Ever since I tried weed at 15, I  thought I had to choose between God and Cannabis

I’ve been brought to my knees with guilt over and over, asking God to give me a sign or a word that said it was wrong. I was desperate. At 14 I was put on anti depressants and struggled with anxiety and this deep hole of sadness inside of me. Marijuana was one of the only things that helped. I did well in school, in relationships, and felt I was experiencing God deeper. But every time I went to the church, I was told it was wrong. There wasn’t even a conversation. Just some verse about being “sober minded” was thrown my way. At 18, I left the church. For the past 2 years I’ve wrestled with the nature of God, what it means to follow Jesus, and how that affects the way I live. Honestly, I don’t know if weed is okay or not. I don’t think it’s that black and white. What could help one person could entrap another. Is food wrong? Not inherently, but excessive consumption could lead to a slew of health problems and could potentially be addicting. But we don’t condemn eating.

All I know is this: the past 6 months I’ve traveled around the world- from my home in New York to Australia to Mexico and Peru, and back to Australia and New Zealand. I have met many Christians and non Christians and I can say that in all this time nearly every non-Christian has supported weed and I’ve only met one Christian who didn’t think weed was a sin. I see a church living in fear, not embracing the freedom that Jesus came to give us. Why are we debating “sin”? Those who enter into the spirit of life are free from the law of sin (romans 8)! Who are we to decide sin? God wants us to be healthy. To experience freedom and life in the fullest. People need to decide for themselves if weed is right for them or not. It’s probably not for everyone. But the “church” can’t be the one to decide that for people- nor condemn their decisions. I love Jesus and I smoke weed. I hope you all can find the freedom that comes with knowing how entirely and perfectly loved you are by God