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Drinking
Hey guys, its me again. I've been getting into drinking lately and i know its wrong and i really wanna stop but its kinda hard... i don't know why :(
Please pray for me
PS- those of you who go to my church please keep this confidential between you and me... if you want to talk about it please talk to ME and dont go off telling my parents or gossiping about me and stuff ok?
Please pray for me
PS- those of you who go to my church please keep this confidential between you and me... if you want to talk about it please talk to ME and dont go off telling my parents or gossiping about me and stuff ok?
Comments
Hey guys, its me again. I've been getting into drinking lately and i know its wrong and i really wanna stop but its kinda hard... i don't know why :(
Please pray for me
PS- those of you who go to my church please keep this confidential between you and me... if you want to talk about it please talk to ME and dont go off telling my parents or gossiping about me and stuff ok?
you are 15....according to your profile....why in the world are you drinking?!
you are 15....according to your profile....why in the world are you drinking?!
I know very well i am 15... thats why i am requesting prayers
friends...
stay away from them if you can't stop yourself from drinking with them......lose friends but do not lose your life.
Losing your friends that do that isn't always the best option...cuz the sin starts in your head, not with them. You have to change your mindset...i know that's tough, but believe me, a mindset change is all you need. The action isn't necessarily the sin, it's the attitude or the way you view it.
Ask these questions with me...Drinking: is it cool? ok, let's say yes...Who decides if it's cool? Obviously, those who drink. BINGO...dont let ppl who drink be the ones to dictate what's cool or not. haha seriously, they would know best?
Most people feel that the pressures from society make it reasonable for a person of your age to drink. I felt the same way and had the same problem. But think about it, ur not of this world, ur not a person in our society, ur a deacon and a Son of God...think in those terms.
Don't think: "I'm a highschooler with a lot of friends who drink...it happens, it's normal"
Think: "I'm a deacon, I use my mouth to sing tasbeha and take communion. i cant use the same mouth to drink (or cuss or anything else, drinking is just an example). I'm a son of God, the only alchohol i should be drinking is at communion" lol jk jk, but all jokes aside, changing ur environment might not help or changing ur friends might not b the answer...cuz u'll still want alchohol and girls etc.
It has to start with ur mindset. Think of the spiritual, not the earthly. That new mindset may lead u to have new friends, more friends, no friends, or the same amount of friends, but it will definitely DEFINITELY change the way you think of sins.
Sorry t his is soo long, but one more thing....Give it to God. Give it to God...isn't that his thing? Isn't that why he was nailed to the cross? He was killed cuz He knew u'd have a problem with this. He did it cuz he knew I would and that many other souls do. So, give it to God. Crucify it.
Todays quiet time talked about "every branch that does not bear fruit...etc" we've heard it many times before.
jesus is promising u that any branch that does not bear fruit, he takes away and prunes. (This is refferring to Jesus himself, but it can definitely apply to our personal lives)
Let God take it from you...of course doing that is the hard part...praying and fasting is too textbook and talking to your father of confession is tough.
I would say the best practical advice is to be constantly constantly using ur mind to praise and pray and meditate...that way, you wont ever have the desire to drink/lust/whatever because ur mind is up there and not down here.
so sorry for the long post, i saw it and i had to reply...this hits home with me, dawg.
prayers all around, and always dare with boldness.
p.s. heck yea, we're too weak...ask God to change your mindset. that's all it takes. The fact that you're regretting this means you're on the right track.
sorry, there really was no way to briefly share what i wanted to share. sorry.
Darewithboldness,
Please, dont be sorry at all. Thank you so much for your advice. i appreciate it so much. its the best ive gotten. I was thinking when i read minagir's response that it is such a sunday school/ text book answer. Also your advice seems very reliable seeing that you have gone through the same difficulties i am facing. Thank you so much and god bless you :)
Chris
Parents may act irrationally, (most egyptian parents will) and your Father of confession...definitely confess it when you can.
From my personal experiences...i did not let ppl know...my best friend didnt know until recently, no parents, no FOC, just me and my saving Cross. (i did confess it however)
Expecting you to talk it out with ur parents or FOC may discourage you/anger u more, but you're different from me or minagir or whoever else posts up here. Pray about it with all your heart and let God dictate what you do, not this post.
I completely agree with Darewithboldness. Change your mind set and give it to God to carry. It isn't your burden. Your burden should be to be able to give it to Christ. I want to apologize for any posts that have been and probably will be posted talking down to you. I think it was very brave of you to post this on a public website, and don't worry about anyone from church finding out habebe.
God will bless your struggle, and may even this temptation be for the glory of His name. He knows the problem from in and out.Hopefully God will bless the retreat this weekend, and give us all a message towards fixing all our faults. If you need anything just call :)
InChrist,
Tishori
I mean it well.
NS: He is just 15. He cant think of the terrible conseqeuences properly by himself. At that age,one is at "wow,this is cool " stage of thinking. His parents should know about this. I suggest, he tells them himself. That could only result in something good. And we will pray.
r there any old ladies who need their garden doing or old men who need someone to cook for them? anyone need shopping doing or anthing else?
u r a mature (to me anything over 13 is mature) member of society and u should be contributing something useful, not just hanging out with friends and going to school only.
alcoholism is caused by depression and boredom, and while talking to your (or another if u really can talk to your own) FOC is very important, u also need to change your outlook on life so that u r way 2 busy to be bored, and u keep hanging out with people who don't drink (even old or sick folk) and who will value u as they get to know u and stop u getting depressed.
Beginning with today, and it is a Wednesday, a fast day, start by offering this day to God. Not saying that you will force yourself not to drink, that is a sort of negative way of looking at the problem, and we don't have the strength in ourselves to do very much at all. But positively offer the day to God and ask that he give you grace to live a life 'worthy of the calling with which we are called'. Say to God, 'I can't stop drinking in my own strength, but I offer you my weakness and ask you to give me the grace I need to even make a beginning in living my life with you'.
Concentrate on today. Put into practice some of the distractive activities that Mabsoota has mentioned. Even find some more mature adult to do something with, even your parents! so that you can have an excuse not to go and drink. But as been clearly said here, see it as a spiritual problem that needs to you seek a spiritual solution.
What did we read last Sunday..."Submit yourself to God. Resist the Devil and he wil flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you".
In the end you need to want God more than getting drunk. Remind yourself..."I am a child of God". And ask yourself if the things you are doing have eternal value, or are just the straw that will be burnt up in the fire.
A lot of teen drunkenness is to do with boredom. Are you bored? Are you in any clubs, is there some activity you could take up? Drinking and smoking are an attraction for a while, but just looking at things objectively they are not worth it. Let me say that I had a few cigarettes to be cool when I was your age, and thought about taking up smoking, but I am glad I didn't. My brother is still smoking and has spent, how much over 30 years? Likewise I have worked with people who's idea of fun was to go out and drink 12 pints of beer and collapse in a vomit stained heap after a fight. That seems barely human to me.
In my British culture it is quite normal for adult people to consume very moderate amounts of alcohol, we do not have an Islamic sense of prohibition. But let me say that I don't have any desire to drink alcohol. Not because I am some eager prohibitionist, but because I can't see the value any more in dulling my senses and thoughts. There are always people to pray for, things to read and study, the Agpeya and Bible, other work to be doing. And even relaxation is not helped by alcohol consumption. If I am stressed then alcohol will not help me relax, it will just teach me that a way to avoid dealing with difficult situations is to drink them away. If I am tired a bath would be better.
Just this morning my cousin asked me to pray for him, and he needs earnest prayer. Is that helped if I am not in control of myself? Likewise I have many other responsibilities as a priest, but as a Christian. We are all called to care for each other. Do earnestly pray for each of those you have been drinking with. They need your prayers. I am guessing they are not Copts? Perhaps there is no-one else in the world who could pray for them. It might be just you - but you are getting drunk with them.
Do what you can to avoid the situation where drinking will happen. Even say that you fill a bit ill and don't want to drink today. Spiritually you clearly do fill unwell and wish to change your behaviour. Continue to seek God as the means of salvation in this situation, and pray for those others involved. You are responsible for them in some sense.
God bless you and keep you safe
Father Peter
so as Mina said, " stay away from these 'friends'"
another thing is Alcohol is not "haram"... but losing sobriety is...
also in your age, breaking the law is not going with what the bible teaches!
another thing is... from my experience all this fuss you're making about alcohol is your problem, it will cause you to want to drink... so teach yourself not to think about it much... especially when you have access to it!
I've seen some teachings of AA on this post... God is helping us always... but He will not do the work for us! so you need to struggle, knowing that YOU can do it... prayer will not due much and fasting will not due much and God will not due much!!! unless you're the one praying... you're the one fasting... you're the one asking for God's aid...
one of my pet peeves is when people ask me to pray for them, but they don't!
your topic sparked my attention... but your "want" was what got my blood boiling!
you already know drinking is wrong... so really we don't have much to convince you... you already know that praying and fasting is what will help... so we're not going to come up there and hold your hand up... and slap your wrist when you come to break your fast!
ya habibi... if you want to waste your life... so be it...
if you love God show it... stand up today and pray... and ask Him what you should do... tomorrow (Thursday) there is no fasting... but the day after start fasting... keep your time busy, every time you want to drink say the Jesus prayer so many times until the thought passes!
please forgive me for being "tough" I just wish I was told all this when I was your age!
akhadna el baraka... neshkor Allah!
btw peter you were the only one i was worried about will spreading the word.. so thanks for keeping it secret! and btw sprry i wont be awt the retreat this weekend :(
scroll down on the bottom and click on the alcohol power point
i understand that it is addicting and very tempting...but u have to live by the spirit and not by the flesh.
Focus on God...pray to Him...He promised he will make the weak strong...so pray that He will make you strong.
He promised...so He will do it.=]
...but u have to live by the spirit and not by the flesh.
The Spiritual Man :D