I had a conversation with a friend who informed me he was way over the line and he knew it. He just didn’t care; he didn’t want to come back.
However, if you are reading this you are not in that place the friend of mine is. Clearly, you care. So good for you! This is already a step in the right direction.
To admit we are crossing the line there first must be a line. There must be boundaries. If you do not have boundaries I encourage you to draw them out. Be specific. For me crossing the line is defined as: I am intentionally seeking out pornographic images.
Because the theme of this blog is confessions allow me to confess; a few weeks ago I began to cross the line. I was able to find a Twitter account that had pornographic images on it, and I found myself browsing through these images. I knew I was crossing the line because of what I have just mentioned above: my boundaries. Once we have admitted we are crossing the line we must take the next step and retreat back across the line. Let me tell you how I was able to successfully do this.
This is extremely difficult. But God is faithful.
For me once the line has been crossed I hear Satan whisper in my ear, “You’ve already sinned. It’s too late for you. You may as well go all out and find more porn you want to see.”
He encourages me to give myself to porn completely.
First, RESIST AND REBUKE!
You may find it helpful to rebuke Satan and his lies out loud in the name of Jesus. There is power in the name of Christ.
Secondly, replace the enemy’s lies with truth. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” I believe this still applies to when new have given in to temptation, but not yet given ourselves to the sinful act. There is ALWAYS a way out.
So find the way out. Maybe you have to get up and leave wherever you are. Maybe you have to call someone. Maybe it’s time to go for a walk. The point is you need to couple spirituality with practicality.
Lastly, there is power in confession. No I am not a Catholic. I do not believe going into a little box next to a priest, pulling a curtain in front of my face, and verbally spewing forth my sins makes me clean again. If you do, that is fine I am not attempting to bash Catholicism. Also, I believe the Catholics know what they’re doing with confession. Confession does lift the weight off your shoulders and it undermines isolation. I have quoted James 5:16 before, and I believe it applies here again.
So I urge you to confess. Confess to an accountability partner. If you do not have one get one here http://x3groups.com/ Utilize the confession page which is completely anonymous. People will give you encouraging feedback here!
Above all do not give up. Get back on the right side of that line you’ve been crossing
@BrettWSheppard