Prayer Request and maybe lesson

[Flipper]

I'm putting this in it's own thread because someone may need to hear about this. We all talk about enjoying our brewskies, personally I love the wine, and I'm sure we are all responsible in our imbibing. Still, I've let family members under 21 have a beer or a glass of wine before, thinking it was harmless - everyone is responsible, so what's the big deal right? No, this is a major wake up call for me, and I hope for anyone else needing it.

My sister’s best friend, who’s family is friends with our family, went to her neighbor’s house for a New Year’s Eve party. She brought alcohol to the party. At the party, was the neighbor’s nephew, who was 17. He apparently drank to the point of throwing up and passing out. He never woke up. Everyone at the party was brought in by the police for questioning including our friend. I don’t know if she’s going to be charged, but I’m sure someone will be, probably the person having the party.



Please pray for everyone involved and for the family of the nephew.



We’ve had parties through the years for my husband’s crew, and my co-workers. Most everyone is over 21, but he’s had techs who are not. We’ve never carded anyone drinking in our house. Everyone has been responsible and we’ve never had any problems. Still, I’m not taking any chances – this hit too close to home. Again, I am sure all of you are responsible and don't need to hear this, but on the off chance someone might need to read something like this, I'm posting it.

[RedneckAnglican]

:prayer: for everyone...

[LilLamb219]

My prayers are with them.

It's a tough lesson to learn, but the legal drinking age in my state is 21 and up. Providing minors with alcohol is a bad choice (especially if they aren't your own children). The law around here states that the homeowners are responsible when underage drinking is taking place on their premises. Your friend might be held responsible if she was the only one who provided the liquor though.

I've allowed my daughter to take sips of some stuff just so her curiosity is taken care of because my parents did that for me and it helped me to not want to drink when I got older. So far she agrees that the taste isn't right for her :) My husband is the only one who drinks on occasion around here.

In the summertime you hear of graduation parties where parents want to be the "cool" ones who provide alcohol for the teens. Well, it often backfires, as it should. The law is in place for a purpose and that is to protect our children. I'd be horrified if another parent allowed my child to drink :(

[SPALATIN]

Allowing a teenager free reign with any alcoholic beverage without being taught to drink in moderation is like leading a horse to water. If you don't take the horse away it will drink itself to death.

All this teenager apparently learned about drinking alcohol is that it makes you stupid. I am sorry for your sister's friend, but she will be held accountable if she supplied the liquor. You're right that it is a lesson learned one in which a young man lost his life.

I will pray that God show his mercy and give you his peace in this because the situation is in itself law and is really pressing down on those involved. There will be repercussions of this for years to come.

[Flipper]

Allowing a teenager free reign with any alcoholic beverage without being taught to drink in moderation is like leading a horse to water. If you don't take the horse away it will drink itself to death.

All this teenager apparently learned about drinking alcohol is that it makes you stupid. I am sorry for your sister's friend, but she will be held accountable if she supplied the liquor. You're right that it is a lesson learned one in which a young man lost his life.

I will pray that God show his mercy and give you his peace in this because the situation is in itself law and is really pressing down on those involved. There will be repercussions of this for years to come.

I completely agree. Horribly tragic. I don't know if she personally supplied this kid or not. She did help supply the party, which I think would qualify as supplying the kid. She'll probably get a contributing charge. Unless it can be proven she handed the kid the vodka, I doubt it could get worse than that for her, but you never know, and I don't know the entire story.

Still, even though people drink in moderation at my house (somehow we end up with more alcohol left over than we started with), I will be carding the guests in the future. My husband thinks I'm overreacting, but I don't think so.

[LilLamb219]

My husband thinks I'm overreacting, but I don't think so.

I think you're being very responsible and loving in that decision. And take their car keys while you're at it unless there is a designated driver :)

[Flipper]

I think you're being very responsible and loving in that decision. And take their car keys while you're at it unless there is a designated driver :)

I always did take car keys, and we have air mattresses and beds all over the house for people to stay, but like I said, no one ever drank that much to excess. I would even warn the neighbors if we are having a party, and to let us know if it gets too loud, and they've always told us that they never heard a peep from us after 10 p.m. Still, you can never be too careful.

I think about my younger and stupider days, and this very thing could have happened to me on either side of it, or with my sisters, or friends I knew then... I know I'm older and hopefully wiser, and would not allow things to get to that point, but I can't help but think of how easilly I could have been in any of their shoes 10+ years ago. There's no reason for this to hit home now, but it does.

[GlowingFirefly]

Allowing a teenager free reign with any alcoholic beverage without being taught to drink in moderation is like leading a horse to water. If you don't take the horse away it will drink itself to death.

All this teenager apparently learned about drinking alcohol is that it makes you stupid. I am sorry for your sister's friend, but she will be held accountable if she supplied the liquor. You're right that it is a lesson learned one in which a young man lost his life.

I will pray that God show his mercy and give you his peace in this because the situation is in itself law and is really pressing down on those involved. There will be repercussions of this for years to come.

I agree also.

Being a college student, I have found the phrase, at least in my dormatory: "Come on, we are going to go get drunk" quite popular.

I remember being woken up in the middle of the night by some girls outside my room screaming and hollering because they were drunk.

Personally, I don't touch alcohol. (I'm under 21, but even if I was over 21 I still wouldn't drink.) Even in church during communion, I take grape juice. It's not that I think drinking is some sort of sin, which I don't believe it is if you drink smartly, I just don't do it. Yes having a glass of wine maybe for dinner or something every once in a while I've heard is good for you, but again that is drinking smartly.

Still, I feel that there are plenty of other drinks in the world that don't contain alcohol that people can consume freely... Like water. :)

I made a group on facebook (an online college directory that I'm a member of with my school) a few days ago that's called "I don't drink.. but I'm still cool." I saw way too many student-created groups about drinking (Like the popular one "My major is partying with a minior in drinking" for example) so I made an anti-one.

You don't have to drink to be cool. People need to learn that their bodies are probably just a tad more important than being "cool." At least that's what I think. :)

[Jim47]

Can you inagine how cool this world would be without drug or alcohol abuse!

[Flipper]

Can you inagine how cool this world would be without drug or alcohol abuse!

No kidding. I'm also bummed out because my mom is smoking again.

[LilLamb219]

You don't have to drink to be cool.

You got it!!! Wise words!!!

[filosofer]

I'm just barely 21, too... ;) (well, okay, my grandkids are not far from that age)

And I don't drink when I leave the house. Just not worth it. I remember 40 years ago when many of my class mates thought it was cool to do so. Several of them died proving it. My father always told us that if we wanted to drink or smoke, don't hide it, jsut come on into the house and be a man about it - implying that tryin g to hide it will cause more problems. I never did drink except in his presence. I never went out to drink with the high school or college friends - I was more afraid of my father than anything as trivial as peer pressure. When I turned 18 (I looked older) and was working with him, the entire crew stopped into the VFW for drinks after work on Firdays. Everyone was my father's age, except me. My father ordered for me, and when the bartender asked whether I was okay, my father said, "You bet!" We stopped every Friday for 3 years running. In fact, I was never carded anywhere until I was 38 years old, when I was a pastor buying communion wine! :) true story.

But it bothers me greatly when I see the lack of concern about drinking. I have done too many funerals that have been alcohol or drug related.

In Christ's love,
filo

[RedneckAnglican]

And I don't drink when I leave the house. Just not worth it.

that's pretty much always been my rule...when I was growing up my dad used to sneak me sips of his beer from as early as I can remember...in high school a friend of mine's parents used to let us drink at thier house...so long as we turned over the keys and didn't leave until morning...even then I wasn't the type to get drunk...alcohol isn't my addictive substance...now...if they had a BBQ going...

anyway...it is a tragic situation and my heart goes out to the family...it's going to take awhile to get passed something like that...never will get over it...