Weekly Update



May 19, 2020
 
Announcements
  • Until we can resume normal meetings, PPG will be holding the meeting online through Zoom (can be downloaded on your phone or computer).  The link is: https://zoom.us/j/630577473.  The meeting id is 630 577 473.  The full information from the initial announcement of this new set up is at the bottom of the email.


  • Because we are not meeting, PPG has set up a Venmo for 7th tradition purposes.  It can be found by going to the Venmo app, clicking search people and typing in “primary purpose @groupaustin”
 
  • Founder’s Day will be held on Zoom this year on June 13-14.  Visit https://foundersday.org/ to register (it’s free) and for zoom information which will be posted closer to the date.
 
  • There will be a Group Conscience on June 2nd to discuss what form of online meeting we will continue to do when PPG is allowed to start meeting on purpose.  Everyone who calls PPG a home group should attend.
 
Tradition Reviewed
Tradition 2 (short form): For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
 
Tradition 2 (long form): Our A.A. experience has taught us that For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience.
 
How it Works (pg. 68) 
Perhaps there is a better way—we think so. For we are now on a different basis; the basis of trusting and relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite selves. We are in the world to play the role He assigns. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would have us, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to match calamity with serenity.
 
We never apologize to anyone for depending upon our Creator. We can laugh at those who think spirituality the way of weakness. Paradoxically, it is the way of strength. The verdict of the ages is that faith means courage. All men of faith have courage. They trust their God. We never apologize for God. Instead we let Him demonstrate, through us, what He can do. We ask Him to remove our fear and direct our attention to what He would have us be. At once, we commence to outgrow fear.

Some thoughts on what we read:
  • We have made a promise to God in Step 3 to live life on a different basis. We are trusting Him and turning to Him. The word “be” in the phrase “what He would have us be” is an action step and asks us to do His work well as he “assigns” it.  We are in the world for this assignment which we must perform in all our affairs.
 
  • Perhaps there is a better way than the disease's way of fear and anger.  We have surrendered and are on a path of serenity. There is no job too big or too small for God’s work. He does not want us to die for Him; He wants us to live and He leads by example
 
  • We don't always see our own fear which is why we do the fear inventory with another. It is the match that ignites us and brings us to self reliance. We have to do the work around fears.  In doing the inventory and getting it on paper, we see clearly how and where we are doing things "our way". It has proven unsuccessful on many occasions. We have to be willing to do as He would have us do.
 
  • Once we have done the work, we haven’t just turned the fear off for the rest of our lives. We have to let our Higher Power demonstrate through us and show us without a shadow of doubt what He can do. He directs us when we seek him. Fear and self-reliance has always let us down.  God has never let us down.
 
  • The solution to fear is a God consciousness.  The 12 steps help us develop and connect to this God consciousness.  If we can step back from our own self reliance of needing to fix everything, we can start to see that God is there whether we are afraid or not. We just need to be aware of him and we do that through our inventory.
 
  • We give our fear to God.  We ask God to remove fear and how to do His role for us.  We need to take a step back and ask what is our role.  We may not always know what God’s will is, but we usually know what it isn’t.
 
  • .We think our self reliance is an asset to us.  However, it turns out to be a defect of character blocking us from our Higher Power. It brings us to calamity and desperation which affect our motives and actions.
 
  • We need the faith to outgrow the fears. We show this faith in our daily inventory, meditation, prayer. Not only do as He would have us do but also have faith in Him to carry us through the fears.
 
Definitions:
trust–to have trust, confidence or hope; to place confidence in; to rely on

paradox–an assertion or sentiment seemingly contradictory, or opposed to common sense, but that yet may be true in fact
 
weak–lacking physical strength, feeble
 
calamity–state of deep distress
 
trudge–to walk or march steadily on

ZOOM:
Hi all!! Happy to announce that Primary purpose will be meeting virtually at the regular times starting this Tuesday. Attached is a pdf with the zoom link to share to spread the word as well. Please allow time to download the app or on your computer. There is no code needed And the meeting can hold up to 500 attendees - so we can all be present. We will continue as long as needed each week this way to keep connected. Look forward to seeing everyone there! Reach out if you have any questions or concerns

Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/630577473
Time: Every Tuesday at 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
    
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Weekly: https://zoom.us/meeting/u5ctcu6vqjwp8wXOZAAcT0EkKLeaqjbCpw/ics?icsToken=98tyKu-rrj4tHdCSs1yCUbIqA9r7b_H2kilZkoxnvT7mN3B2aSjaM-NTOLBcAM-B
Meeting ID: 630 577 473
One tap mobile
+13462487799,,630577473# US (Houston)
+16699009128,,630577473# US (San Jose)
Dial by your location
        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
        +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose)
        +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
        +1 253 215 8782 US
        +1 301 715 8592 US
        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
Meeting ID: 630 577 473
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/aeiDXV0f7W