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“We can achieve no liberation from the alcohol obsession until we become willing to deal with those character defects which have landed us in that helpless condition ... fear, anger, and pride ... rebellion and self-righteousness ... laziness and irresponsibility ... foolish rationalization and outright dishonesty ... wrong dependencies and destructive power-driving.”

“My job is to achieve enough humility to see myself in others and to accept both myself and others, by identifying. The willingness to make amends will grow from this act of love.”

“In the nick of time, and by God’s grace, each of us has been enabled to develop a growing sense of the meaning and purpose of his own life.”

“Forgiveness entered my life through my heart, not my head.”

“Grace is not a do-it-yourself project.”

“You cannot get ahead until you learn to be here.”

“My willingness to have my defects of character removed was bolstered by the realization that little, if any, spiritual growth was possible as long as I held on to my old ideas and defects.”

“At some point in each today, we recovering alcoholics need to pay ourselves a friendly visit.”

“When life is easy, I usually assume it’s God’s way and I’m quite spiritual. But when I’m in emotional trouble, I assume life’s a drag and that God’s gone fishing.”

“The effort to escape from truth is the father of anxiety.”

“As I see it, the ever-growing, multiplying, and compounding miracle of AA is that because one man was lonely, afraid, and sick in a strange city, I need never be alone again in a strange city.”

“The roads to recovery are many .... AA has no monopoly on reviving alcoholics.”

“Today I have a clearer perspective on what my role as a sponsor is and isn’t. It is to stay sober, be available to listen, share my thoughts, pray for others, and let them live their own lives. It is not to ‘fix’ anyone, get them sober, make them happy, demand they conform, or make their decisions.”

“The first thing my sponsor told me was, ‘I don’t have time to help you stay sick ... but if you want to get better I’d be glad to help.”

“The group I joined saved my life ... For an hour, I was safe. For an hour, I had a haven among those whose fear had once been as great as my own. I did not give my fear away – they took it. They eased it from my grasp with hugs and laughter, with shared experience.”