Pastors
If you are a pastor dealing with a pornography problem, then today is the the day to walk away from everything that is holding you back and weighting you down. The guilt. The pain. The lies. There is hope, healing and recovery.
As a pastor you have a huge responsibility to the people around you. Your porn problem is taking away from your leadership and the great task of pastoring your community. You will not and cannot be fully effective in your position if you continue to let your sin go.
Proverbs 28:13 “Those who conceal their sins do not prosper, but those who confess and renounce them find mercy.” TNIV
This site is dedicated to helping you find community so you may find confession and accountability for your problem. We all fall short of the glory of God and we all must clean it up. Right in front of you is an opportunity to stop being consumed by pornography. The life you are living now, hiding porn from your family, church and God, is overcome with worry that your dirty little secret will be uncovered. It is not the life that God intends you to have. God intends you to be entirely free with your passions, time and energy. Today, move away from these things that consume you and go after the freedom God has for you.
NEXT STEPS
1. Confess
Go before God with everything. Confess your struggles through prayer. He already knows it all anyway, right? You have to put all your junk out on the table and acknowledge that you can’t handle it anymore, that you need God and that you are desperate.
Visit the Confessions of Pastors Blog to read confessions and submit a confession.
» Download Chapter 2 from Craig Groeschel's new book "Confessions Of A Pastor"
» Download Pastor Bernie's Confession or pick up his book Breaking the Silence
2. Get accountable
You must have accountability in your life. Find someone in your life that you trust and let him or her in on your struggles. You are not alone. You are not supposed to deal and carry this on your own. God has placed people around you that will walk with you as you move toward freedom. As men we naturally want to keep it all to ourselves. It it is time to own up to those closest to you.
Download XXXchurch's free accountability software X3watch. It’s simple and completely free. This software monitors what is accessed online and sends a report of any questionable websites to your accountability partners email addresses.
» Download it at www.x3watch.com
James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” TNIV
Galatians 6:1-2 “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” TNIV
*Can your spouse be your accountability partner? We suggest discernment when it comes to involving your spouse at this level. Your problem will carry a lot of pain for her. Therefore consider this with the utmost of care for yourself and her.
3. Clean it up
Throw away the porn stash. Delete it. Literally get rid of the things that are tripping you up. It is time to break that pattern of the things that make you stumble, the things you go right back to.
Maybe you need to cancel your cable or internet altogether, move the computer out of the basement to the kitchen or get a filter on your computer. Take solid action steps toward moving away from your places of struggle. The process of cleaning it up is continuous and will not happen overnight. Define the specific situations you struggle and take tangible steps to eliminate these places from your life.
You may need to work this all out with community. It might mean you join a local group such as Celebrate Recovery or another anonymous group. Nationally there are a number of 12-step programs devoted to sex and pornography addictions, and countless other Christian programs. You may need to do go through an online counseling program or spend time in a live in counseling center. Wherever you find yourself on the scale, there are specific helps and recovery programs available for your situation.
