Missional Living

I’ve been kicking this post around in my head for a while. The hard thing is that blogs have inherently short posts, and this is not something I can express in 200 words or less. Nevertheless…

As I posted not too long ago, a very dear ministry friend of mine emerged from rehab a while back and recommended Nate Larkin’s Samson and the Pirate Monks to me. As a book that recounts Larkin’s own struggles with addictions, from sexual issues to pride and ego issues, it’s absolutely great. He paints the portrait that we are sinner-saints: beautiful monsters that are at once theiving and pillaging Pirates as well as God-chasing Monks. It’s about him finding God in the midst of struggle, addiction, and destruction of his personal world. To be honest, I was expecting someing along the lines of Elderedge’s Wild at Heart. But what I found was incredibly more honest. Vulnerable. Refreshing. Dare I say… ‘balanced’?

Just like Fight Club, I have to add, the I-Ching-search-for-God flick of our generation. I can imagine meeting Larkin on the street at night, downing a couple dozen glazed Crispy Cremes (ala ‘Bob’). When I ask him why he hasn’t been at our local men’s retreat lately, he replies, "Oh…I’ve found something so much better. But the first rule is…I’m not supposed to talk about it. And the second rule is…I’m not supposed to talk about it. And the third rule is…"

So, to Nate: I’m a member. I’ve joined the Samson Society. No, it’ s not a secret underground boxing club. It’s an online group of men who are looking for authentic brotherhood, encouragement, friendship and accountability.

Some are alcoholics.

Some are porn addicts.

Some are cancer survivors.

Some divorced.

Some sexually abused or verbally abusive.

Some are struggling musicians and artists.

Some are just tired of the macho, chest-thumping that poses for manhood and want a group of friends they can count on to share their hopes and fears and dreams. A group they can count on to walk their rocky and uncertain journey with.

Check out the book, Samson and the Pirate Monks, as well as the Samson Society online.

We’re in the beginning stages of Sex Camp in our ministry. (a phrase coined by some students during our sex/dating/relationships series.) We’re officially calling it Sex and Dating, but the students are calling it Sex Camp 1.0. Last week Stef started us with some thoughts from Scripture, paired with some principles from Sex and The Supremacy of Christ. This week, I pick up with ‘guys issues’ (whatever that is…) which deals with teen sex and porn. BTW, 1 of ever 3 pornsite visitors is female…

So, in preparing and researching for Sunday morning’s discussion, where else to turn to but my favorite ‘christian pornsite’, XXXchurch.com ? According to their statistics, porn is a $57 billion dollar a year business, more revenue than pro baseball, basketball and football combined. That translates into 4.2 million porn websites (12% of the entire web), 372 million pages, 68 million daily search engine requests, and 4.5 daily emails to the average email user. 

I used to plead with parents of teens to be aware. To install the FREE X3 Watch software. To get our high school guys to move their computer out of their bedroom and into the family room.

Not anymore.

The stark reality is that if you are reading this, you need accountability. You need X3 Watch regardless if you have ‘good kids’ or not. If you’re a dude or not. Move your computer out of the bedroom and into the family room. Get the software. Talk about it.  Move the issue away from secrecy and towards healing and accountability.

Check out the resources provided by XXXCHURCH:

Porn and Pancakes

Porn and Pastries

The Porn Debate (with Ron Jeremy)

Jesus Loves Pornstars