thanks, I'll just go ahead and keep my stuff...

Home group... we're blessed to have two newcomers attending our meeting these days. One of them got his 5 month token last nite and explained to us that things have begun to smooth out for him emotionally and physically (he's an older retired gentleman) and it had occured to him while on a trip last week that he was around a bunch of people ordering drinks at dinner and so forth, and he hadn't even given a thought to having a drink. I love hearing about the transformation, the removal of the obsession. He wasn't overly rejoicing, freaking out with glee, just grateful and at peace. I guess what made me feel so good was that he shared that out of all the meetings he attends, he gets the most out of our little men's meeting. I'm glad we're helping!

In contrast, the other older gentleman who is 1 month, 13 days sober had a rough one yeterday and shared with us that the gal he lives with is bi-polar, and had a bad day yesterday, which really made him want to drink. He isn't sure why he didn't drink or why he even went to his outpatient after care session either. But he did, and he came to our group to share his experience. It was neat to see the two new guys sharing back and forth, helping one another... We witnesses the very magic of why AA works, right before our very eyes. I felt as if I could almost reach out and touch God, He was so very present. One of the regulars shared with the struggling new guy about the fact that his wife suffers from awful dpression, spends weeks in bed, can't remember hardly anything, etc, so on. All this guy could talk about was how he hated tihs for his wife, and how grateful he was that he was an alcoholic, and not that depressed. He shared how they can never find jut the right meds to get her on track for very long and what a miserable thing this is for her. I sat there wide eyed and slack jawed... My wife has her problems, no doubt, but she's not as bad off as this gal. And here I am having difficulty dealing with her as she is. now granted, she doesn't seek any help for her depression but still. Here's this man dealing with his wife,a ccepting her, letting her be where she needs to be with this severe depression, and here I am struggling to cope with a milder case. It really scared me however when he shared that she didn't use to be nearly as bad as she is now... So who knows what the future holds but, I can tell you this... by the end of the meeting, I was glad to take back the cross I laid down at the start of the meeting, lest I get stuck with his.

The very topic we discussed: the perspective one gets when he simply shares his problem with another drunk, and how it shrinks, while not actually resolving anything... And guess what happened to me, the very thing I was trying to explain to the newcomer about bringing your troubles to a meeting, and gladly reclaiming them before you leave. It was really just one of those kinda meetings... wow!

Prayer for today...

JC/HP/God, please help me stay sober, just for today. Thanks for being so present among us last evening at my home group. Thakns for helping my new friend by removing his obsession to drink. And thanks for getting me newer friend through a rough patch and into our group. Thanks for giving us Your Message to share with the new guys, and for giving me the openness of heart, mind and soul to see more clearly where my difficulties are concerned. Thank You for the rain we're getting. Our farmers will be grateful! God help me today to represent myself well at my third and final interview/meeting with the bank. I am grateful to You for the new opportunity. Thank You for allowing me to put my pride aside and consider closing my little business in order to improve my career and provide a better life for my family. Thanks for sending me the customers You've sent over the past year. I've been able to help a lot of folks, not near as many as I had hoped, but alot and for that I am grateful.

may the peace of Christ be with you all...