Resolution

Resolution is not something you can gain, it's an inner strength that
must be put into motion by a conscious decision of 'heart, mind &
soul'.

Rick has done this & has put resolution into words for
others to share, & hopefully gain for themself a little of his
introspection.

I love these words & will be adding a new one every week, for as long as
he lets me.

Laughter is the best medicine.
 
"The one serious conviction that a man should have is
that nothing is to be taken seriously." 
--Nicholas Murray Butler    

For years I used to take myself too seriously. I thought that
everything depended upon my thoughts, actions and decisions.
Life was a series of agendas that had to be met; life
was too serious to be joked about. I knew that I was not God,
but I took responsibility for the whole universe. 

I had opinions on everything and everybody and I was, of course,
always right. 

As the years passed it grew painful being so responsible -- my
control produced stress, tension and loneliness. Then a friend
said to me, "Let go and let God." I began to detach and laugh at
my insane behavior. I laughed more as I began to accept my humanness.
I discovered spirituality in the joke. 

God must have a sense of humor -- after all, He made me. 


Help me to laugh at myself in my search for the Kingdom. 
Peace and Love,
Rick
Ventis secundis, tene cursum - "Go with the flow"
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Winston Churchill said..."
The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. 
The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."



Opportunity is not a free ride. It is a challenge. 
Therein lies its value. Success cannot be handed to you.
Accomplishment cannot be given to you. 
It's not something you happen upon. 
Being in the right place at the right time is worthless 
unless you make the effort to act on that opportunity. 
Others can lead you to an opportunity or point one out, 
but no one can give you opportunity. 
It is yours only when you begin to act upon it. 

Opportunity is a compelling challenge to achieve. 
Challenge is one of the very best things you can ever experience.
When you face challenge you learn, you grow, you reach, 
you discover truths, you discover yourself. 

Challenge will bring out the best in you, and make it better. 
Do you sense an opportunity? Then take up the challenge. 
Success is yours if you make it, and no one is better than you 
at making the special success that you desire most fervently.

Peace and Love,
Rick
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Float to the top!

Do your priorities and commitments empower you or imprison you? 
If you're feeling overwhelmed and stifled by it all, here's a 
suggestion: go swimming! 

When you try to hold water in your hand, it will soon drain away and 
you'll lose it. Yet when you immerse yourself in the water, without 
attempting to hold on to it, letting it flow gently past you, you can 
enjoy the experience for as long as you wish. If you fight and 
struggle against the water, you put yourself in danger of drowning. 
But when you calm down and relax, your natural buoyancy, plus a 
modest amount of effort, will keep you peacefully afloat no matter 
what the depth. 

Do you find yourself struggling against the very things you set out 
to achieve? Stop for a moment. Consider the absurdity of that, and 
the waste of effort which results. Quit thrashing about and permit 
yourself to calmly float. Your efforts will be infinitely more 
effective when they're not directed against themselves. 

When the stresses and pressures have you feeling like you're 
drowning, go for a peaceful swim in your mind. Let the depth of your 
commitment support you rather than sink you.

Peace and Love,
Rick
Ventis secundis, tene cursum - "Go with the flow"
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Pride...good & not so good!

"There is a paradox in pride: it makes some men ridiculous, 
but prevents some men from becoming so." 
--Charles Caleb Colton    

Pride can be both negative and creative. I have experienced both 
in my alcoholic life. When I was drinking, my pride made me an
arrogant fool, refusing to listen to the advice of others, always 
telling people what they should do, unrealistic in my demands on 
myself and others, lost in a fantasy of how I appeared to others. 
Pride became a mask behind which I hid my feelings. 

In Recovery I am beginning to develop a love and respect for myself. 
I am proud of my achievements in recovery, and I am beginning to 
discover the "power" God has given to me. My spiritual program 
teaches me that I need to cooperate with God if things are going to 
happen in my life. God requires my involvement if He is to work 
through my life. Today I am proud of my willingness to associate 
with the God of Truth. 

Master, let me always treat "pride" with respect, 
mindful of its destructive attribute. 

Peace and Love,
Rick
Ventis secundis, tene cursum - "Go with the flow"
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Imagine the best

How many times have the obstacles standing in your way been primarily
a creation of your own imagination? Have you ever convinced yourself
that you cannot possibly do something, and then later discovered that
you can indeed do it?

Consider that many of the limitations which you live with each day
may very well be self imposed. Certainly there are very real and
formidable challenges which you face. Be careful not to add to them
with your own imagined obstacles.

Your imagination is best used to imagine your positive possibilities.
Your mind and your imagination are totally under your own control, so
use them for to your benefit. Let your imagination enrich your life
rather than impede it. Imagine the best for yourself and your world.

What you can imagine, you can become. That is an incredible power. Be
sure it's pointed in a positive direction.

Peace and Love,
Rick
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Your faith will never operate above the level
of the words of your mouth.



Chain reaction

Consider that every positive thing you do starts a chain reaction,
the end result of which is impossible to calculate in its 
magnificence. Likewise, each negative thing you do initiates a
similar chain reaction, which goes on and on, with an eventual
accumulated devastation that is impossible to comprehend.
To say that everything you do to others comes back to you is to
grossly understate the situation. Whatever you think or say or do
goes out into your world and is multiplied many times over, before
surely and eventually returning to you.

In what kind of world do you wish to live? What flavor of chain
reactions do you wish to have swirling around you? It has been
estimated that you can personally connect with any other person in
the world through no more than six intermediary acquaintances.

Thus, the chain reactions that you initiate with your thoughts, words
and actions will grow stronger and come back to you from directions
which you never could have imagined. It may seem like magic, but it's
really just common sense. You have a great influence over the world
in which you live. Use it wisely.

Peace and Love,
Rick
Your faith will never operate above the level 
of the words of your mouth.
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The strength of weakness
 
Do you know your weaknesses? Are you willing to admit them and
acknowledge them? Are you willing to work on them? What things are
holding you back, keeping you from living life exactly as you wish to
live? 

When you're honest with yourself about your weaknesses, and willing
to put some effort into working on them, you identified a powerful
pathway for self improvement. 

Imagine a boat with a leak in the hull. Working on the engine might
marginally improve its performance, but that really won't do much
good because the boat will sink if the leak isn't fixed. A single
weakness can sometimes outweigh all the strengths combined. 

It's fun and easy to spend time doing the things you're good at. And
you certainly want to take full advantage of your strongest skills.
Yet usually you can only get marginally better at the things you're
already skilled at doing, even with constant practice. However, when
you set out to work on your weaknesses, the effort can produce
dramatic, leveraged results. Identify your weaknesses, put some
effort into them, and you can make a tremendous positive difference.


Peace and Love,
Rick
The greatest discovery of my generation
is that human beings can alter their lives
by altering their attitudes of mind. -William James
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You have it in you 

Within you there is courage. Within you is determination. Within you
are focus, discipline, and strength. Within you are the qualities and
abilities that can bring you anything you want to have, and take you
anywhere you wish to go, and make you the person you choose to be.
These strengths and abilities are within you, waiting to be called
upon. They're ready for you to use them. They're available to you at
a moment's notice.

All you must do is decide to use them. And that will happen when you
find a clear enough, strong enough reason. Perhaps you've already
glimpsed that reason. Perhaps you're already on your way.

The strength you need is yours. The courage, the discipline, the
determination are already a part of you. When you are truly ready,
they'll be there.

Peace and Love,
Rick

And Always Remember !!!
Your faith will never operate above the level
of the words of your mouth.
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