Welcome to the Central Coast Area of Narcotics Anonymous
Serving: Paso Robles, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, Arroyo Grande, Santa Maria, Lompoc
" The therapeutic value of one addict helping another is without parallel "
Just for today daily meditation
July 27, 2024 |
We do recover |
| Page 217 |
| "After coming to NA, we found ourselves among a very special group of people who have suffered like us and found recovery. In their experiences, freely shared, we found hope for ourselves. If the program worked for them, it would work for us." |
| Basic Text, p. 10 |
| A newcomer walks into his or her first meeting, shaking and confused. People are milling about. Refreshments and literature are set out. The meeting starts after everyone has drifted over to their chairs and settled themselves in. After taking a bewildered glance at the odd assortment of folks in the room, the newcomer asks, "Why should I bet my life on this group? After all, they're just a bunch of addicts like me." Though it may be true that not many of our members had much going for us when we got here, the newcomer soon learns that the way we are living today is what counts. Our meetings are filled with addicts whose lives have turned completely around. Against all odds, we are recovering. The newcomer can relate to where we've been and draw hope from where we are now. Today, every one of us has the opportunity to recover. Yes, we can safely entrust our lives to our Higher Power and to Narcotics Anonymous. So long as we work the program, the payoff is certain: freedom from active addiction and a better way of life. |
| Just for Today: The recovery I've found in Narcotics Anonymous is a sure thing. By basing my life on it, I know I will grow. |
| Copyright (c) 2007-2023, NA World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved |
A Spiritual principle a day
July 27, 2024 |
Our Step-One Surrender |
| Page 215 |
| "Only in working the First Step do we truly come to realize that we are addicts, that we have hit bottom, and that we must surrender." |
| NA Step Working Guides, Step One, Opening Essay |
| We don't all enter the rooms of NA certain that we are addicts like those people. Some of us are dubious. Now that we have a couple of weeks clean, we remember our using days a bit differently: Was it that bad? Do we really have a "disease"? Sure, we have a problem with drugs, but it's not like we were ever arrested for it. We have a roof over our head and teeth in our mouth. Never have we exchanged sex for drugs, and all our student loan payments have been on time. Was our bottom so terrible? Was it terrible enough to warrant a daily surrender? An oldtimer offers some unhelpful advice: "Maybe you aren't done yet." That sounds ominous, and we definitely have some sort of problem, so . . . We stay clean and get a sponsor. We pick up the NA Step Working Guides and, at our sponsor's direction, begin to answer the questions as honestly and thoroughly as possible. By the time we get to the section on surrender, we've already written about our "disease" at length: our profound dishonesty and denial, our manipulation of the people who loved and trusted us, all the laws we broke (even if we didn't get caught), the powerlessness over our addiction, our obsessiveness, our compulsiveness, our obsessive-compulsiveness, the unmanageability we've created in our lives, and the reservations we may be holding onto. Seeing it all there on the page, all that proof in black and white—it's undeniable. I am an addict. In an ideal world, that's the moment of surrender we never look back from. Sure, that happens for many of us. That's the beginning of our process of surrendering, opening the door to recovery. Others of us end up getting loaded, doing more "research," hitting a lower bottom, and surrendering later. Still others never make it back. |
| ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— |
| I've already done enough research. What is unmanageable in my life right now? What am I obsessing about? What can I do to surrender today? |
| Copyright (c) 2007-2023, NA World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved |
WHAT IS THE NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS PROGRAM?
NA is a nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem. We are recovering addicts who meet regularly to help each other stay clean. This is a program of complete abstinence from all drugs. There is only one requirement for membership, the desire to stop using. We suggest that you keep an open mind and give yourself a break. Our program is a set of principles written so simply that we can follow them in our daily lives. The most important thing about them is that they work.
For more information on Narcotics Anonymous,
please go to the:
Narcotics Anonymous World Services Website,
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