Thought for today:
If we are not tracking our numbers to the penny – income, expenses, and savings – it will be hard to get what other members have received from DA. So we’ll need to first get honest with ourselves.
Using Step 4, we can search for greater clarity about why we fight doing our numbers. We need to get to a point where we put aside our pride and accept that doing our numbers is vital medicine that will get us better. We need to learn to recognize when we are kidding ourselves with excuses and counterproductive self-talk.
DA Step 4:
Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Members share:
“I feel so inadequate when I’m tracking my numbers, because I was never any good at math!”
“I really have to get better at that. Maybe one day…”
“I don’t have time to do my numbers. It’s all I can do to get from appointment to appointment without having to stop and make a note.”
“I’m just not willing to hold up a checkout line at the store while I fill in my numbers. It’s too embarrassing.”
“I hold on to every receipt, but I never catch up. I usually lose my receipts before I can track them.”
“I guess I’m not desperate enough.”
Looking at the underlying character defects:
If we listen to ourselves closely, and hear what our inner voice is saying, we can usually hear the character defect that is stopping our growth. Once we identify which defects are at play – pride, fear, anger, lust, envy, sloth, greed, or gluttony – we can decide the actions we need to take to help us move in the opposite direction – humility, courage, prudence, tolerance, willingness, sharing and balance.
Ask:
“Am I willing to face my unwillingness?“
Meditation for Today:
Science tells us that mathematical formulas are fundamental to the universe. Numbers are also powerful tools that we can learn to harness. As we grasp the story of our money, we harness the power of numbers, and we begin to prosper.
Affirmations for Today:
“Starting today I will practice humility by putting a pencil in my hand, or downloading an app on my phone. Whatever it takes, I will find my truth in my numbers.
Recommended Reading:
Check out this free version of the Big Book Alcoholics Anonymous here. Also, read the free AA Twelve and Twelve.
Hard copy or kindle versions are available by clicking on the book image below:
Here is a link to the basic text of Debtors Anonymous:
See our Fourth Step Template which helps us to take a fearless moral inventory.
Some members, with the help of their Pressure Relief Group, take a moratorium from debt payments in order to get their spending under control. See this Debt Moratorium sample letter to creditors for one example.
If you are new to this blog, check out our overview of the program of recovery from compulsive debting. If you like this post, please click one of the like/share buttons on the site. If you would like to receive daily “Thoughts for today”, enter your email and a username in the subscription form at the top of this page. Some links on this page bring you to other sites. Clicking a book title or image brings you to information about purchasing it. If you buy something it will help support this blog with a small commission – which does not add to your cost!
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