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Dana Stoddard brought an excerpt from Puritan William Gurnall’s classic book The Christian in Complete Armour to our Band of Brothers meeting a few weeks ago. I related whole-heartedly to the following excerpt because it speaks directly to the lie Satan feeds us when it comes to pornography and sexual addiction.

“When the Spirit convicts you of sin, Satan will try to convince you, ‘It is such a little one–spare it.’ Or he will bribe the soul with a vow of secrecy: ‘You can keep me and your good reputation, too. I will not be seen in your company to shame you among your neighbors. You may shut me up in the attic of your heart, out of sight, if only you will let me now and then have the wild embraces of your thoughts and affections in secret.’ “

I wrestled for almost 30 years with my secret sin and am thankful that God loved me enough to expose my heart that was whoring after safer lovers. I believed two main lies…1)that I was the only Christian man who was struggling in this area, and 2)that I could eventually beat this secret sin on my own and no one would know the difference. My reputation could escape unscathed.

There is no way to defeat pornography and sexual sin alone. The enemy of our souls convinces us that it isn’t a big deal and then, when we give in, is relentless with his scathing rebuke that leads to deep shame. If you have been believing the lies and feel trapped in the sin cycle, there is help available. As scary as it might seem to step into the light with your secrets, it is the only way that leads to healing. If you need someone safe to talk to, I’d be happy to talk. As a fellow struggler, I will bring grace and love and not judgement and condemnation.

If you are interested in getting your own copy of Grunall’s book, I have provided a link below.

I’d love your feedback. What are your secret sins? Why is our nature to shrink to the shadows with our sin rather than expose them in the light? Do you have genuine community in your life where people know you warts and all? Why or why not?

1742 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.ragamuffinreflections.com%2F2009%2F06%2F19%2Fsecret-sins%2FSecret+Sins2009-06-19+17%3A26%3A48Traylor+Lovvornhttp%3A%2F%2Ftraylorlovvorn.com%2F%3Fp%3D174

Luke

Gurnall is an excellent author. Love some of his stuff.

Openness and vulnerability is so important. It is so key to get to the root of this stuff – http://www.covenanteyes.com/blog/2009/06/17/getti…

Thanks for your thoughts here.

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tlovvorn

Thanks Luke for the feedback. I love what your company is doing to provide resources for individuals struggling with the onslaught of internet pornography. Keep up the good work!

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