I love having a nice beer while hanging out with family waiting for the bird to cook. A glass of wine goes so well with dinner when it’s ready too. You also can’t forget about toasting in the New Year. Alcohol and this time of the year just seem to go together. Everyone seems to be offering you another beer or glass of wine or egg nog or peppermint schnops or Irish coffee or glass of scotch (I’m getting thirsty).

I want to remind you though that your relationship with Jesus is more important than your next drink. With the spirits flowing so easily this time of year it’s east to abuse it (especially if your drunk uncle is egging you on). Your sin can easily be compounded by the fact that you are around friends and family. Not only to do you sin by getting drunk, but you ruin your witness.

Therefore, remember to stop and think before you take Uncle Bubba up on that next round of drinks. It’s not a sin to enjoy a nice cold one, but it is a sin to get drunk…plus no one wants to see your Santa Claus underwear again this year.

If you aren’t subscribed to Stuff Christians Like, you need to be.  Jon’s satirical view on the Christian subculture is amazing.  With pin point accuracy, he deconstructs the stupid trends in the Christian Ghetto.  Today he decided to tackle the subject of finding out if a friend drinks beer too.

With the majority of Christian’s in America being against drinking (at least they openly are ), Jon gives seven ways that you can subtly find out if a Christian friend drinks too.  My favorite is number five…”The Anything”

When you are going to come over their house, call a few days before and offer to “bring anything you need, like drinks.” Make sure you stress the word “anything” over and over again. What is so great about this move is that it puts the pressure back on them. Now, they are faced with the decision to ask you to bring wine or Sprite. What will they say, what will they say? Oh the intrigue!

I’ve done this several times. You just have to be careful. Because most of the time they will throw it back at you and say, “Oh bring anything you want to drink.”  It’s like a couple of Jr. Highers trying to figure out if the other one likes them.  If I get the anything response back, I ask at that point if an adult beverage would be ok. It’s a little risky, but still better than showing up with a six-pack to their daughter’s 5-year-old birthday party.

So do you have any tricks for finding out if the new friends that you make are drinkers too? Or do you just wear you favorite Guinness hat and toss them a cold one when they ask if you have anything to drink?

Ohh and go here for the whole post by Jon.

Our good friend Clayton Bell posted today asking for more content on the net that is produced for Christians.  He used theBeerean.com as an example of just this. But he ended his post with the question:

Am I asking for the type of content that will continue to entrench Christians in our own little ghetto?

I would have to say yes and no to this question.  This is actually that I have been struggling with over the last week.  I was asked by someone on the 4th of July why I don’t just do a beer blog…why does it have to be a Christian beer blog.  Now before I give you my answer, let me inform you of something first.

I hate (yes hate…I want to use a word that strong) the Christian ghetto.  If you don’t know what the Christian ghetto is, it is the world that Christians have created so they don’t have to interact with the rest of the world.  The easiest way to recognize it is how the word Christian is thrown in front of everything.  Christian bookstore, Christian music, Christian t-shirts, Christian radio stations, Christian restaurants, and Christian amuesment parks are a few to start. The last time I checked, Christian was an awesome noun and a horrible adjective.

So to think of the possiblility that I might be added to the ranks of the Christian ghetto scares/hurts me.  I hope you never get the idea that I write this blog to keep you from having to interact with any other aspect of the beer world.  That has never been and never will be my intention. If anything it is quite the opposite.

So back to my answer to the question posed by my friend on the 4th.  I don’t write a Christian beer blog.  I write a beer blog from the perspective of someone who has been radically transformed by the gospel.  My reason for writing isn’t to create our own little Christian beer blogging world, but to give you a different perspective as you do go into the world of beer. I want you to see that beer is more than just a tasty beverage.  I want you to see that beer is an instrument to be used to bring glory to God.  This blog is used to encourage you to get out of the ghetto and to glorify God with everything that He has given you.

So to answer your question Clayton, I think the content that you ask for could just add to the Christian ghetto.  If it’s just offering up the same content as the world and slapping on the label of Christian so people don’t get “dirty.”  But you’ll never see that on this blog (and if I ever do…call me on it).

Yes you are reading the above graphic right. This is a beer tasting being hosted by a church. Now I don’t know much more than what you see above. But Brad Ruggles sent me this so I had to share. I don’t know about you, but I think beer tasting should replace potlucks as the main staple for church functions. What do you think?

The Coyote Ugly owner decided to not fight for the location and decided to cancel the lease at the location. The property owner Stefan Latorre sent out a press release on Tuesday announcing the cancellation.

The release came days after nearby residents and churchgoers flooded city officials with complaints that the bar would bring heavy drinking and unruly behavior to a corner shared by a day care center. It also came hours before residents were to speak about the issue at a City Council meeting.

Latorre also used the press release to let the residents know that their fears were based upon the fictional movie and not on reality.  He also went on to state that this isn’t something new to the location.

“The Coyote Ugly organization was, by far, the best alternative we had received for this space that has been the home of numerous bars, restaurants or bar-restaurant combinations, none of which lasted long-term,” Latorre wrote.

Latorre went on to say that he is going to continue to find a bar or bar/restaurant to fill the property.  In my favorite quote of the whole article Latorre tells the residents of the area,

We hope people who choose to live in center city will understand and fully appreciate the circumstances that come with living in a vibrant urban area,

Translation:  You people live in a freakin’ urban area.  There are going to be bars.  So shut up and get over your self-righteous selves.

You can read the whole article here.