It’s a very difficult thing to always try to do right, to turn your back constantly on the things of the flesh. It’s all to easy to forget why we live a Christian life. Living on the road has showed me how many evils are waiting for us out there.

I’m one of four boys, the middle child in fact, and I have lived a very sheltered life. I have never smoked, been drunk, or done drugs. Traveling has showed me how much addiction run people’s lives, that I’m not alone in my struggles with addiction. The ministry I am blessed with has been a huge part of helping teens with cutting, depression, drug addiction, and yes, porn addiction. So many teens have said that they are a new Christian and still struggle with porn addiction. I feel that this is a huge issue among young Christians. Don’t let anyone tell you that God hates sinners. It’s true, He does hates sin, but loves the sinner. Never give up on what God wants to do with you, without my struggles I’d fully see who God is, He is the God of my life and because I relied on Him, He pulled me through my addiction and I’m now living abundantly for Him. Have faith, no matter how dark the days might seem.

I’m no stranger to freak outs. I’ve reached my breaking point many times, with friends, family, my band members, and especially myself and God. The porn addiction is so difficult to pull away from, we all know that. Everything else becomes irritating, like everyone is on your back and attacking you. All the little things you never noticed before now seems irritating and annoying. The more stuff you have behind closed doors, the harder and faster it flys open when you turn the handle too far. What I mean by this is that when you go past your breaking point, all the mess behind the closed doors fly out and end up hurting way more than they needed to. To clear the air is to heal, it’s a rehabilitating thing, it fixes things like you’ve never seen before. Talk things out, let someone in. If you just open up about your issues then someone can be your accountability partner, it’s so difficult to do anything big on your own, and the more you try the more you will bend and eventually break. Have someone you can trust and confide in, they may be one of the keys to your recovery. Step one is trust in God.

Mat Slagle