Today's Reading from Just For Today © NA World Services
August 1 Freedom from guilt
"Our addiction enslaved us. We were prisoners of our own mind and were
condemned by our own guilt."
Basic Text, p. 7
----=----
Guilt is one of the most commonly encountered stumbling blocks in
recovery. One of the more notorious forms of guilt is the self-loathing
that results when we try to forgive ourselves but don't feel forgiven.
How can we forgive ourselves so we feel it? First, we remember that guilt
and failure are not links in an unbreakable chain. Honestly sharing with
a sponsor and with other addicts shows this to be true. Often the result
of such sharing is a more sensible awareness of the part we ourselves have
played in our affairs. Sometimes we realize that our expectations have
been too high. We increase our willingness to participate in the
solutions rather than dwelling on the problems.
Somewhere along the way, we discover who we really are. We usually find
that we are neither the totally perfect nor the totally imperfect beings
we have imagined ourselves to be. We need not live up to or down to our
illusions; we need only live in reality.
----=----
Just for today: I am grateful for my assets and accept my liabilities.
Through willingness and humility, I am freed to progress in my recovery
and achieve freedom from guilt.
