Nine years of sobriety
Yes, this blog is mostly dormant now. I wrote a lot here over the course of more than five years. (Nearly 600 posts!) But, I can't miss this opportunity to thank and praise God for the freedom from alcoholism, which is something that plagued my family line and snared me for the better part of 16 years. I know the reasons I started drinking and how my mental, physical, and spiritual health suffered as a result of using alcohol to deal with situations. It's amazing the toll it took on me, though. Alcohol clearly made my life worse. It numbed me for a short time, but it made my life worse.
Do I still get cravings? Honestly, I don't, and that's a miracle. God set me free. I don't even like the taste of non-alcoholic beer and such. I tried to like it, but it tastes vaguely of vomit. (I may try to like it again over what I hope is a very long, hot summer ahead.) Might be a slight exaggeration. I have no desire to go back to drinking. And that's good for my testosterone levels because sugar (found in alcoholic drinks) depresses testosterone levels (actually, so does aspartame). Testosterone is an antidepressant. If we wanted the whole world to feel better, we would just give them testosterone pills, but we won't because the powers that be want us weak and controllable and depressed. Also, it's a lie that testosterone makes one cruel, overbearing, and without feeling. Testosterone just makes a man more of what he already is. Okay, getting off track.
Do I judge those who drink? Absolutely not. I was snared in it worse than they. Most folks drink pretty moderately, and there were evenings when I would drink more than a six-pack. I never was much for spirits. Beer was my thing. I made my own, starting with a brown ale, I think, when I was 20 years old. I progressed to making Belgian and wild-fermented ales (pretty much the same thing), sours, and lagers (which take a bit of care in fermentation and in aging, storage, etc). The thing that kept me interested was the fact that it was a melding of science and art. I was creating something every time I brewed. We had so many people over I had to brew nearly every week to keep up. It was exhausting, but I felt everyone enjoyed the beer. But, they came for the free beer, most likely.
No, I don't miss drinking and everything that came with it. It severely warped me in many ways. Instead of dealing with my grief and pain through godly means, I chose to destroy myself, seeing me as the problem instead of the devil, situations, unmet needs, and festering wounds.
There isn't a whole lot to add to what I said before about my sobriety. I'm still very grateful and amazed by what God did. It makes me want to continue this path with Him and focus on being faithful. I believe some of my best years lay ahead. Sometimes I don't know how to deal with challenges and difficulties that arise, but I know everything will be okay because He is leading me. Amen.
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My father is in the hospital as I write this. He is set to have heart surgery at about the time this is published. Please pray for a safe surgery, no complications, and a quick recovery. I would greatly like to see him enjoy all the fruits of his labor in retirement for many more years. Thank you.
Thank you for reading. And God bless.
Christian blog: a-better-hope.blogspot.com
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