Tea and Coffee
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liquors. The more the appetite is indulged, the more frequent will be
its demands, and the more difficult of control. The more debilitated the
system becomes, and the less able to do without unnatural stimulus, the
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more the passion for these things increases, until the will is overborne,
and there seems to be no power to deny the unnatural craving for these
indulgences.
The only safe course is to touch not, taste not, handle not, tea,
coffee, wines, tobacco, opium, and alcoholic drinks. The necessity for
the men of this generation to call to their aid the power of the will,
strengthened by the grace of God, in order to withstand the temptations
of Satan, and resist the least indulgence of perverted appetite is twice
as great as it was several generations ago.
The Ministry of Healing, 326-327
Tea acts as a stimulant, and, to a certain extent, produces intoxi-
cation. The action of coffee and many other popular drinks is similar.
The first effect is exhilarating. The nerves of the stomach are excited;
these convey irritation to the brain, and this in turn is aroused to im-
part increased action to the heart, and short-lived energy to the entire
system. Fatigue is forgotten; the strength seems to be increased. The
intellect is aroused, the imagination becomes more vivid.
Because of these results, many suppose that their tea or coffee is
doing them great good. But this is a mistake. Tea and coffee do not
nourish the system. Their effect is produced before there has been
time for digestion and assimilation, and what seems to be strength is
only nervous excitement. When the influence of the stimulant is gone,
the unnatural force abates, and the result is a corresponding degree of
languor and debility.
The continued use of these nerve irritants is followed by headache,
wakefulness, palpitation of the heart, indigestion, trembling, and many
other evils; for they wear away the life forces. Tired nerves need rest
and quiet instead of stimulation and overwork. Nature needs time to
recuperate her exhausted energies. When her forces are goaded on
by the use of stimulants, more will be accomplished for a time; but
as the system becomes debilitated by their constant use, it gradually
becomes more difficult to rouse the energies to the desired point. The
demand for stimulants becomes more difficult to control, until the will