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[magi81]

Hello. I've been using your daily readings list for at least a month now. Thanks a lot for them.

I have a question. I'm an Al-Anonner & studying to become a hospital chaplain. I'm doing a chaplaincy internship at a hospital & was recently assigned to its chemical dependency unit. The unit's asked me to make a 30-minute morning reflection period available to patients Mon-Fri 8:30-9 am, and I'm not sure how best to use the time. The group will be voluntary and could be very small. The unit relies heavily on 12-step philosophy.

If anyone out there has any experience with this kind of thing and/or any ideas about how to structure such a time/group, I'd love to hear about it.

Thank you!

[MajestyJo]

Welcome to the site and thank you for sharing. Hamilton Housing asked me to open a meeting for alcoholics and addicts in their residence. I told them, "You can do nothing, unless they are willing to quit. You can supply a place to have a meeting, and if they find that willingness, they will have a place to go. We ended up registering a group with New York, this was AA based but open to all addictions, and calling it "Freedom of Recovery." We had 7 meetings in 6 days, which ran for 7 years.

If you are looking for NA material, check out the site, there are many addictions.

Narcotics Anonymous, all mind altering substances (the same is said in Cocaine and Crack Addictions.

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=13

Alcohol is a drug.

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=12

and other addictions:

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=14

It is a family disease.

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=18

There is a Bible called "Serenity" which cross references the 12 Steps to Bible Verses. I wrote my Bible meditations down for two years. When I was given a copy of the book on loan, I found that all my passages but two, were referenced to the Steps. I had been working the Steps and hadn't known it.

Have seen men and women leave a meeting if someone mentions Jesus as their Higher Power. They say the God of your understanding. It is my understanding that Jesus sits on the right hand of God and intercedes for us. He too has to go to the Source, and He is not it.

Personally, I believe that when we surrender and ask for help, the Holy Spirit enters us, and we can build a working relationship through that spirit with God. I have also a close affinity to Native American beliefs about animals and nature being a part of God's Creation, and we are all one, helping each of us walk a spiritual walk on this earth.

This is a reading in NA and Al-Anon. I use to get a daily reading from AA called Just For Today, but it is no longer in publication.

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1950

I was raised in the Gospel Halls and all my life growing up was church. It didn't stop me from becoming an addict and later an alcoholic. My doctor put me on Valium at 16. I stole a glass with 2" of communion wine in it. I remembered how it tasted when it hit bottom. I remember during communion after I was baptized, trying to make a gulp, look like a sip.

I need the spiritual part of recovery in order to stop. I went to church over the years, but it didn't say "No" to me. It sanctions wine in places. In AA, all we have is whine. I tried on my own for 8 years, my way didn't work. It wasn't until I went into treatment that I was introduced to AA and NA. NA was just coming into being then, 22 years ago, and I fell in love with the literature.

I went to NA for identification. I went to AA for my denial. I went to Al-Anon to find myself.

Addiction in Recovery:

http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2049

Many things, we think are mental problems, is our disease manifesting itself in our life. For me, it is the thinking behind the drinking and drugging. The drug is but a symptom of our disease. Recovery is about healing and going through the process in order to recover. It is not a quick fix. It is one day at a time.

Hope this helps. We do have prayers and meditations on the site too, as well as poems and spiritual material, posted in several sections.

Hope this will give you some thoughts and ideas.

[ds13099]

[LookingOut]

Originally Posted by magi81

Hello. I've been using your daily readings list for at least a month now. Thanks a lot for them.

I have a question. I'm an Al-Anonner & studying to become a hospital chaplain. I'm doing a chaplaincy internship at a hospital & was recently assigned to its chemical dependency unit. The unit's asked me to make a 30-minute morning reflection period available to patients Mon-Fri 8:30-9 am, and I'm not sure how best to use the time. The group will be voluntary and could be very small. The unit relies heavily on 12-step philosophy.

If anyone out there has any experience with this kind of thing and/or any ideas about how to structure such a time/group, I'd love to hear about it.

Thank you!

Welcome and thank you for your interest. For Christian-based materials, you can also visit Celebrate Recovery:

http://www.saddlebackresources.com/CelebrateRecovery

It might be helpful for you to visit a couple AA, Al-Anon and/or Celebrate Recovery meetings in your area to observe and get ideas.

God will bless you richly for helping people find their way back to Him!

[magi81]

Thank you, you guys, for your generous responses. I really appreciate them.