From Piet – 09/07/18
I am in awe as to what God Has done in my life. This all began when I was a small child as far as I remember God Had a special focus on me and called me for something bigger than what I imagined at the age of 6. Whilst this was happening evil forces also focused in various ways to prevent me from reaching my calling. I accepted through God’s Grace Jesus Christ as my Saviour 5 September 1982 got married in 1983 and have two beautiful daughters. Now divorced for 15 years but God intervened although He never let go of my hand. God poured out His Holy Spirit on 24 March 2018 where we were called to pray for rain. Sexual sin was rife in my life but God rescued me and I was able to make a 180 degree turn to Jesus and found Follow Jesus to Freedom with Neill Morris. I thank God that I was delivered and found purity through Christ. No sexual sin since 19 May 2018 as God took care of all. I am open and sharing and stay accountable through family and friends who support me. Living a gay lifestyle has been removed and deemed a lie from satan himself. Glory be to God He Has changed me and total surrender to God is the only way. It’s a life of freedom and having a ripple effect in my life and those around me.
Amen and Praise God He uses me and sends comfort and confirmation of my calling which is higher than I anticipate
Lifting up Our Lord God Son Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit AMEN 🙏🙏
09/04/18 My name is Steve
I am 55. I have been struggling with sexual sin most of my adult life. At age 9 or
10 I was exposed to Playboy. Later, I was exposed to more porn, I discovered in the neighbor's garbage! Since porn wasn't as available in the 80s and 90s I didn't use it too much but it was stuck in my head like a bad headache. I accepted the Lord about this time and porn took a back seat for a while. I didn't stop thinking about it though as I did masturbate. (A stronghold was built)I knew that this was a sin but I just believed it wasn't possible to stop. This was on and off until I got married.
I didn't seek porn for another couple of years after I got married. I went to a very spiritually uplifting retreat. The power of the Lord was definitely there! I came back and my wife had put a letter on the stash of porn under my bed. I was devastated. I cried and cried and cried. I stopped for a while.
A few years fast forward and the internet appeared on the scene. I was really hooked. I knew in my mind that this wasn't right. I actually did a formal confession to my pastor. I was so ashamed I wrote it down on paper. He prayed for me and explained that it was a natural process..... I stopped for a while....the pastor retired and I had another one. He was much better. He understood about accountability. About how 2 are better than one. 2 cords are stronger than one. He called me every day for 2 years!
I also confessed at this time to my wife. That was super hard. She didn't understand. It was really hard.
As you can see I went up and down in this struggle with porn. I acknowledged Jesus as Lord but I don't think I really, really acknowledged him as savior. It was God's special timing in February of this year that He had something planned for me. I had "fallen off the wagon." I didn't just look at soft core. I looked at hard core. My accountability partner sent me a note saying “what are you doing?” That is when the Lord worked! At that moment the Lord showed up in an email from a guy from this course! Coincidence right?
I can’t say I experienced immediate victory. I struggled but less often. There was a message that resonated in my life- is Jesus Lord over your entire life? The answer had been "mostly." I accepted Jesus as Savior but not as Lord. He saved me but He also heals.The thought of Total Surrender finally was sinking in. This was not just the visible parts but the invisible parts too. He wanted my purity inside as well as outside.
The Lord wants His people to be Holy. Through the Lord's grace, I am aiming towards holiness. This wasn't a free ride. Things had to change. Stuff had to be cut off for me to think with purity. Activity had to start, like spending more intimacy with the Lord and less about myself. Study in God's word became more critical. Prayer and service of others became natural. The Lord came not to be served but to serve, should I not try to be like the Lord? Out of this came Thankfulness. I started writing often about how wonderful the Lord has blessed the world around me. Praise the Lord! Praise Him above all else. Thank you Jesus for this special time.
08/24/18 My name is Dennis;
the Lord caught my attention with different friends still being a wild student. He intrigued me with the Bible. He answered during one year every single question after daily Bible reading. On top the answers came everyday within 24 hours and spot on. He did many more miracles out of His pure love. Finally after 18 months I surrendered and asked Jesus in my heart. I was born again.
I can say that from that point on nearly everything in me changed, my black and white life turned to color, past, present and future. Except for my secret desire, looking at women. Still by miracle I married a most godly and beautiful woman. But after some years while alone at night or on business trips the P-bar from Egypt, as in my student years became interesting again.
Internet and TV alone times, you know the story.... Ashamed I finally asked help of my godly spouse. It worked for a time. Then we moved to the US and in a fine church with accountability and men-groups I grew totally strong and free!!! HalleluYAH.
But, once back in Europe, the battle started again. Then on top as my wife left the battle became even more intense.
But praise the Lord I heard about courses like Purity Through Christ/Follow Jesus to Freedom. Through the extremely patient mentors and the Holy Spirit encouragements, I started to see a glimmer of hope. This time when I started the course for the nth time The Lord promised me, hang in there, finish it no matter what and I will do what you can't do.
Truly I was more disappointed in myself then ever during this course. I thought I'd do much better. Truly it is FULL Grace and so I finish this course. I feel like at the mountain top, but not proud about myself. More like a child whose hand was held by almighty God during the whole long mountain climb. If I may encourage you. Please no matter what, continue walking with the Lord. Even if you are disappointed in yourself until 'i do not know how much anymore - I have no breath left’.
What kept me going? The promise of The Lord, and the patient mentor and to look only one step, I repeat ONLY ONE STEP AHEAD while going. Father's hand has really held me firm. Here I stand a surrendered man, nothing to boast but to give my Dad, Almighty God, My Lord, The Holy Spirit every molecule of praise and honor.
08/20/18 My name is Monas.
I have once enlightened and tasted the heavenly gift of repentance from my secret life of living in sexual sins ten years ago. Nevertheless, I experienced many relapses in the following years. I crucified the Son of God all over again and subjected Him to public disgrace. It was impossible for a person like me to get back to repentance.
But the Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love. He brought me back though I did not deserve because I have been disgracing Him publicly. God forgave me and showed me a way to come out of this secret life of sexual sin. He showed me that the enemy of my soul have been playing games by engaging me to distrust the Lord for all my needs. It wasn't easy to repent again but I am thankful for God 's grace and His timely word for giving me assurance of salvation again. He showed me how Jesus is interceding for me before the father. I relearnt what does it mean to a live a life of absolute surrender; like a branch in the vine for sustenance to produce fruit.
I am broken again at His feet for a fresh new life by the grace of God through my Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Its been more than one year now I have been walking in purity since I started the lessons on Follow Jesus to Freedom. I am so much thankful to God and my mentor brother Neill who helped to press on for freedom in Christ. I am also grateful for my wife and accountability partner who prayed for me and walked along with me in all this difficult time. I am being renewed and disciplined in my spiritual, professional, financial and family life by the help of Holy Spirit. I am living for Christ in absolute surrender to God.
I am sold out to Jesus and going to serve Him more than ever in a new way for the rest of my life by honoring him to choose to live a pure life in His strength.
May I ask those who have had relapses in their past life like me that they can come back to Jesus who is awaiting for you with His arms stretched to embrace you. There is a hope for you in Jesus. He will not turn his face away from you. God bless you.
07/26/18
My name is Danny, and I have been saved by Jesus Christ.
My Jesus story starts when he saved me at 9 years old but as I grew older I grew apart from Him. I felt that there were things I wanted that Jesus could not or would not give me. So I rebelled and ran to find satisfaction apart from Him. I was involved in pornography and self-gratification for 19 years. I still went to church every Sunday and was looking good on the outside but on the inside I was covered with sin and shame.
But a friend said something to me one day that hit me hard. "Danny, what are you really living for?" I realized I had been living for sin and not for Jesus. Then I was blessed to find the Follow Jesus to Freedom course and Jesus has changed my life.
Jesus is the answer. I have found the only way to truly live is to live for Jesus and all that He offers to us! He gives me peace, joy, love, and I am satisfied by Him. Thank you Jesus!
07/06/18 Monas - about one of our lessons
I cannot express my joy at
how much I am touched by this lesson.
A branch is the complete illustration of the Absolute surrender.
And Jesus prays for me as in John chapter 17
"I am the Vine, I will receive you,
I will draw you to myself, I will bless you,
I will strengthen you, I will fill you with my Spirit.
I, the Vine,
have taken you to be my branches,
I have given myself utterly to you; children,
give yourselves utterly to me.
I have surrendered myself as God,
absolutely to you;
I became man and died for you
that I might be entirely yours.
Come and surrender yourselves entirely to be mine."
It has renewed all my strength,
I cannot tell in words.
06/08/18 Philip’s Testimony
I was deceived by the great deceiver who managed to entrap me in his worldly net of pornography. I was fortunate in that I never got to heavily involved nor paid for the "privilege" of looking at pornography. I also managed to stay "free" for long periods, but I always fell back into sin after a period of staying "clean". Self-gratification also became a bigger problem as the years went by. The older I got, the more often I subjected myself to self-gratification. I began to think that this is how I can prove my manliness to myself.
A number of years ago my wife accidentally came across some pornographic images
which were on my computer. This shocked her out of her boots. She could not believe that this "innocent" man, with whom she has been married all these years, could waste his time looking at such junk! This was after I went to a number pastors over the years in an effort to get rid of the problem. Unfortunately nobody offered to keep me accountable, with the result that I always fell back into sin again. I thought that the fact that my wife knew would help me to "lick" the habit. Unfortunately Satan is more ruthless than that and he did not let my wife's knowledge keep me from indulging into some pornographic viewing "once in a while" again. Fortunately Jesus cares and whenever I "stepped over the line" she would "accidentally" catch me out. I now know it was Jesus' way of getting me back on track. I knew it was wrong, but there was no real repentance.
During September 2005 my pastor told me about an Internet website where I can do a study to help me get free. I contacted the local office and had an appointment with a possible accountability partner. Unfortunately he left overseas shortly afterwards and I did not get anybody to replace him. Meanwhile I was doing very well being free of self-gratification for more than a year and free from pornography for three months. Those three months grew to twelve months when I started to slip again. I did not get involved in pornographic viewing again, but the cracks began to appear.
Once while I was a “testing“ the limits of the web filter I loaded onto my computer, I discovered that it did let through some ”soft porn“ images. While I was doing this, my wife walked into the room. Jesus' perfect timing again! I realised I must take drastic action and searched for a website which could help me to get free. I found one and registered immediately. I have now been free since then and have realised that I must not follow Jesus at a distance as Peter did during His trial. Peter denied Jesus three times because he was not close enough. I now ensure that I always walk in the shadow of the Holy Spirit so that Satan cannot entice me with his tricks. Doing Bible study on a structured basis have opened my eyes and brought me to the point of true sorrow and real repentance. I now serve Jesus with renewed vigor and enthusiasm.
I know that I will sin again, but as long as I drink from the living water provided by Jesus Christ, and stay in His shadow, He will not leave me nor forsake me.
03/28/18 From John
My name is John. I am a sinner who has been saved by the grace of God! I did not grow up in a Christian home. However, my parents did take us to church when I was young and at the age of nine, I understood the gospel and gave Jesus Christ my Life. By the time I was around the age of 12, my parents and two older sisters had gradually quit attending church and I had no way to go. Yet I understood that I had a living relationship with Jesus Christ.
When I turned 16 and had a drivers license I begin attending church again with some Christian friends. Within a matter of weeks I knew clearly that God had called me into full-time ministry. It was a shock mixed with disbelief when I told my unbelieving family what God had called me to do. Nevertheless, my parents supported me. I grew spiritually at a rapid pace during my last couple years in high school and then I went off to Bible college where I met my wife. After graduation, my wife and I served in full-time Christian ministry in various ways for just over 22 years. I began my ministry with a very humble spirit, so grateful for all God has done in my life.
However, as the years progressed in ministry, my spiritual pride became puffed up. I did not even realize it was happening. Ministry success and blessings from the Lord we’re going to my head. The Scripture says, “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.” In my pride, thinking everything should work out the way I planned, I became disillusioned over a few things in ministry. All of that was my fault. I lost my focus and started using porn and even began to frequent strip joints. I eventually had an affair with a woman in the church where was serving. When it became public, of course I had to resign and the process of repentance began. I can honestly praise God With all of my heart that he gave me the grace to repent of the affair and gave my wife and family the grace to forgive.
That was 16 years ago. However, my battle with pornography has been much more difficult to overcome. As I look back over these past 16 years, I realize that I never really did completely repent of it. It lessoned at times as I would seek the Lord but I just had not implemented the correct steps of obedience to Christ in order to break the bondage of my sin entirely. I had been doing very well for a while and the local church, where we became members, asked me to step up to a key leadership position as a layman in the church. I did not expect that! The pastor knew my past and yet felt I was ready to do more. I was so encouraged. However, I had never had an iPhone.
Sometime after taking on this new leadership role in our church, I finally broke down and got an iPhone. Within a matter of weeks, my battle with pornography came back full steam. I simply have not thoroughly dealt with this issue in my life.
Just over two years ago, God woke me in the middle of the night and convicted me of my hypocritical lifestyle. God brought me to my knees and I went to our church leadership and pastor and I sought there forgiveness and I resigned from my leadership position. It seemed like that step of obedience was more painful and humbling then resigning from full-time ministry many years before. Yet God had begun to open my eyes to see just how sinful and disobedient I had been living my life. At first I was so overwhelmed with my sinfulness that I questioned my salvation, my righteousness in Christ, and wondered how I could go on. I am naturally a very upbeat person but at this point in my life I became a very depressed individual, which was nothing more than a further manifestation of my pride.
As I shared my issues with a good Christian friend, he pointed me to this particular course. I have been through “Follow Jesus To Freedom” twice now. This course is fantastic but what has really changed my life is the work of God in my heart during this course. I believe God has dealt with me in three different ways that have been life-changing.
First. God has revealed to me how much I needed the saving grace he gave to me when I was a nine year old. I knew I needed it then, but not nearly as much as I realize it today! Like many children who make a profession of faith and trust Christ as their Savior, I am absolutely confident that what I did so it was genuine. But I was also very young and had very little idea just how sinful I truly was. At that age I had no idea what I was capable of in the energy of my flesh, nor did I have any idea just exactly how much sin in my life Jesus died for over 2000 years ago.
As I progressed through this course, I became overwhelmed at the goodness and grace of my sovereign Lord, who knew everything I would ever do, (just like the Samaritan woman) and yet still drew me to himself! As I continued, God took me from living in a depressed worldly sorrow of remorse to a joyful Godly sorrow of repentance and brokenness! Only God can do that. This course was simply an instrument in his hand to guide me in the right direction.
I have been an ordained minister since 1980 and have preached in over 1500 churches all across this country and yet I had a desperate need to come to the cross in brokenness in a fresh new way. I needed to see my sinfulness the way God sees it. He allowed me to fall in a serious way in order to get my attention. He did not tempt me, I gave into my own lusts.
Years ago I was upset with God that he let me fall so hard and destroy my ministry. Now I realize that he loved me so much that he was more concerned about my fellowship with him and the purity of my heart than he was about the effectiveness of my ministry. It all makes sense now. If Jesus would go to so much trouble as to die on the cross for my sins, it is no wonder that he would spare no expense to purify my heart from iniquity and sanctify my life to be pleasing to him! Jesus did not die on the cross for my ministry he died on the cross for me! Praise his name!
Second. God has used this course to strengthen and solidify some absolutely necessary and essential biblical parameters and principles that needed to be in place in my heart and life. My faith had become so weak. God has strengthened my faith and has given me the grace to swallow my pride, accept His forgiveness and forgive myself. He has taught me on a deeper level to walk in the Spirit, and abide in the vine as an impotent branch who is totally dependent upon the life of the vine. I have always believed in accountability but I needed it in place in a fresh new way in order to "walk in the light". There are numerous other principles that God really shored up in my life but perhaps the most significant principle I needed was radical amputation. I really didn't think there was a way I could possess an iPhone that would not be any kind of temptation to me and still be useful to me in all my work on a daily basis, but there is a way! I'm convinced that every man can do it if he really wants to. It takes surrender to Jesus Christ, which brings me to my third point.
Third. There is no way I can over state how much God has used the lessons from Andrew Murray's book in my life. In spite of all of the lessons God has used to refresh my life through this course and all of the biblical principles applied, none of it would not sustain me apart from getting a spiritual handle on this principle of absolute surrender. I can amputate every possible sinful outlet in my life until I'm blue in the face. I can be accountable on a moment by moment basis, but if I am not fully surrendered to Christ, it will all come rolling back over me in time.
I knew when I began reading the lessons from Murray's book that I was on to something, the likes of which I had never studied or experienced before. At first, the thought of absolute surrender simply being something that only God could do with me simply letting go... well, it seemed so intangible and subjective. It was hard for me to get a grip on it. It sounded great but his writings didn't seem realistic for the 21st century, or something like that.
Then when I read his lesson regarding Bible characters like Abraham and Moses, having been assigned by God to do things that only God could do; things that they could not make happen in the energy of their own flesh or by the charisma of their own personalities or by the determination of their own will... and yet God did those things for them as they simply surrendered themselves God do the work in their lives. I was suddenly overwhelmed! I had always seen those as simply greats acts of God accomplished through great people of God. Certainly people of great faith, but works accomplished for ministry purposes. Yet as Murray spoke in the lesson, God's work of absolute surrender in my life is as much a work of God that only God can do, as His work he accomplished through Abraham and Moses was a work only God could do.
It really does require of me simply abiding in the vine and letting God do the work of surrender in my life. I already have proven to myself over and over again that I cannot produce absolute surrender in my life. It has to be an act of God. All of the sudden it clicked for me! It was no longer subjective. That lesson put handles on this issue of absolute surrender in my Christian life and it has been a life changing work of God in me ever since. I can trust Him as much as Abraham and Moses did!
05/22/18 From Case
I have struggled with lust and masturbation since I was a teen. It followed me into my marriage and eventually led to affairs that nearly tore my marriage in two. I even went through this course a second time............
and by Gods grace, He has delivered me from these habitual sins! He has granted me freedom, and given me the practical tools to avoid and flee temptation in the future, in His strength.
He has shown me how selfish and self centered I was. I was a Christian all this time, but I had become sooo focused on pleasing only myself, that I was tearing my family apart, and more importantly, I was separating myself from my Lord and Savior, and fellowship with Him.
He has forgiven, wiped my heart clean, cast my sin as far as the east if from the west. He has shown me that life is all about Him, every moment of every day! I have learned to empty myself of “me”, and ask Him daily to fill me with His love and His Holy Spirit, in absolute surrender. I desire nothing more than to be His servant and serve Him with the talents and abilities He has given me, and to shine His light to others.
And by His grace, I am becoming a better father and husband to my incredible, wonderful wife. For His glory!!!
My story or testimony started when my wife left me. I did not see it coming. We had a son and a daughter on the way, but she did not love me anymore. I was a professional boxer, and the separation put an end to my career. I had to look for a steady job. I should have made God my first response but turned to alcohol and then cocaine, pornography. My anger grew. I was also a workaholic puting in many hrs. There was no balance in my life. Finally i was arrested put in jail for selling a cocaine.
I cried out to God in jail and found peace in His word. With God's mighty hand the cocaine habit was kicked. I got out of jail and started a janitorial business, bought a house was remarried to my beautiful wife Ruth. Ruth also has baggage she was an alcoholic as well, so we worked hard, drank hard. I played in my porn often. Years past until we decided to go back to church, we gave our hearts to the lord and God worked on us we prayed for freedom from the alcohol, and I also prayed for freedom from porn.
God delivered us both the same day from alcohol - thank you Jesus - we were finally set free! Years passed. Ruth and I were active in our church, growing spiritually. But also my struggle with porn did not go away. Ruth and I heard about a mission trip to Costa Rica and we signed up. I was working with a gentleman who, while we were talking, told me about his struggle with a certain sin and how God helped him get victory. this man was set free from porn God had this all planned out for me to meet him in the jungles of the Talamanca region of Costa Rica he got me the information of a course Setting Captives Free where i never did finish the course due to it being discontinued.
But I got to be in touch with Neill Morris who got me started in the follow Jesus to freedom course. And give God the glory I am set free from 43 years of bondage from sexual lust and porn!
Also, I am depending on God for everything and he is doing big things in my life showing me favor. God could have saved me a lot of trouble if i would have made him my first response and not my last resort.
So now what i have learned thru all this I am telling the guys at work how god rescued me and how I didn't want the younger generation to do what I did. and yes I do warn them. Thank you Neil and thank you Claudiu for being obedient by serving guys like me who struggle with this sin.
12/26/17
My name is Joe; as often as appropriate I write my name lowercase. I do that because I am nothing without Jesus. He took the penalty of my sin, the drinking, the vulgar language, the pride and the acting out of my lustful desires. He didn't ask for me to change first, but saved me as is. Despite my causing Him so much pain, He died for me. That truth still, so many years after first realizing it, still makes me cry. I love Jesus for taking me, warts and all and helping me to change. He is worth so much more than anything this world can offer.
12/06/17
Although I was brought up in a Christian home, when I was a teen, I got involved in porn and masturbation. When I moved to Nairobi at about age 20, my habitual sexual sin took on a new dimension. It got worse. And it became a cycle – living victoriously for several months and then back into the mire. I tried everything – even found an online, Christian bible course, but I dropped out after just a short time, and fell back into my old ways. I cannot even begin to describe the depths of my sin.
In early 2011, I made a decision one night to overcome all forms of sexual sin that I had been a captive of. I personally prayed to God for forgiveness and I remembered the online bible study. So I enrolled again around May 2011. Also I went to see my pastor to become my accountability partner. For the first time I shared my real story with someone .Within two weeks I found another accountability partner .These accountability partners helped me through my walk to purity .I must also confess I had to cut off all my past girlfriends and stopped going to night clubs .I was able to complete the course by Nov 2011. But that is not the end of the story.
My female accountability partner eventual became my wife and we got married in March 2012 . Sadly, I admit that the sexual sin again crept into my life. Soon I was having affairs with other women. Although I was doing this in secret, my wife’s gut feelings would always tell her, and she would express the same to me that she felt I was cheating on her . She would even say she felt that I was having inappropriate relationships with some women at my office. I made a resolution to stop the cycle of sexual sin again I repented my sin to God and cut off all the links that caused me to stumble. But did not confess my sin to my wife or to anybody to hold me accountable Each day ,I humbled myself through prayer ,reading and mediating his word, fellowshipping and fasting . Thus I was able to live victoriously for a while.
A few months later, my wife asked me about some previous incidents. It broke my heart to think of how I had hurt her. For the next three days I confessed bit by bit of my sexual sin experiences. It was a very painful moment for her.
We decided to go see our pastor for counseling. That month was not easy for her, but I thank God that we continued to pray and fellowship together.
Both of us began a journey through that online bible ministry. She took the wife’s course, and I began the purity course once more. Jesus did the rest.
I thank God He has enabled me resist sexual sin since 1 Jan 2013 .i have also learned how to be self-controlled and to resist the devil when temptation comes. I have learned to live one day at a time in total dependence on God. I have realized there is no way out except total surrender to Jesus.
Only He can totally liberate a captive of any sin. Having gone through so much, I have also realized that God does not repay us according to our sins, He preserved me even when I was in deep sin.
To God be all the Glory.
Joel
11/15/17
Hi, my name is Byrne. When I came to the course Purity Through Christ, I was struggling deeply with pornographic thoughts, self-centeredness among many other things. As I began to look at the scriptures in the course, God began to open up my eyes to my utter hopelessness in sexual sin and my desperate need for Christ to do a supernatural work in my mind and heart. I began to look up scripture, memorize, and even meditate on scripture throughout my work day. I saw God do great things in my life and my work ethic even improved, due to the fact that I was no longer using the time for sexual immorality. I believe that if God can do this great thing for me, he can do the same in the life of anyone for any sin. Although we constantly change, God's word never ever changes. I have come to learn that I can believe God's word and trust Him with my entire life.
10/19/17
My name is Kirk. Pornography is a sin I've struggled with for over 30 years. Looking back I can clearly see that the seeds of this sin were sown when I was a teen for it was then that I was introduced to playboy magazines. Over the years those magazines weren't enough to satisfy so my appetite progressed into videos and any other form of stimulation I could find. What one might consider simple youthful indulgence actually turned out to be a full fledged addiction that has plagued me the majority of my earthly years.
But enough about me. Let me introduce you to the true Hero of this story. While I wasted all those years wallowing in my secret sins little did I realize that my Savior was even then preparing my path to freedom. In retrospect, I can now see how He stood beside me and guided me through failure after failure until I would finally reach this most glorious moment...the moment of true freedom!
I had succumbed to sin so many times, each time turning my back on Him, however He never let go. He never gave up on me. So often I promised Him that I would never betray Him again, and there were times when I gained significant victory, yet when the temptation would grow too strong I would dive right back into my sinful ways. Now that the scales have been lifted from my eyes I see clearly that I was trying to do it by my own strength and determination. Hence the reason I failed.
There was only one solution for victory and it was absolute surrender to Him! I had to admit I was helpless and at rock bottom, and wouldn't you know it that is when He took control. Completely out of the blue, accordingly to the world's logic, I received an email from "Follow Jesus to Freedom". I had signed up for and worked through a couple online courses designed to help men overcome pornography and for a period of a time they helped. However, the "Follow Jesus to Freedom" was totally unsolicited. One day I opened my email and there it was.
I dare anyone to try and tell me it wasn't a divine appointment. Nevertheless, I left it sitting in my inbox while I continued my struggle. Finally, one day I opened it and read through the email. I thought..."okay I'll give it a try", but honestly I secretly thought it would be like the rest. Was I ever wrong! As I worked through the lessons I found myself totally engrossed in what they were teaching. I began applying the lessons to my daily walk and the results were incredible. I learned radical amputation, how to protect myself from the enemy's attacks, absolute surrender and so much more.
It was clear that the Lord had laid the path for my deliverance and He was leading me each step of the way. No longer did I crave the sin. No longer did I feel the shame of failure. No longer was I focused solely on me, but rather on Him!
He introduced me to this course. He never gave up on a wretched soul like me. He opened my eyes and heart to the path of freedom. He paid my debt! So all glory and honor and praise be to Him because it is by Him that I am now free! Thank you LORD for setting me free!
My name is Kirk. Pornography is a sin I've struggled with for over 30 years. Looking back I can clearly see that the seeds of this sin were sown when I was a teen for it was then that I was introduced to playboy magazines. Over the years those magazines weren't enough to satisfy so my appetite progressed into videos and any other form of stimulation I could find. What one might consider simple youthful indulgence actually turned out to be a full fledged addiction that has plagued me the majority of my earthly years.
But enough about me. Let me introduce you to the true Hero of this story. While I wasted all those years wallowing in my secret sins little did I realize that my Savior was even then preparing my path to freedom. In retrospect, I can now see how He stood beside me and guided me through failure after failure until I would finally reach this most glorious moment...the moment of true freedom!
I had succumbed to sin so many times, each time turning my back on Him, however He never let go. He never gave up on me. So often I promised Him that I would never betray Him again, and there were times when I gained significant victory, yet when the temptation would grow too strong I would dive right back into my sinful ways. Now that the scales have been lifted from my eyes I see clearly that I was trying to do it by my own strength and determination. Hence the reason I failed.
There was only one solution for victory and it was absolute surrender to Him! I had to admit I was helpless and at rock bottom, and wouldn't you know it that is when He took control. Completely out of the blue, accordingly to the world's logic, I received an email from "Follow Jesus to Freedom". I had signed up for and worked through a couple online courses designed to help men overcome pornography and for a period of a time they helped. However, the "Follow Jesus to Freedom" was totally unsolicited. One day I opened my email and there it was.
I dare anyone to try and tell me it wasn't a divine appointment. Nevertheless, I left it sitting in my inbox while I continued my struggle. Finally, one day I opened it and read through the email. I thought..."okay I'll give it a try", but honestly I secretly thought it would be like the rest. Was I ever wrong! As I worked through the lessons I found myself totally engrossed in what they were teaching. I began applying the lessons to my daily walk and the results were incredible. I learned radical amputation, how to protect myself from the enemy's attacks, absolute surrender and so much more.
It was clear that the Lord had laid the path for my deliverance and He was leading me each step of the way. No longer did I crave the sin. No longer did I feel the shame of failure. No longer was I focused solely on me, but rather on Him!
He introduced me to this course. He never gave up on a wretched soul like me. He opened my eyes and heart to the path of freedom. He paid my debt! So all glory and honor and praise be to Him because it is by Him that I am now free! Thank you LORD for setting me free!
10/16/17 From John
Hi, my name is John and I have been saved since I was 16 years old. Jesus is awesome, and He has set me free and saved me from a slew of things from my past. I was really in a dark place when Jesus found me searching for something more in life. When He saved me, He also opened the door to a bible study group that took me under their wing in youth group and I was able to grow from that experience also Jesus has worked with me to help overcome my addictions to porn as well. I am making good progress and I owe this only to Him.
09/27/17 My name is Harris
When I came to this course for I needed help and I needed to find the Lord Jesus in my life again.. I am a pastor who had a lot of theological knowledge, that knows a lot of principles. yet the issue of masturbation every few weeks and occasionally watching porn let me know that something is going really wrong. I enrolled....
and from the first lessons the Lord showed me my pride and my self-centerness. I watched God helping me humble my self and I began to learn to surrender to Him and depend on Him and not on what I thought that I knew. It was a day by day , moment by moment pursuit of dependence on Him. This has been eye opening to me. As He now helps me toward total surrender and dependence on Him. new desires are arising in my heart. Desires to live like Jesus, love like Jesus. To love people. I know I still have a long way to go, yet but I know now that the Lord Jesus Himself took my hand and now He is leading me where He wants me to go: to a life of self sacrifice and a life of following Him. I give all the glory to Him for this work in me. I thank Him also for this course, and for my encourage-guide . Thank you Lord Jesus.
09/20/17 My name is Rob.
I have been battling sexual be setting sin since 1988. It was then I got rid of my porno stash for the first time. It was God the Holy Spirit convicting me at that time and me submitting to Him. I never resumed a stash of porn since then however have never been able to completely leave it alone. Even with crying out to God and reading my bible, going to church etc. I would still go back to it sooner or later. Over the years I would have close fellowship with our Lord only to mangle it by retreating back to pride and selfishness.
Enough about my sin for now.
I enrolled in a 60 day purity course here at followjesustofreedom and received a great mentor encourager guide to walk beside me and hold me accountable. Accountable not only to abstaining from the trash but with my relationship with Jesus Christ and implementing action on the biblical content of the daily lessons. I became a doer of the word of God and not just a hearer.
This course has taught me many things which has led to freedom. I have had a few tough days while taking the course but God has kept me from stumbling and falling by His enabling grace. His grace towards me has not been in vain.
God has worked through this ministry and put people in my path for accountability and fellowship. I started the course lukewarm, double minded, hopeless and in despair. Today the most precious treasure I have is Christ and His freedom. I want to use that freedom now not as an opportunity for the flesh but rather to serve others.
From Claudiu. 09/19/17
As a Christian (I thought was), I was also involved in pornography. That consumed the man inside me, like a drug. For many years, I hid what I was doing, so that nobody could find out my dirty secret. My wife and my children didn't know. We all went to church every Sunday but I was living that double, dirty life.
I tried many times to get rid of pornography, but each attempt ended in failure.. I wanted freedom from sexual sin and often prayed for God's help. I tried to get rid of it, praying, fasting, reading some books, etc. Nothing helped. But then I heard about a ministry called, :"Follow Jesus to Freedom." Their course’s biblical teachings and their encourager-guides helped me to find the way out of it.
“The Way” had been there all the time - Jesus is The Way, the answer! He can free any man who is chained in pornography! I fell down before God, surrendering my whole life to Him; not just part, but ALL, allowing Him to set me free.
And God has freed me. My debt is paid - the chains are gone.
Before the course, I didn't want to confess my sin to my wife because I was afraid of divorce. But I asked God to handle my problem. He did. Now I have confessed to my wife all my sins. She did not leave me, but instead, she forgave me and helped in this spiritual battle.
God is with me every day to give me strength to walk in purity. I can't do it alone but He is The Lord of Hosts and fights for me! He is Great! That evil has no more power over me. It has been more than 60 days since God has freed me, and I can walk in purity.
He can set anyone Free!
September 12, 2017 From Jeff
I made wrong and wicked choices for many years of my life and chose to walk in the opposite direction of what I knew was right. God was able all this time to provide what my soul needed, but I was unwilling to consistently and completely surrender all.
A friend frequently reminds me that: "Jeff, you are no longer that man." And it's true! God is able to restore and give me a surrendered heart. He is changing me from an immoral, self-centered man to one who desires to be HIS for the rest of my life. I have a long way to go, but I know God will continue to work in me. He has been kind. He has been faithful. "Thou hast redeemed my life." (Lamentations 3:58b). This is what God has done for me.
September 6, 2017 - Bob writes...
Temptation which used to rule my life because I would yield to temptation, does not rule my life any longer. Christ's Love and Christ's Cross rule my life. Change happened in my life from within the depths of my own sin: I met Christ in my sin because He was not too 'holy' to come into my sin. I met Christ when I was chatting in a homosexual chat room where a man began talking earnestly and honestly to me about Jesus. As Jesus revealed Himself to me I could not deny the hope, the love and the power of His Word as the Spirit of Jesus spoke right into my life. I know that most men don't meet Christ as I did right in the filth of sin. However, I know that Christ is everywhere. Christ is in every man's life loving that man, calling him and showing him a way out of sin. There is no condemnation to those who are in Jesus Christ.
August 16, 2017 Mihai writes -
I am writing this to testify the work Jesus Christ has begun in me through this course I have taken. Through the Holy Spirit, He convicted me that the bondage to lust, pornography and masturbation is actually a bondage to self. I have been too focused and too centered on my needs, my desires, my pleasures, my everything. And this selfishness has been leading me to sexual sinning.
But the Christian life should be a life focused on Jesus Christ, on His will for my life and on His commandment to love others and to serve them, as He did for me on the cross. With this conviction I am praying that the Holy Spirit will help me surrender to Him and start living in His grace a life of serving God and others, and not myself. It is only by Him I can do that, and not in my own efforts.
My story starts with homo(bi)sexuality. It all seems sort of far way from me now (though there is still temptation in my life i.e. homosexual as well as heterosexual temptation.) I have learned that temptation is not sin; sin is when a man chooses for that which is wrong instead of choosing for that which is right i.e.choosing for sin instead of choosing for holiness. Though I have temptations, there are still times that I teeter on the edge of sin...BUT.. I know that Jesus in my power, my life, my love and then I back away from the edge of sin. The more I learned about Jesus, the more I love Jesus; the more I have grown to love Jesus, the more I have wanted to live for Him; the more I have learned to live for Jesus, the more I have felt His Spirit at work in me and changing me.
When a man chooses for Jesus, then Jesus is stronger than sin. Sin is always a choice every bit as much as it is a choice to choose for Jesus. Jesus chose to love me and now I want to choose Him because of His love for me. I have learned to 'accept' myself as I am (with all my weaknesses and human failings) because I know that Christ accepts me as I am and I know that God loves me. If Jesus did not ever reject me how then can I reject the One who loved me even in my sins. Jesus left His own oneness with the Father and came to this earth precisely because of man's sins i.e. because of my sins as well. We need Jesus. I need Jesus. He came (He comes) to each of us precisely because of our need. We are weak and He is our spiritual strength as well as our real strength. Christ did not come with any 'holier than thou' attitude or with any haughtiness-of-being that He is one with the Godhead; Christ became a man like me and like you; Christ lived with us (lives with us) right in the muck and the mire of our human life i.e. of my life. Jesus loved me and He loves me still. His Love is my reason and motivation to honour Him and to glorify Him with my life, with my choices and with my body.
We have withheld this next man's name to protect his family. But his testimony to the grace of Christ is powerful!
I began masturbating at the age of 12 and was hooked immediately. I masturbated compulsively, daily for more reasons, but primarily escape. Early on I discovered that while pornography was very stimulating, fanaticizing seemed more satisfying. So, from a very early age I learned to train my mind and my body to live for these fantasies. Everywhere I went I looked for glimpses of images, or whatever I could find to build a fantasy around later on that day.
By the time I hit my mid-20’s, I had been overpowered by my addiction. I was masturbating at least twice a day, and my fantasies had evolved in a bad way. It wasn’t too much longer that the fantasies weren’t enough, and I began so seek stimulation in a physical way. Unfortunately, the
subject of my fantasies had nearly always been young girls, and by the time I realized the problem, it was too late. I had already become a monster, and I felt like there was no way I could be cured.
Then, just before my 34th birthday, my wife got fed up with my depravity and threw me out of the house. It was at this point that I realized my
addiction had cost me two wives, seven children and twenty-two years of my life. I determined that, God help me, it would cost me no more. I cried out to God, and He directed me to an online Christian ministry with an interactive bible course for men like me.
Let me tell you that right away I knew I was in the right place. Within the first few lessons, I could see that the course's ruthless methods of handling P&M, attacking it from every angle with scripture, were the only way to freedom. The testimonies I read let me see that there were others like me being freed from this bondage, yet I was still struggling and falling. The Lord used the course and its scripture-based teachings, devotionals and testimonies to soften and eventually break my stone-hardened heart.
It was at this point that, alone in my living room one night, my eyes were opened, the Light shined in and I realized the full weight of my sins. I hit my knees, fell on my face and cried out to God in repentance. There is nothing quite so amazing as when the Lord forgives you. And it was through that forgiveness that I got the strength to confess the crimes that resulted from my sin.
I am now in jail awaiting the judge’s decision. At this point, it doesn’t matter to me whether I get a life sentence or a pardon, because no matter
where I am, I am free from that foul pit of sin. God has truly been gracious to me, an undeserving sinner. And I am thankful to be living in His
Light, serving His will, for the rest of my life – A FREE MAN.
--------------- We can tell you this much about what has transpired since. This man received a long prison sentence. But he is doing well and serving Christ in prison. And he holds to this encouragement in Paul's letter to the Philippians:
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
We have withheld this man's name to protect his family. But his testimony to the grace of Christ is powerful!
I began masturbating at the age of 12 and was hooked immediately. I masturbated compulsively, daily for more reasons, but primarily escape. Early on I discovered that while pornography was very stimulating, fanaticizing seemed more satisfying. So, from a very early age I learned to train my mind and my body to live for these fantasies. Everywhere I went I looked for glimpses of images, or whatever I could find to build a fantasy around later on that day.
By the time I hit my mid-20’s, I had been overpowered by my addiction. I was masturbating at least twice a day, and my fantasies had evolved in a bad way. It wasn’t too much longer that the fantasies weren’t enough, and I began so seek stimulation in a physical way. Unfortunately, the
subject of my fantasies had nearly always been young girls, and by the time I realized the problem, it was too late. I had already become a monster, and I felt like there was no way I could be cured.
Then, just before my 34th birthday, my wife got fed up with my depravity and threw me out of the house. It was at this point that I realized my
addiction had cost me two wives, seven children and twenty-two years of my life. I determined that, God help me, it would cost me no more. I cried out to God, and He directed me to an online Christian ministry with an interactive bible course for men like me.
Let me tell you that right away I knew I was in the right place. Within the first few lessons, I could see that the course's ruthless methods of handling P&M, attacking it from every angle with scripture, were the only way to freedom. The testimonies I read let me see that there were others like me being freed from this bondage, yet I was still struggling and falling. The Lord used the course and its scripture-based teachings, devotionals and testimonies to soften and eventually break my stone-hardened heart.
It was at this point that, alone in my living room one night, my eyes were opened, the Light shined in and I realized the full weight of my sins. I hit my knees, fell on my face and cried out to God in repentance. There is nothing quite so amazing as when the Lord forgives you. And it was through that forgiveness that I got the strength to confess the crimes that resulted from my sin.
I am now in jail awaiting the judge’s decision. At this point, it doesn’t matter to me whether I get a life sentence or a pardon, because no matter
where I am, I am free from that foul pit of sin. God has truly been gracious to me, an undeserving sinner. And I am thankful to be living in His
Light, serving His will, for the rest of my life – A FREE MAN.
--------------- We can tell you this much about what has transpired since. This man received a long prison sentence. But he is doing well and serving Christ in prison. And he holds to this encouragement in Paul's letter to the Philippians:
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Another graduate, who's wife prayed so hard for him, says...
God heard her desperate prayer, and God used the unbearable weight of my years and years of enslavement to shameful pornography and immoral behavior to push me to my knees. With a feeling of total helplessness, I begged God to help me and forgive me. I opened my Bible, and decided to go to Psalm 32, because of a song I heard taken from this Psalm. I read about David saying: “I acknowledged my sin to you, and my iniquity I did not hide, I said I will confess my transgression to the Lord, and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” I cried out (literally sobbed) to God in sincerity to please forgive me for being a sinner. I also read in my Bible how Jesus paid the price for my sin, and I said to God, “I am helpless to overcome my enslavement to porn and immorality, but I know that I want you more, so please lead me to freedom and a true faithful relationship with you, even though I do not deserve it!” Shortly after this prayer, God led me to the interactive online bible course. I can now say after 35 years of slavery, that I have now truly been set free, thanks to God’s mercy and grace, my wife’s prayer, and the 60 day Bible study course. I now only crave my relationship with Jesus.
If considering this course, please know that I have prayed that you will be set free as I have been, and also know that God through the power of His word, as taught in this course will deliver you also. God bless you!
From Christian - it is notable that Christian enrolled as "Fred" But as our Lord worked in his heart to set him free, he confessed his first name, and once again could proclaim Christ without shame!
Hi, thank you for taking the time to read how God saved me out of the traps of lust. I discovered how to gratify my flesh by touching myself as a pre-teen boy. My mothers glamour magazines and the advertisement in them provided more fuel for that kind of lust for as long as I lived at home and sometimes I bought a Playboy magazine. I kept that a secret, but later there was not much encouragement to restrain sexual activity either. So eventually I ended up in a series of pre-marital relationships, even with a prostitute at one point.
After wrestling with belief and faith in Jesus for about a year I became a Christian when I was 25. My girlfriend too and we married a month later. At that time I knew that it was wrong to touch and satisfy myself, but I kept doing it every once in a while. At one point we got AOL and the internet, and even though the picture quality was bad and in black and white, the bait was set and I walked right into a trap which I would not be able to escape for the next fourteen years. Although there had been a few periods in which I had been able to overcome temptation in this area, eventually I always fell again. In 2004 I prayed and fasted in the beginning of the year and was able to stay away from images on the internet and sexual impurity for the first seven months. But then I fell again and there seemed to be no end in sight. I finally admitted to myself that I was addicted and started to cry out to Jesus for help.
In January 2005 I went to a men’s retreat with another church and about a hundred men. There was much prayer for deliverance there and I was really touched. In the last session the pastor had a word that there were two more men whom the Lord wanted to set free from an addiction. I knew the Lord was calling me, but I was too proud to go and admit an addiction before the younger men that had come from our church. A couple of days after coming back from the retreat I found myself again in front of the computer staring at images of women I had no business looking at. I got sick of myself and started to look for books to help with addiction to porn. One book review on Amazon mentioned an online bible course for men like me, that it was free and that it had indeed worked for the man recommending the book. So I went to check it out. The moment I started reading on the website, I knew that this was the way the Lord was showing me that I could finally be free.
I was very excited and enrolled in the course and started with day one. The first couple of days were challenging, because they really made me look at how much I trusted Christ. I realized how much of my love and trust in Him had been eroded and destroyed by that addiction. It was painful, but also bringing lots of hope, somewhat like when a malignant tumor is being cut out with minimum anesthesia. While enrolled in the course my love for Jesus increased more and more. I quickly felt like I was born-again — again. Again and again I was surprised by the wisdom in each lesson and how perfectly it was timed. Thanks also to the makers of SafeEyes for a great and very affordable porn blocking product. Even though I had a setback while enrolled in the course, I repeated some of the lessons and now I have been free for more than two months! Thank you Jesus! Life without porn and lust is so much better! It is much more fun to live in the presence of my Lord and to worship Him with a clear conscience. It is a warped understanding of grace and an ugly lie to think that one can live for Jesus, and yet be involved in porn and sexual immorality. Purity is liberating and the Way of the Lord! All honor and glory and praise to my Lord Jesus for setting me free indeed!