And really, let's get real. Smoking was NEVER cool when you consider the health ramifications.
We can't plead ignorance anymore.
We can't plead ignorance anymore.
Smoking kills. Period.
Consider the facts: Illness related to smoking kills more people per year than deaths from HIV, alcohol use, suicides, illegal drug use, murders, and car accidents COMBINED.
Dude.
Smoking is no joke. It's like picking up a loaded 9 millimeter, aiming it at your own head, pulling the trigger and hoping that nothing happens.
If you're thinking, "Cool, I'm out of the loop because I just chew tobacco."
Sorry.
Bad news.
The nicotine in smokeless tobacco can cause sudden death because it can cause the heart to stop beating suddenly (ventricular arrhythmia) as well as being linked to all kinds of crazy cancers.
Feeling safe because you're under 18 years of age? Of the 25 million people alive today that will die prematurely of smoking-related illnesses, 5 million are under 18. (check www.cdc.gov/tobacco/statistics)
That means YOU if you smoke or live with somebody who smokes.
So why bring this subject up? Because chances are that you or someone that you hang out with smokes and thinks its alright.
Maybe its not "alright."
You read the facts didn't you? 5 million kids will die of smoking related illnesses this year. Death from things like esophageal cancer and cardiac arrest and emphysema. Nasty, horrific, unimaginable diseases that no one should have to endure.
All for a short-lived buzz and maybe being 20 pounds skinnier than you would be if you didn't smoke.
There, I said it. How many women smoke to stay thin? Two bites of your burger and then a smoke and boom--you stay skinny, right? Is being thin now worth losing 15 years of your life later?
How about smoking because it "calms you down and takes the edge off."
Does it? Sure, for a little while. But then you're back where you started once you put your cigarette out.
(By the way, I'm not trying to be a nag, I'm just hoping to make you think about what you're doing to your body. You know, the one that God formed in your mother's womb? The one that He asked us to be good stewards of--that precious gift from God??)
Obviously, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco are some of the most addictive drugs on the planet. So, aside from tons of will power, a pack of Nicorette gum and a big pile of snacks, how does one quit smoking?
Ask God for help.
Seriously. Ask Him for help to quit smoking--one day at a time. Ask Him to remove the cravings, the withdrawal symptoms, and the pleasure associated with smoking. Ask Him to give you a disgust for it. And yes, thank Him that you're addicted to cigarettes, because it's all part of His divine plan for your salvation.
And then watch out, because God will blow you away.
Say out loud, based on psalm 119:45: "I will walk about in freedom because I follow your precepts."
You can be set free in Christ from all forms of tobacco and still be cool.
Cooler in fact.
Dude.
Smoking is no joke. It's like picking up a loaded 9 millimeter, aiming it at your own head, pulling the trigger and hoping that nothing happens.
If you're thinking, "Cool, I'm out of the loop because I just chew tobacco."
Sorry.
Bad news.
The nicotine in smokeless tobacco can cause sudden death because it can cause the heart to stop beating suddenly (ventricular arrhythmia) as well as being linked to all kinds of crazy cancers.
Feeling safe because you're under 18 years of age? Of the 25 million people alive today that will die prematurely of smoking-related illnesses, 5 million are under 18. (check www.cdc.gov/tobacco/statistics)
That means YOU if you smoke or live with somebody who smokes.
So why bring this subject up? Because chances are that you or someone that you hang out with smokes and thinks its alright.
Maybe its not "alright."
You read the facts didn't you? 5 million kids will die of smoking related illnesses this year. Death from things like esophageal cancer and cardiac arrest and emphysema. Nasty, horrific, unimaginable diseases that no one should have to endure.
All for a short-lived buzz and maybe being 20 pounds skinnier than you would be if you didn't smoke.
There, I said it. How many women smoke to stay thin? Two bites of your burger and then a smoke and boom--you stay skinny, right? Is being thin now worth losing 15 years of your life later?
How about smoking because it "calms you down and takes the edge off."
Does it? Sure, for a little while. But then you're back where you started once you put your cigarette out.
(By the way, I'm not trying to be a nag, I'm just hoping to make you think about what you're doing to your body. You know, the one that God formed in your mother's womb? The one that He asked us to be good stewards of--that precious gift from God??)
Obviously, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco are some of the most addictive drugs on the planet. So, aside from tons of will power, a pack of Nicorette gum and a big pile of snacks, how does one quit smoking?
Ask God for help.
Seriously. Ask Him for help to quit smoking--one day at a time. Ask Him to remove the cravings, the withdrawal symptoms, and the pleasure associated with smoking. Ask Him to give you a disgust for it. And yes, thank Him that you're addicted to cigarettes, because it's all part of His divine plan for your salvation.
And then watch out, because God will blow you away.
Say out loud, based on psalm 119:45: "I will walk about in freedom because I follow your precepts."
You can be set free in Christ from all forms of tobacco and still be cool.
Cooler in fact.
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