NOVEMBER 20
“THY WILL, NOT MINE”
. . . when making specific requests, it will be well to add to each one of them this qualification. “. . . if it be Thy will”TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 102
I ask simply that throughout the day God place in me the best understanding of His will that I can have for that day, and that I be given the grace by which I may carry it out. As the day goes on, I can pause when facing situations that must be met and decisions that must be made, and renew the simple request: “Thy will, not mine, be done.” I must always keep in mind that in every situation I am responsible for the effort and God is responsible for the outcome. I can “Let Go and Let God” by humbly repeating: “Thy will, not mine, be done.” Patience and persistence in seeking His will for me will free me from the pain of selfish expectations.First Wednesday… May 1st
Come join a review of Step 5 on May 1st (First Wednesday). “Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.”
John reviews the step corresponding to the number of that month on each first Wednesday. It’s a rewarding meeting with John outlining the step of the month, how he was challenged by it and how we tackle it ourselves, with and without success! Look for his monthly contribution in this edition!
May Birthdays… IF They Make It!
May 16th… Dan T. celebrates 8 years
May 17th… Steve H. celebrates 35 years
May 18th… David K. would celebrate 18 years
May 19th… Dan Mc. would celebrate 36 years
May 23rd… Jeremy B. celebrates 18 years
If your birthday has been missed…. fill out the birthday form.
We really want to celebrate your AA anniversary because your birthday made ours possible!
Thanks everybody and apologies to you if you were missed or incorrectly noted.
Tradition 05
Short Form
“Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.”
Long Form
“Each Alcoholics Anonymous group ought to be a spiritual entity having but one primary purpose—that of carrying its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.”
Tradition Summary
We Only Have One Purpose
It is the great paradox of A.A. that we know we can seldom keep the precious gift of sobriety unless we give it away. This Tradition delineates pretty clearly our individual primary purpose, as well as the group’s. Each of us is but a small part of the whole, but by joining AA’s primary purpose to our own, we become something bigger than our individual selves.
Am I willing to surrender my old primary purposes?
To work this tradition means that I am willing to say “yes” to this question and rearrange the rest of my priorities. Devoting myself to a new primary purpose means that I am willing to let go of many old ideas. I have many thinking patterns that are automatic that I need to change in order to consecrate myself to a new primary purpose.
Step-Tradition Parallel
The relationship of the fifth step to the fifth tradition is that the fifth step taught me the exact nature of my wrongs, “I’m not in charge.” In the fifth tradition I learned just the opposite, I learned what my exact nature should be: my talent to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers, my primary purpose.
In the fifth step I learned what’s wrong about me and in the fifth tradition I learned what’s right about me. What’s right about me is my ability to carry the message when no one else can because of the experiences that I have had which were transformed into a message of hope in the fifth step. My alcoholism is my greatest talent, not my talents as a husband, father, son, or my job. I can fulfill my primary purpose for being born by carrying the message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
From an idea by George T.
My First Meeting
Please be “of service.” If you’ve never contributed a “My First Meeting”, please help to keep this column going…we need you! What do you remember most of your first meeting? It can be one sentence; it can be up to two paragraphs. Could be funny, poignant or strictly “clinical”. Write what you want…you might have enjoy writing it!
DIGGING DOWN DEEP TO GET TO THE BOTTOM TO GET ON TOP
I had a few missteps in Step Five. My first attempt, my sponsor at the time waived it off. You’re not even done with Step One, he said. My feelings were hurt and he never heard my Step Five in one sitting. He might have been right, though. Looking back, I wasn’t ready.
Step Five reminds me of growing up. My parents moved us to a new neighborhood when I was five. The house was surrounded by fields. One day, i met some kids who were nice and we spent one of those warm Sacramento afternoons together digging up one of the vacant lots. I think we were either making a redoubt to fight the Russians or trying to dig to China. The effort has cross purposes and changed often.
I came home all excited, running into the house, to tell my parents how I found some kids to hang with. My mother looked at me with abject horror. What was the problem, I wondered. I too soon found out. My father grabbed me by the neck and dragged me back over all the places I had put dirt and mud on the floor coming into the house. Today, if you took an over sized hand like his roughly pointed your kid’s head at each clump, a kid could call the cops for child abuse. Back then, I was just a crying kid wondering how to get away from The Tyrant.
I got over it. Ya know, other kids got it worse. Today, parents nurture. When I was a kid, parents came through the Depression and The Big War. Not to make excuses for them, but they looked at us kids as just lucky to be here. Now shut up and eat the liver.
Step Five was not easy to do. Getting all my resentments out was not that hard but squaring that with my part in how they got there in the first place …. that part is hard.
I found out people in the Program had done some of the same things. Hidden bottles in the closet, various sized flasks, vodka in a plastic water bottle… every trick that didn’t matter, people knew I was drinking.
All of the things I said, and wished I hadn’t. Or done.
If i had any advice for a newcomer, it would be people hearing your Step Five, particularly sponsors who have heard them before, know about the cheating, the stealing, dancing naked in a bar doing the Wicked Y. Don’t get offended if they snooze through parts of it.
Remember, as humiliating as it may be, I think the purpose of the Step Five is to tear down and clear away the rubble. Find a base from which to work from. Build that one brick that leads to another and another until there is a foundation. From there, become the person you can be.
I am very grateful of the meetings and comradery of AA to help me in the construction.
Contributed by John M.
Funny Pages
The GSR Says!
GENERAL SERVICE REPORT April, 2024
Central California Fellowship of AA Delegate’s Meeting
April 20, 2024
Starting March 14th, 2024 Central California Fellowship Business Office has a NEW mailing address. The new address is 3609 Bradshaw Rd. Ste. H PMB 176 Sacramento, CA 95827. The physical office (Business and Bookstore) remains the same at 9960 Business Park Dr. Ste. 110 Sacramento, CA 95827
● April Sobriety Birthdays totaled 90 years! Way to go!
● Five new groups were voted in – Gift of Laughter AA Women’s Group, Primary Purpose Big Book Study, Declare Yourself, Early Birds Group Marysville, Perinatal Recovery Group
● Beginning with the May Meeting, Saturday, May 18th, CCFAA will offer hybrid DELEGATES Meetings. The in-person meetings will be held at 8137 Sunset Avenue, Suite 150, Fair Oaks CA 95628. The virtual meetings will continue to be held as well. Both meetings are conducted on the 3rd Saturday of each month. New group representatives will start at 2:30PM and delegates will begin at 3:00PM
● SAVE THE DATE!! It’s Picnic Time!! The annual CCFAA picnic will be held Sunday, August 18th at Elk Grove Park, 9950 Elk Grove-Florin Road from 9:00AM to 4:00PM. There will be softball games, raffle prizes, great food, kids games, used books, white elephant, cake walk, and speaker meetings. Raffle tickets can be purchased at CCFAA.
The cost of tickets is $1 each or 7 for $5. Cash prizes are $500, $250, and $100. All this plus big screen tv,tools, appliances,and original baskets
That’s all I have for this month folks. Thank you for allowing me to be of service.
Mark Q.
You Might be an Alcoholic…
- If you’ve ever used mouthwash as vodka, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your recycling bin is filled with more beer cans than anything else, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your idea of a balanced diet involves a bottle of whiskey in each hand, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your local bartender knows your drink order better than your own name, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your favorite childhood game was “spin the bottle” with a bottle of tequila, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your dog knows how to fetch a beer from the fridge, you might be an alcoholic.
- If you’ve ever referred to whiskey as a food group, you might be an alcoholic.
- If you’ve ever used “I’ll only have one drink” as an excuse to have six, you might be an alcoholic.
- If your idea of a water bottle is a flask filled with vodka, you might be an alcoholic.
- If you’ve ever considered joining a wine-of-the-month club just for the discounts, you might be an alcoholic.
- If you’ve ever had booze delivered by the pallet, you might be an alcoholic.
Step 2 Men’s Group Believes…
“Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.”
We’d never presume that the 12 Steps are not clear. Nor would we imply that they need ‘improvement’. However…for purposes of assisting to keep the meeting pointed in an important direction each day, the “Step 2 Men’s Group Statement” is read as follows:
Step 2 Men’s Group is founded on the belief that spirituality is essential to our sobriety.
Our group is non-religious, but we do not oppose anyone’s religious beliefs. We believe that respect for others and their beliefs is essential to our spiritual development.
Accordingly we ask that avoid criticism of others or of their religion or lack of religion, their race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation, physical appearance, trade or profession, length of sobriety, or personal beliefs.
Our goal is to further our spirituality, our sobriety and our personal development, not to confront or belittle others. Always remember to be kind to others.
Our Trusted Servants Continue to Be:
The current Step 2 Men’s Group meeting schedule is Monday, Wednesday & Friday at Tim’s (3809 J St), Tuesday & Thursday online, Saturday in the park is “Daily Reflections” and Sunday is our Rogue meeting in the park. Each gathering is one hour. Great job men!
- Monday: Tim C.
- Tuesday: Mark C.
- Wednesday: John M.
- Thursday: Sean R.
- Friday: Jon B.
- Saturday: Dave M.
- Sunday: Mark C.
Want to add your name to the “Back-up-Help-Substitute Secretary List”? Just contact Group GS, John M., Treasurer Mark W. or any of our other Secretaries and let them know!
Extra Special Thanks Dept:
Thanks to our General Secretary John M. for “Digging Down Deep…”, Mark Q. for his GSR Report, and our Treasurer Mark W. for all your contributions. We’re still waiting for YOU gentle reader…Why don’t YOU contribute a short “something?” Any length, most any AA related topic. Reply now and it will get included next month!
Men’s Gazette – April 2024
Men’s Gazette – June 2024