Recovery Working the Program Discipline for the Day With enormous gratitude, I celebrate nineteen years of OA recovery this month. However, it is not the number of days abstinent that defines me today. What matters most is taking actions to manifest outwardly the changes inside me. This does not simply come about by following a food plan. It is also not enough to say, “God, do your thing.” … Read More
Steps Traditions Memorializing OA Members Our OA literature reminds us that nothing in life is permanent. Change is natural and can involve losses, including the ultimate loss, death. In recovery, we learn to show up—for ourselves, our OA fellows, our families, and our communities. Sometimes, we need to show up for the rituals that attend the death of someone cherished. We can celebrate his or … Read More
Steps Life is Great I’ve been in program for four years and abstinent three. Every day is a miracle. I use a special email signature: “Life is great, and it’s only going to get better, if I let it.” The signature is all about surrender. I have to get out of my Higher Power’s way so he can work in my life. I’ve learned … Read More
Steps Try Attraction “No-Apologies ‘Carefrontration’” (May/ June 2019, pp. 8–9) gave me pause, such that I reread it several times. I found the approach a bit troubling. No matter how hard I try, I’ll never be able to make another person become abstinent. I don’t believe that is what the Steps, Traditions, and Concepts of OA Service tell me to do. Step One … Read More
Service Chatting with Churches Regarding our primary purpose, my OA group reached out to all Milwaukee-area churches where OA meetings are held. First, I called every location and told the secretaries I was sending a thank-you letter to the church leader and an announcement for their bulletin. They sounded very pleased; many gave me their email addresses. If our announcement was approved, it could … Read More
Steps Traditions The Face of OA Recently, I came home after running a bunch of errands and realized I’d been wearing my name badge the whole time. Not only that, I had conducted my last transaction at a supermarket with mustard on my nose. I couldn’t help but wonder what people thought of me. What kind of impression did I make, and what would people think … Read More
Recovery Working the Program Starter Recipe My spiritual breakfast is Step Eleven, and it’s the most important meal of each day. It nourishes my brain with fuel I need to have a fighting chance of serenity and abstinence in the twenty-four hours ahead. I try to do Step Eleven as soon as I wake. If I give my brain even half an hour in charge, my … Read More
How OA Changed My Life This Holiday, Frenzy-Free From October through December, I used to engage in an eating frenzy that appeared to have no end. I absolutely could not comprehend that a Higher Power of any kind would be interested in my food issues, and my feelings of unworthiness and shame continued unabated. I just endured the process, as if it was a project I had to … Read More
Steps Moment by Moment Step Eleven: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out. Recently, I found myself in a place of fear, and my gut reaction is to want to control the world around me to feel safe. My … Read More
Gratitude Recovery Summer Steps and Smiles As I reflect on the unofficial start of the summer season, I’m filled with gratitude for OA. I first came into these sacred rooms on a Monday, right after the Fourth of July. Thank God that summer party at a friend’s lake house drove me to look into OA. A childhood friend had become sober in another Twelve Step fellowship … Read More