"I am an alcoholic. I know what it is like to burn with a desire to drink that is so overpowering that family, jobs, and friends mean nothing compared to the desire for liquor. I know what it is like to wake up on a hotel room not knowing where I am or how I got there. I also know the joy of complete deliverance from the power of alcohol addiction and never cease to praise God for such deliverance." Author Jerry Dunn discovered there is indeed hope for the alcoholic. God provided his escape when he picked up a Bible in a Texas prison. God Is for the Alcoholic is the product of that escape. Jerry Dunn knows the road up from alcoholism is long and difficult, but that it can be followed with God's help and through commitment, patience, and diligence. In this revised edition of God Is for the Alcoholic, the reader will find sections on understanding alcoholism, ways to help the alcoholic, and ways the alcoholic can help his or her self. Discover release from the power of alcoholism.

"Considers objectively the crucial question of whether Christians today should be drinking alcoholic beverages even in moderation, thoroughly examines the clear biblical evidence from both the Old Testament and the New Testament as well as historical factors, and confidently affirms that total abstinence is the scriptural choice"--

Everybody is trying to help the addict or alcoholic get sober but very few people really know how to help the family through the experience. This book has the real world insight of a husband and wife team who are survivors of alcoholism who have worked with thousands of people over the last twenty years. You will learn about interventions and how they work and when to use them...not from a TV show full of drama, but from people that want to guide your family toward success. You will learn how to live with alcoholism while not losing your family to it. You will find a way of peace during the storm. You will gain confidence that God has a plan for your family that may not be clear to you quite yet.

Addictive disorders are characterised by a division of the will, in which the addict is attracted both by a desire to continue the addictive behaviour and also by a desire to stop it. Academic perspectives on this predicament usually come from clinical and scientific standpoints, with the 'moral model' rejected as outmoded. But Christian theology has a long history of thinking and writing on such problems and offers insights which are helpful to scientific and ethical reflection upon the nature of addiction. Chris Cook reviews Christian theological and ethical reflection upon the problems of alcohol use and misuse, from biblical times until the present day. Drawing particularly upon the writings of St Paul the Apostle and Augustine of Hippo, a critical theological model of addiction is developed. Alcohol dependence is also viewed in the broader ethical perspective of the use and misuse of alcohol within communities.

Where do you turn for hope when you already have the answer--but the answer isn't working? As a long-time Christian, Heather Kopp never expected to become an out-of-control alcoholic who kept private stashes of booze all over the place--tucked behind books in her study, zipped into a special compartment in her oversized purse, at the back of her closet stuffed inside her boots. Even as her career and marriage teetered on the brink, Kopp couldn't get a grip, desperately hiding the true extent of her drinking from the rest of the world--her husband included. During the day she wrote books about God and prayer and family. At night she'd locked herself in her bathroom to guzzle chardonnay. For her, as for many Christians who struggle with addiction, overwhelming shame and confusion only made things worse. Why wasn't her faith enough to save her? Why didn't repentance, Bible reading and prayer work? Where was God? Meanwhile, as she watched in horror, her grown son descended into his own nightmare of drugs and alcohol. She feared for his life, yet she couldn't stop drinking long enough to help him--or find a way out for herself. Until the day everything changed. Engaging, funny and bracingly honest, Kopp shares her remarkable journey into darkness...and back to the light again. Her story reveals the unique challenges and spiritual conundrums Christians face when they become ensnared in an addiction, and the redemption that's possible when we finally reach the end of ourselves. If you love Jesus but shop too much, drink too much, eat too much, crush on men who aren't your husband, or otherwise fixate on doing things you hate but can't stop doing, SOBER MERCIES is for you. As you follow Kopp's sincere, stumbling journey toward freedom and a deeply satisfying relationship with God, you'll find renewed hope--and practical steps of recovery--for your own journey.

Culture is in right now for Christians. Engaging it, embracing it, consuming it, and creating it. Many (younger) evangelicals today are actively cultivating an appreciation for aspects of culture previously stigmatized within the church. Things like alcohol, Hollywood's edgier content, plays, art openings, and concerts have moved from being forbidden to being celebrated by believers. But are evangelicals opening their arms too wide in uncritical embrace of culture? How do they engage with culture in ways that are mature, discerning, and edifying rather than reckless, excessive, and harmful? Can there be a healthy, balanced approach--or is that simply wishful thinking? With the same insight and acuity found in his popular Hipster Christianity, Brett McCracken examines some of the hot-button gray areas of Christian cultural consumption, helping to lead Christians to adopt a more thoughtful approach to consuming culture in the complicated middle ground between legalism and license. Readers will learn how to both enrich their own lives and honor God--refining their ability to discern truth, goodness, beauty, and enjoy his creation.