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XXX Church, the online ministry dedicated to helping people with porn and sex addictions, is happy that the church has started to realise that porn is no longer an issue that can be ignored. However, there are still so many things the church still needs to come to terms with regarding the issue.
There are three particular things the church refuses to acknowledge about porn, Pastor Craig Gross writes for The Christian Post. The first thing is that porn is becoming more culturally acceptable, especially among young people.
“Okay, maybe you mighthear about this in conjunction with a long rant about our culture’s declining morals, but it’s highly unlikely that your church will let you know just how acceptable pornography is becoming in American society,” he says.
As tough as it might be to acknowledge, Gross says the church should admit that attitudes regarding pornography are shifting, even among those in the church.
The next truth the church refuses to face is that plenty of people in the pews are struggling with it. “But that doesn’t mean everyone in church is all fine and dandy with using porn. In fact, there are plenty of your fellow churchgoers who struggle with porn, though you may never know it because they would never admit it,” clarifies Gross.
Even though most churches are aware of the breadth of the porn problem in their pews, only a few churches have formal ministries and programmes in place for porn and sex addicts. “There are still far too many in the church who feel like they must keep their ‘happy faces’ firmly in place,” he says.
Lastly, a huge percentage of pastors and youth pastors are struggling with porn, and it is negatively affecting their ministry. A recent Barna survey reveals that pastors (57 percent) and youth pastors (64 percent) have dealt with porn either currently or in the past.
“The fact of the matter is, your pastor is more than likely someone who is currently struggling with porn or who has had an issue with porn in the recent past. This can make them understandably less likely to talk about it, but hopefully this fact can also give you grace for them and for yourself if you’re someone who struggles with it,” he says.
