Question:
okay so lets start back a couple monthes ago okay ok i have a horribley powerful addiction to porn then april rolls around april 7th got saved after that i found my self wanting it more and more and unfortunatlly i gave in.. and now geuss what addiction rears its ugly head and i dont know what to do i feel so guilty after i do it so i know gods telling me not to but for some reason i cant stop and i hate it uhh so much and also unfortunattly im very good at not getting caught and i dont know if any one has broken away from an addiction please share what you did
Answer:
I struggle with it but I will lift you up in prayer.
-In Prayer-
Answer:
(I have never struggled with an addiction specific to porn, but have struggled with a great many others.)
Because you are a Christian, you are no longer a slave of sin. You are still vulnerable to temptation, but you have been given the power to resist. Call on the Name of the Lord Christ in desperation when you feel tempted. Seek accountability in a trusted friend.
I encourage you to read Romans 7:14 through Romans 8:25
It deals excellently with the conflict of our two natures (spirit and flesh).
And THEN read 1 Corinthians 12:13, which deals with temptation specifically.
God bless--I will be praying.
Answer:
yeah 1 cor. 12 & 13 are very good!! you know bottom line is that we all stuggle with temption most every day. God is the one who is there beside you to help you through it all. He is right there. He won't ever leave! Nothign that you could ever do could seperate you from his love. the next time you feel tempted, do somthign that you enjoy that helps get your mind off of stuff, running, hiking,just somthing. If you have problems when you are on the computer, you can get a "filter" to help block sites. Find somone you can trust and tell them about it if you havn't already, and every time you sin tell that person, and every time you were tempted and resisted, tell that person... i will be praying for you!!
Answer:
thanks for the advice and prayer i have definately made a conscious attempt to stop
Answer:
Originally Posted by gwen2dapey thanks for the advice and prayer i have definately made a conscious attempt to stop
...which is almost certainly going to fail. If we could make ourselves into good Christians through conscious effort or willpower, there would have been no need for Jesus to be crucified.
Have you read Psalm 51? It's the prayer that King David prays after he commits adultery - a prayer of repentance. If you think of repentance as "asking forgiveness and trying to do better next time," you would expect David, in his prayer, to pledge to God that he will never make the same mistake again. But he doesn't. He doesn't make any promises that he will try to be a better person. But here's what he does say:
"Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me...
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." (Ps 51:10, 12)
He doesn't say, "I'll make myself into a better person." He says, "MAKE ME a better person." Give me a steadfast spirit, willing to do what's right. Give me a pure heart. That's what you should be doing. Not trying to make yourself good, but constantly asking God to give you the strength and the willingness to be good.
And notice the other verse above, too: "Restore to me the joy of your salvation." If you look at your life and look at _when_ you give in to this temptation, I'd be willing to bet that it's at times when you feel discouraged and joyless and lonely and don't feel good about yourself. At times when you're happy and feeling close to God, I'll bet it isn't much of a temptation for you. "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Neh 8:10).
You can't avoid sin by focusing on sin. If you're constantly thinking, "I've got to avoid this sin," you're focusing on sin, even though you're focusing on how to avoid sin. The right way to avoid sin is by focusing on Jesus: as long as your eyes are fixed on him, your attention won't be drawn away to lesser sources of comfort.
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Heb 12:1-2)
Answer:
Originally Posted by Blindman You can't avoid sin by focusing on sin. If you're constantly thinking, "I've got to avoid this sin," you're focusing on sin, even though you're focusing on how to avoid sin. The right way to avoid sin is by focusing on Jesus: as long as your eyes are fixed on him, your attention won't be drawn away to lesser sources of comfort.
that right there is crucial....
Answer:
What I do sometimes is set the content filter on my computer, and make the password something that will make me think twice (most recently, it was "husband," since I'm married). If and when you do give in, make sure you clear out your history, cookies, and temporary internet files, so that they don't pop back up on your computer and tempt you to go back to it.
Also, there is a VERY good book on this by Stephen Arturburn and Fred Stoeker called Every Man's Battle. Take a look.