Happiness Is Birthed in Gratitude

“Grateful people are happy people and those who aren’t, aren’t.” I first heard that many years ago in a 12 Step fellowship meeting. When I wore a younger man’s clothes I believed, incorrectly, that I would be happy when I achieved some arbitrary milestone: get out of my childhood home, get a job, get a better job, get a steady girlfriend, get married, get some money in the bank, get a new car, etc.Looking back, a significant part of my early life was pretty much about”getting” with little giving. Now, I got all those things, and much more, but I wasn’t happy. Sure, there were happy times, moments hilarious, but I had a hole inside of me that was never truly filled, a longing in my heart for something I could not identify, and gratitude was not even on my radar.

At 30 years of age I was bankrupt in every area of my life and sought solace in blinding intoxication. Soon I found myself at a Spiritual jumping off point,and by Grace I found a fellowship of people who understood my dilemma and offered a way out. They taught me that to get, I had to give first. To be respected, first I had to show respect to others, especially those I didn’t agree with or like personally. Love, first I had to be loving toward others,and learn to appreciate, be grateful for the things in my life today as well as the things that had been removed, for all are lessons in living. As I began walking this path, following directions, the place I had tried to fill with”stuff” began to fill, with gratitude. I was told as well these new principles in living needed to be refreshed daily, and if I did, a day at a time, my life would grow and change in truly miraculous ways.

That was many years ago, and I can say today without equivocation, they were right.Has it been easy, no. Has it been worth it, oh God yes, and today I truly understand that happiness is birthed in gratitude.

Miracles Of Recovery 

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

Miracles Of Recovery, Overdose Death, Alcoholism, Wayne Dyer, Drug Addiction, Zen, Emmet Fox, Opioids, Heroin,Einstein, AA, Healing Path Recovery, Drug Rehab, #Drug Addiction, #Drug Rehab,#Healing Path Recovery, #Heroin, #Opioids

Published by Vincent Lee Jones

Silk sheets or city streets, Park Avenue or park bench, addiction is an equal opportunity destroyer of lives. My name is Vincent Lee Jones and I have been in recovery since September 1985. My professional career began when I was nearly 20 years in recovery and was asked to work pro bono with at risk students at Huntington Beach High School. At the time I had developed a reputation within the at large recovery community as an effective communicator and was known to some of the faculty. After the death of two students from prescription drugs I was asked to start working with at risk students, which I did for nearly 5 years. Word of mouth lead to offers of compensated freelance Facilitator and Director positions with numerous local treatment facilities in the ensuing years. As a retired Building Contractor/Designer, working in conjunction with a treatment facility, I created a construction program utilizing a workforce comprised almost exclusively of people new or returning to recovery, helping them to not only learn a trade and start making a living but since many of them had relapsed numerous times, to begin truly building a foundation with real aftercare to live free of active addiction. This program changed many lives. In my 30+ years in recovery I have worked with thousands of individuals from all walks of life, teenagers to the retired, famous to infamous, prosperous to those living hand to mouth, adamant atheists to those embracing strong Religious beliefs; suffering from all manner of intoxicant and behavior-based addictions as well as those who love and care about them, both as a member in recovery Fellowships and as a treatment professional. I can be contacted at 714-366-1725. I write and publish daily a recovery based nondenominational spiritually based blog at https://livinginspirit.blogspot.com with accompanying videos that can be found as well on YouTube and LinkedIn at Vincent Lee Jones.

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