Full Circle

I shouldn't be surprised. It was about time. But, I was hoping that this time would be different.

Brother has fallen off the wagon AGAIN. You can read about his history here. It's been a vicious cycle for years. He had been sober since October this time, I think. They may have been the longest amount of time in a LONG time.

SIL just called me, crying, from her car in the parking lot of their complex. They're in a blizzard, she was sent home from work early, and she found my brother in the same state he's been in for the last 4 days - drunk on their living room floor. Brother got laid off his job at the beginning of the year, and we were nervous that the lack of work would cause a relapse, but he did pretty well for a while. Then he started working again. I hadn't talked to him much in the last few months, but the last time we talked he was doing great. Then he got laid off AGAIN. And now he's drinking.

He can't afford to drink, but does that stop him? NO. He claims he loves his wife (when he's sober), but does that stop him from being mean and cruel and calling her names when he's drinking? NO. Does he know he has a problem? YES - when he's sober, he admits that.

SIL is again at her wits end - who can blame her? But, her family is fed up (who wouldn't be) and are unwilling to help her unless she leaves him for good. The rest of us are far away and don't know what to do. My dad keeps giving her the same advice he's given her for years - get away, don't enable him, don't be responsible for HIS actions. But, she loves him, and she doesn't want to see him hurt someone else, let alone himself (at least more than he already is).

Brother needs to be admitted somewhere. Or he needs some kind of intervention. But how??

I hate unresolved issues, and this has been one for a very long time. I pray that God shows us what to do. I pray that my brother finds a way to help himself. But, it's out of my hands. No one can help my brother but himself - he has to want it, he has to commit to getting help and to following through. He's almost 31 years old, and I worry about how much longer he can live like this.

I've asked for prayers before, and I'm asking again. And even though I've been praying for safety and resolution for my brother for years, I don't think that God has been ignoring me. He has a plan, we just don't know what it is yet.