Ben A.

The alcoholic's and addict's obsession with self-destruction is less than rational, to put it mildly. Treating it with conventional psychological means is often futile and the prospects for success are grim.

Although our recovery is based on spiritual principles, this does not imply that we can or should ignore our bodies in the name of spiritual refinement.

The alcoholic in recovery can easily understand that there is a special quality of wisdom that comes about only after all else has failed.

Repeated experience has made it abundantly clear that I can either have everything I ever wanted out of life OR I can have alcohol. I can't have both.

Believing in a Higher Power is one thing; but believing in a Higher Power who is in control at every moment is another.

The source of evil is the independent ego--and the ultimate independence of ego is not the rejection of G‑d but the belief that G‑d's power is one's own.

Humility and self-abnegation are the foundation and beginning of the service of G-d. We cannot begin to be transcend our limitations until we first let go of the prideful illusion of self-sufficiency.

The ego employs a more innocuous method of thwarting our connection to G‑d. It allows us to seek spirituality, but inserts the condition, “Only do not go far off—pray for me!”

For the alcoholic and addict, the need to look at things from a new perspective is essential to recovery. The first admission of powerlessness requires an abandonment of our old view of ourselves.