Editorial/Opinion

 Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007 Page 4B


 My Space,
 beware
 Dear Editor:
 Parents, do you know what
 your child or children have on
 their My Space Web site? Get
 your child or children and tell
 them to open their My Space
 page and read it. See who is
 writing them. Ask them, no
 matter what their age.
 Children don't realize that
 molesters, murderers,
 prisoners, police officers and
 all types of people are looking
 on My Space.
 All children say, "No one
 can get on my My Space page
 unless I give them my, co.de,2
- -Mosrc-odesr bifMy Spiace have
 already been broken by
 someone you don't know, and
 they are reading all about you
 and your child or children.
 Parents, please look into
 this. It might just save the life
 of your child or children.
 If you need to know more
 about this, call your local
 police station. Someone there
 will tell you more about the
 dangers of My Space.
 Tanglier Newell

 Who's cherry
 picking now?
 Dear Editor:
 I am a 19-year-old lifelong
 resident of Bradford County. I
 also have been following the
 Sunday alcohol sales debate.
 Mr. Ramsey made a very bold
 statement in his letter to the


editor last week when he used
the term "cherry picking"
Bible verses to suit their own
doctrines; and while he
condemns.this method, it is
exactly what he, himself, has
done.
 He quoted Bible scriptures
that encouraged moderate
drinking of alcohol because, as
stated in his article, this is
what he believes. If Mr.
Ramsey would heed his own
advice and read the Bible in its
entirety, he would find the
scriptures condemn drinking
wine that has been fermented
or any other strong drink.
 For example, in Proverbs
20:1 (KJV) it states -"Wine is a
mocker stoi6ng drink is raging:
and whosoever is deceived
thereby is not wise." Also
Proverbs 23:29-32 (KJV)
states: "Who hath woe? Who
hath sorrow? Who hath
contentions? Who hath
babbling? Who hath wounds
without cause? Who hath
redness of eyes? They that
tarry long at the wine; they that
go and seek mixed wine. Look
not thou upon the wine when it
is red, when it giveth his color
in the cup, when it moveth
itself aright. At the last it biteth
like a serpent, and stingeth like
an adder."
 Aside from religious beliefs,
 it has been scientifically
 proven that one alcoholic drink
 impairs your mental
 capabilities. Logically, if it
 takes the consumption of 10
 beers to render you inebriated,
 then the consumption of one
 beer renders you one-tenth


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inebriated.
 In our county, we have the
option of purchasing alcoholic
beverages, Monday through
Saturday, while having dinner
or watching a football game.
Would it be too much to ask
that we have one day set aside
so that families with children
are able to go and experience
the new growth of businesses
in Downtown Starke, without
the liabilities that the
consumption of alcohol
brings?
 As Americans, we are
blessed to be able to voice our
opinions-and beliefs freely, be
it through publications or,
more importantly, at the voting
polls. I will make my stand,
and should the opposition -win,
I will further make my stand
by not patronizing these
establishments. I will continue
to always keep my county and
country in my prayers.
 God Bless,
 'PFC Christopher Crews,
 Florida Army National
 Guard


Practice what
the Bible says
Dear Editor:
 I write this letter in response
to all "Christians" who feel it
is within their Christian
liberties to drink alcohol, even
in moderation.
 I agree with Mr. Ramsey
that the Bible is'inerrant and
clearly depicts drunkenness as
a sin. However, that is where
our agreements end. There are
so many Biblical,
archaeological and linguistic
arguments that reject: any
acceptance of alcohol
consumption by Christians that
I do not have time to cover
them all.' So, in an effort to be
brief, I will address only two.
 First, let me speak on Mr.
Ramsey's use of I Timothy
5:23. I was not surprised by
his citation of this verse. I
was, though, surprised to see
that he knew the reference,
since most who quote this
verse could not even prove its


existence by showing me its
location in the Bible.
 This verse seems to be the
mantra of inebriates
everywhere seeking to justify
their sin. But a thorough study
of this verse alone dismisses it
as a license to drink.
 Timothy was a young pastor
left in Ephesus to disciple new
Christians and lead the people
of the region to Christ. Paul
charged Timothy to not let
anyone look down upon him
because of his young age, but
to set an example' for
everyone. Timothy took this
command to heart and in an
effort to live a life of holiness,
refused to consume any
alcoholic beverage.
 In this period of time and in
this area of the world, the
water consumed by the
average person was very
alkaline. A small amount of
wine would have been added
to the water to balance the
alkalinity that would have
caused many upset stomachs.'
A study of the phrase, "Drink
no longer water" in the Greek
rievealst-o-us 'that Paul was
saying that Timothy should not
drink exclusively water. Wine
should be added to' the water
for purification and balance.
 It is interesting to note that
 instead of saying "drink a little
 wine for thy stomach's sake,"
 Paul says "use a little wine for
 thy stomach's sake." This
 wine was used for medicinal
 purposes. Paul was essentially
 saying, "Timothy, I know that
 holiness is your aim by
 drinking pure water, but you
 need to add a little wine to it so
 you can get over these stomach
 problems you're having."
 Since Paul was someone that
 Timothy trusted and respected,
 Paul would have been the only
 one who could have said this
 to Timothy and changed
 Timothy's mind. Today,
 though, we rarely have to
 worry about contaminated
 water, so this verse hardly
 applies to us.
 The second issue I would
 like to address is found in
 Matthew, Chapter 5 where
 Jesus is delivering the Sermon
 on the Mount. He bursts the
 bubble of many who were
 listening to him by repeating
 the phrase, "Ye have heard that
 it was said ... But I say ..."
 In this section of the
 Sermon, Jesus deals with the
 heart of sin. Many of the
 listeners felt pride in not
 having killed someone or


committed adultery. Jesus told
them not to think too highly of
themselves because the
command against these sins
went much further.
 Although he did not address
alcohol consumption, I would
like you to use Christ's
example and get to tehe heart of
drinking alcohol. I believe
God's commands against
alcohol consumption go much
further than simply, "Thou
shalt not get drunk."
 Many feel that it is their
right to drink if they want to
because they have earned it. I
would say, yes, you legally
have the right to drink, but in
Christ, we have no rights. If
He truly is your Lord and
Master, then He decides what
your rights are, not you. To do
so is to circumvent God's
authority over your life.
 The Bible also warns us
about being a stumbling block
to others. You may be able to
drink in. moderation, but your
neighbor, who sees you bring-
home that 12-pack, may not.
He justifies his drinking, and
therefore, getting .drunk,
because his "Christian"
neighbor drinks.
 Having said all of this, I'm
sure it is clear about where I
stand on the issue of alcohol
consumption. Now, let me
address Mr. Ramsey's
comment about "trying to use
the force of government to
enforce [our] interpretation of
scripture."
 1 am proud of the freedom
that I have as an American. I
am proud that our nation and
its laws are founded on the
principles God outlines in His
word. Nevertheless, our nation
has been convinced that
morality should not be
legislated by the government.
But what are laws except
someone's morality?.
 I believe that we have gotten
 messed up by calling drinking
 alcohol, abortion, homosexual


marriage, and the like moral
issues. These are not moral
issues. As you can tell from"
our current debate in the-
Starke city limits, morals can -
evolve and change over time.
 God's word, on the other;
hand, cannot. It is, was, and
will always be, absolute.
These issues are not morality
issues, which could change
over time, but commands from
the living God on how we
should live our lives.
Therefore, I believe that as
Christians, we should hold our.
government accountable when
it comes to making the.
commands of God 'a moral
debate. There is nothing to..
debate. God said it. That
settles it. It does not matter
what you or I believe.
 In the end, I do not feel the.
problem is with the alcohol,,
though, but with either..
Christians who do not live-:
what they say they believe or
Christians who change their
beliefs to suit their desires.
 Tobias Roehm
 Lawtey

Thank you!
Dear Editor:
 The members of the
Hampton Volunteer Fire
Department would like to
thank everyone who made a
donation to our department.
The money was used to
purchase the following items:
10 hoods, nine pairs of
goggles, four brush jackets,
five pairs of brush pants, four
pairs of boots, nine brush
helmets and 10 pairs of gloves.
Your donations helped us to
purchase this much-needed -
brush gear. Thank you!
 Lt. Sandra Williams
 HVFD

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