Endigar 812
From Courage to Change of March 20;
One of the topics in our Fourth Step guide, the Blueprint for Progress, is self-worth. As I worked through this Step, taking a searching and fearless moral inventory of myself, I found that I have always judged my value on the basis of my accomplishments, or on what other people said about me. This meant I had to work all the time, or constantly make myself the center of attention. At best my sense of satisfaction was fleeting.
With Step Four, I realized that part of my self-worth, can be based on my ability to love other people. Saying a kind word, writing a considerate note, or just taking time out from my other thoughts to appreciate another human being, enriches my entire day. I have the power to feel good about myself, regardless of my achievements, whether or not other people validate my worthiness.
Today’s Reminder
Let me look for appropriate opportunities to share my love with people around me. In this way I celebrate one of my most positive traits without expecting anything in return. Paying someone a compliment that comes from the heart, or thanking them sincerely for their kindness, may be the nicest thing I can do for myself today.
“It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.” ~ Abraham Lincoln
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Meat hooks; That is what I call the practical fulfillment of some lofty spiritual notion. A statement such as “I must learn to love other people as a way of gaining self-esteem” sounds like someone on a higher path of living. Yet, without meat hooks of pragmatic expression it is a whisper under water. The 12 Step program has a very practical moral development. Do you want to live? Would you like to thrive? My thoughts need to be actions that bring transformation. “I must find a way to serve others like developing the habit of a kind word, relaying my own experience of recovery when sought, expressing gratitude” is the same statement as “I must learn to love other people,” but with meat hooks. Then those exalted ideas are brought down to earth where I can feed my self-esteem with estimable actions.
Daily Reprieve 
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