I just drugged myself

This is 'zoo week' for us. Guests Sunday evening. We lectured for two hours at a school Monday morning. Farrier came for horses Monday afternoon. Barry lectured in astronomy at the New Hope Observatory, where he is director, Monday evening. While he was gone I helped my granddaughters with their homework, did the dishes, got Chris to bed, medicated a dog's ear, and got our lectures ready for this morning (we have two hours every day this week upon request of the instructors involved). Got up at six to feed the animals, set sprinklers, shower, review notes, get going. Two hours of lecture for us. Hay delivery arrived about noon. That finished, Barry worked on some of his stuff and I went down grocery shopping, picked up a new keyboard for this contraption, and stopped by the pharmacist's for some prescriptions for Barry. Came home, unloaded groceries. Barry was exhausted and needed to go down for a nap as he is due at the observatory again this evening for some meetings with some of the representatives of universities and the Department of Education. I still have to feed the horses and goats, get dinner, help the kids who need help with their homework, get Chris down, clean the kitchen, and prepare the material for the two lectures tomorrow.

I'm one of the walking zombies right now. But actually, not right NOW. I was about half an hour ago. But I had a good strong cup of tea and some chocolate. Folks, for me, that is drugging myself. I'm really reactive to a lot of chemicals and I'm wide awake now.

Is that wrong? I need to keep going. I will not have a chance to rest until I go to bed around ten this evening. I don't think my body will make it until Barry gets home. For me, I did what I needed to do to keep the household going as it needs to.

Is what I did wrong?

 

You mean like my husband??? LOL

Seriously, I know that and you know that. However there are some on this board who have been extremely judgmental about certain issues regarding eating and drinking and things that affect the brain -- even to the point of questioning another's position in the Lord. I am extremely curious about their comments on this issue. It is also interesting that 'no comment' was the first comment....

 

You know what is funny? That lead post was essentially serious. But, and perhaps rightfully so, many have taken it in a humorous vein. But none of the legalists seem to want to respond. I wonder why not? Does legalism NOT extend to using some chemicals to alter your mind while it comes down hard on others? I'm not talking legal vs. illegal here. I'm talking all legal stuff...

Caffeine IS addictive. We know that. It's not wildly addictive, but it is there. I don't do well without my cuppa tea in the mornings.

Chocolate is, for me as for so many others, a 'comfort food.' You actually do get a good feeling from it. Maybe because it is made from the cocoa plant? It's mild, but it's there.

Of course, I'm the one who considers banana squash with butter and salt a comfort food, too....:smilewinkgrin:

Here is the main question. Is it wrong to ingest substances which are legal and which alter your mind in one way or another -- soothing it, helping you sleep, waking you up, keeping you going...whatever? Where is the line drawn by those who are so upset about a glass of wine, for instance? Is wine wrong while caffeine, sleeping pills, sedatives, muscle relaxers, etc., are fine? I'm seriously curious about where the line is drawn here.

 

Thank you, whatever.

Bob, it is a serious question. Where do you draw the line, and why? I am not mocking anything. I don't drink coffee, by the way. Others are treating the thread humorously and I did find myself smiling, but the lead post is serious. There was my situation --- no, there IS my situation -- and there is what I did about it this afternoon.

By the way, when I went out to feed the beasties, Chris got into the snacks I had ready for tomorrow night's Bible study here as well as the watermelon pieces I had out on the counter because they were too old and needed to be tossed (we grew some watermelons this summer). If I was ever going to use wine to get drunk, that would have been a good time, given the rest of my schedule! But I didn't. I have absolutely no interest in numbing myself that way. I just took a deep breath and cleaned up and told myself that was a lesson about making sure the pantry was locked and that I didn't leave anything on the counter for even a moment if I wasn't in the kitchen. He doesn't seem to be getting sick off the watermelon, for which I thank God. We had him in the hospital a year ago because we forgot to lock the fridge and he got into the cheese and was constipated so badly (a pound of cheese will do that...) that he needed to be hospitalized.

No wine. No drugs at all for that mess. But I sure was glad I was awake enough to handle it.

So you see, my question is a very serious one for those of you who have been, to my mind, so legalistic about certain things (and there are those here who are legalistic about things other than wine, too, by the way, so this is not being asked of simply that group).

WHERE do you draw the line, and WHY?

Thank you.

 

David, I understand your point, and it is a good one. What about Rx sedatives, muscle relaxers, and the like? Even pain killers can make you 'loopy.' I know. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt! I hate the feeling. I sure know I couldn't drive like that!

But there are those who do. And they can be arrested for DUI (driving under the influence) in the same way a drunk can.

In the Bible, the term often translated as 'sorcery' definitely includes the use of mind-altering drugs. Sedatives are exactly that.

So help me out here. I do see a strict prohibition implied, at least, regarding that kind of thing, whereas I don't see it for wine -- only strong warnings about over-use. So what's going on? Why can a Christian take a sedative and not a glass of wine?

I accept your point about caffeine, although I do know that truck drivers who depend on it to stay awake are a total danger on the roads -- just as much as any old drunk behind the wheel. But would that be use vs. over-use?

Please understand that I am not trying to bait anyone. I really and honestly do not understand the idea of prohibition where alcohol is concerned but not so many other things which I personally think are far more dangerous or at least AS dangerous in over-use, just as alcohol is in over-use.

I hope my place on this issue is clear. I am trying to understand yours (plural). Thank you again.

 

I'm not the least bit worried about tea. I was wondering if anyone else was. Remember, I am not worried about wine, either.

What I, personally, AM worried about, and what I think is wrong about 99% of the time, are mind-altering drugs used by so much of the populace, including little kids (think ritalin, etc.). I am seriously concerned, as a Christian, that by dulling the senses so one does not feel depressed or hyper or guilty, or whatever, our medical establishment is contributing to the degradation of an entire culture.

Now that is my personal opinion. I associate that with pharmaceuticals, and I am of the personal opinion that the Bible is warning about that at least as strongly as it does about alcohol.

So if you folks who honestly believe -- and we differ, but that is not the point here -- that all wine and any kind of alcohol is of Satan, what about the pharmaceuticals? What about sleep aids, truckers on tons of caffeine, anti-depressants, etc? What is your stand on these?

By the way, Eli accused Hannah of being drunk, not of simply having a glass of wine. Her response was that she had had nothing at all and the implication was that therefore she could not possibly be drunk.