Meetings Recovery Working the Program worldwide Day or Night I need a traveling program, one that is available to me 24/7. I have used our website, oa.org, a lot. I’ve looked up in-person meetings when I travel. This past November, I was traveling on the East Coast (I live on the West Coast), and I searched and found a meeting for every day that I was available, including a … Read More
Fellowship World Service, Worldwide Friends I’ve long been a self-proclaimed “service junkie.” I learned very early the benefits of attending more than just one group. I’ve also reaped the benefits of having a sponsor and being a sponsor. It didn’t take me long at all to get involved at the group, intergroup, region, and world service levels, and I’ve been blessed to attend some of … Read More
Convention Fellowship The Funnest Thing I’ve Ever Done In 1995, I’d been in OA for seven years, and I got a new car. An OA friend and I decided to drive to the World Service Convention in Minneapolis. Although the trip planner we used said it was twenty hours away, it took us thirty-three hours to drive there. We stayed for thirty-three hours, and we drove another thirty-three … Read More
Service Tools & Concepts Many Ways to Serve There are so many ways to give service in OA and pay forward all we have so freely received. Not all forms of service require years of commitment or abstinence. Will service make you abstinent? No, unfortunately, it is not a magic cure. But it is one of the Tools you can use to work the Steps. Members can give … Read More
Fellowship Recovery Heart Full of Gratitude When I think about the next World Service Convention it takes me back to the exhilarating experiences I had at the 2016 Convention in Boston. Over 1,000 OA members from all over the world gathered in one place! I received many gifts from that weekend. My emotions were on alert because my roommate practiced a different food plan approach than … Read More
Traditions A Service Point of View I have been blessed to attend the World Service Business Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico USA, for the past four years as a delegate from my intergroup. It has been an incredible learning experience and a great gift to meet members of our Fellowship from around the world. We meet to learn and share experience, strength, and hope and also … Read More
Fellowship Recovery Just Go I’ve been in OA since December 1982 but did not attend a World Service Convention until 1997. I went to intergroup and Region Six conventions. I chaired local conventions and was a keynote at a regional convention outside of Region Six. Somehow, I didn’t pay much attention to any other events. Each year, I would be asked about going to … Read More
Meetings Tools & Concepts Strong Service Bodies “What on earth do service bodies and OA’s service structure have to do with me?” you might ask. “I just go to meetings. That other stuff is for older people in the program.” OA’s service structure has a lot to do with you, if you’re an OA member and you value your program, your recovery, your meetings, and your life. … Read More
Fellowship Recovery Intergroup Involvement Before I got involved in service at the intergroup level, I hadn’t given a lot of thought to intergroups and what they do. Now, I see all the services they provide and what we would miss if we lost our intergroup. Our web page, telephone answering service, meeting lists, equipment, speakers list, Fellowship-wide celebrations like IDEA Day, communications with region and … Read More
Abstinence No Guarantee but Grace I awakened abstinent today, clearheaded and present. Wow. Another day, G-d! It’s a far cry from the hangover of a binge. I call my caring sponsor each morning at 7 a.m. to commit to myself, to her, and to the G-d of my understanding my three planned, delicious, abundant meals. When I write down and prepare my meals, it sets the tone … Read More