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Samf
Advanced Member
USA
447 Posts |
 Posted - October 29 2002 : 6:02:18 PM
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At the end of meetings, a lot of times, I hear the phrase, "It Works If You Work It".
But I don't understand what people are trying to say.
Did this just become a catch phrase? Or is it somewhere in the Big Book?
It seems like it would be confusing to a new person...like, "Turn Over A New Leaf".
What does this phrase mean to you, if it means anything?
Thanks!
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journeytoserenity
Forum Admin
USA
566 Posts |
 Posted - November 02 2002 : 8:42:37 PM
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The above quote is from Alcoholics Anomnymous; Chapter 6 - Into Action. That's what I think of when I say, or hear "It works IF you work it".
And, you know what?? It is very true!!!!!
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"We see things NOT as THEY are - but as WE are."
"If you keep thinking things are going to be bad, you stand a good chance at becoming a Prophet." |
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notplastered
Advanced Member
USA
56 Posts |
Posted - November 04 2002 : 07:30:39 AM
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The phrase was added after Keep comming back, which was one of the earliest meeting closure statements from the old days. The thinking was that if someone could remember only one thing about an aa meeting, it would be to keep comming back. Adding it works if you work it comes from the West coast as I understand it.
AA I O U |
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John96
Advanced Member
22 Posts |
Posted - November 06 2002 : 10:01:07 AM
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To me "It works if you work it" is realizing that AA requires active participation.
It is not enough to go to meetings- you must participate. You don't have to share but you need to "actively" listen by relating what you hear to your own life.
It is not enough to read the Big Book and the Steps, you must apply the principles of the BB and work the steps to the best of your ability at the time.
You must give freely to others what has been given freely to you. This is the application of your knowledge and understanding of AA. The best way to learn anything is to teach others.
John96
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n/a
deleted
514 Posts |
 Posted - November 06 2002 : 4:02:26 PM
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For me, I will only get out of this program what I put in to it. If I don't ask for help from my Higher Power, go to meetings, get a sponsor, ask for help at the meetings and my sponsor. Do the Steps, and thank my Higher Power for keeping me clean and sober for one more day. And so much more. Then I will be back to a drink. If I do all of this, on a daily basis, then I am continuing to build on my foundation and this Program and the 12 Steps will work, and keep me clean and sober for one more day.
Harry
What I am is God's gift to me.
What I make of myself is my gift to Him. |
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Carol87
Advanced Member
61 Posts |
Posted - November 06 2002 : 5:27:18 PM
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For me it means being IN AA not AROUND AA. And for me that means participating in my own recovery by working the steps, daily prayer and meditation, reading the BB, working with a sponsor, going to meetings, being of service and most importantly, having a Higher Power (whom I choose to call God) in my life on a daily basis.
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Samf
Advanced Member
USA
447 Posts |
Posted - November 06 2002 : 5:59:14 PM
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Thanks, guys, for all that you've shared!
I see your point!
I used to have a little sticker...well, I still have some...someone said they were going to stop making them...but, it says, "AA...it works!"
And I like that, a lot.
I realize that we have to take action. I just always thought the results were grace, and I guess that where I always got mixed up.
Thanks.
Edited by - Samf on November 06 2002 8:34:22 PM |
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Patsyd1
Advanced Member
USA
16 Posts |
Posted - November 08 2002 : 04:44:51 AM
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Hi ((((((((Sam)))))))))))
"It Works If You Work It".
This one confused me when I was new. I am so grateful that I had my sponsor.
This quote today, for this drunk goes hand in hand with "Faith without works is dead"...
I still have to take the suggestions, get to AA meetings, listen, help another drunk, read the Big Book, and put the 12 Steps into action in my own life by applying and practicing them on a daily basis.
Yes, I have learned, and sometimes the hard way.... that "it works, if I work it" and can you imagine that this drunk even now will still take back my own will, even tho I know in my heart and soul that it just doesn't work that way LOL
Yes, I am a genuine drunk through and through LOL
Love you (((((((((((Sam)))))))))))
Patsy
Failed 12 Step Call? Not if we walk away sober! |
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Tinker
Advanced Member
74 Posts |
Posted - November 12 2002 : 4:31:08 PM
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Thanks for the topic Sam. When I first got sober, not drinking a day at a time seemed like the hardest thing I had ever attempted in my whole life. I had been a daily drinker for many, many years, and couldn't imagine being able to get through a week without drinking. I knew that alcohol was literally killing me, but I couldn't not drink. I had long ago lost that choice. AA was just a last ditch effort. Even though I didn't know what AA was really about, I was sure it wouldn't work for me. Little did I know at that time that just not taking a drink a day at a time would be the easiest part of this whole deal!!
There were many suggestions made to me when I first became involved in this fellowship. The first suggestion was to go to meetings. I had the audacity to ask an oldtimer, "how many meetings do I NEED to go to?". She looked me dead in the eye and said, "as many as it takes". Then she asked me how many days a week did I drink? That pretty much answered that question. She also asked me what lengths I went to in order to get drunk, and how many hours a day did I drink?
To this day, whenever I feel like I really don't want to go to a meeting, or feel like I don't NEED a meeting, I realize that's exactly where I need to go. It has been drilled into my head that "meeting makers make it". I've heard and seen many people with 20, 25, 30+ yrs. sobriety talk about the importance of attending meetings on a regular basis. I've heard alot of people with long lengths of continuous sobriety say that they still attend meetings daily.
I've also seen many people with long lengths of sobriety stop going to meetings because they "have a life" or don't think they should "hide in AA". Guess what? They get drunk. Not all of them, but enough to convince me that meetings are an important part of recovery. Meetings are an important part of MY recovery.
I know today that AA meetings alone will not keep me sober. But it's where I need to start. It's where I learn to live life on life's terms. It's where I learned the importance of having and USING a sponsor, the importance of having a home group and becoming involved in service work, the importance of WORKING the steps, LIVING the steps, practicing the principles, learning about the traditions, and carrying the message. Last but not least, attending meetings helped me come to believe in a God I can understand.
In Chapter 5 of the Big Book, entitled "How it WORKS", the very first sentence pretty much says it all....."Rarely have we seen a person fail who has THOROUGHLY followed our path."
I know for me, if I want to stay sober a day at a time, I need to follow all those suggestions and instructions in that book. I need to work with other alcoholics on a daily basis. I find other alcoholics who have what I want and want what I have at meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Everyday is Pay Day in A.A. |
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It Works If You Work It
