Pornography Addiction

I was pulling some stats together for a group I'm speaking with tonight ... listen to this:

• In a 2002 meeting of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers two thirds of the lawyers present said that pornography played a large role in more than half of their divorce cases ... and that it was almost non-existent only 7 to 8 years earlier.


• 53% of Christian men consume pornography


• 90% of 8-16 year old children have viewed porn online ... yes 90%

Even though, this has been a personal struggle of mine for much of my teen and adult life, I am still amazed at the statistics. I have come to believe that this particular addiction is worsened in 'church-world' where we are likely to stay completely silent.

It is interesting that even though we as Christians know that following Jesus is about forgiveness, we quickly equate our self-worth to appearing to be a good person rather than actually becoming one. The beautiful thing about the forgiveness Jesus provides is that it should give us the ability to face our sins honestly - and in the process to be changed. We should not have to pretend! So why do we?

If more than 50% of men struggle with pornography now, that means almost every man has at some point in their life - particularly the younger crowd who has grown up with porn only an anonymous mouse click away. Practically everybody is struggling or has struggled!

So what are you doing to be honest about this issue? Are you honest with anyone?

And for Parents ...

If you have teen children who have access to unfiltered internet at home or at a friends house, they HAVE VIEWED pornography. You do not have to wonder about it! The stats say 90% ... and that includes those 8 years old! They have viewed it. It has happened. Are you speaking with them about it? If you have never spoken with them about it, it is not their fault that they don't know how to deal with it.

I hope this isn't overly direct or harsh. It is something I feel passionate about. We believers, seem to be quick to protest these things publicly or politically, but very slow to address them in our own life. Let's start with us ... and we start by talking about it.