Diary of an Addict

Key Objective for Week #7: To clean house of everything unclean.

Memory Verse:

Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

+ 2 Corinthians 10:5b

The discussions at this week’s meeting of the Purity Platoon focused on two areas – (i) what has been working? and (ii) how do we prepare for vulnerability?

I was impressed with how well things have been going for most of the men in the Platoon. I have been in a number of different support groups to fight the problem of sexual and pornography addiction. Most of these groups start with a check-in which includes a definition of the addict’s “bottom line behavior.” In other words, each addict has to identify what behavior crosses the line into addictive acting out.

The discussion in this group is so different. There is no discussion of bottom lines. We are not setting out to avoid certain lowest level behaviors – no, in this group the goal is purity. The discussion is to see how people have done with avoiding any use of pornography, any masturbation, and any fantasizing about women. Anything less than a complete avoidance of these areas of sexual sin is short of the goal of the Purity Platoon.

In this sense, the Purity Platoon has taken very seriously the words of Christ from the Sermon on the Mount:

Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

+ Matthew 5:8, 27-28, 48

Here I am, a man who has been struggling with constant and compulsive use of internet pornography, and now I am sitting with a group of men having a serious discussion about whether any of us has had “lust in our heart” over the past week. Praise be to the Lord Jesus Christ who makes such a thing possible!!!

The other focus of our discussion was planning for vulnerability. At what times are we most vulnerable to sexual sin?

• What emotional state make us vulnerable – alone, bored, angry, depressed, frustrate?

• What physical states make us vulnerable – wife is gone, we’re alone in a hotel room, bathroom, bedroom, other?

• What time of the day are we most vulnerable – morning, afternoon, evening, late night, after everyone’s asleep?

Then the question is, what plan are you going to make to protect yourself in these vulnerable times?  These are the situations for which you can post a rear guard.  Disclose to accountability partners your situations of vulnerability and schedule phone check-ins for those occasions.  Make the plan now while you are free from bondage!