It’s been twelve weeks in the new gig as Director of Outreach at Proven Ministries. And what a paradigm shift it has been. While I have been carrying people’s stories for several years, the density has changed dramatically within this context. Much of my week is spent in phone calls and Zoom sessions with people that reach out to us for assistance. Most of them are domestic. Over the last few weeks I’ve had the delightful privilege of several chats with various international individuals.

Here are some of the countries off the top of my head: South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Western Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Ireland, Brazil. In every case, whether man or woman, the stories are the same - sexual integrity has become seemingly impossible to achieve or maintain. What a tragedy.

For years, I’ve had a subconscious assumption that Americans were more sexually debauched than the rest of the world, especially regarding pornography. My new job has resulted in a rude awakening. Even for all of the cultural peculiarities and ethnic sensitivities, it turns out that the human spirit is one-size-fits-all. In the last month, I’ve had two different missionaries from remote regions in Africa and South America tell me about villages of mud huts, days away from electricity, wherein these people still have cell phones with 4-bar-signals… looking at you know what. Sexual immorality seduces indiscriminately; emptiness cries out of the same spiritual vacuum; the topographical wasteland of that experience is the same in every country. And pornography has become more prolific and ubiquitous than the Gospel.

We can do better. In many centuries, countries and cultures we actually have. In fact, the self-control that God’s people once exemplified always demarcated them from their neighboring peoples. However, when we sleep around like the world does, then it follows that our waking hours become more indistinguishable as well. When it comes to pornography, the only distinction anymore is secrecy. The world is unabashed and the Church hides, but they are statistically engaging the same depravity, severity, frequency. So as not to overwhelm you, here’s just one set of numbers reported by Barna and Covenant Eyes:
~ 68% of church-going men and over 50% of pastors view porn on a regular basis.
~ Of young Christian adults 18-24 years old, 76% actively search for porn.
I’m betting that the numbers are much worse once the “regular” definition is adjusted. And when at least 50% of the shepherds are sullying themselves with this stuff, then it’s no wonder the rest of the church inculcates more of this insidiousness every day.

My new position is an awesome opportunity. Truly, it is a great privilege every day. Nevertheless, I have to keep a set of blinders on so as not to become overwhelmed by the earth-shattering magnitude of the war that we engage. Whether this set of struggles identifies you or not, could I ask you to look into our ministry? It’s not too much to say that we need each other, wherever and however you find yourself right now.

Great Big World - One Slender Path

Proven Ministries