Chicago, Illinois and Sobriety ( Making it happen)

For those of you whom read this blog I have been in Chicago for a week now. I have successfully flown up here sober and with God's help enjoyed the airplane trip. I , however prepared with Hypnosis and praying to God. One phrase keeps hitting my head.. Happy , Joyous and Free, I am not sure where I picked up this phrase but it helped me with my anxieties. I am by far not a normal person , but I did not coward from this trip, Thank God.

So I am here in the windy city and have enjoyed most of my work and stay here. I am looking forward to coming back home and have no anxiety about flying anymore. It is a true miracle, how breahing deep and breathing out slowly can calm ones self in a stressful environment. I have practice this and still use this when I have to deal with fear...It works this program of AA and the Big Book and God. You must have God , of course to get your life together. I still have issues about life, but I am dealing with them head on. I am not being fearful. Thank God for my sponsor who called me minutes before my flight. He egged me on to continue, and I have and am doing fine. I hope this helps those of you who have issues with fear. There is no fear... It is the devil, fear is. Do not let the devil get a part of you. Pray to God to let the devil leave your soul and you will be fine as long as you pray for what you need and want. God Bless....Sunday 10.20.2013

The Work Trip and Staying Sober

As I embark on a journey that is work related. I stumble across the idea that I have not flown sober before.

In all these years, I have been medicated under marijuana, and beer while flying. Being sober for almost five years now,

I find new challenges await myself.  I have a trip to Chicago to work for two weeks this weekend coming up. Of course, I am

 fearful, and  slightly confident person, plus the idea of flying has had an impact on my new life. Not only is the flight a challenge but being away from

what I call home for 2 weeks is also something I have been praying about. The work I have to do is being judged by higher ups in my company, and this adds

to the stress of this trip.

How does one deal with all this commotion. He gives it over to God and prays and meditates. That is what I have been doing for over two weeks in preparation for

This journey to Chicago. I am not thrilled, yet a little bit excited to see how I will react. Everyone says I will be ok, and will be fine. I have to believe them and myself

That this too shall pass, and all will turn out right. You see it’s the little things that get me stirred up. I should be so happy to get out of Midland, Texas. This place is

Not all that, but to me it is home. All my toys are here, and my AA groups and family. However this is my job, and I need to do this in order to keep my job. I knew this day would come,

And there are to be many flights that I will take to other parts of the country as time goes on. So I signed up for this to challenge myself, my weakness and strengths to be tested on this journey.

I can’t give in and I will not. That was my problem when I was drinking, and it did not work. I lost my job several times when I didn’t want to do something.

I will give this to God and hope my sanity stays in place and I can be a productive member of society and not a basket case. It is God will for me to go and do my best.

I have the hope and confidence I can get , and I am working on myself in staying in tune with AA. This has helped me also deal with this new adventure.

The next post will be next week in Chicago, where I will let you in on the experience , and faith that has become from this trial. God Bless.  

Moving On With Living

Well, Chris Raymer was here in Midland on the 13th of September and he was full of words. Very good words , indeed. He speaks from his soul and he was expected to . He is a delightful fellow  , and was presented with an award from PDAP , which sponsored this event.

By Christopher Hyer

Now it is time to move forward with our daily life and plan for being recovered. It is a rocky road for some of us to take . However , it is full of miracles if we let God take over our lives and let him into the daily living we do. I have been just fine and live day to day , and work hard each day at my job, not taking shortcuts, but installing all I can learn.

I get to travel to Chicago, Atlanta, California and Texas with this job I do, and this will be fulfilling and a challenge. I even had to break down and buy me one of those roller suitcases so I could move with the flow in the airports. I have not traveled much in the last few years, so I have some fears. I have handed these over to God and he will take care of them. I do look forward to the travel as I have not been to some of these places. I get paid very good to go to these places and even get paid for my time in travel. I should be so lucky, huh?

Well, I have not abandon this site, I have just been very busy, I pray that those that read this blog are trying to get sober or getting an insight into sobriety and learning to go to AA and believe in God. Those are things I still do . I pray each morning for a good day and the health of everyone. I also ask for a great day each and every day for not only myself but for those I do not know and those I do. It is a peacefulness that will come over you during the day when things go wrong and I remeber that God is trying to tell me something. God Bless..Chris

Friday the 13th, ( Actually Chris Raymer Day in Midland, Texas)

As we head into the week of September 2013 , Midland , Texas and PDAP are welcoming Chris Raymer back into the Permian Basin area to speak. This man is a god given talent to all whom are able to attend this meeting on Friday September the 13th at 6 pm at PDAP in Midland, Texas.

I am curious as to how large or small the crowd will be, the announcement has been around the AA meetings in Odessa and Midland for about two months. He has affected those of us who went to La Hacienda , and where he use to work as a clerk, ( I believe), and a speaker about the issue man or spiritual malady that is inside each and every one of us. During his circuit speeches he does not talk about the spiritual malady , as he did at the Hunt alcohol and drug treatment center and I would like it if he would. It is a great topic, yet he has his own speech already prepared I am sure.

Chris R. is a spiritual person that is passionate about human beings . He is concerned about topics that are not touched on in AA groups and is sometimes frowned upon by the AA circuit gurus. As it may be , his message is real , and he is the real McCoy in this alcohol battle we all have and his presence will be felt once you meet him. Please make a point to come and hear this man speak , and you will have a new outlook on life. God Bless. Christopher

Living Sober, Completely

In waking up daily , we get on our knees and pray to God. This is a ritual of sort that must take place in order to complete your day. It is for me , that is. I always say about an hour of prayers before the start of the day. You must live sober completly or you will fail. This includes practicing the AA steps daily in my life and attending an AA meeting if needed for that day. What does an AA meeting do for you ? Well there are others there that ask themselves the same question, its the fellowship of others who have recovered or the ones who are wanting to try recovery, because it is the one way that works.

Three Days Grace Concert, Midland, Texas ( Beer Fest)

It's not just going to meetings that will keep one sober, it is interacting with others in the fellowship and seeing how there lives have changed and how your life has changed. It is a good reminder of where you are going and where you came from. Is it needed daily, well for some it is. I got to three meetings a week. I have a schedule of which meetings I go to and which ones I don't. If it has substance and I get something out of it I attend. Living sober completely means action takes place instead of words. You may hear words at a meeting but without action , one is stale. You will find that you grow along spiritual lines that are clean and good for yourself. They will effect your lifestyle and your personality in a positive manner. You will always hear yourself at an AA meeting from others that speak.

There is the real life of going out and practicing the steps of helping other recovering alcoholics which is needed in order to stay sober. It is sometimes hard to get these to call you. I have found this out by handing out my phone number to many newcomers and only to not get one call. The deal is I am avaiable if they need me. That is sometimes all we can do. Make your self able to take a call and let the drinker you are there for them. The rest is up to them. You , however are practicing
the twelve steps of alcoholics anonymous when you try to help. That is all that is asked.

I recently went to a rock concert in Midland, Texas and beer was being sold out at this venue and there were a lot of drunks and at the end of the concert there were police officers waiting at the door to make sure one was sober. Thank God I was only drinking 3 dollar bottles of water, as I was not even looked upon these officers. They had a group of about 20 ready to go to jail for public intoxication. What a deal , huh. I was blessed this night , but I had no plans of drinking anyway, if this would of been a few years back , I too would be joining this group.

So good comes from not drinking, even if only for yourself. You are responsible now, and with the number of DWI cases in court in my little town, I do not want to spend one night in jail. This is my insurance, AA, and it should be yours. Have a great day and God Bless. Chris

Chris Raymer and AA Speakers

There are a lot of circuit AA speakers who fly all around the world, helping those that need guidance with the disease of alcoholism. Chris Raymer of Hunt, Texas is one of these guys. He is sometimes called the "One eyed bandit" joyfully so. He is on a mission, and his mission includes all those affected with alcohol in one way or another. When I was in treatment at La Hacienda this man spoke to us everyday. I was in such a daze that I only was able to conceive some of his message. He is very out there and out spoken , he gets his point across. He has the idea that we are not doing enough as a whole in helping the newcomer beat his addiction. He will tell you that AA in some cities will not even crack open a Big Book in their meetings, and he is right. The AA and the group as a whole should use this material , because it works. He has been to so many places and witness too many deaths in his lifetime of sobriety.

Chris R. story is not the typical one. His indeed is different as we all are. He did not recover from this disease this last time at a alcohol and drug treatment facility. He went to an AA meeting in Lewisville, Texas on his last draw with drugs and drinking. He really wanted what these people in AA had, and made the effort. He was taken in by some old timers at the AA club and put to work on the steps immediately. Those who wanted Chris to stay sober knew just what to do to give him a chance in sobriety, because all had failed in what Chris tried. He was willing to do what it took, reluctantly at first, yet building a foundation that he lives by today.

Focusing on the 12th step and helping other alcoholics maintain their sobriety is a passion for this man. It should be the passion of all of us. However, we have fallin short and expect the newcomer to take for his own. This is not how AA was intended and Chris will speak about this. There are some in AA whom disagree with Chris on several issues, and this is true with anyone that has knowledge of his sorroundings. Chris is hyper and full of passion for the recovered AA person and those coming new into the program. Here is a sound clip of one of his recent speaches he has given. You can find these by searching out his name in google.com. Christopher

Chris Raymer Comes To Midland, Texas

Ladies and Gentlemen Chris Raymer is coming to Midland, Texas as per this PDAP flyer sent to me from my sponsor. This sought after speaker is an International AA speaker Guru, who tells it likke it is about the AA program. The strengths of the 12 steps and hopes of millions of people in this program Internationally. I was blessed to hear him at La Hacienda Treatment Center in Hunt , Texas. He has moved on to another South Texas Rehab Facility now, but continues with his ongoing fight against the disease of Alcoholism. He is the founder of the "Issue Man", and has a word or two about sponsoring that will make you love him or not. HE is a character with strength and will be joyfully welcome to this area of West Texas. He is originally from West Texas and for him to make a stop in Midland, Texas is such a pleasure for us all in the area. Please book your plane tickets to MAF for this occasion as you do not want to miss out on this..Christopher Hyer