Some Thoughts on Sobriety

So I want to talk a bit about being sober, or sobriety, and what it means, or can mean.  

Most of us relate being 'sober' to Webster's definition: "not intoxicated or drunk."  Over time this definition has also come to encompass drug abuse, and even more recently has come to include a multitude of behavioral addictions.  When sobriety is announced at the beginning of a recovery meeting, it is generally referring to how many days one has not acted out in their addiction.

But, what does it mean to be sober?

1 Thessalonians 5:5-10
5 Ye are all children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.
10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

D&C 6:19   
19 ...Be patient; be sober; be temperate; have patience, faith, hope and charity.

Winning the War Against Evil - Elder James Hamula
"Being sober means being earnest and serious in assessing your circumstances and careful and circumspect in weighing consequences of your actions.  Soberness therefore yields good judgement."

So, why is it important to be sober?

1 Peter 1:13
13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 5:8, 10  
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
10 But the God of all grace , who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that which ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

So, what does it really mean to be sober?  
  • It means keeping our body free of all chemicals and behaviors that will inhibit us from doing the work of the Lord. 
  • It means girding ourselves up with the armor of righteousness and doing all in our power to not offend those Heavenly beings who desire to protect us.
  • It means keeping our minds clear of all worldly noise so that we may hear the sweet promptings of the Spirit.
  • It means knowing our adversary and keeping ourselves aware of all his tactical advantages over us, and acknowledging that only in the protective fold of our Savior are we safe from his destruction.
  • It means to strive to refine our virtues by constantly connecting with our Father in Heaven, and Savior, Jesus Christ.
  • It means constantly striving to remain humble, for the quality of our recovery is directly proportionate to the quality of our surrender.
  • It means finding gratitude and hope in all things, and above all it means constantly fighting with all determination to get home to Father.

It means to never, ever give up.

Comments

  1. I love this. It's so easy to fall into faulty thinking that if not fully acting out equals sobriety. I think this is why SA includes "progressive victory over lust" as part of their sobriety requirement. Recovery can never be a stagnant exercise. We either move forward or we fall.

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  2. I absolutely love this post and all of these concepts on being sober. I've been taught and will take a way some deep personal thoughts on this issue. Thank you for always being such a great source of inspiration.

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