 Hey guys, it's Isaac again and welcome to part two of how do I overcome porn or addiction and lust? If you haven't seen part one, I encourage you to check that out in the link above and below That video really give you some context or a conversation today You got to start there because that's when we talk about the real foundational issues of look Why do we turn to porn and why and how do we change from our heart desire because that's where it is Right, it's the heart. We need to change our heart. That's how we truly overcome Pornography, but today I want to talk a little bit about some practical tips and how to overcome Pornography and even if you don't struggle with this I think this video will be helpful for you to understand some other people's struggles and to help them out as they're battling through this issue You know as I was thinking a little bit more about this topic this week I think as we were some of the reasons we turn to Pornography or cheap, you know, this kind of cheap substitute for a God-given Desire We turn to it because I think it promises us things that it actually can't deliver on You know, it promises us some kind of connection But it delivers us with loneliness if you've ever, you know Partaken in pornography or watch pornography, you know, it's like, oh, this is this feels good. This is great. I feel Satisfied but at the end. Oh, wait a minute. I'm left with a sense of disconnection and loneliness It promises connection, but leaves us with disconnection It promises a sense of satisfaction, but it ultimately leaves us with guilt, right? And so I just want to convey that to you if you're still struggling with this kind of I don't know if I want to give it up Or I don't know if I really Want to turn from it Listen, not only does it grieve God, but it delivers it tells you things It promises you things that it cannot deliver on it does not deliver on That was just one quick thought that I had before we go into these practical tips So if you've gone on gone on to any kind of video about Overcoming pornography, you'll probably hear something or red books You'll probably hear something like get accountability and I think that's important, right? We don't want to miss out on accountability and what is accountability? Well, there's in-person accountability if you have somebody that you know Maybe a friend maybe a pastor maybe somebody in your small group or bible study that you can say hey look I'm struggling with this Can you keep me accountable? Can I give you updates on what's going on in my life? And can you ask me questions? like digging questions in order to really find more about my life keep me accountable because I want to I want to stay away from this I want to overcome this but I can't do that alone because what often happens Is that when we're when we're kind of consumed with this kind of addiction? And you see this with people that are addicted to drugs or alcohol or whatever it is It's kind of this kind of isolationism Isolate themselves when they want to partake and they because because there's that shame associated with it, right? So if we can get that out of out of the dark basement into the light and say hey, can you help me with this? That is an important step, right? That conversation is really tough if you've ever asked somebody to be I'm your accountability partner or whatever that is a tough conversation because you're basically admitting Look, I can't do it on my own and for us as humans. That's a really tough thing to admit But it's essential That you do in the last video I talked about hey, we can't do it alone We need god in this video. I think It's important that we understand I can't do it alone I need other people around me right to help me out in this Somebody once said your greatest accountability partner is god and I think that's totally right. That's totally true Um, we need to be accountable to god, right? Because even when we have an accountability partner that we're talking to we can hide things from them if our heart isn't changed We can tell them things that aren't true. We can keep things from them But at the end of the day god's gonna see us, you know, that's who we truly are somebody once said um, a person's character is not defined by The person that they portray to be on the outside or they show themselves to be on the outside It's what what do they do when they're alone? That's when true character comes out So who are you when the lights are off? So I do think in person accountability is important Having somebody there that you can talk to that you can tell things that you struggle to tell that you can Really say what you're struggling with and they can help you through that a wise christian Maybe a mentor that can help you through that and there's different resources that you can use I really encourage you if you're struggling with pornography or lust of any kind I encourage you to check out this book finally free by Heath Lambert in the book. He offers a lot of important um tips and and tools that you can use in combating and overcoming Pornography and I think an important aspect to talk about is that if even if you're not like totally Addicted to pornography Accountability is so much better earlier rather than late and that's what this book actually an important part of this book Actually talks about is this idea that look if you have any kind of struggle in this area Which which most people do It's better to have somebody that is kind of checking up on you Well, it's it's kind of manageable as opposed to it just getting really really bad getting totally addicted And then all of a sudden calling for backup and I think we do this in a lot of areas of our lives We don't go to the doctor until we're really sick. We hold off or like, I'll be fine Then we go to the doctor We don't go to counseling until we feel like we're really messed up Because it's like oh just a few things. It's all good But I think it's important that we take these proactive steps in some cases to say look, this is important I need to get this in check Because the thought life The thought life I need to get that under control. It's not just about what we do But it's about what we think god cares about the thought life. I think another Tip or tool that you can kind of utilize in your battle to overcome Pornography is I would encourage you to find out the the circumstances of your life that really Preempt you going to these different escapes So let me that may kind of put that an example if I've had a really bad day. Maybe I'm really tired I'm exhausted. Maybe I'm a little bit frustrated. Where are you gonna go? Maybe some people go to you know, watch some tv Just unwind relax. Maybe for you. That's a really tempting time when you're alone You've just been working or you're exhausted and you're like, oh, maybe I can Maybe you can watch a little bit you watch a little bit and That can be a tempting time for you to slip back into pornography And if that's you I want to just say look Identify that situation Maybe whether it's late at night early in the morning in the afternoon Whatever it is and whatever you're feeling in that in that circumstance identify that feeling identify that circumstance Identify the things that you're saying to yourself When you're justifying that this is an okay thing saying oh look I need this or oh, it's just a little bit It won't hurt anybody these things that you tell yourself that justify this being okay What are those things? And when you start realizing start becoming self-aware and you start saying Oh, wait a minute. Am I telling myself that again? Am I telling myself those lies again? Am I in the situation when I'm feeling tempted What can we do to get out of that? What can we do to get ourselves in? In people's eyesight. Maybe I can go out. Maybe I can hang around family. Maybe I can You know different things like that Maybe you can write scripture verses down all these things can be helpful, but it's about becoming self-aware That you can understand when you are most tempted that when you are in those situations That you can be aware of that and you can turn from that that you can ask god God help me in this situation. Help me. I need your help now That you can open up your bible and you can say god, please just quiet my heart god, please Take these temptations away from me. Help me flee these things Because it's a tough thing. It's going to be a battle. It's going to be the battle of your life and it won't go away and that's the tough thing is because you can't you can't just kind of Get get over it and then never have to struggle with it again Because the world we're living in is immersed in this kind of Sensuality pornographic images All this kind of stuff that we have to struggle with but we have to be battling with it consistently and so This is not one thing fixes all like you can just do this and then you're just done This is an invitation into a battle a battle for your life and It's not going to be easy You're going to struggle. You're going to fall down But what god asked you to do is get up and follow him again Will you do that? for me It's a constant. It's a constant battle It's a constant battle of saying no, I choose god's design. I choose what god wants for me over what My sinful heart desires over my fleshly desires over my Mentality of oh, no give it to me now. I want that satisfaction now and saying no, you know what? I want to honor god and that's a struggle. It's always going to be a struggle But I want to just encourage you that there is freedom from pornography Go to christ ask him for his help because you're going to need it. You can't do this alone