Dripping Springs Weekly Bulletins

Why is it so hard for us to count our blessings? Very capable people are constantly busy surveying the thinking of Americans. They do so with formulas intended to be accurate to a marked degree so that we can see how our people think and feel about various subjects. From politics to religion to divorce and food, they know how to assess our thinking. If they are correct on this subject, we Americans – who are the most prosperous of all nations — have a lot of trouble recognizing and counting our blessings. Oh, we know we are blessed in many ways, but pain or disappointment have a way of clogging our memory to the extent that our blessings are easily overlooked. This was true of Israel while being led by Moses. They were no longer slaves. God fed them miraculously. Their clothes and shoes did not wear out in their forty years wilderness journey. Starvation did not overtake them – but they still found a “reason” to complain, even to the extent that some wanted to go back to Egypt and serve again as slaves. This amazes me, but if those who study such things are right, we are no better. Always wanting more, we buy new clothes, new cars, build new houses and seek better jobs, often because we do not realize just how much we are blessed already. As a boy I saw many pictures of Asian refugees, forced out of their homes – even their own country. They were hungry, cold, and had no place to go. It was easy for me to sympathize with them. It was also easy for me to forget them in a moment when I thought of something I wanted. If you think us preachers are immune to this malady, just talk to those who helped me move to Dripping Springs a few years ago. Boxes – and more boxes. I was embarrassed.  It may be that we all should make a count of the “things” we have, what we call the “necessities” of our modern way of living. “Things” are not necessarily evil, nor is the possessing of them evil. But surely we should be able to take note of what we have and give thanks to God for providing such an abundant life. If you have Internet access, you probably saw more than once a series of comments housed in beautiful music and scenery that were intended to remind us that we as a nation and a people are greatly blessed. If you saw it you may recognize the following:  • If you have food in the refrigerator…   clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep…you are richer than 70% of this world. • If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace…you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy. • If you woke up this morning with more health than illness…you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week. • If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation…you are ahead of 500 million people in the world. • If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death…you are more blessed than billions of people in this world. • If your parents are still alive and still married…you are very rare, even in these United States. • If you can hold someone’s hand, hug him or her or even touch them on the shoulder…you are greatly blessed because you can offer healing touch. • If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all. • If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful…you are blessed because, although the majority can, most do not. I have not verified all these numbers/percentages, but the point is well taken regardless. It is not a disgrace to be lacking in education if it is not available or within your grasp. But the word “disgrace” is not strong enough to describe one who has access to learning but is too lazy to take full advantage of that education. Jesus once healed ten men who were burdened with the dread disease of leprosy, Luke 17:11-19. Of the ten who were healed, only one returned to give thanks for being healed. Jesus asked, “...where are the nine?” Is that number not indicative of man’s lack of gratitude even today? Similarly, it is the depth of ingratitude for us to possess so much, yet not to think twice of God to Whom we are indebted for all of our blessings. Shakespeare’s words from King Lear are fitting: “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child.” Would God not say, Amen? Carl Garner

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly,” John 10:10

LIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF A BOTTLE It is not a mystery to the honest minded person that we live in a world of great selfishness. Time and time again we hear of men and women who seek their own selfish desires, by no means taking into account that the results of their actions may indeed harm more than just themselves. The impact of a self-satisfying person can affect spouses, children, parents, friends, co-workers, and the list could go on. I believe that such selfishness manifests itself in the humanistic behavior that some do during or following a time of heartbreak. Many are the occasions we might think of that a man or woman has attempted to drown their sorrows in a bottle of alcohol. On one hand, the world would approve of this, but on the other, God does not. However, there seems to be some confusion among people today concerning God’s thoughts on this matter. Consider a passage that is easily misunderstood by many: “Give strong drink to him who is perishing, and wine to those in bitter distress; let them drink and forget their poverty, and remember their misery no more,” Pro. 31:6-7. Now, to one looking to justify trying to find light at the bottom of an empty bottle, this passage may just be his favorite. But does this passage really permit the consumption of alcohol as a remedy for sorrow? Does God really approve of it? Let us consider the following thoughts. First of all, if it is the case that this passage permits drinking while in sorrow, then the Bible is contradictory. There are many passages that speak of the sinfulness of alcohol. Paul admonished the church at Ephesus not to be drunk with wine (Eph. 5:18). He also condemned drunkenness in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and Galatians 5:19-21. In fact, Proverbs 23:29-35 is a direct contradiction to the idea of drinking to soothe sorrow because there the Bible says that the one who drinks brings about sorrow! Second, if indeed this passage allows the consumption of alcohol in times of sorrow, God is commanding us to sin. God commands us to be sober, clear thinking (1 Peter 1:13). We are also told that our body is the temple of God (1 Cor. 6:19), and we are to possess our bodies with honor. If God were to allow us to drink alcohol to soothe our sorrow, we would be directly violating these and many other precepts. Finally, we must note that every time the Bible speaks of wine it does not mean intoxicating wine. A study of fermentation and of Bible wines will show that the word “wine” in the Bible has a variety of meanings. Sometimes it means the juice still in the fruit (Isa. 27:2), or in the vat— which had not had time to ferment (Isa. 10:10); also juice still in the winepress (Pro. 3:10). Just because the word “wine” is used in a certain passage of scripture does not necessarily mean that it is referring to alcoholic wine as we use the term today. What then does the passage mean? In the ancient times, inebriating drinks were given as an act of mercy to criminals, to render them less sensible during the time of their punishment. You might recall this being offered to Jesus while on the cross, though He refused it (Matt. 27:34). However, we must note that the wine was not given in excess, and may in fact have not been intoxicating. The proper use of it was to return tone to frail bodies and disheartened minds (Psalm 104:15). I believe this passage is referring to this very thing. Drinking alcohol is not a remedy for sorrow today. It never has been, and it never will be. Instead we should seek God, the Source of all comfort and lean upon His mighty arm. Cody Westbrook, 2nd year student SWSBS