One morning I read a newsflash update on facebook. I knew it wasn't good but my curiosity led me to just glance the page. It said something like Thick Chicks or something like that. It was on facebook, so I assumed I could handle it. I go to the page and there are pictures of some beautiful and not so beautiful full figured girls and people were placing comments. I am looking on my phone so I'm liking what I am seeing. I read one comment made by this woman and I was really turned on. She said some really graphic stuff that got my attention but I'm rationalizing in my mind this isn't porn so I can handle it. So, I go back to my normal routine at work. I have a very productive day. I"m working; listenining to a series while in the car by Pastor Greogory Dickow on "Lasting Change." It appears to me that I am doing what I am suppose to be doing. Little did I know, I was just being setup by the devil.
Later that night, my wife is sleep not feeling good. I am up. I started thinking about that site I saw. (See where this is going) Now, I am trying to find that site again on facebook and particurly looking for the girl that said this comment but did not see it. I go over to photos to look at more of the pictures because its not porn so I can look. Now I see more of what I like. More pictures of girls with big breast and booty. I'm lusting now. I am turned on and now I want more. I am not thinking about nothing but these fine women I would love to screw. I"m going there in my mind. I am building an appetite for the forbidden. Now, I want to see more for real and I want a release. So, I do everything that I am not suppose to do. I look at porn and I masturbate. I fall. Immediately, I repent and immediately the guilt and shame of the years of my addiction were in my face. Now, I start questioning everything. Can I do this? Is this how I 'm going to live? Saying one thing and living another. It was the perfect setup.
Brothers, addictions or not easy to break. Maintaining your freedom from an addiction is easier but you can never trust yourself. I trusted myself and I missed it. When the opportunity to sin came, I gave in to the thought of, " I can handle it." That is the biggest lie. You can not handle it. If you are addicted to pornography little stuff can set you off. I was looking on facebook. I was not looking for porn but where did I end up. I was addicted and whatever you are addicted to you have to guard yourself from it; all of it! All forms of it. magazines, pictures, internet sites that promote sex hidden or not hidden. Now, I have stopped looking at those links. My flesh can not handle it. I can't look at pictures of half naked women. My flesh can not handle that. Finally, I can't lie and act like I am not tempted because I am all the time. The difference for me this time is, I didn't see it coming and before I knew it I had fallen.
What did I learn from this? How did I move on? I learned that in order for me to stay free, I have to eliminate it all. No more hidden sites or pages. I went back to doing the things to get free; instead now, its called maintenance. I read my books. I confess scriptures. I have specific confessions that I use and I monitor my actions and my conversations. Lastly, I keep looking up to God and not myself. Peter walked on water because he looked and kept his eyes on Jesus. The minute he took his eyes off Jesus, he began to sink. That is the main point. Don't look at your sin or addiction look at your source of strength , Jesus. Your deliverance is not in will power. Your deliverance is not in you just wanting to change. Your deliverance is In JESUS only. He is the only one that can transform your life. That's what I needed. I needed to be transformed into His image and likeness. I needed transformation in my thinking and I needed transformation in my actions so that I could begin to change my behavior. That was my problem. I could not change my actions until I changed my source. The bible says, its the little things that you have to watch. Sin or the problem will not dominate you when you spend time with the answer. (Jesus) We can not get around that.
Finally, you have to realize that you are not perfect. You will make mistakes but with Jesus you will always have the power to get back up again if you repent and not cover or hide your sin. Don't allow satan the opportunity to beat you up about the sin activity that you participated in. Just build your defense. Evaluate yourself and confess the problem. Process your journey. (Ask yourself, how did I get here?) Retrace your actions. Deal with your sins. Don't hide from it, deal with it and ask God for help. Then you must establish yourself , your identity, your likeness in Jesus. He knows the man you really are. Always go back to Jesus!
Brother Clarence
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
Caught In the Battle
Since I began this journey of letting everyone know about my struggles with pornography, lust, and masturbation; it's been a journey of the unknowns. Some people have given me praise, some secretly have been listening and watching, and some have responded negatively. I understand this is a very personal issue. When I had my first talk with my pastor years ago; he told me some would get it and some would not but you do what the Lord is telling you. So I have begun to do just that. I am going to do what God is telling me to do and say because so many men love God but are still caught in the battle.
This thing is serious! It is so serious because it affects so many Christian men. Pastors, ministers, church leaders, deacons are all affected. Pew members, tithers and non tithers are affected. The Baptist, Catholics, Pentecostal, Church of God In Christ, Methodist, AME, CME, Holiest, Seventh Day Adventist, and Non denominational are all affected. Men who come to church on a regular basis and men who attend church once or twice a year are affected. They have all been affected by pornography and so many of them right now are addicted to porn. Clarence, how do you know that? I know it because I have been praying for men and friends on facebook. I know because the the Lord spoke to me years ago and said, "My men are attending church on a regular basis and struggling." God let me know years ago that I was not the only one dealing and struggling with my flesh.
So here we go! If you are right now caught in the battle with your flesh and the godly you; that's okay. It's good your fighting but if you don't do things differently you will eventually lose the battle. Pornography is a work of the devil. It is addictive, your flesh will crave it, and it is designed to keep you weak spiritually. You will never be able to satisfy the desire for pornography because the desire is rooted in lust. Lust is unquenchable. Marriage does not cure lust. It cannot cure lust. Sex with your wife, girlfriend or boyfriend does not cure lust.
You must change your thinking. If you Change your thinking you can change your decisions. By changing your decisions, you can change your habits. Changing your habits will change your actions. Change your actions you can change your destiny!
The only thing you can do is fill yourself with the Word of God and Renew Your Mind daily. This is how you fight and this is how you win. If you never start fighting spiritually you will never defeat your flesh and you will remain in a battle with your flesh that you can't win. Discipline and will power will only take you so far but the Word of God will deliver you and bring you from Point A to Point B. God changes us and ultimately changes our behavior but it is a process. We just have to commit to being transformed. Transformed into God's image and God's likeness through the Word of God.
The battle is made for all of us to win but we (christian men) must choose to fight with the weapons God gave us. It's time to win!
Romans 12
1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Brother Clarence
This thing is serious! It is so serious because it affects so many Christian men. Pastors, ministers, church leaders, deacons are all affected. Pew members, tithers and non tithers are affected. The Baptist, Catholics, Pentecostal, Church of God In Christ, Methodist, AME, CME, Holiest, Seventh Day Adventist, and Non denominational are all affected. Men who come to church on a regular basis and men who attend church once or twice a year are affected. They have all been affected by pornography and so many of them right now are addicted to porn. Clarence, how do you know that? I know it because I have been praying for men and friends on facebook. I know because the the Lord spoke to me years ago and said, "My men are attending church on a regular basis and struggling." God let me know years ago that I was not the only one dealing and struggling with my flesh.
So here we go! If you are right now caught in the battle with your flesh and the godly you; that's okay. It's good your fighting but if you don't do things differently you will eventually lose the battle. Pornography is a work of the devil. It is addictive, your flesh will crave it, and it is designed to keep you weak spiritually. You will never be able to satisfy the desire for pornography because the desire is rooted in lust. Lust is unquenchable. Marriage does not cure lust. It cannot cure lust. Sex with your wife, girlfriend or boyfriend does not cure lust.
You must change your thinking. If you Change your thinking you can change your decisions. By changing your decisions, you can change your habits. Changing your habits will change your actions. Change your actions you can change your destiny!
The only thing you can do is fill yourself with the Word of God and Renew Your Mind daily. This is how you fight and this is how you win. If you never start fighting spiritually you will never defeat your flesh and you will remain in a battle with your flesh that you can't win. Discipline and will power will only take you so far but the Word of God will deliver you and bring you from Point A to Point B. God changes us and ultimately changes our behavior but it is a process. We just have to commit to being transformed. Transformed into God's image and God's likeness through the Word of God.
The battle is made for all of us to win but we (christian men) must choose to fight with the weapons God gave us. It's time to win!
Romans 12
1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Brother Clarence
Sunday, April 10, 2011
This was My Friend
A good friend from my high school whom I enjoyed hanging out with recently murdered his fiance. I lost contact with him and have no idea what he might of being going through. This guy; in high school was one of the funniest and friendliest people I ever knew. I can only imagine the state of mind, the condition of his spirit and the hopelessness he must have felt to derive at that level. I have no details surrounding what his current living situation might have been but I do understand one thing; "This was my friend."
Years ago another close childhood friend that I spent alot of time with at church and social events ended his teenage years on drugs. Drugs being the destroyer it is claimed his mind. He ended up killing his grandmother in a rage for money to support his habit. The details around the events that caused him to commit this crime are still unknown to me but I do know, "This was my friend."
Okay, enough is enough! How long do we just stand by and watch our friends lives become a headline for the 6:00 news. .Both of my friends will probably spend the rest of their lives in jail. I'm no means excusing what they did because they took life into thier hands and killed. This is my problem, men we have to start confronting one another and stop acting like we don't need help. We are destroying our lives and the lives of our families.I know I have needed help at times and never asked for it. That is pride. I admit I too struggled with pride but when my family suffers because of my selfish ways then its a major problem We must change.
This blog is created to help us men change. We must change our mindsets as it relates to our responsibilities as men. We must change our attitudes about sexual sins and we must change our dysfunctional behavior that keeps us stagnet and unproductive. The WORD OF GOD is the only thing I know that can perfectly change us to be who we are created to be. It is our time.
Brothers, I will use this site to lift up a standard to have real talks and discussions about our ungodly behavior. I am not exempt. I will share the ungodly choices that I willingly participated in for years. I know what it is to feel hopeless, unloved, unmotivated, depressed and sexually confused and frustated. I have been there, Now, I know how to be free form lust, pornography, masturbation, sexual perversions, and rejection. This Godlykings blog is for real! I am here to only do Gods work and that is to destroy the works of the devil. Men we will win and we will do what God has ordained for us to do and become, First, we must start the process of change and that is renewing our minds in the WORD OF GOD. Our brotherhood can be the beginning process to help all of our friends who love God but are caught in the battle. Let's be real friends starting now.
Your Brother In Christ,
Clarence Threatt III
Author and Family Strategist
Years ago another close childhood friend that I spent alot of time with at church and social events ended his teenage years on drugs. Drugs being the destroyer it is claimed his mind. He ended up killing his grandmother in a rage for money to support his habit. The details around the events that caused him to commit this crime are still unknown to me but I do know, "This was my friend."
Okay, enough is enough! How long do we just stand by and watch our friends lives become a headline for the 6:00 news. .Both of my friends will probably spend the rest of their lives in jail. I'm no means excusing what they did because they took life into thier hands and killed. This is my problem, men we have to start confronting one another and stop acting like we don't need help. We are destroying our lives and the lives of our families.I know I have needed help at times and never asked for it. That is pride. I admit I too struggled with pride but when my family suffers because of my selfish ways then its a major problem We must change.
This blog is created to help us men change. We must change our mindsets as it relates to our responsibilities as men. We must change our attitudes about sexual sins and we must change our dysfunctional behavior that keeps us stagnet and unproductive. The WORD OF GOD is the only thing I know that can perfectly change us to be who we are created to be. It is our time.
Brothers, I will use this site to lift up a standard to have real talks and discussions about our ungodly behavior. I am not exempt. I will share the ungodly choices that I willingly participated in for years. I know what it is to feel hopeless, unloved, unmotivated, depressed and sexually confused and frustated. I have been there, Now, I know how to be free form lust, pornography, masturbation, sexual perversions, and rejection. This Godlykings blog is for real! I am here to only do Gods work and that is to destroy the works of the devil. Men we will win and we will do what God has ordained for us to do and become, First, we must start the process of change and that is renewing our minds in the WORD OF GOD. Our brotherhood can be the beginning process to help all of our friends who love God but are caught in the battle. Let's be real friends starting now.
Your Brother In Christ,
Clarence Threatt III
Author and Family Strategist
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