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Tuesday, June 16, 2009

#561. Wishing there was a socially acceptable way to buy rum for cakes.

There’s not. It’s not like you can go to the back of Wal-mart and find it amongst the boxes of wine or domestic beer. It’s a hard liquor. And although Jesus might have turned water into wine, he certainly didn’t perform any miracles in the Bible that involved rum shots.

So what do you do if you want to make an honest to goodness, real deal rum cake as a Christian? Do you slink into a local liquor store with a fake mustache? Maybe try to be the first one when they open up so no one else is there? Drive 50 miles until you’re out of the radius of your church and can’t be judged?

Go ahead and try, but until there’s some sort of specialty Christian liquor store that specializes in rum and requires you to show them a cake pan instead of a license when you want to buy it, you’re stuck. The same thing that happened when my wife tried to buy those Playboy bunny sheets is going to happen to you.

She was buying them because one of her girlfriends couldn’t find them at her local TJ Maxx. They had Hugh Hefner’s little logo splattered across them and were red satin. At the register, my wife ran into someone from the Community Bible Study she leads. She turned the color of the sheets and blurted out, “We support porn through the purchase of home goods.” Then she hit the girl over the head with a bottle of rum and drowned her sorrows in cake that night.

That’s a slight exaggeration, but she did run into a small group member and rattle off the story that brought her to that exact moment. And you better be ready with your own if you try to make some rum cake. At the bare minimum, carry the stand mixer with you.

134 comments:

  1. Yeah, I ran into a similar situation when I was buying wine for some spaghetti sauce. The recipe called for red wine, and specifically said "NO COOKING WINE". Real deal ONLY. Of course, one of the women from my son's (Christian) school happened to walk by the aisle when I was looking for that particular ingredient, and, oh yes, she DID point out that "COOKING wine" was available. *sigh* I think I was branded as a heathen forever.. and I wouldn't have cared except that my boy had a crush on her daughter. Hmmm... strange. She no longer gives any reciprocal feelings.... wonder why?

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  2. I know we Christians differ a lot on the subject of alcohol - but I seriously would have NO problem with buying a bottle of rum - or whisky, gin, vodka, brandy etc. I think Christians are a bit more liberal about this sort of thing in the UK. Having said that, if I mention having a glass of wine on my Facebook status, it crosses my mind that my American Facebook friends might disapprove. But not so much that I delete it and put something less controversial.

    The Playboy sheets though - not sure I could do that - even for a friend!!

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  3. I always have to covertly scout Chili's before I order a Margarita,just *in case* no one from our church is there...

    wv : "chider" someone who runs into you at dinner and gently reminds you of the consequences of you beverage choice and recommends the iced tea.

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  4. I've been wanting to make some awesome bread pudding that calls for alcohol available only at a liquor store in our town that is next to a 'nik nacks and nonsense' store at which I don't want be caught at either. What a dilemma! The sheet story cracked me up!

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  5. lol. you have such a way with words...
    just take a cruise to south america or mexico. it gives you days to scour the ship for other christian passengers before buying the rum and/or rum cake. smuggle it home and sell it out of the basement to your other church members...

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  6. Yeah, I'm pretty safe now that I'm in a big, non Bible belt city. Maybe all places should be like where I went to college. The town was dry but as soon as you crossed the city limits there was The Strip, which was devoted to nothing but alcohol sales. Nobody could judge you because there was only one reason they could be there.

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  7. I believe the socially acceptable way is to pay a homeless man to buy it for you.

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  8. Easy - bring your Bible with you and have it bookmarked in Deuteronomy 14:26: and spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.

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  9. I'm confident this must be a denominational issue. Presbyterians would (more than likely) have no problem running into you at the liquor store and discussing last week's sermon while Baptists and many "non-denom's" might need to hide by the daiquiri mixers pretending to pick up some virgin drink necessities.

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  10. Just do a temporary conversion to Episcopalian (the conservative wing will do). Your only problem with the Anglicans might be buying something as plebian as rum.

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  11. I had this problem when my wife sent me to the package store to get the Jack Daniels for the "hard sauce" for the apple dumplings.

    Maybe they who see you will pray for you. How could that be bad?

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  12. I borrowed some wine one time from my uncle to cook something for my husband (who at the time was my boy friend). I only needed a cup, so I only borrowed a cup - in a little juice cup. He thought I was going to cook at my mother-in-law's house, which is on the same property. I didn't even think about it until I was almost home - on the other side of town. I'm really glad I didn't get pulled over. A 17 year old driving around with a glass of wine in the cup holder probably wouldn't have gone over well. "Yeah officer, I only needed one cup to make dinner, so I got some from my boyfriend's uncle."

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  13. katdish......that is my all time favorite......

    my FIL used to buy my beer for my beer bread for me........



    wv: slyto

    Now, I have to buy my own beer for bread on the slyto....

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  14. My daughter was about 3 when I got a kidney stone. The specialist recommended drinking beer-LOTS of it to pass the stone (didnt work). I HATE beer-took me forever to finish even one. My daughter was in a Christmas program at church and we arrived late for the program.The room was packed. The CE director scoops up my daughter and say "you are late" and my daughter of course replied quite distinctly in the quiet lull, "Because we had to wait for mommy to finish her beer". True story....

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  15. clifgriffin said...
    I believe the socially acceptable way is to pay a homeless man to buy it for you.

    LOL!! Hey it worked when we were 16, right?

    peace|dewde

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  16. I’ve never understood the ambivalent attitude many Christians have towards alcohol. The Bible warns us against drunkenness, not drinking. For many, many years medical studies have consistently shown that responsible, moderate drinkers are actually healthier than those who abstain. At my church, deacons, elders and staff members are allowed to drink in the privacy of their own homes but not in public. If I can be trusted to make responsible decisions at home then why not in public? Alcohol is no more evil than money. In moderation, it's good for us. The love of alcohol, like the love of money, is the actual problem.

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  17. I have no problem just going in and buying liqueur. Though I was seen once and then told on Wednesday night I was going to hell. They weren't joking.

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  18. I have never attempted this, but years ago, after I was married and legally old enough and not even enrolled in classes I had a dream that I needed to buy some kind of alcohol for a recipe and while I was waiting in line to check out one of my teachers walked in and saw me. He didn't believe me when I tried to explain what I was buying ...

    Now I'm a pastor so I can't bring myself to buy any kind of alcohol for cooking purposes for fear of judgment, which is just plain silly and highly unChristian of people but whatever.

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  19. A church member was in front of me in a check-out at the grocery store, and he had a 12 pack of beer. After a few awkward moments, he finally said, "You ever wash your hair in beer?"

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  20. That's kind of ridiculous. I'm a Christian and have no problem going to liquor stores or buying drinks in restaurants. If anyone from my church had a problem with it, I wouldn't care. I'm an adult and always drink responsibly.

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  21. For Valentine's Day I bought beer for my husband. It was like the ultimate expression of love from me. He knows I hate buying alcohol. We liken it to my asking him to buy feminine products...

    Oh, the sacrifices of true love.

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  22. Just for the record, I love rum cake. :)
    My school has a lifestyle covenant you have to sign; it doesn't directly say you can't drink alcohol, but I know drinking alcohol is looked down upon in my denomination (the school I go to is endorsed by my denomination).
    I personally have no problems with a Christian enjoying an "adult beverage" once in a while as long as it's not a stumbling block for them or other people. On a few rare occasions, I've had a couple alcoholic drinks (mainly margaritas). I know I'll have to give that little habit up once I become a licensed pastor, so I'll enjoy it while I can. :)

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  23. I can remember removing the cross lapel pin from my jacket before going into a store to purchase certain 'items' in my youth BLUSH

    Somehow I convinced myself that purchasing the item was ok so long as nobody knew I was a christian, I couldn't 'dissapoint Jesus' if I took my cross off first!

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  24. So our evangelism professor in college shared his witnessing at a bar strategy...he always ordered a glass of milk, since it could not be confused for any form of alcohol...to which I raised my hand and gently said, "Uhh sir, it might look like a White Russian." Ahh snap, I just got busted as the Bible college drunkard.

    Sometimes the Bible Belt feels like it's notched about three sizes too small.

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  25. Psa 104:14-15 NIV - He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate-- bringing forth food from the earth:
    wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.

    Unless the psalmist here knows of the antioxidant qualities of grape juice, it seems pretty clear that, not only is God being thanked for wine, He's being thanked for wine, not despite the effect it has on people, but because of it. Certainly this is not a call for drunkenness, but it is a clear example of God's creation of alcohol for the purpose of making men's hearts glad.

    This may seem rant-ish, but, as someone who used to work in a brewery and is now a Christian school principal, I get a little annoyed when Christians attempt to add restrictions to the Gospel. I'm not alone in this either. In Galatians, when Paul wrote to the Judaizers who were trying to make the gentile Christians be circumcised in order to be saved, he told them that he wished they would castrate themselves (Gal 5:12). I certainly don't wish this on anyone, but I do wish people would stop making matters of their own consciences into laws.

    I'll end this with one last thought: is seems clear that Old and New Testament believers drank alcohol because they are told over and over not to get drunk. Certainly, it is a sin to get drunk. But I would argue that getting drunk is no more a sin than over-eating or gossiping. Does that mean that we should not eat or talk because those two practices, when done in excess become sinful? I don't think so.

    Oh, one more thing. Believe it or not, I can take a joke. So, if that's all that this was, I apologize once again for ranting. I love this blog and read it regularly.

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  26. Great post! Love the other comments. :) I used to be very legalistic a long time ago, but that was a LONG time ago. LOL Maybe I'm a bit TOO free now, or maybe I finally became frustrated with that "tip-toe" feeling all the time. Whatever the case, I freely purchase & yet use wisdom. I'm the wife of an exec. pastor--one who's on staff at a very large church here in town. I see people all the time when I'm out at the store, and some of them, I have no clue who they are. For the most part, I've learned which stores to frequent & when. But our major alcoholic purchases occur whenever we travel out of town to visit relatives...that's when I usually stock up on all sorts of items. I rarely cook an Italian dish without dry white wine, I deglaze w/wine, & I never cook a pot roast without adding a cup+ of Cabernet Sauvignon, never. Rum cake needs real rum. Beer bread needs real beer (LOVE beer bread!). My love of cooking (and the taste of great wine) probably makes me more of the risk-taker in this area. At the end of the day, I know who I am in Christ...and it's all good. :)

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  27. You are so funny. I love your blog. :o)

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  28. I buy rum occasionally, and it ain't for cakes, believe you me.

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  29. Personally, I prefer not to stray this way. I reasonably determine that rum cake is not worth it for me given the possibility that I might turn someone from Jesus Christ.

    It is a personal decision I have made. I must admit, at times, it is difficult to see my church friends on Facebook post stuff about alcohol, margaritas, and hangovers. However, that is their choice.

    I can do without the rum cake, the jack dumplings, the beer-battered onion rings, if for no other reason than I have seen first hand what alcohol addiction has done to people.

    I go with I Corinthians 10:23 Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive.

    It may be permissible to but what about those middle school kids I am leading? It may be permissible but what about the struggling alcoholic in my church?

    Social acceptance always boils down to a matter of choice. For me, the choice is not to go there.

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  30. Katdish: I love that video!!

    I felt bad once running into a fellow church member while he was coming out of the liquor store and i was going into a pizza place because I didn't want him to think I was judging him! (because I've been in that particular store a few times myself!)

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  31. One time I went to Specs and I was buying a bottle of champagne for a romantic evening with my husband. I ran into a very sweet old lady from church who is one of the founding members. She's a loud type too, the kind you'd think would spread all over church that she saw you there. Of course Specs is a huge liquor store so one would have to wonder why she was there, hehe. But anyway, so she asked what I was getting (I was holding a pack of Oranginas at the time, a great orange juice/soda drink) and I told her I was getting champagne also. She asked if it was for a special occasion and I said no, just for fun. She said sometimes that's the best time. She's now one of my favorite old ladies at church :-)

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  32. @PrincipalWarren,

    First, yes it is a joke, as this site is pure satire on any day other than Wednesday.

    Second, and by far more important, please explain your transition from working at a brewery to becoming a Christian school principal. I was shocked at how nonchalant that sentence was as if that is a typical career path.

    Please explain. Also, I do appreciate your indignation. Christians get ruffled about a LOT. But being indignant about attacks on alcohol is something I can stand behind.

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  33. I would have no problem if I ran into someone from my church while purchasing the ingredients for a martini (uhmmm, I mean a martini cake)

    Having moved away from the bible belt, I've learned that the bible belt is unique in believing that drinking is completely taboo for Christians. but, I must say it was a little more fun when it was taboo.

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  34. I live in PA where you cannot casually walk down the isles of WalMart and put a six pack in under the diapers and toilet paper. If you want wine or hard liquor you have to go to a "Wine and Spirits" (run by the state of PA) and if you want beer or wine coolers, you have to go to a beer distributor...or if you're lucky some pizza places will have six packs to go. Anyway, we were raised Baptist, but my husband and I still like a glass of wine now and then. And I still can't walk into a liquor store without my cheeks burning and praying that I don't run into someone I know. Its usually a very quick, covert operation.

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  35. I serve on a staff where we have been "asked" by the senior pastor to refrain from having even a drop. So, when I had my kidneystone episode, I too sent my wife to the local liquor store to get the beer prescribed by the e.r. doctor...sipping beer with the shades drawn was just like being 16 again :)

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  36. California Pizza Kitchen has a meal called Chicken Tequilla Fetuccine. It's amazing! I love it so much my hubby bought me their cookbook so I can make it at home. It takes about 1 TBSP of tequilla to make it. Thankfully I didn't run into anyone when I went into a liquor store to buy it.

    Here's the funny part. At the end of "Once Upon A Time In Mexico" there is a recipe that calls for the use of tequilla. Whenever my friend and her Pastor husband want to make this meal, they call me and I fill a small container with tequilla and send it over to them. Heaven forbid someone see them buying and using tequilla themselves. We think it is really funny that I'm their alcohol supply!

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  37. Although I have no issues with alcohol, this post is still amusing. I have friends who refuse to drink and it makes it awkward at times to invite people over to our well stocked bar-er, apartment.

    My hubby and I actually ended up going to two liquor stores yesterday. True heathens we are...but we embrace it.

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  38. Wow, I guess there are benefits to living on the heathen East Coast after all! Soooo not an issue for me.

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  39. I'm not sure there is any justification for buying any product made by or associated with Playboy...even if it is sheets...they receive monetary benefit from it. It is sowing money into an evil industry.

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  40. Principal Warren -
    I am with you and loved your comment. And more than that, I love rants where people are honest and express what they feel about something with both passion and insight.

    But I have to second Bennett when he says you've got to share more of your story. The sentence you wrote "This may seem rant-ish, but, as someone who used to work in a brewery and is now a Christian school principal," might be my new favorite sentence ever. I used to think it was cool when I would say "When I used to be a mailman," but you share have trumped that. In all honesty, I have to imagine you have a really interesting story and I for one am really glad you jumped in on the comments today.
    Jon

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  41. And I meant "You sir have trumped it" not "You share have trumped it." Awesome typo.

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  42. Hilarious! I have a store of wine and spirits for baking at my house. When I moved, I put all of our stash in a box and took it over to the new home before move day. Our movers were all friends from church and I didn't think it would be the best idea to have it out for them to see and move. Well, moving day came and one of my friends spotted the alcohol in the closet of my new home and exclaimed, "the last owners left some alcohol behind!" I had to own up that it was mine and we had a good laugh about it.

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  43. Oh for Pete's sake. What do I care if a fellow church member sees me buy alcohol? Actually, at the last women's get together, wine was one of the beverages offered. Sheesh. I grew up Southern Baptist, and that sort of simpering about people daring to frequent places with alcohol drove me nuts. Left that behind long ago.

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  44. It is kind of disturbing how many of these comments are about Christians sneaking into liquor stores and feeling guilty about it.

    First, there is no need to feel guilty of doing something that is not a sin. The Bible condemns drunkenness, not drinking. While we need to be responsible for our actions, adopting a prohibitionist policy toward alcohol out of fear of other church members isn't what Jesus had in mind.

    Second, if you have a personal conviction to not drink alcohol, then don't drink alcohol. If you go against your conscience and do something not of faith, then I believe that is indeed a sin.

    Third, I highly recommend this sermon from Mark Driscoll. He really changed my view toward alcohol in general.
    http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/proverbs/good-wine-glad-hearts

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  45. I'd get my mom to buy it. She's a Catholic.

    Never underestimate the important of having a non Christian family member or friend.

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  46. I could only imagination myself w/ the recipe card walking around asking for 'is it called r-ooo-m?'. And saying 'gee, aren't all these bottles so pretty, I've NEVER been here before'. Let's not forget 'have a blessed day!'

    :-D

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  47. Oh, Maynerd!

    This is going to be one of those posts!

    That was an awesome typo, btw.

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  48. paying a homeless man to buy your rum is wrong in soooo many ways.

    My answer is that you should move to Texas. I am from GA, no drinking allowed at any time if you are a Baptist. I still have a little culture shock to see that alcohol is always socially acceptable.

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  49. I'm in the Bible belt and have no issues going into the wine and liquor store every once and a while for a wine night with friends. However, I don't order alcoholic drinks while out in public. I know...sounds silly. But here's my thinking...when I'm with my friends, I know I'm not causing them to stumble by having a glass of wine. But when I'm out in public (since I work at a church) I don't order drinks because I don't want to cause someone to stumble. I know...I know...it sounds like I'm a closet drinker :) But in truth, it's the balance that I've found that works for me and relationship with Christ. With that being said, I don't really drink that often mainly because of the calories those things pack. Yikes!!!!

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  50. I just go buy it. I used to stress. I stopped doing that. It's like sex once your married--it's okay with God, so calm down and forget what anyone else thinks.

    I don't get drunk and nine times out of ten I buy it to cook with and it will last months and months before I need to buy more. But I do recall those days of feeling like such a louse when I'd go into the store to purchase my "sin juice". I let that junk go. But it took years to let the guilt go and get to that point...

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  51. Scared of the DarnellsJune 16, 2009 at 6:53 AM

    @Larry and Jennifer Darnell--

    Wow. You've either got an unbelievable influence on other people, or an incredible sense of self-importance to assume someone else's salvation hangs on your decision to have rum cake.

    And I really like the thinly-veiled judgment of "me personally" or "it's a personal choice" to describe something that another person might do, but you absolutely abstain from. Yikes. Is our goal to act as an agent in making more followers of Christ, or is it just personal piety?

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  52. My wife loves the Food Network, and she often wants to try something she sees on that network. Unfortunately, she really wanted to try chicken marsala while I was attending a Baptist college. It was almost her birthday, and I wanted to make it for her, but I knew I was risking being thrown out of school by going to buy the marsala and sherry wines. I boldly went into the grocery store nearest the campus, as it was also nearest our home, and handled business. By handled business, I mean that I literally walked through the whole store looking for students and staff, quickly bee-lined towards the wine, grabbed it, and did the same thing I do when I have to make the dreaded feminine products run: hid it under a big bag of doritos in the back of the cart.

    She got her chicken marsala, I got my doritos, and I didn't get kicked out. Now that I work at a "liberal" church, I can walk in and buy it without worry or bum anything I need off of church members and/or staff.

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  53. I really have to go with the "moderation" crowd on this one.

    There's nothing wrong with drinking; Jesus didn't turn water into Gatorade. It's clear he turned it into wine, as evidenced by the comments made to the host right afterwards.

    If you believe you shouldn't drink for whatever reason.. it's immortal, expensive, dangerous, you have an allergy, whatever, then don't. And if you think it will stumble people if they see you drinking, seriously consider that. I think we should be more concerned with that aspect than with being "caught" in a liquor store. If you get asked questions, be honest about why you're making that choice. Don't lie or disguise it; That only makes the whole situation worse.

    Back before I was baptized as a Jehovah's Witness (which was also before I left being a JW), two friends who were Witnesses would ask me to buy lottery tickets when the lottery got up in the hundreds of millions... THEY couldn't as it is considered gambling, but I could since I wasn't a Witness yet. That never sat well with me. Same with this issue.

    "It is well not to eat flesh or to drink wine or do anything over which your brother stumbles. The faith that you have, have it in accord with yourself in the sight of God. Happy is the man that does not put himself on judgement by what he approves. But if he has doubts, he is already condemned if he eats, because he does not eat out of faith. Indeed, everything that is not out of faith is sin." Romans 14:21-23 (NWT)

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  54. Here in the mid-west we like to call the liquor store drive through the "baptist window".

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  55. The comments (and how serious some of them are) are almost funnier than the post itself. My personal faves are the ones about how you can never justify buying Playboy sheets as well as the one reminding us that it is never appropriate to have a bum buy your hooch for you.

    I found that last tidbit extremely helpful as general etiquette rules concerning how to behave with bums and winos has been forgotten by the younger generation

    Thank you for those great reminders, modern levite and anonymous.

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  56. Hilarious :) Loved the part about showing the cake pan instead of ID :)

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  57. This cracked me up -just the other night, I was at the store buying Kaluah for a dessert and ended up spending about 20 minutes looking for it (they were out), the whole time, nervously looking over my shoulder for people I knew, or even people I didn't know since I'm 9 months pregnant and don't look like I should be out stocking up on booze.
    I've been enjoying the blog - can't wait for the book!

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  58. Hi-lar-i-ous!!! I remember running into a respected (deservedly so) senior member of my church coming out of a liquor store (as I was headed in), bottle of wine in hand. No excuses necessary. I was relieved and enlightened.

    This is a great post. I'd buy the rum (probably feeling awkward, of course ~ it IS the "demon rum") then bake the cake and bring it to the next potluck.

    God bless!

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  59. @scared of darnells

    I don't drink alcohol at all. I have no problem saying that to someone's face, from the pulpit, or from my own google account that leads you directly back to who I really am. Do you know why I don't drink? It's a personal choice. I don't care if you drink, and I'll defend one's right to drink within Biblical guidelines, but I won't attack someone who's so burdened for the lost and those that they have direct influence over for having a different conviction.

    I really doubt being an anonymous clown qualifies as being an agent for making more followers of Christ, and taking a different position than tradition does not get you off the hook for your piety. Your comment oozes modern piety.

    Sorry, I wouldn't typically rant here, but seriously? Attacking someone anonymously is like selling a dead bird to Petey the blind kid. I don't know either of the Darnells, but someone needed to defend them. And I'm just tired and cranky enough to be the one to do it.

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  60. I'm a deacon at a Southern Baptist church. Personally, I don't have a problem with "social drinking," but my church does. However, the charter specifically says to refrain from alcohol as a beverage. Since taking my vow as a deacon, I haven't had a drink (I didn't often before - because I'm cheap). But, my special pork ribs require beer, and I'm not afraid to server them to my Sunday School class, either. That beer has to come from somewhere. The Jack Daniels BBQ sauce is good, too.

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  61. Principal Warren.....


    where were you when I was in high school?

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  62. I was 21 years old. My wife and I were hosted by some friends of ours, and we wanted to get them something nice. We decided a nice bottle of wine. Our first trip to a liquor store.

    We got a nice bottle, walked to the counter, and the clerk rang us up and handed me the receipt. "Don't you want to see my license?" I replied, thinking "It's the law!!"

    "Underage people don't buy nice bottles of wine. They buy cases of Keystone Light and bottles of Wild Turkey."

    "Ah," I said, and left the store a wiser man.

    wv: incirel - Do you have anxiety related to doing something that is not against the law, or even God's law, but still. Try Incirel. Side effects include listening to secular music and watching 'R' rated movies without guilt.

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  63. Pat C,

    "I found that last tidbit extremely helpful as general etiquette rules concerning how to behave with bums and winos has been forgotten by the younger generation." [SNORT]

    Let's see... So much of this is cultural. The stumbling issue is only an issue in a culture where it WOULD make someone else stumble.

    Bible Belt? Check.

    But you take the stumbling issue away, and the decision becomes so much more simple.

    Our English friends thought it was hilarious when my husband debated the ethics of ordering a pint while there. (He's a church board member and thus chooses not to drink. We decided that crossing the pond offers special dispensation.)

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  64. @ Crystal G

    This is a benefit to being Catholic, but some of us are also Christians. And not just Christian in the "I'm not Jewish so I must be Christian" sense.

    In any case, I get to drink, but we don't get drunk. I once was working in SC for an extended time and could only find beer and wine in the grocery store, but really needed to get rum. My coworkers were absolutely shocked when I had to ask where to find a liquor store. In SC they just have red dots on the building and I had no idea that the red dot stores were for the hard core drinkers.
    oh well...

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  65. We celebrated my daughters 4th Birthday this weekend and I had several sodas and juices on the counter. Needless to say the basement refrigerator was wiped out of beer and Mike's Hard Lemonade when all was said and done. 100 percent of our guests attend church, 4 different ones to be exact.

    I don't know if it is regional or denomination driven, but it just is a non issue for us. So let me know how much rum you need and I will hook you up.

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  66. yet another awkward alcohol story...

    now, i'm not against enjoying a stiff drink here or there with family or friends...in moderation of course.

    But this story takes place all of two months after i was hired as the youth pastor to my current church. my family was visiting for the new year's celebration and as such we needed some champagne. so we went to the liquor store to buy some...my dad and brother were getting other beverages also, so i was stuck looking like i was double fisting champagne. AND, just when i was getting in line (it was a long long line...it WAS new year's eve) no other than the head of the Deacons gets in line right behind me. i think we both had the same reaction to each other, "HOLY CRAP!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE HE'S HERE!!! NOW I LOOK LIKE AND ALCOHOLIC!!!" But then we both had the same response to that initial shock, "but HE's here too..." it DID help that he had two and a half handles of Bacardi 151, and i only had two bottles of champagne. And God Bless him he led with this in the conversation, "Have you ever thought about collecting pop tabs for the Ronald McDonald house? I think it'd be a good opportunity for the youth to go and volunteer at one of those sometime..." Tension...erased!

    WV: oksen - A scandinavian breed of oxen used primarily to pull the Glogg Barrel Sleigh to the nearest fjord to warm the fisherman.

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  67. Honestly? This post rubs me the wrong way. What you're talking about here has nothing to do with Jesus or living for Him and through Him. This has to do with making sure that you APPEAR a certain way in front of others to impress them with your 'religiousness'. Wow, how wonderful. Fact is, if you want to drink, drink. If you don't, don't. And if you're at someone else's house that you know would be offended, don't drink. Same goes if you're in a restaurant with someone that would be offended: don't do it. But quite frankly, within your own home, or with your own family and friends out together, who cares? If someone gets bent out of shape over that, THEY are bent. There is nowhere in the Bible that says drinking hard liquor is wrong. There is no 'scale' measuring coolers, beer, wine, spirits, etc as being more or less bad than any others. They just need to be treated with respect and consumed in moderation.
    That's that.

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  68. Yes, I am Catholic. I was taught getting drunk is bad, but having a glass of (wine, beer, whiskey, brandy, etc) is not.

    One of my favorite nun jokes. (I consider myself a conservative Catholic, but c'mon, this nun joke IS funny...and it was told to me by a nun. Mother Superior no less....)

    Two nuns were shopping and happened to be passing the liquor store.
    One asks the other if she would like a beer.
    The other nun answered that would be good, but that she would be queasy about purchasing it.
    The first nun said that she would handle it and picked up a six pack and took it to the cashier.
    The cashier had a surprised look and the first nun said, "The beer is used for washing our hair."
    The cashier, without blinking an eye, reached under the counter and put a package of pretzels in the bag with the beer, saying. . ."Here, don't forget the curlers."

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  69. @Jewda, thanks for the impassioned defense of my position. I appreciate it. By the way, this is Larry Darnell...my wife seldom posts to these types of things.

    Not drinking alcohol is a personal choice for me. Always felt that if I started I could not stop. As a parent, I want to model the best behavior I can for my kids. Am I perfect...no way. Do I claim to be holier-than-thou...no. Your choice is your choice.

    I was simply stating my reason for my personal choice. Mine is not based in fear of what other people may think. I am seriously not out to please those other people.

    I am concerned about what effect my calling myself a Christian and then acting what is perceived to be unchristian-like may have on others who need Jesus. This is but one area. I have a long way to go but I teach youth every week and you better believe they pay attention to what you do and how you do it.

    My comments were focused on how I try and deal with this subject.

    Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

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  70. UH OH...someone pushed the hot-button!

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  71. Is this serious? You're serious? I think maybe this is a joke. Why can I not buy the rum? I mean, why is it a problem if I want to DRINK the rum? I just wonder. Because it's just as possible to get looped from wine as it is rum. I just think it's incredibly silly that I would feel the need to justify any purchase to some random person from church. If you don't know that I enjoy a drink on occasion, you're not close enough to me to call me out on anything.

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  72. I agree with the "become Episcopalian."

    I work in an Episcopal church, and on the last ladies' group trip I went on, we stopped in Lynchburg to pose with the Jack Daniel's sign.

    Also, I'm pretty sure there's a sixer or so in the church kitchen AS I TYPE.

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  73. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  74. Not a church story per se, but we are known Christians in my children's public school. Earlier this year my six year old was helping me pack her lunch. Her lunchkit was dirty so I instructed her to get a plastic bag, put the lunch inside and put it in her backpack.

    Later that day I was unpacking her bag after school and pulled out a big white bag with LIQUOR DEPOT emblazoned accross the front. I groaned a little but then I just had to laugh.

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  75. Heck, maybe I'm just strange but I'll happily walk into a liquor store and buy alcohol.
    I love a good scotch, have a particular love of Balvenie 12 year old double wood in fact, and I buy a bottle of it probably once a quarter as a treat. Unless I let relatives at it, that bottle will last me the entire quarter too.

    As far as I've seen in the bible the only admonishment is to not get drunk, nothing about not drinking alcohol.

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  76. Wait, were you there watching as my wife and I bought rum for our cake? I've never been so nervous in my life. That's why we drove to a liquor store in the middle of no where. It's the kind of store where %80 of the customers are too drunk to remember they saw you.

    Glad that's behind us.

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  77. @Alex Green.

    Whoa there. I think Jon was just using sarcasm and humor to highlight the dilemma (whether real or imagined) some Christians have if they need to buy alcohol. If you want to drink in moderation, go with it. But people like me who drink occasionally BUT only around those I know I won't cause to stumble. I don't drink in public. Why? Cause I care so much what other people think? Um...no. But because (as Paul says) they may be weaker in the faith and may just not have reached that level of freedom yet. So, in order to not get in the way of where they are at, I abstain. Does this limit my freedom? A little. But I'll get over it because I know that my decision may have prevented someone from taking up an offense. I'll use something my pastor says and apply it. It's giving up something I love for something I love even more...people.

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  78. Reminds me of an old joke: Do you know the difference between a Presbyterian and a Baptist? The Presbyterian will say "Hi" when he sees you in the liquor store.

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  79. Having grown up in the South, this post was hilarious! My parents had the "secret fridge" in the garage where they kept their "adult beverages" out-of-sight of visiting elders.

    I am glad I now go to a church where we always run into a couple of members at the local Mexican food place that has the best margaritas ... and that's why we're all there!

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  80. pregame for church???

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  81. I run into my friends from my Christian group at bars and whatnot all the time. I don't think it's that big of a deal. Mixed drinks don't even have to necessarily be that strong.

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  82. Jon,
    This is a great post.
    I especially loved "She turned the color of the sheets and blurted out, 'We support porn through the purchase of home goods.' Then she hit the girl over the head with a bottle of rum and drowned her sorrows in cake that night."

    Classic!

    We use beer and wine and liquor to cook, and we also use them to gladden our hearts.

    wv: impar
    def: Southern for weakening the senses

    "Don't eat too much rum cake...it could impar your ability to drive to the Piggly Wiggly."

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  83. OK so what I have gathered from this discussion so far is: When the guys from church come over to play Dungeons and Dragons, I shouldn't serve alcohol unless it's in a cake, and served with Gatorade ... or should I serve the Kool Aide? Unless of course I'm Catholic and then I need to have my mom buy it? ... so many rules ...

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  84. Too funny! On our way to church they have built a new, and very big "beverage store" that would probably make a 14 yr. old boy say as we drive by "man I would like to go in that place"! My head about snapped off of my shoulders, I turned it so fast and said, "you should avoid all appearances of evil"! It's times like these I just have to hand it off to his dad. LOL Why? Because I find myself sometimes saying stuff like this or using the turn or burn thing just to make a point. HA! JK!

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  85. I live in the South and the Baptist church taboo of alcohol can cause some tense dividing lines. Think about this: Jesus himself could not have been a Southern Baptist deacon because he allowed alcohol to "touch his lips"!

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  86. My mother-in-law's Sunday school teacher at a small, rural Southern Baptist church, brought a homemade rum cake to her house after my brother-in-law was killed in a car accident. I was surprised on many levels, because not only was the cake baked and delivered by a man, bereavement food sure isn't what it used to be (lots of prepackaged stuff, thoughtful nonetheless)--so the homemade cake made quite an impression. I also wondered where and how he bought the rum, which gave me something else to think about other than grieving. Good call on his part.

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  87. We American Christians are so freakin' weird.

    Listen, if I need beer or wine or strong drink, I am going to go to a good liquor store because they will have the best selection.

    Most of the time I need liquor (baked ham, cake, ice cream), beer (chili, dinner rolls) and wine (dressing, sauce) for cooking. But I like beer. I don't drink it often but it is delicious.

    If I think wine, beer and liquor on earth where Creation is broken, just think how perfect it will taste in heaven. Yum!

    I don't think it was coincidence that when Martin Luther broke away from the Catholic Church and began the Protestant Reformation, he ran off and married an ex-nun who was a master brewer. That man clearly had his priorities in order: God, wife, family, job and beer.

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  88. @Prodigal Jon -

    Without going into too much detail, I will give you a bit more insight into the mosaic that is me.

    When I graduated from Boot Camp into the Marine Reserves and was starting college, I got my first great job: an employee at a tobacco store. After a few years there, I moved on to a job at a brewery. When I got this second job, my oldest sister (who, incidentally, would blush in a liquor store) said, "So, you worked at a cigar store and learned everything there is to know about cigars. Now, you're getting a job at a brewery and will learn all there is to know about beer. Maybe for your next job, you should work at a Christian bookstore."

    So I did.

    When I was being interviewed for the position at the Christian bookstore, one of the owners looked over my job history and asked why I would have any interest in working there. I told him what my sister had said and was hired on the spot. The owner liked my answer so much, in fact, that me made me tell it to all of the other employees and the co-owner of the store.

    That's not exactly how I got into the "Christian School Biz," but it is a good example of the juxtapositions I enjoy.

    Oh, and just so that no one concludes from my story that I think the brewery or tobacconist jobs were in any way sinful, after the Christian bookstore, I actually opened and managed a different cigar store. So there. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. As your conscience allows, of course.

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  89. one, I'm not entirely certian why you're embarassed. you should give them the judging look for thinking you a lush. As for baking essentials, most liqour stores carry the "in flight" bottles that are usually just the right amount for baking, I know as I needed one for my chocolate kentucky burbon pecan pie. (which is way yummy btw)

    social drinking is not a faux pax. EXCESSIVE social drinking can be, but pitys sake....like one drink with dinner is a bad thing. You think biblical people thought wine was heathenistic? NO, cuz it was safer than drinking water in some cities.

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  90. "Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards, there it enters the roots of the vines, to be changed into wine, a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy." - Benjamin Franklin

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  91. Wow. Timely post! I went to the liquor store last week to buy vodka for a lavender spray I'm making. As a lifelong Baptist, I felt dirty just walking in there! I didn't run into anyone I know, but I know if I had, there would have been the long ezplanation about buying the vodka for a project, NOT for drinking!

    Funny how ingrained those things become.

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  92. That reminds me of this tract that I'm working on. What do you think?

    Click here to view it

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  93. You know, I am at one of those churches where pretty much everyone drinks a bit, one that bible belt peeps would be afraid had fallen into apostasy. Still, I am hesitant when buying such liquors at a wal-mart or supermarket (there are aisles of hard liquor in AZ).

    Once I was headed to a party some friends were hosting, and I was either going to bring a 6-pack of Mike's or a soda and chips. I chose the soda and chips, and as I'm walking to the checkout, a mother and daughter say "hey, aren't you the guy that sang at church?" I quickly looked down to make sure the Mike's wasn't there, and then said "Yep!" and had a short conversation.

    That conversation would have been interesting with some SoCo in my hand.

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  94. Funny! I always purchase the airline size bottles for recipes. I may be losing money, but at least they think I only do a shot or two every month or so.

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  95. @ Hucklebuck

    I think you're onto something there! when're they going to print? also, if you could work in something about the alcohol that's a little more prominant...maybe a couple crossed out Captain Morgans that appear when you hold it up to the light? or maybe some powerful, unsubstantiated quote like, "76% of people that drink and drive die, 100% of them go to hell for drinking..." just a couple ideas.

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  96. @Crystal G.:

    I do believe that Catholics are actually the ORIGINAL Christians...

    I was born and reared a protestant, but we have brought up our children in a liturgical church. While visiting a protestant church in our new town, they were confused when served grape juice for communion. Their comments afterward were along the lines of, "What the heck was THAT??"

    Maybe this blog should be called Stuff Evangelicals Like.

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  97. "Then she hit the girl over the head with a bottle of rum and drowned her sorrows in cake that night." Haha. I almost fell out of my chair laughing! If only it were true...

    This reminds me of the lady at my church who always sends her husband to the liquor store when she's sick so that he can buy her some Jack Daniels. She says it's to clear her throat, but I have noticed her getting sick a lot more lately...

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  98. My solution is that I sent my husband to buy the vodka necessary for homemade vanilla extract and kaluha :-) He *was* an elder at the time.

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  99. haha!! SO true. I have no real issues with alcohol (used wisely) but I went to a Christian college where no one was allowed to drink. My family has this epic recipe for beer bread (trust me...it is amazing) but for 4 years there was no way to buy the beer without large doses of awkwardness/possible repercussions. It was sad.

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  100. Ha!

    Hucklebuck--I was just thinking that I'd like to see a tract shaped like a beer bottle. I couldn't figure out how to actually make it look like one and not just a picture of one. So I'll just use your tract instead. Genius!

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  101. Simple solution - become a Lutheran.

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  102. Well, Episcopalians drink. We have a saying, where three or four Episcopalians are gathered, there is a fifth. *grin*

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  103. Well, you can in Germany it's not a problem. But women, don't wear make-up in Germany because it's carnal! And there are scriptures to prove it!

    I had a similar discussion in New Zealand with a Pastor over a glass of wine. My makeup made me a heathen.

    It's amazing how our culture affects our revelation of the word of God.

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  104. Who cares? If the people you hang out with have a problem with you buying a bottle of rum, then they've got bigger issues. And if you feel like you've got to justify your purchase, then you've got bigger problems too. The Bible cautions us against being drunkards, not to stay out of liquor stores.

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  105. Carrie,

    I'm sorry if I came off as angry. It was a joke. I was surprised by the post, yes. But I'm not an upset horse, I promise. No need to whoa me. And I love people too. Really.

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  106. @Elizabeth:

    Thank you for being my supplier, but we now have our own stash, thanks to my mom. ;-)

    wv: peine - pronounced "pee-in"; the experience I have when watching the youtube video "I love Jesus, but I drink a little"

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  107. I'm one of those who *can't* drink, whether I want to or not. I've found that when some Christians ask why I don't drink and I explain it's because I'm on Prozac, they judge me even more for my anti-depressants than they would have if I'd been drinking wine.

    It's really sad how much time Christians spend judging each other.

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  108. I'm struck by the statement, "...certainly, getting drunk is a sin." Should Christian imbibers keep a breath-a-lyzer at the ready? How about the medicinal use for flushing kidney stones? Do we have to paraphrase the old Catholic admonition: You can sip it twice to clear the bore, but sip it thrice and you've sinned some more.

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  109. Reminds me of the time someone threw an unopened can of beer in our yard, in the mid 70s. My mom, the wife of a Church of Christ preacher, made that one can last for beer biscuits, beer bread, and maybe beer pancakes. It was like Elijah's oil, except it eventually ran out, and that was that. No way were my parents buying more beer, no matter how delicious beer bread was.

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  110. "I love Jesus but I drink a little". ~ Lady on Ellen

    Seriously though, I guess it's a denominational thing against booze. Everyone at my church has some sort of alcoholic beverage at their house so it's no big deal for me to go into a liquor store and stock our pantry with some delicious drinks.

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  111. Thanks Jon, for giving me another question to ask as I search for a new church (due to a move, not a problem with my old one). Just after I read this, someone from a church we visited came by to visit us and ask if we had any questions about their church. The last question I remembered to ask because of this blog was "What position does your church take regarding alcohol consumption?"
    We are in the "moderate drinking" category of Christians and I just realized that I don't want to go to a church where drinking a beer every once in a while is considered a sin worthy of hell.

    In _My Utmost For His Highest_ devotional today, O.C. takes on judging and has this to say: "the Holy Ghost is the only One in the true position to criticize, He alone is able to show what is wrong without hurting and wounding. It is impossible to enter communion with God when you are in a critical temper; it makes you hard, vindictive, and cruel and leaves you with the flattering unction that you are a superior person." These thoughts are based on Matthew 8:1, which you could casually call out next time someone says that you are going to hell for buying rum or beer or wine for cooking. Thanks Ossy and thanks Jon!

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  112. Do people really still type addresses directly into the address bar anymore?

    I've been burned one too many times by fat fingering a web address only yo find myself in the seedy part of the interwebs.

    Now I rely on Google to sort out which website I meant to visit. Everything goes into to the search engine.

    If I "let go and let Google", does that imply that I think Google is more powerful than God?

    wv: reinge - In the south, a tool for holding, twisting or turning

    Hey Bocephus, pass me that there crescent reinge.

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  113. Oh, man. I can't read the comments, because alcohol is always such a hot button here. That said, this is definitely only a hot button issue for a very small segment of Christianity - I'm a mainline Protestant, and no one at my church would care if they saw me buying alcohol, whether it was to cook with or drink.

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  114. Besides Jon Acuff, Hucklebuck is my new fave!! Love the Harry Potter tract!

    I for one am thrilled when I see another church goer in the ABC liquor store. It's like a new kind of bond is created. "S'up?" followed by raised eyebrows and shared knowing glances.

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  115. Wait, Christians don't drink rum or other hard liquors? I think someone might want to come explain that in church this Sunday then.

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  116. Here is the socially acceptable way to buy rum for cakes: You pick up a bottle at the supermarket or the liquor store and you pay for it. "Socially unacceptable" would mean you didn't pay for it. Unless you're defining "socially acceptable" as "my-society-that-consists-of-me-and-those-exactly-like-me-in-every-way-and-keeping-society-as-a-whole-on-the-outside-in-every-way."

    The post was funny, but these comments are unbelievable. I sure hope many people here never venture into the real world (you know, the one that has non-Christians in it), because, frankly, people think Christians are bizarre enough already.

    The funniest (or the saddest) are the people insisting they would never walk into a liquor store because of the bad "witness" they would create from doing so. So I guess making sure the world knows that Christians are scared of normal life is a great witness, huh?

    I feel really sad for all of you (even you, Jon -- sorry) who feel a need to obey random manmade, culture-dependent rules that never occurred to God, and that Jesus would never have followed.

    No wonder so many of my non-believing friends think Christians are wacked. Thanks, everyone, for helping keep them away from Christ.

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  117. I just would like to mention the other side of the "I don't buy it because it may be a bad witness/cause others to stumble" position. In some cultures refusing to drink at all is equally a stumbling block. I'm not talking about the beer/babes/boogie culture aka university. Or being seen as "uncool" (I know there is a more cool term than that, but I'm old"). I'm talking about where hospitality and culture would make it very rude to be a total tea-totler.
    I'm thinking of a specific example when I went to visit relatives in Northern Italy. I had a missionary friend with me who was a tea-totler and it was a definite issue for our hosts. They ran a vineyard and were offering us the best of their new wines. In their culture total abstinence from alcohol was unknown. So refusing without a medical reason (aka pregnancy) was seen as a rejection of hospitality. There was no problem with having just one glass on wine (which I did since I was counting calories at the time), but the outright refusal to take a glass made for awkwardness and hurt feelings.
    So in sum: I would hope everyone knows themselves and their relationship with God and those in their lives better than outsiders (especially strangers on the internet), so if your conscience is leading you to abstain from alcohol in public lest you be a stumbling block, you must follow your conscience. But if you realize you would never be able to follow your conscience/the Spirit the other way, then I have to question whether it's a genuine issue of being Spirit led/conscience following or of adhering to an imposed legalism.

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  118. Move to England. Here you can buy all the rum you want in our Wal-Marts! But we do not escape the law of the universe that says here too you will run into someone from church in the queue for the checkout!

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  119. My FIL used to be a pastor's wife in a rather conservative denomination. One church member had a recipe for rum cake that she wanted to try to make herself. She told the church member that she couldn't go into the liquor store, in case someone saw and judged her. The next Sunday, while my MIL was playing the organ before the church service, the church lady walked up to the organ and plopped a jar full of rum on the lid in front of the whole church. :)

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  120. I just wanted to make an Irish Creme cake to contribute to my neighbor's St. Patrick's Day party. I can't believe how anxious I got walking into the liquor store...casting furtive glances to make sure nobody would see. I completely understand that what I was doing was not sinful...but why did it FEEL so wrong?! Such is life in a small town DEEP in the Bible Belt!

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  121. first, hucklebuck - great work, my only fear is that Kirk Cameron will stumble across it and decide to use it for real - after all, it is so clearly the way of the master to give such cleverly devised warnings to sinners.

    second, I'm in Aus and for the most part buying booze isn't a huge deal here, in fact I handed over my cash for wine and beer more than once to the son of another local minister when he worked at the checkout at the local grog shop. Nowhere near as embarrasing as the time I walked up to his checkout in the supermarket he worked at before that (he was about 16) and tossed a packet of condoms onto his register before I looked up to see who was serving. He's all growed up now and he and I, and his dad have had a few chuckles about it since, but at the time...

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  122. As someone who grew up Catholic and married a former youth pastor for an independent Baptist church I can tell you they aren't the same.

    Yes you fallow Christ making you a "Christian" but you have MANY dividing lines between how you get to heaven.

    You don't have to agree with me but I stand by my statement.

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  123. what about if you are going to buy it to drink it?
    maybe the person judging should have a drink too...may loosen em up a bit! haha

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  124. Ahhhh... This is why I love being a Christian of the Lutheran variey. We have no problems with consuming, purchasing, or cooking with alcohol... as long as it is done in moderation, of course!

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  125. i don't get the purpose of buying playboy sheets. seems highly unwise and thoughtless to me. like someone else said; aren't you just contributing directly to the porn industry?

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  126. One of the reasons I like SCL is because it is such an eye-opener about the diverse ways that people interpret & live the Christian faith. I knew the "alcohol: good or bad" debate would get a range of responses. I didn't know that some people don't believe that Catholics count as Christians. Huh, didn't see that one coming.

    word verification: fabident
    This is just crying out to be a new toothpaste brand. I'd buy it!

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  127. Easy--Just become Presbyterian. I once ran into my pastor at the liquor store.

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  128. I tell ya, there is nothing better than a rum and coke while playing a little black jack or texas holdem.

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  129. You're supposed to go to the liquor store. If you spot the pastor's wife an aisle over, beat her to the inevitabe "What brings you here?"

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  130. I'm laughing so hard. I thought these kind of things only happened to me. Awesome!

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  131. LOL!!! I've been in a liquor store once in my life and that was to buy some Jack Daniels for a hot toddy (truth, I promise!!). I'd had a nasty case of bronchitis and the meds weren't helping. This was my last resort. I asked the cashier how to make one and he told me, likely laughing his butt off at me fumbling and trying to cover myself.

    Thankfully no one from my church was there or around. How bad would it be to catch the church pianist/secretary in a liquor store....

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  132. The church I attend on Sunday morning MEETS at a bar... My dad pointed out, that might at well have it there, as that's where the tithe's spent each Saturday night ;) We generally refrain from imbibing until AFTER the service however. Is a bar higher or lower than a liquor store on the sin list? Just need to make sure attending church in a pub doesn't push me over the weekly sin quota...

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