Stephen Kuhn's Blog, page 24
January 12, 2016
Smart Quote: Richard Rohr
Thoughts on this quote? Feel free to discuss them in the comments below.
The post Smart Quote: Richard Rohr appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
January 9, 2016
Weekly Web (W)roundup
Each week, I round up the best resources, articles, and videos I find that are relevant to finding freedom from porn addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it does not mean I agree with everything in the linked article. It just means I found it interesting enough to share.
Pete Wilson: Unconditionally
“Our human experience makes it exceedingly difficult to believe that God is 100 percent faithful, that He will never let us down. We cannot ever wrap our minds completely around His unconditional, everlasting, indestructible love for us.”
Shaunti Feldhahn: Your husband wants sex? 3 things he’s not saying out loud
“We women may think sex is just a physical need for a guy, but that’s not most of what is going on. When his wife responds to him – or initiates it herself! – it meets a deep emotional need to feel that his wife desires him.”
Gospel Coalition: When Love Saved Me from Porn
“The love of God is constant. It has not changed and will not change. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and amazingly, so is his love for us. The reason such steadiness is possible is because this great love is based on God’s character and actions rather than our own.”
The Bible Project: Animated Explanation of Heaven & Earth
The post Weekly Web (W)roundup appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
January 6, 2016
DONE: You Have Been Washed Clean
“Come now, let’s settle this,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool.
(Isaiah 1:18)
Sin. You probably don’t need me to tell you it’s an issue in your life. After all, we all struggle with it. Every one of us.
No matter how good we try to be, we’ve all been soiled by the stains of our sin.
When Isaiah wrote these words, he was looking forward to the day when the stains on our souls would be taken care of. When we could finally be cleansed from our sin—permanently.
But he also recognized that we could never make ourselves clean on our own. He knew that no amount of scrubbing, hiding, or justifying would remove the scars of sin from our souls.
Isaiah understood that only Jesus had the power to make us clean.
And today, thanks to His finished work on the Cross, He has.
You see, the moment you placed your trust in Christ, your sins were washed as white as snow.
Not by anything you did.
Not by your striving towards goodness.
Not by your ability to overcome your flaws.
It was solely by the power of Christ’s blood.
And nothing will ever change this. No sin—even the sin you have yet to commit—will ever leave a stain on you again.
Because, as Jesus says in today’s verse—it’s been settled.
This post was an excerpt from my book, DONE. 52 Amazing Things that Became True of You the Moment You Trusted Christ.
The entire book is available as individual posts here, but if you prefer a good old-fashion paperback, you can purchase a copy from Amazon.
The post DONE: You Have Been Washed Clean appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
January 5, 2016
Smart Quote: Michael Todd Wilson
Thoughts on this quote? Feel free to discuss them in the comments below.
The post Smart Quote: Michael Todd Wilson appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
January 2, 2016
Weekly Web (W)roundup
Each week, I round up the best resources, articles, and videos I find that are relevant to finding freedom from porn addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it does not mean I agree with everything in the linked article. It just means I found it interesting enough to share.
Benjamin Corey: The Blood of American Christianity Will Be The Seed Of The Church
“Most of all, we’re tired of pretending this is Christianity. It’s time to be honest and just admit: that’s not Christianity at all.”
XXXChurch: Recovery Means Keeping It Simple
“If you can keep things simple and fundamental, then you are more likely to set yourself up for success and allow your recovery process to be doable.”
Desiring God: Praying for a Breakthrough
“The consistent pattern throughout the Bible is that every significant move of God is preceded by a season of increasingly difficult, discouraging opposition. And if we take Ephesians 6, Daniel 10, and other warfare texts seriously, we can understand why: God is invading what Satan considers his territory.”
Gospel Coalition: Will I Ever Be “Man Enough”?
“Being a man is not dependent on what one does; rather, a man is a man because he is made in the image of God. That’s it.”
Will You Be Bored in Heaven?
The post Weekly Web (W)roundup appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
December 31, 2015
DONE: You Will Never Be Abandoned by God
Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you. (Deuteronomy 31:8)
Did you know the most common command the Lord gives us in the Bible is “Do not fear”?
Why is that? Perhaps it’s because He knows us well enough to know that our natural tendency is to be afraid:
Afraid our needs won’t be met…
Afraid our life won’t turn out how we hoped…
Afraid the people we love will abandon or reject us…
More often than not, these fears are rooted in a lack of trust. They are the result of not trusting that everything God says applies to those who are in Christ is true—even for you.
You see, when you put your trust fully in the Lord, you will come to see how His promises overcome all of your fears.
After all:
What does Matthew say about God meeting your needs?
31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:31-34).
What does Jeremiah say about God’s plans for your life?
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me (Jeremiah 2:11-13).
What does today’s verse in Deuteronomy say about God abandoning you?
8 Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you” (Deuteronomy 31:8).
The more you trust the love of Christ, the less you will sense the need to be afraid.
This is how trusting that God is always right there with you, that He will never fail you, and that He will never leave you—no matter what—sets you free from fear.
Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear (1 John 4:18).
This post was an excerpt from my book, DONE. 52 Amazing Things that Became True of You the Moment You Trusted Christ.
The entire book is available as individual posts here, but if you prefer a good old-fashion paperback, you can purchase a copy from Amazon.
The post DONE: You Will Never Be Abandoned by God appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
December 30, 2015
Our Top (and Bottom!) Five Posts from 2015
Just about every blog publishes a list of their top posts from the previous year. It’s a fun way to look back at what resonated with readers, but it also can create a false impression that every post is a hit (which is rarely the case).
So, in order to stick to my M-O of being open and transparent, I’m going to share the 5 most-read and the 5 least-read posts of 2015. Enjoy!
The Top-55. Why Porn Addiction is Not About Fulfilling Sexual Desire: The Deepest Needs of Your Heart
“As men, we tend to believe our struggles with pornography are purely about sexual desire. If this were the case, though, my addiction would have gone away once I was married. So why is it my addiction actually became worse within marriage? Why did I repeatedly choose to reject the advances of my beautiful, attractive, and loving wife in order to get my sexual needs met through pornography?”
4. My One Thing: Michael Cusick
I asked Michael Cusick of Restoring the Soul, “What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to someone struggling with porn addiction?”
3. 5 Things Pixar’s “Inside Out” Taught Me about Addiction
“I’m convinced that “Inside Out” is more than just a cartoon—it’s one of the more important movies of our day. Even if you don’t have kids, it’s still worth the few bucks it will cost to get in the door.”
2. The “One Thing” You Need to Know to Get Free from Porn Addiction
“When it comes to finding freedom from porn addiction, we often approach it the same way. We look for an easy answer—a one-size-fits-all solution—that will work for everyone, every time, without fail. We want to know the ‘One Thing,’ but that’s typically not the way God works.”
1. To All the Men Who Just Got Outed on Ashley Madison…
“I know very personally the shame that comes from being found out, from being discovered, from coming face-to-face with the destruction your hidden life has been causing in the lives of everyone you love. But I also know that for many people, myself included, this tragedy can also be the catalyst that springboards you into a life of freedom from the things that currently enslave you.”
The Bottom-55. What I Wish I Could Say to Morrissey
“I’ve been hooked on Morrissey since my roommate introduced me to his music back in college. As much as I love his music though, the emotional honesty he puts into his lyrics makes it hard for me to listen at times. I can’t help but hurt for him when I hear him sing about the pain and rejection that has defined his life.”
4. Are You Viewing Recovery as an All-Star Game, or T-Ball?
“When I showed up to my first recovery group, I expected it to be like the MLB All-Star game. I just knew the other guys there were going to be so far ahead of me on their journey that I wouldn’t even fit in. What I soon discovered, though, was recovery is a lot more like T-ball than the majors.”
3. Book Review: Wild at Heart
“Fast forward 10 years to the second time I picked up Wild at Heart and things were quite different. I was reading and journaling through the book as an assignment from my counselor and could not believe how different it seemed from the first time I had picked it up.”
2. If Following Jesus is about Relationship, Why does He Seem so Distant?
“It’s the same with a relationship with Jesus. You can spend time with Him in prayer. You can seek to know all about Him by reading the Bible. But if you don’t trust Him, you will never experience a true relationship with Him.”
1. Why Isn’t God Coming Through for Me?
“You can be certain, however, that God does love you—no matter how messed up you may feel—and everything He calls you to do is for your benefit. The more you trust in this truth, the more your faith will grow. Eventually, you will come to realize that you really can trust everything Jesus promises to be true—even for you—no matter how illogical or unbelievable it may seem.”
Thanks for hanging with us in 2015! Let’s do this again next year, shall we?
The post Our Top (and Bottom!) Five Posts from 2015 appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
December 29, 2015
Smart Quote: Brennan Manning
Thoughts on this quote? Feel free to discuss them in the comments below.
The post Smart Quote: Brennan Manning appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
December 26, 2015
Weekly Web (W)roundup
Each week, I round up the best resources, articles, and videos I find that are relevant to finding freedom from porn addiction. Please note that by posting a link here it does not mean I agree with everything in the linked article. It just means I found it interesting enough to share.
Dave Willis: 7 Things God Wants You to Know about Yourself
“Your family, your faith and your life will be stronger when you discover the beautiful truth of who you really are. Your true identity can’t be found by ‘looking within yourself’ for the answers. Your identity can only be found by looking to the One who Created you.”
John Pavlovitz: My Emancipation From American Christianity
“It’s getting harder and harder to love all people and still fit into what has become American Christianity, so rather than becoming less loving and staying—I’m leaving. I’m breaking free from religion for the sake of my soul.”
CovenantEyes: How to Confess Your Porn Addiction to Your Spouse
“Anytime we harbor secret sin, it has the power to eat away at us and damage our relationships. Sin without confession always seems to beget more sin. We must keep up the lie lest we risk exposing the truth.”
Pastor Bob: What Are You Addicted To?
The post Weekly Web (W)roundup appeared first on Belt of Truth Ministries.
