Welcome to the SAA Big Book Study and meditation Tele meeting. Now let’s take a moment of silence to meditate and invite God to our meeting. We’ll follow that with the Serenity Prayer.
“God. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.”
To paraphrase the foreword of the First Edition of the Big Book:
We of Sex Addicts Anonymous are more than one hundred men and women who have recovered from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body. To show other sex addicts precisely how we have recovered is the main purpose of this book. For them we hope these pages will prove so convincing that no further authentication will be necessary. We think this account of our experiences will help everyone better understand the sex addict. Many do not comprehend that the sex addict is a very sick person. And besides, we are sure that our way of living has its advantages for all.
Hello, everyone. My name is _________ and I am a recovered sex addict. I’ll be the facilitator for this meeting
At this time we’d like to welcome any newcomers and visitors. If this is your first time to this meeting. We would like to take an opportunity to acknowledge you and welcome you.
Our Group Conscience has elected to use the Big Book of A.A. as its basic text. Time and experience have proven it to be the most successful approach to the Steps no matter what the addictive problem may be. Because of how it was written, we believe it to be the purest 12 Step document in existence. The purpose of this meeting is to learn from the Big Book how to improve how we each work all the 12 Steps by extracting the precise instructions it contains
We will study the text to better understand these instructions followed by a time of mediation. During the meeting, let’s avoid talking about our opinions, thoughts, theories, and personal anecdotes and personal histories since these too are outside issues. If you have worked the steps for sex addiction with a sponsor by the instructions in the Big Book and had the promised spiritual awakening, then we would really like to hear your insights in to these directions. If you are new to SAA, new to this meeting or new to this approach to the Twelve Steps, then we hope you will hear something that will be helpful.
There will be a period of fellowship after the meeting. If you have questions, if you need to check in or get current, or if you want to discuss other literature, please stick around for the fellowship. That would be a better time for these subjects. Before we close the meeting people willing to sponsor will announce their names and phone numbers. We encourage you to stick around.
If you don’t have a Big Book and would like to follow along, you can access it over the internet at www.aa.org/bigbookonline.htm.
Now I would like to turn the meeting over to the study leader.
(Note to study leader… When opening each paragraph for comments, please precede it with comment, “Let’s open that paragraph up for comment on the precise instructions it contains.”)
Now is the time for mediation and reflection. We will have a time of silence for 10 minutes
so let’s find more relaxed and comfortable position.
Step 11 reads: “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood him, praying only for the knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.”
We will be meditating for 10 minutes. Here are a few thoughts from pages 86 and 87 to consider in your meditation:
In thinking about our day we may face indecision. We may not be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy. We don’t struggle. We are often surprised how the right answers come after we have tried this for a while. What used to be the hunch or the occasional inspiration gradually becomes a working part of the mind. Being still inexperienced and having just made conscious contact with God, it is not probable that we are going to be inspired at all times. We might pay for this presumption in all sorts of absurd actions and ideas. Nevertheless, we find that our thinking will, as time passes, be more and more on the plane of inspiration. We come to rely upon it.
Now let the mediation begin….. (time the mediation for 10 minutes)
Come back gently- Serenity prayer.
Are than any burning desires or insights while in meditation that anyone would like to express or share with the group?
Closing:
“Our book is meant to be suggestive only. We realize we know only a little. God will constantly disclose more to you and to us. Ask Him in your morning meditation what you can do each day for the man who is still sick. The answers will come if your own house is in order. But you obviously cannot transmit something you haven’t got. See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to pass for you and countless others. This is the Great Fact for us.
Abandon yourself to God as you understand God. Admit your faults to Him and your fellows. Clear away the wreckage of your past. Give freely of what you find and join us. We shall be with you in the Fellowship of the Spirit, and you will surely meet some of us as you trudge the Road of Happy Destiny.”
“May God bless you and keep you until then.”
As S.A.A. members the most important symbol of our willingness is a desire to stop our addictive sexual behavior. A commitment to sobriety signifies our desire to stop for good and for all, though we stay sober just one day at a time. And we would like to acknowledge anyone who wants to commit to our way of living. Is there anyone here that would like to begin their journey to sobriety tonight?
Our group conscience believes that the best place to check-in or get current is with a sponsor. After all, this is where real recovery takes place: in working the Steps with a sponsor. If your sponsor is unavailable and you need a temporary sponsor, if you don’t have a sponsor or if you are looking to change sponsors, we believe we can help. Will those of you who have taken these steps by the directions in the Big Book and had a spiritual awakening please announce your names and phone numbers so that those looking for help will know to whom they can entrust their recovery? (PAUSE to allow members to introduce themselves.)
Are there any S.A.A. related announcements? (Pause)
Are there any prayer requests? (Pause)
Now let’s have a moment of silence for these and the addict who still suffers followed by a The Lord’s Prayer or a prayer of your own choosing said in silence. (The following is only for group conscience meetings held on the last Saturday of the month)
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.” — Amen. — Matthew 6:9-13 – KJV
Group Conscience:
It is now time for the Group Conscience meeting which will be followed by fellowship. If you are new, please stick around, we? We’d love to talk to you. (Note to Trusted Servant: please review Robert’s Rules of Order at http://www.robertsrules.org/ prior to the Group Conscience Meeting. We follow these loosely.)
AGENDA
Welcome to the SAA 11th step Prayer and Meditation Group Conscience Meeting. My name is ______ and I’m a sex addict and your trusted servant for this meeting.
To paraphrase from Alcoholics Anonymous Appendix I: “To those now in its fold, Sex Addicts Anonymous has made the difference between misery and sobriety, and often the difference between life and death. SAA can of course mean just as much to uncounted sex addicts not yet reached. Therefore, no society of men and women ever had a more urgent need for continuous effectiveness and permanent unity. We sex addicts see that we must work together and hang together, else most of us will finally die alone. The Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous are, we SAAs believe, the best answers that our experience has yet given to those ever urgent questions, ‘How can SAA best stay whole and survive?’”
Would someone please read The Twelve Traditions, the short form, p. 562 in the 4th Ed. of the AA Big Book? (p. 564 in the 3rd Ed)
Will the Secretary please read the minutes from last month’s group conscience meeting?
In keeping with our traditions, do we have any old business to discuss? (Start with any old business from minutes read then ask for any additional old business, if none, move on)
Do we have any new business to discuss?
In keeping with our traditions, this group rotates service positions. We need a Trusted Servant to lead the study guide portion of the Big Book study meeting for the next month. Suggested guidelines for this service are completion of the 12 steps in SAA using the Big Book and is currently sponsoring someone by taking them through the SAA twelve steps using the Big Book. Suggested sobriety is 90 days. Who would like to volunteer?
We need a Trusted Servant to open and close the meeting for the next month. Suggested guidelines for this service position are to have worked the steps with a sponsor using the Big Book for sex addiction (Currently on Step 12). Who would like to volunteer?
Is there any other new business? (Pause for new business)
Should a meeting format change occur, outgoing trusted servant please update this format with those changes and email the new document to website@saatalk.org
Please help me close this meeting with the Serenity Prayer.
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Fellowship:
Now it’s time for fellowship. I would like to remind everyone that this is an open call. We have no way of knowing who all is on the line. Please bear that in mind when you give out personal information.