BuddhistCatholicContemplativeEvangelicalGeneral ChristianHinduJewishLatter-day SaintMuslimNew VisionsProgressive Christian
Beliefs
- Buddhist
- Catholic
- Contemplative
- Evangelical
- General Christian
- Hindu
- Jewish
- Latter-day Saint
- More Voices
- Muslim
- New Visions
- Pagan
- Progressive Christian
Topics
- Religion News
- Food and Religion
- Sports and Religion
- Religious Art
- Religious Music and Entertainment
- Religious Events
- History and Religion
- Style and Religion
- Politics and Religion
- Women in Religion
- Recreation Outdoors and Religion
- Business Finance and Religion
- Careers Workplace and Religion
- Education and Religion
- Family Parenting and Religion
- Health Fitness and Religion
- Home and Religion
- Relationships and Religion
- Technology and Religion
- Travel and Religion
Columnists
- Buddhist Columnists
- Business Finance and Religion Columnists
- Careers Workplace and Religion Columnists
- Catholic Columnists
- Contemplative Columnists
- Education and Religion Columnists
- Evangelists Columnists
- Family Parenting and Religion Columnists
- General Christian Columnists
- Health Fitness and Religion Columnists
- Hindu Columnists
- History and Religion Columnists
- Home and Religion Columnists
- Jewish Columnists
- More Voices Columnists
- Latter Day Columnists
- Muslim Columnists
- New Visions Columnists
- Nonreligious Columnists
- Pagan Columnists
- Politics and Religion Columnists
- Progressive Columnists
- Recreation Outdoors and Religion Columnists
- Relationships and Religion Columnists
- Religion News Columnists
- Religious Art Columnists
- Religious Events Columnists
- Religious Music and Entertainment Columnists
- Sports and Religion Columnists
- Style and Religion Columnists
- Technology and Religion Columnists
- Travel and Religion Columnists
- Women in Religion Columnists
Resource Library
- 2026 Calendar
- Library of World Religions
- The 100 Most Holy Places on Earth
- Patheos Answers
- Podcasts
- Videos
- Faith Leaders Database
- Anglican Episcopalian
- Bahai
- Baptist
- Buddhism
- Christianity
- Confucianism
- Eastern Orthodoxy
- Hinduism
- Holiness and Pentecostal
- ISKCON
- Islam
- Judaism
- Lutheran
- Methodist
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- New Age
- Paganism
- Presbytarian and Reformed
- Protestantism
- Religion Behind the Scenes
- Roman Catholic
- Scientology
- Shia Islam
- Sikhism
- Sufism
- Sunni Islam
- Taoism
- Zen
- See all religions
Research Tools
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support
- Trending:
- Forgiveness
- |
- Marriage
- |
- Consciousness
- |
- Death Penalty
- |
- Election
- |
- Halloween
Experience and Reason
- Home
- General Christian
- Mature Faith is the Solution for the Adult with Adult Problems
Mature Faith is the Solution for the Adult with Adult Problems
Last updated on: November 16, 2021 at 10:48 pm by Chris A. Longobardo
Mature Faith is the Solution for the Adult with Adult Problems 2021-11-16T22:48:18-06:00 Chris A. Longobardo
Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.
It’s reasonable for a person with a drug problem to admit they have a problem. Denial is happening when addicts do not acknowledge they have a problem. Prudence as a essential human virtue means I make accurate judgements. A drug addict that denies they have a problem is not making accurate judgements. Mature faith as the solution to a lot of life’s problems will have to include this knowledge, and acceptance of it/ agreement with it.
A person with a drug problem, or a person that is addicted to simple nicotine, might say “I can’t stop in this environment.” What environment is that? What planet do you live on?
I used tobacco indoors, and I used tobacco outdoors. The nicotine flowed through my bloodstream.
Mature faith is the solution to a lot of our problems, because trusting and believing other people is a part having a living faith.
Unless one is destitute, adults will find themselves in an environment of their choosing. I cannot say the same things about a child or a teenager.
I am beginning to understand what it’s like to be a conservative. Currently, there 17 states in the U.S. with “Tobacco 21” laws. The legal smoking age was 18 years old when I started smoking cigarettes. It does not matter if I am 17 years old or 18 years old, my self as “a temple of the Holy Spirit” does not want me to start any bad habits.
Some people have said,” if a person is old enough to die for this country (be inducted into the armed forces because of the draft) then they should be able to smoke and drink.”
My biological life is affected by all of my choices, but it also changes as I get older. My environment changes without my consent, as in the case of age, but it also changes when I move from one place to another place.
We can see more easily what God does and what humans do when we keep our thoughts of God simple. Drugs that make me drowsy and unable to operate heavy machinery will not help me think about God the Holy Spirit in the most accurate way. People who love freedom more than anything else are headed in the right direction, but if we want God the Holy Spirit to make our soul his habitat or dwelling place, then we need to examine our desires.
I cannot excuse people confused by an anti-slavery mentality and the love the freedom that includes the argument “my body, my choice.” As Christians, God is supposed to have lordship/ dominion over our body. My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. We are members of the body of Christ. Imagine the drug addict that say they do not have a problem. The mind of the addict is not making accurate judgements.
We walk by faith, not by sight, but we have to be prudent (make correct judgements) when we walk otherwise we will fall. Mature faith is the solution to a lot of our problems.
Side note: it is possible for conservatives and liberals to be unaware of the virtue of temperance. Not on my watch.
Move out of an environment that damages your body, or harms you, as soon as possible. What makes you think that we have the Holy Spirit when our heart is not pure?
I have always wondered why people continue to live in a place that is continuously rocked with natural disasters. There is a long list of places that I will not live because my rational mind won’t let me. I would move if bad weather or natural disasters frequently disturbed my peace. I was born here and I will die here; no.
Washington DC poised to decriminalize the use of magic mushrooms (nypost.com)
I asked a friend, and recent convert to Christianity, what he thought about this. He said, “we cannot enable people to sin.”
Choice is the most important factor in our attempt at unity with God. I quote this a lot because I sense that God is speaking to me when I read it,
“be serious and sober for prayers.” 1 Peter 4:7
People sabotage themselves and people sabotage other people. I am trying to protect myself from that kind of self harm. I do not abstain from alcohol, but I do practice temperance.
Insurance companies base how much I pay for car insurance on my zip code. Some zip codes have more car accidents than other zip codes. People are similar. I am a peace loving dude, and I am contemplative by nature. I suppose many people would agree that a life of pleasure, or a life of contemplation and pleasure, is preferred over a life of labor, work, or servitude. The zip code analogy helps describe the possibility that groups of people living in the same zip code cause more damage to themselves and others, than other people in other zip codes.
Things that “happen” to a child or a teenager, like:
1 the parents that gave birth to them, or
2 the parents that adopt them, or
3 the people that live in their house, or
4 the house they grew up in, or
5 or their parent’s job, or
6 their parent’s unemployment benefits, happen beyond their control.
That part of their lives is chaotic, up until a certain point. Everything changes when a person learns how to defend themselves. I am saying that we should all defend ourselves from sin.
I will write about teenagers for an adult audience. You know that adults can change their environment if they want to, and you know that sometimes they need to change their environment to be happy/ protect themselves from harm. If there is a will there is a way.
A child is not as free as an adult. A teenager is beginning to have that adult freedom. That is why there are holy innocents. That is why children are not as culpable for their actions as adults are.
I do teach a live class. I tell my students, “once I tell you the truth, you are responsible for acting on what you are told.”
Mature faith is the solution to a lot of our problems. I honor teenagers who can see the damage caused by the addiction to drugs and alcohol, and stay away from that kind of evil entering their lives. I respect their vision at such an early age.
Next Post

October 16, 2021 The Virtue of Prudence Helps us Discern the True Good
Browse Our Archives
Select a Category Emotional intelligence Faith Fasting God and Money Grace and virtue Imitation of Christ Justice and Warfare Music ministry Prudence and wisdom Religion and Virtue Trinity
Select a Month May 2022 March 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021
Follow Us!
TAKE THE
Religious Wisdom Quiz
Which letter is addressed "to the twelve tribes in the Dispersion"?
Select your answer to see how you score.
2 John Galatians Jude James
Related posts from Experience and Reason
Fasting in Preparation for a Celebration
Faith in Christ is the Perfect Happiness Available...
TRENDING AT PATHEOS General Christian
"My Bones Are Vexed": Praying for a Grown...
There is a verse in the Psalms that many weary mothers read...
Jesus Didn’t Come to Fix the World
The Hidden Discipline of Helplessness The first, and perhaps the most...
Does Eschatology Change How We Vote?
Three years ago I asked a question: "Does Eschatology Change Politics?" Well,...
Mixing Tourism and Faith - The Monastic Site...
Traveling abroad offers the opportunity to multitask by combining tourism with learning...
Seventy and Five Years Old: God Still Starts...
There is a small detail tucked into Genesis 12 that I skipped...
A Biblical Vision of Success in Christian Life...
The Concern and Quest Recent trends and tendencies I note around me...
view all General Christian blogs
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support
- About Us
- 2026 Calendar
- Videos
- Podcasts
- Library of World Religions
- Faith In Media Tracker
- Advertise With Us
- Write for Us
- Privacy Policy
- Terms of Service
- Do Not Sell My Data
- Contact Us
- Radiant Digital
- Manage Newsletter Subscriptions
- Unsubscribe From Notifications
- Sitemap
Copyright 2008-2026, Patheos. All rights reserved.
Subscription Support Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In











