As a tee-totaling Southern Baptist, I feel under qualified to be writing an article about the particular struggles singles face regarding drinking alcohol. I have a bias against the stuff in this country. I don’t like the way it is marketed, and I don’t like the way our culture uses it. Alcohol has become the drug of choice which Americans use to escape life. The lie being sold here is that you need to escape life to have fun. I hate that lie, and that lie is why I don’t drink.
I want to talk about “social drinking”. It seems that just about anywhere a single person would go to hang out, meet up with friends, or meet new people, is a place where alcohol is served. Whether it is a ball game, a sports bar, a nightclub, a concert, or even bowling, there will likely be drinks offered. It is a standard business model for the American social entertainment industry. We offer inexpensive entertainment, and make up the profits selling alcohol.
As a Christian Single, I want to challenge you to find another way. Christ came that we might have abundant life. Life is to be grasped and lived, not endured or escaped or dulled by alcohol. I love coffee shops! I’ll grant you, it is a different drug, but it doesn’t encourage escaping life. Enjoy sports, skip the beer. Go dancing, lose the cocktails. In Christ, troubles are to be faced and overcome, not avoided. Life itself is a celebration! Don’t dull yourself to it, be here for it!
