Biblical help and resources for men who struggle with porn addiction. The official website of Stephen Kuhn, author of 10 Lies Men Believe about Porn.
Each week, we roundup the best links, articles, and videos we find that are relevant to overcoming pornography addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it doesn’t necessarily mean we agree with everything in the linked article. It just means we found it interesting enough to share.
Ransomed Heart: As Good as It Gets?
Donny’s Ramblings: On Falling Back, and Voices in My Head
Freedom In Christ Ministries: Choose the Truth
If you’ve spent any time on this site, you are no doubt aware of my appreciation for the ministry of the late Brennan Manning. His ability to communicate the message of God’s unconditional love was (and still is) transformational in my journey.
I picked up a copy of Manning’s best-selling book, Abba’s Child, from a used book store a while back and set it on my bookshelf where it collected dust for over a year. This was a shame. Once I finally opened the book, I couldn’t get enough of it.
Written in Manning’s signature style, Abba’s Child is full of honest transparency, humble trust, and constant reminders of his (and our) never-ending need to rest in God’s love.
What I found especially interesting in Abba’s Child though, was its relevance for those of us who struggle with addiction. Manning is quick to admit his lifelong struggles with alcohol, but more importantly, how he has found healing and freedom through the Grace of God:
When I relapsed, I had two options: yield once again to guilt, fear, and depression; or rush into the arms of my heavenly Father—choose to live as a victim of my disease; or choose to trust in Abba’s immutable love.
If you’re tired of guilt, fear, or depression controlling your life; tired of being a slave to sin and addiction; pick up a copy of Abba’s Child and learn how the unconditional love of God sets you free to live a life of untethered freedom, unbelievable peace, and unfathomable joy.
Many Christians feel broken and angry but don’t think they can express these real feelings around others—or to God. So we put on a mask to hide our identity. Feelings of embarrassment and shame make us hide from the One who truly loves us. Author Brennan Manning encourages you to let go of this stressful, unreal impostor lifestyle and freely accept your identity as a child of God. Find the rest that you long for as you grow in character and accept His lordship.
Each week, we roundup the best links, articles, and videos we find that are relevant to overcoming pornography addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it doesn’t necessarily mean we agree with everything in the linked article. It just means we found it interesting enough to share.
Storyline Blog: How A Homeless Man Taught Me About Heaven
He Speaks in the Silence: What Every Woman Really Wants
Freedom In Christ Ministries: Forgiving From the Heart
Each week, we roundup the best links, articles, and videos we find that are relevant to overcoming pornography addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it doesn’t necessarily mean we agree with everything in the linked article. It just means we found it interesting enough to share.
Ragamuffin Soul: The Day God Stopped Loving Me… And Maybe He Stopped Loving You.
I’ve been a fan of U2 ever since their Joshua Tree album. I’m not their only fan either, being that U2 is listed among the top-10 best-selling bands of all time.
It’s no secret that Bono, the lead singer of U2, believes in Jesus. He may be hesitant label his beliefs as “Christian,” claiming the word carries excessive baggage (which I fully understand), but he has never shied away from admitting to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
Which is why I’ve often wondered about the meaning behind U2’s hit song, “I Still Haven’t Found what I’m Looking for“—a song he frequently introduces as “a Gospel song for the doubters.”
Does Bono believe that Jesus is enough, or is he still looking for something more?
But then I noticed something interesting. When I looked at their lyrics through the decades, I saw the same paradigm shift that transformed my own faith:
In order to illustrate this further, let’s take a look at some of these lyrics.
First, from “I Still Haven’t Found what I’m Looking for,” written in 1987:
I have climbed the highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with youI have run I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for
But I still haven’t found
What I’m looking for
When I read these lyrics, I can’t help but think of the sin-management mentality that consumed the majority of my Christian life. I was trying to do everything I could to be a “good Christian,” to follow the rules and make God happy.
I wanted to be with God, but I was trying to orchestrate the relationship in my own power.
I tried to climb the mountain.
I tried to run through the fields.
I was trying to earn my way to God through my own goodness. But no matter how hard I tried, it never worked.
I never found what I was looking for.
Now, compare that to the song “Grace” from their 2001 album “All That You Can’t Leave Behind”:
Grace
She takes the blame
She covers the shame
Removes the stain
It could be her nameWhat once was hurt
What once was friction
What left a mark
No longer stings
Because grace makes beauty
Out of ugly things
Notice how there’s no longer any sense of striving. There’s no list of things Bono has accomplished in order to gain God’s blessing.
Everything in this song is about what Grace has offered to him.
Grace took his blame.
Grace covered his shame.
The sting of shame is gone, and it’s not because Bono finally climbed the highest mountains or scaled the city walls. It’s gone because the grace of God changed his heart, removing the stain of sin from his life.
This understanding of grace is what changed my paradigm, opening my eyes to the reality that following Jesus isn’t about trying to do the right things to please Him, it’s about learning how to trust what He has done for me.
That’s how Grace makes beauty out of ugly things.
Each week, we roundup the best links, articles, and videos we find that are relevant to overcoming pornography addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it doesn’t necessarily mean we agree with everything in the linked article. It just means we found it interesting enough to share.
GQ Magazine: 10 Reasons Why You Should Quit Watching Porn
Freedom In Christ Ministries: Forgiving Others
Christianity Today: Help for the Sexually Desperate
