sees It, p. 263) "We fear vio- lence less than our own feelings. Personal, private, sol- itary pain is more ter- rifying than what anyone else can inflict." - Jim Morrison (1943 - 1971) U.S. musician / lead singer of…

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