Just over 48 hours ago I was in Duluth, Ga attending my second Porn and Pancakes breakfast. If you have never been to a P & P I suggest you go. You can gain some wonderful knowledge and leave with a full belly. Perimeter Church was the host for this great mens event. They had a huge breakfast (the pancakes covered the entire plate) and live music. There was a nervous excitement in the air. Some of the men I’m sure didn’t know what to expect and others were ready to hear the ugly truth about porn. Around 9am Craig Gross hit the stage. By this time there were about 500 men in the room eager to hear what Craig had to say. For those of you who have never seen or heard Craig speak he is bright, funny, serious and straight forward. Craig told stories and shared video footage of men who have lost everything they have family, freedom, stability to porn addiction. He discussed what XXX Church was doing tho help those who struggle with the addiction and those in the sex industry. Craig also talked about how important accountability is to fighting this battle and how we need to be open and discuss these issues. Craig then introduced the men to Donny Pauling, a preachers son and ex-porn producer. Donny is very open and honest about the career he had as a porn producer. He talked about how he hated the church and that he loved telling church folks what he did or a living. He said that when he first saw XXX Church he thought it was a joke, then he found out they were youth pastors. This started the harassment. Donny told of how he used to get on the XXX Church site and talk trash and post links to his porn sites. Craig jumped in and said that Donny was the only person ever to get banned from the site because he wouldn’t quit posting X rated links. It was like giving a recovering alcoholic a fifth. Donny agreed that when ever he threw junk or talked smack to anyone at XXX Church they would always respond with love. He also shared how God miraculously changed his life. He told stories of broken women, how he would recruit girls and talked about how there were numerous women who called and wanted pictures deleted from the net regretting what they did for money. When Donny finished the crowd rose to their feet and applauded. I don’t believe the applause was completely for him. It was for a Savior who loved him enough to say “I have a better life for you, I love you” and change his life forever.
After the message I went out to help with the booth as Craig and Donny were taking time to talk to everyone. While working the table I cant tell you how many times I heard “thank you” or as I heard from one guy who said that he has been porn free since Oct 2008 and is using X3 Watch on his computer to help keep him accountable for his actions. It seemed to me that everyone left encouraged and ready to take on the task of discussing the porn issue with friends, family and church.
What do you need to do now? Go to xxxchurch.com and check out the dates of future Porn and Pancakes or Porn Debates and attend. If you dont see an event near you find out what it takes to get one going, talk to your church and get one going. Until next week..
STEVE-OH
Love Jesus/Love People