I was recently challenged on a phrase that I have used from time to time in the past and I would like to take this opportunity to expand a bit on that choice of words;

Here is the phrase that I used (and I had never heard this before so I didn't copy it from anyone - it's something that I made up myself):

Excessive Sobriety 

It's a term that could be considered roughly equivalent or have connotations reflective of words such as "excessive introspection" or "painfully analytical" or "acutely melancholic" or "negatively inclined" or "overly critical" or "manically depressive".  Golly indeed!

I do hope the reader gets the picture that I'm trying to portray.

Yes, there is no "cure" for the condition but there is treatment that is both efficacious and effective.  The treatment:  alcohol (in moderation!)

In the context of my own personal experience with alcohol, after about 55 years from the first time I had ever deliberately consumed any alcohol.  My Dad gave me my first beer when I was about 14 but he had told me stories of times when I was a fussy infant and Mom and Dad would feed me a teaspoon of whiskey to settle me down.  Apparently it was effective.  I don't doubt it!  On a side note it makes me think of children born with fetal alcohol syndrome but I don't believe my parents' treatment of infant fussiness had any severe effects on my physical or mental development.  (Ah, I can hear someone saying: So, that explains a lot! - Ha!)  Anyway...

This discussion should also include mention of my decision to totally abstain from alcohol for 33 years - from the year that Trudy and I were baptized on the Easter weekend of 1975 to the fall of 2008 when it occurred to me that total abstinence was unnecessary.  Clearly, it was an attempt to try be as good of a Christian as possible but, as I matured over the years, it became evident to me that there's a lot more to spiritual development than mere abstinence of certain indulgences of pleasure.  Also, I do not believe that the Bible teaches that believers must practice total abstinence from alcohol, however, and I must be quick to add, total abstinence from alcohol can be a good practice of self discipline and one of many ways to demonstrate a commitment to self sacrifice as part of a dedication of oneself to the things of God.  In this context I am thinking of personal commitments such as the Jewish Nazarite Vow.

Of the many discussions that I have engaged in over the years, one of them is controversy over the first recorded miracle that Jesus performed.  it was at a wedding in the town of Cana.  The big question was: "...Did the wine that Jesus created contain ethanol and, if so, how much?...".  For years, my answer was that it would be a zero or low amount since Jesus wouldn't do anything to encourage drunkenness or debauchery.  Would that wine contain no ethanol molecules at all?  That would be unnatural in my opinion although the wine certainly was not produced by natural means - it was a supernatural occurrence to be sure. A clue is the response of the wedding guests - it was the best wine that they had ever tasted.

Even today, an alcoholic beverage is considered good by many if the alcohol cannot be tasted since alcohol naturally has an unpleasant taste to most people. Still, the amount of alcohol in the wine that Jesus created will never be known and certainly, there is no end to the number of opinions by Christians on the matter.  Also, Jesus did drink wine with others and that wine would certainly not be non-alcoholic.  He was even accused of being a "winebibber" - Matthew 11:18-19 - "...they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a gluttonous man, a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners..."

So... yes, I believe that a moderate amount of a good alcoholic beverage can help for anyone suffering with what I call "Excessive Sobriety".

I believe that the best therapy for depression is God Himself in the person of the Holy Spirit along with the Truths of Scripture. Check out this verse: Psalm 42:5

"...Why are you cast down, O my soul?

And why are you disquieted in me?

Hope in God,

for I will yet thank Him

for the help of His presence..."