Recently our Pastor preached a message on the subject of pornography. The following list of resources has been made available to help you or someone you know as they battle in this area.
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Free Accountability Software:
x3watch Software
Free Filtering
k9webprotection.com
Excellent Books:
“At the Altar of Sexual Immorality”, Steve Gallagher
“Not Even a Hint: Guarding Your Heart Against Lust”, Joshua Harris
“Every Man’s Battle”, Stephen Arterburn, Fred Stoeker, and Mike Yorkey
Statistics & Information:
http://www.wisechoice.net/porn-statistics/
Other Resources You May Find Helpful:
BattleZONE Ministries
PureOnline
Online Counseling
Protecting Kids
Free Filtering Software and Training
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Honestly, this is an area where I know I must be vigilant. I’ve used the x3watch software on my home and work computers for several years now, and my wife and my brother are the ones who get the e-mail twice a month. In addition to them, there are also several other guys in my life who hold me accountable and who I help hold accountable.
UPDATE 8/29/08: I’ve been using the K9 Filter for several months now, and it’s the best thing I’ve come across, especially for free. It can be customized, and I highly recommend it.
I may be a pastor, but I’m still human, and I realize that accountability is a huge part of living in a way that’s pleasing to God.
I wonder if pornography by definition does not trouble the blind? To see in our society is to encounter pornography. If I could get around by only looking up I might try it.
Rob, that’s a good point. There are ample opportunities to compromise besides buying a pornographic magazine or visiting a porn website.
Even before adolescence I was reading stuff in novels that was completely inappropriate, and I know that the impact of those decisions probably still affects me today.
Newsjunkie, thanks so much for your insightful and candid comment! I couldn’t agree more!
Can a girl weigh in here? This is a topic that tends to be reserved for the men with a great disservice to the struggles of women in this area. When a woman’s struggles are dismissed with “they don’t struggle with that” it causes internal strife and damage that at times makes it even harder to seek out help in pulling out of the mire of clay that the devil has dragged her into.
Secret sin is SO powerful, not only because it provides no accountability and is allowed to fester, but also because it causes a feeling of taboo and the longer it is allowed to continue the stronger the foothold of the devil becomes.
Not all women may struggle with looking at pornography in the most conventional way, but there are a massive amount that do. As Kyle mentioned, there are ample opportunities to let our mind stray from the things that God wants us to focus on. Sales for romance novels are at an all-time high, erotic literature and undertones in what we watch create an images for women that most think are reserved for men. What society now tells women is a healthy sexuality is not being addressed as a dangerous path into a darkness that is so hard to see out of.
When Paul states in 2 Timothy to “Flee youthful lusts” it’s not just addressed at men and my fear is that if we don’t make it clear that this is something that is just as dangerous to women we are allowing for two outcomes… one where women are drawn into something because they didn’t see it as dangerous and weren’t able to prepare themselves or a scenario where a woman is addicted and has nowhere to turn for fear of admitting that she may be the only one with such struggles.
Here’s an excerpt from and a link to an interesting article I read today about protecting our kids from pornography:
“Until our children understand why they can feel lonely in a crowded room … until our children understand why they wish life had a happy ending like the movies … until our children understand why they can be sad while opening Christmas gifts … until they understand the core longing that is always there inside of them, they will never know how to defend against the pull of pornography.
We all have this deep inner longing and nothing in this universe can soothe it. We live in a world that was not meant to be this way. We live in a fallen world! Deep in our souls we know that things are not the way they are supposed to be. We know that death is an intrusion and an obscene affront to life. We know there is more to life than this—whatever this is.”
http://www.cpyu.org/Page.aspx?id=219124
A friend just sent me a link to free internet filtering for homes, and while I haven’t done a demo of the software yet, I thought I’d post a link here for those who are interested.
http://www.k9webprotection.com/
I wanted to report that I’ve been running a demo of the K9 software on my home computer for several months, and I’m very pleased with the way the filter works.
If you’re looking for an internet filter, I suggest you try this out:
http://www.k9webprotection.com/