Matthew 5:9-12
Matthew 5:9-12
Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
If you were ever invited to our home, you will be hard pressed to find any liquor bottles, beer, or even an old fashion bar. It simply doesn't exist. If we drink it is only with a ceremonial glass of champagne during a meal at a exquisite eating establishment.
Over the years I have watched lives that have been destroyed by virtue of the alcoholic beverage. I've seen generations of men emotionally damaged by the sin of their grandfathers. Regardless of the color of ones skin, or the economic rung they came from, alcohol has destroyed family systems.
It is responsible for countless number of traffic deaths, domestic abuse calls, murders, divorces, poverty, and the list goes on and on. It often isn't until a loved one dies when a person goes off the deep end with the consumption of alcohol, drugs or both. The script is the same across all economic strata's: after they cry that all familiar primal screen when they first hear of their loved death, the pain continues with no end in sight.
A man or woman without religion is apt to head to the bar, or to their liquor cabinet just to drown themselves in booze with hope that the pain will simply go away. But rarely it does.
I watched generations that have been effected by this demon drink. Children in these systems grow up with unresolved trauma issues that effect them from the ways they learn things to simply coping with the day to day stressors of life.
Children grow up knowing only how to survive without ever knowing how to self actualize.
We cannot be peace makers if we are consumed with finding that next alcohol beverage. For some, the consumption of this demon rum leads to fits of anger which leads to far worse outcomes like committing crimes, assaulting people or murdering someone, or stealing property that doesn't belong to you.
Alcohol, when in the hands of idol men and woman, seems to go down quicker and more often. This leads to systemic health problems such as kidney disease, diabetes, heart, as well as struggles with depression and anxiety. There is also the risk of suicide for some one that drinks more than they should; after all, alcohol is a depressant.
Which was why I was disappointed that our Governor didn't declare liquor stores non-essential and our churches essential. As a 'born-again' believer of Jesus Christ, I'm intimately aware of the power of God's holy spirit to all who accept Jesus as savior and Lord. For me, I would rather take my chances in the assembly of the righteous than in a den of thieves.
For it is while in the assembly of the righteous that I'm nourished with the biblical word of God and encouraged by other believers. Oh, some experts said that when people sing in church they spread the virus, but what they don't tell you is that the real super spreaders of this virus were not from those in church, but from all of the shouting that went on in the nation wide riots this summer. A recent glance at the virus statistics confirms that the highest percentage belongs to the 20-30 age group which was the predominate makeup of those protesters.
No one drew that connection because it simply didn't fit the script they were trying to portray.
In the end, most men and woman will have regrets with how they lived this life. Many will sit on the bar stool rehashing over life's mistakes while wondering if things could have turned out differently. Even in the end it is never too late to turn over a new leaf. Probably the greatest thing a man or woman can do is to confess to God that they were on the wrong world view path and come to Jesus simply saying this prayer. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be.
If you said this prayer and sincerely meant it, you can be assured that Jesus is at this moment in your heart, and then when you take your final breath you will enter into this beautiful place called heaven where none of the earthly struggles can enter.
Until you take your final breath, please remember that your mission in this life is to grow in your relationship with Christ and tell others about Jesus. If you do not have a local church to attend, I encourage you to go this church my wife and I have attended for over 30 years. https://newhopechurchmn.org/
Alcohol can be easily remedied by treatment and alcohol support programs. There is one such group called Celebrate Recovery which I include a link right here. https://www.celebraterecovery.com
Remember, God truly has a wonderful plan for your life, a life free from the alcohol and drugs.
Thank you for sharing your convictions on this issue Todd. We have experienced firtsthand the devastation alcohol can bring down on a Christian family. My wife's best friend and adoptive mother of 4 was needlessly killed by a drunken and unlicensed driver 15 years ago. He struck her while she was out jogging in the countryside, sending her body flying 50 feet in the air. The alcohol-stupified driver fled the scene and hid the unregistered truck in a grove of trees, pretending he had struck a deer. Although he was eventually captured and brought to justice, Joan's small children and husband, her extended family and friends would be forever impacted.
ReplyDeleteThank you John for sharing this painful story from your past. Amazing how the pain of this tragedy can linger on even today. One unrelenting image I have was when I was in the 6th grade when I witnessed my parents fighting and watching dad walk out of the house with his suitcase telling me that he wasn't coming back. Mom was crying, as well as I. I remembered trying to get my dad to return as I ran face first into the window glass of the storm door shattering it to pieces, causing my face to bleed. Mom cleaned my wound as I continue to cry. The next morning I discovered that dad had quietly returned to the house, sleeping in his bed. I was relieved, but to this day, I still dealt with issues of abandonment which I think made my grief after losing my daughter, Maria, to an accidental pain medicine overdose, more complicated. I wonder how many families there are across America that have been profoundly impacted by the divorce, separation caused by alcohol and drug addiction? My guess is that there are many families.
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