Just One Sip
Conviction(noun) /kənˈvɪk.ʃən/: A firmly held belief or principle that guides a person’s thoughts, decisions, and actions.
Sentence:I have a strong conviction that pineapple belongs on pizza.
Convictions are personal. They guide how we live our lives, shaping the decisions we make and the standards we hold ourselves to. One of my personal convictions is abstaining from alcohol. I do not believe consuming alcohol is a sin. For me, however, it is a personal decision I had made and intended to honour before God, and knowingly going against this conviction would be sin for me.
Some years back, I had the privilege of spending some time in Italy, a memory I look back on very fondly. It was much fun! So much history, architecture, and art. It was the whole package. I even kept a diary which may or may not see the light of day. But I assure you, you have to visit! I was off to Oenotria, the land of wine and by design, my itinerary included several meals with wine pairings and even an optional tour of a winery, with wine tasting being the main agenda, which I didn’t sign up for because I was not about to pull my Samson card.
(Our dear friend Samson was a Nazarite, and one of the restrictions of the Nazarite vow was abstaining from wine. Yet he was fond of vineyards. Judges 14:5. I, for one, was not volunteering.)
Although before the trip, I wondered if I could have a taste, I brushed the thought aside. The trip was off to a great start, though I would advise against going to Italy in August. That heat was something else!
Of the cities visited, Rome had my steps at 23k+; my group and I spent the day exploring, which included a visit to the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the surrounding ancient ruins. There was so much to take in, and by dinner time, we were exhausted. Dinner, however, was beautiful. We were at this lovely, cave-like restaurant with live music and interactive performances from the waiters and servers. The atmosphere was lively, and the food was lovely.
And, of course, the wine kept going around.
“Would you like some wine?”
“No, thank you.”
“Red wine?”
“No, I’m good.”
“White wine?”
“Thank you, I’m good.”
Yes, the servers spoke English
Eventually, I thought, You know what? Let me just have a sip.
(After all those no’s. Imagine.)
“Which one would you like?”
“Red, please.”
(Not like I even knew the difference.)
A glass was brought over because it had been removed during my “no” tirade, and I got to take a sip.
Bitter. I immediately put it down as it wasn’t to my liking, and I realized I wasn’t missing much after all. The night continued, and we enjoyed the rest of the evening.
The next day, I was off to Venice with a friend.
(Special shout-out to V. Thank you for going out of your way to make sure I enjoyed Venice and visited every important and not-so-important site I had Googled as a must-see!)
Venice was beautiful. Cue the rocking-in-my-sleep feeling. I met up with a friend whom I hadn’t seen in five years, and another friend joined us. Soon, there were four of us exploring the city. After a long day of exploring dungeons in Palazzo Ducale and a last-minute boat ride to the Dorsoduro district, my friend and I (two at that point, as we had lost the other two, lol) came across a very Italian-looking stall selling fresh fruit cocktails.
(Everything looks wow when you’re a tourist, until you realize it’s probably just an everyday fruit stall.)
I asked for a mocktail, while my friend ordered a pineapple cocktail. Now, I am a sucker for pineapple when someone else cuts it for me. (Ah, here comes the test. Sneaky, isn’t it? Not the winery, the pineapple! Of all things.)
“Do you want to taste mine?”
And I thought, Why not?
I took a sip, and it was bitter. AGAIN! At that point, I was convinced I wasn’t missing anything in the entire realm of alcohol. We caught the vaporetti back to the mainland, and the Venice part of the trip came to an end. By then, the Italian heat wave had me missing home. I never thought I would be so excited to return to Canadian weather, but there I was, looking forward to the cold. And when I finally got back, I was so happy. Grateful, cold, and happy.
About two weeks after returning home, I was walking back from class when I suddenly stopped, and those moments in Italy came flooding back to mind. The Holy Spirit began to give me a quick debrief of what had happened, reminding me of my personal conviction and how I had slipped.
You see, I knew better than to make promises to God I couldn’t keep. I understood the gravity of vows, so I had been careful about making one concerning alcohol. Somehow, I had allowed my understanding of the distinction between a vow and a personal conviction to convince me that there was room for an exception.
But I had already settled this matter in my heart. I knew what I believed and the decision I had made before God.
And anything given to God is given to God.
There was no loophole.
I had allowed the absence of a formal vow to become an excuse for acting against my own conviction. By doing so, I had left myself room to slip. And here is the truth. Most times, the enemy only needs us to slip. He doesn’t need us to fall headfirst. Just one slip, or a sip, and that’s all he needs.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour
1 Peter 5:8, KJV
And that’s how it often starts. One step, one taste, “just this once.” We think it’s harmless, but the enemy is counting on that one “harmless” moment to get a foothold.
This is why the Bible says,
If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall.
1 Corinthians 10:12, NLT
You don’t ever want to find yourself in a situation where you have to ask, “How did I get here?”
As for me, I didn’t have to in the moment. But I’ve thought about how differently that experience could have gone. What if that first sip had tasted nice? What if my taste buds had loved it? One sip could have become two, two could have become another glass, and then another, and before I knew it, conviction shattered.
Or perhaps I could have discovered that I had a very high tolerance for alcohol. Maybe I would have simply enjoyed the taste, and it would have become another drink to add to my sweet-tooth cravings. I could have sipped away, enjoyed my evening, and gone about my day. No drunkenness, no dramatic incident. Just a lovely drink and a lovely evening under the Venetian sky.
Yet I would still have acted against a personal conviction I had committed to honouring before God. The absence of physical consequences would not have changed that.
And that was the lesson. My conviction had become fragile the moment I began entertaining exceptions to it.
Yours might be a different conviction. It could be going to places you shouldn’t be, hanging out with people you shouldn’t be with, saying things that shouldn’t come out of your mouth, or consuming things you know you should avoid.
Sometimes we do these things simply because we’re curious. We want to know what it tastes like, feels like, or whether we’re missing out on something enjoyable. But sometimes, we do these things because we want the approval of people. We want to fit in, to be included, or to participate in the same experiences as everyone around us.
Interestingly, the Bible has so much to say about this.
Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God.
Galatians 1:10 (NLT)Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.
James 4:17 (NLT)You may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right. But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.
Romans 14:22–23, NLT
So, what are you compromising on?
I now know that when I’m back in Italy, I’ll gladly order myself a very nice non-alcoholic drink, swirl it, take in the aroma, take a sip, let it rest on my tongue, savour the taste, and enjoy life without slipping.