HT: Clint Hughes
More festive cheer!
Image taken from cover of "Pure" by Linda Marshall (Click to view)
Continuing with a series of Purity Posts, here’s some startling research from the US. Justin Taylor cites a shocking statistic from a university study:
Researchers were conducting a study comparing the views of men in their 20s who had never been exposed to pornography with regular users.
But their project stumbled at the first hurdle when they failed to find a single man who had not seen it.
“We started our research seeking men in their 20s who had never consumed pornography,” said Professor Simon Louis Lajeunesse. “We couldn’t find any.”
I can believe that.
Justin also points to some free resources and a couple of books worth buying in the battle for purity (HT: Mike Anderson):
- R. Albert Mohler Jr., “The Seduction of Pornography and the Integrity of Christian Marriage” (talk to college students: PDF, MP3)
- David Powlison, “Breaking Pornography Addiction” (article: part 1, part 2)
- David Powlison, Making All Things New: Restoring Pure Joy to the Sexually Broken (conference talk: audio, video, and chapter)
- John Piper, Battling the Unbelief of Lust (sermon in manuscript, audio)
- John Piper, A.N.T.H.E.M: Strategies for Fighting Sexual Lust (article)
- Mark Driscoll, Porn-Again Christian (free eBook)
- Tim Challies, Sexual Detox: A Guide for the Single Guy (free eBook)
- Tim Challies, Sexual Detox: A Guide for the Married Guy (free eBook)
- Joshua Harris, Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is): Sexual Purity in a Lust-Saturated World (book)
- Ed Welch, Crossroads: A Step-By-Step Guide Away from Addiction (study guide)
- Kris Lundgaard, The Enemy Within: Straight Talk About the Power and Defeat of Sin (book on sin and temptation in general, built on John Owen’s work)
Continuing with the purity-themed posts, here’s some help from xxxchurch.com for those who have taken their use of online pornography to the level of addiction.
For a fee ($99/ approx. £60) you can sign up to a 30-day online program that “can help you end the downward spiral of shame, alienation, and sin.” It even has programs tailored to specific groups of people, such as married men, single guys, and single girls (for some reason there isn’t an option for married women!?).
The program has online video workshops as well as a downloadable work book. Plus, to help with the fight a free subscription to the Safe Eyes filtering software.
I haven’t tried this course myself, and I would be interested to hear from anyone who has been through one these programs, either successfully or otherwise.
Just one more piece of armour in the battle for purity.
HT: Dave Bish
Go Wayne Grudem! (Sung to the tune of Grease Lightening!)
Why this man is thematic, he’s charismatic, he’s systematic,
Why he’s Wayne Grudem! (Wayne Grudem)
He did not author Scripture but provides a clearer picture – Oh Yeah!
(Keep reading whoa keep reading)
Wayne may not be Jesus but he writes mean exegesis- Oh Yeah!
(I’ll buy a copy, I’ll kill to buy a copy)
You put it on the flo-or and it props open your door,
Or if you need to sit- you can climb on top of it – With Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
(There are) many heresies which we-e now clearly see- Oh yeah!
(oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
Despite him being bald, hundred-thousand copies sold – Oh yeah!
(oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
His six appendice-es leave you praying on your knees.
Although he’s not inerrant he’s a heresy deterrent – Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Grudem, grudem, grudem, grudem
Grudem, grudem, grudem, grudem yeah!
4BCAKHMTED9C
A few weeks ago I published a post about making every tweet/ blog post/ Facebook update count for the glory of God (in reaction to the death of Pastor Thomas Young). I still mean that, but I’ve realised since that I want to clarify what I mean, and make sure that readers don’t leave this blog feeling guilty about enjoying Twitter etc.
I’m the first in the queue for laughs and giggles; if I find something online that I think is funny and worth sharing then I’ll post it. Providing it’s clean and appropriate and doesn’t lead anyone into sin, then that’s God honouring.
What I would hate to leave as my last online contribution would be a post/tweet whining about my family, my church or my friends. I’d hate to have left people with the impression that God and the gospel didn’t mean all that much to me, and that I didn’t value as the highest treasure his sovereign grace towards me in Christ.
That’s what I was talking about when I wrote that post. I didn’t to give the impression that we can’t share funny things, or tweet about how we’ve enjoying time with our family and so on. I meant that we should be aiming to show God to be our joy and greatest desire in everything we say, whether that’s celebrating his good gifts, or enjoying the sense humour that He’s blessed (some of) us with!
So please don’t feel guilty – enjoy Twitter and Blogging and Facebook, but just do it sensibly and within the bounds of Scripture.
Whatever you tweet or blog or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.
Thanks to the new WordPress widget you can now make sure that you never miss a single enthralling WardBlog post! (Or you can keep an eye out for when/if one comes along!)
So why not make my stats look a bit happier and just pop your email address into this little box on the left hand side of your screen? And while you’re at it, why not leave a comment or two!?
For all you dads, soon-to-be-dads, hope-to-one-day-be-dads and any other kind of dad, here’s some helpful tips from Mark Driscoll for the Christmas season.
#1 – Dad needs a plan for the holidays to ensure his family is loved and memories are made. Dad, what’s your plan?
#2 – Dad needs to check the local guides for what’s going on to make fun holiday plans for the family. In Seattle it’s here.
#3 – Dad needs to carve out time for sacred events and experiences to build family traditions that are fun and point to Jesus. Dad, is your calendar ready for December?
#4 – Dad needs to not let the stress of the holidays, including money, cause him to begrumpy with Mom or the kids. Dad, how’s your joy?
#5 – Dad needs to give experiences and not just gifts. Dad, what special memoriescan you make this holiday season?
#6 – Dad needs to manage the extended family and friends during the holidays. Dad, who or what do you need to say “no” to?
#7 – Dad needs to ensure his family is giving generously during the holidays. Dad, who in need is your family going to adopt and bless?
#8 – Dad needs to schedule a big Christmas daddy date with his daughter. Dad, what’s your big plan for the fancy daddy date?
#9 – Dad needs to schedule guy time with his son. Dad, what are you and your son going to do that is active, outdoors, and fun?
#10 – Dad needs to help Mom get the house decorated. Dad, are you really a big help to Mom with getting things ready?
#11 – Dad needs to ensure some holiday smells and sounds. Dad, is Christmas music on the iPod, is the tree up, and can you smell cookies and cider in your house?
#12 – Dad needs to snuggle up and watch some fun shows with the kids, especially the little ones. Dad, is the DVR set?
#13 – Dad needs to take the family on a drive to see Christmas lights while listening to music and sipping cider. Dad, is it mapped out?
#14 – Dad needs to help Mom get the kids’ rooms decorated. Dad, do the little kids get lights or a small tree in their room?
#15 – Dad needs to read about Jesus and pray over his kids. Dad, how’s your pastoral work going with each of your kids?
#16 – Dad needs to repent of being lazy, selfish, grumpy, or just dumping the holidays on Mom. Dad, are you a servant like Jesus to your family?
NB: I’ve got a feeling that ‘Cider’ is something different in the USA than in the UK. Otherwise, we have Driscoll on record as encouraging drink-driving, and endorsing giving alcohol to small children – a kind of festive family joy-ride.
Fact #1 – If you are human, you have sexual desire (and that’s a good thing).
Fact #2 – The internet is a temptation beyond what most of can resist completely (and that’s a bad thing)
Fact #3 – You can help yourself by installing K9 Web Protection on all your computers for free (and that’s a blessing from God!).
Over the last few years I’ve become aware of some online purity helps that I think need to be shared more widely. I’ve found these to be particularly helpful in my own battle for purity and I pray will be of great benefit to you also.
So look out for some posts in the near future and let’s battle together for the purity of the Church of Jesus.
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