4th Dimension Recovery's Weblog

Surrender To Win

4thdimensionrecovery — Sat, 28 May 2011 14:15:14 +0000

All our lives we are taught to be self-sufficient. To man up. quitters never win, winners never quit. Pull yourself by your boot straps. on and on we could go about self-sufficiency. You know what the hardest thing to do in the world is? It’s ask for help! I still struggle with this today, I just don’t want to be seen as being weak. What a paradox the Doctor from Tuscaloosa talked about. Why is it so hard to find our bottoms. I’m convinced that untill we can surrender, ask for help. Scream calf rope, uncle,I give or just plain say I can’t go on like this can we start down our road to recovery. But, the miracle is that once we do and ask God for help all sorts of good thing start to happen in our lives. So, how many years did I waste in my stubbornness to change? I know today I found a wonderful life. Thanks be to GOD!

The Professor and the Paradox

4thdimensionrecovery — Fri, 27 May 2011 11:34:37 +0000

A friend of mine blogged on face book this morning some of the things AA has been for him. He used some paradoxes to make his point. It reminded me of a story from The Second Edition of The Big Book of alcoholics Anonymous.The story was titled , “T he Professor and The Paradox”. I scrounged arround and found his story in the book Experience,Strength and Hope. In his story starting on page 151 the professor states as follows. ‘ A.A does not function in a way which people normally expect it to. For example, instead of using our “will power,” As everyone outside A.A., seems to think we do ,we give up our wills to a Higher Power, place our lives in hands invisible hands_strongerthan ours. Another example: If twenty or thirty of us real drunks getaway from home and meet in a club room downtown on Saturday night, the normal expectation is that all thirty of us will surely get roaring drunk, but it doesn’t work out that way, does it? Or talking about whiskey and old drinking days( one would normally think) is sure to raise a thirst, but it doesn’t work that way either,does it? Our program and procedures seem to be in many ways contrary to normal opinion. And so in connection with this idea, let me pass on what I consider the four paradoxes of how A.A. works.( A paradox ,you probably know already know ‘ is a statement which appears to be false,but which,upon careful examination’ in certain instances proves to be true.) This story should be important to my friend and myself because he taught English at The University of Alabama – we both went there.

The four paradoxes are; We surrender towin.We give away to keep. We suffer to get well. We die to live. We will talk more about these paradoxes tomorrow!

T Square

4thdimensionrecovery — Thu, 26 May 2011 10:51:12 +0000

Sitting here in the dark. Power is out from the storms that passed through last night.Thinking about all the many blessings God hast in my life. Reminds me that I don’t have look far to find some one who has it a lot worse than I. I was taught early on by my ole sponsor that any time I get on my pity wagon to make a T square. Make a big T on a price of paper and list all the blessings on the left side and all troubles on the right. The left side of the square will always have more. Will post again when the power comes back on. Powers back on but the water is off. Went to 4-D group at 7 and the topic was counting our blessings – go figure!

YOUR HEART FOLLOWS YOUR TREASURE

4thdimensionrecovery — Wed, 25 May 2011 13:52:59 +0000

From : AROUND THE YEAR WITH EMMET FOX.

Read MATTHEW 6-16-23

If your consciousness is right, that is , if you have a good understanding of God as the loving source of your boundless supply,you will always be able to demonstrate whatever money or goods you may require. You cannot want for anything when once you truly realize that in divine Mind demand and supply are one.And,on the contrary,untill you do realize this, you will never be really safe from want.

In the long run, no one can retain what does not belong to him by right of consciousness,nor be deprived of that which is truly his by the same supreme title.

If you are looking to outer, passing, mutable things for either happiness or security,you are not putting GOD FIRST.If you are putting God first in your life, you will not find yourself laboring under undue anxiety about anything, forwhere your treasure is, there will your heart be also(MATTHEW 6:21)

One of the hardest things in recovery for me has been to give up my old materialistic ways – a bigger house, a better job, a nicer boat , more money , more stuff. None of it ever made me happy. Only the spiritual walk with an all loving all-powerful God. Today I pray that he will keep my eye on the goal and away from my self destructing SELF.

UP DATE

4thdimensionrecovery — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 11:57:45 +0000

Hope you notice that we are starting to post the blog again. The Web Site 4th Dimension is being updated as we speake and will have several new features that will include a bullintin board so individuals or groups can post events and notes of intrest for the recovery community. Hope everybody has a blessed day and helps at least one other person – today!!!!!

4TH DIMENSION – THERE IS A SOLUTION

4thdimensionrecovery — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 13:20:54 +0000

Page 25 in the Big Book states , “There is a solution………. When,therefore we were approached by those in whom the problem had been solved,there was nothing left for us to do but pick up the simple kit of spiritual tools laid at our feet. We have found much of heaven and we have been rocketed into a forth dimension of existence of which we had not even dreamed. The great fact is just this and nothing less. That we have had deep an effective spiritual experiences which have revolutionized our whole attitude towards life, toward our fellows,and toward God’s universe.The central fact of our lives today is the absolute certainty that our Creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He has commenced to accomplish those things for us which we could never do by ourselves.” The Fourth Dimension of existence – that place where we find peace, serenity, happy and joyous freedom from our demons. Why do most of us fight God to preserve our independence when it is so much better to trust that he has a plan for us that is much greater than we could ever imagine!

4th Dimension Recovery

4thdimensionrecovery — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 14:01:05 +0000

Page 8 , The Big Book of Alcoholic Anonymous , Bill W. states,”How dark before the dawn! In reality that was the beginning of my last debauch. I was soon to be catapulted into what I like to call the Fourth Dimension of existence. I was to know happiness, peace,and usefulness, in a way of life that is incredibly more wonderful as time passes.” I was told early on in recovery that if I couldn’t remember my last drunk that I probably hadn’t had it yet. I think that is what Bill W. was talking about here. On page 25 in there is a solution it talks about the forth dimension again. We will visit page 25 tomorrow. What a blessing , the forth dimension is, that relationship with God that enables us to recreate our lives in a way that is useful and rewarding as we continue to grow in the spirit!

HUNGER FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS

4thdimensionrecovery — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 14:17:21 +0000

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after rightoousness: for they shall be filled(Matthew 5:6). More from Emmet Fox. ” In the Sermon o the Mount , every clause reiterates the truth that that outterthings are but a consequences. Aswithin , so without. When people awaken to a knowledge of these truths, they naturally begin to apply them in their own lives . Realizing at last the vital importance of righteounsness they begin immediately to try to put their houses in order .The principle involved is simple , but unfortunatleythe exemplifing of it is anything but easy. Now , why should this be so?The answer lies in the potency of of habit;and habits of thhinking are at once the most subtle and the most difficult to break. Perhaps failure to achieve righteousness is the failure of half-heartedness;you long but not to deeply .Your hunger and thirst do not rise from a sense of total need .Have a mental stocktaking or a review of your life .It could not happen that a wholehearted search for truth and righteousness, if perserved in, should not be crowned with success. God is notmocked ,nor does He mock His children.” Look like ole Emmet Fox was asking us to do a forth step. Lookin back I can remember all the times I made the resolution to change my lif – but couldn’t pull it off!

INHERITTING THE EARTH

4thdimensionrecovery — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 14:11:50 +0000

From Arround The Year With Emmet Fox. ” The word meek in the Bible connotes a mental attitude for which there is no other single word available. It is a combination of openmindedness,faith,in God,and the realization that the will of God for us is always something joyous and intresting and vital.This state of mind also includes a perfect willingnessto allow the will of God to come about in whatever way divine Wisdom considers to be best,rather than in some particular way that we chosen for ourselves. This mental attitude of TEACHABLENESS,WILLINGNESS to be led,is the key domination, or sucess demonstration. There is no word for it in common speech,because the thing does not exist except for those who are up on the spiritual basis of the teaching of Jesus Christ. If we are to inherit the earth we must absolutely acquire this “meekness.”" Emmet Fox – instrumental in in shaping the thoughts of Bill W. Meekness- the abbility to know that God is in charge – all I have to do is seek his will!

DIS-EASE

4thdimensionrecovery — Mon, 11 May 2009 13:23:43 +0000

This morning we talked about the dis-ease . what a horrible place to be. I’ve been here a while now and I still have to guard against the disease. Whenever I get to feeling funky it invariably goes back to my spiritual condition.When I force GOD out and start letting Mark run the show then the wheels usually run off.