Like any caring parents, mine were concerned that my brother Dave and I grow up to be responsible, productive citizens. One thing they hoped for us was that we not get caught up in alcohol and drugs (called “dope” when I was young). To accomplish this, they (Dads in particular) used interesting home-spun psychology.
More than once Dad would crack open a beer (Olympia was his beer of choice when I was a kid!) and say: “Here, want some? You can have all you want — just don’t hide it from us.”
He’d do the same thing with cigarettes: “You can smoke all you want! Just don’t go behind our back.”
Guess what? We never smoked, never had a problem with alcohol, and don’t have a hang-up with these things to this day! In fact, I even enjoy a good cigar now and then!
Was their method effective? Yes. Was it correct? Yes — and no. It was incorrect in that I was offered these things as a minor; they ran the risk of me saying,
“Fantastic! When can I start?”
The good in it was the mystique and curiosity about these things was downplayed; also, my dad modeled self-control and moderation himself in these activities. He had no hang-ups with beer, cigarettes, coffee, etc. He was emphatically against dope, but not these other things. You see, his concern for us was not in the use, but the abuse of alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, etc.
Folks, that’s simply good old solid, Biblical ethics! So much of what God has given us to enjoy has been corrupted either through overindulgence or hyper-legalism. I don’t want anything to do with either one of these! This is why I love the Bible so much: it is so realistic, balanced, and wisdom-filled. My dad taught me, by example, the most basic of all Biblical principles: Don’t be controlled by anything!