CWRC Anthology

ADDICTION

© 2022 by Janet Abraham.                                                                 

Brought to you by Christian Writers and Readers Club.

Sam, a quiet, chubby youngster, resided with his parents in a modest home close to the family farm. Being the only child, he received all the love he needed. During the holidays, Sam's family came to visit, and playing with his cousins made him the happiest of all. When Sam's parents agreed to let him spend the night at his cousin's house, he was ten years old. As usual, Sam was overjoyed as his older cousins cooked dinner and collaborated on artwork. Sam's eyelids began to droop, and he fell asleep on the couch. His cousin Maya tucked him in bed and she occupied the cot beside him. Sam awoke unexpectedly from his sleep; he made unsuccessful attempts to fall back asleep. He snuck into the living room after hearing a television sound to find his brothers Ryan and Mohan watching naked people on TV. Sam couldn’t look away as there were some strange feelings bubbling inside him.

Sam would occasionally watch in helplessness as his drunken father battered his mother. He was terrified to defend his mother. When his parents finally divorced, he was under his mother's supervision. Sam discovered his father's old books from the attic while packing up. He came into contact with things that his little mind couldn't understand.

4 years later…

After the game, Sam, a member of the basketball team, was changing into a different outfit in the locker room when he overheard some guys giggling together. When he exited, those boys grabbed him and forced him to watch porn. Because he was a member of the well-known gang, he was receiving loads of publicity from his school. After what had happened at home, the grief was being relieved by this limelight.

On the night of a friend's birthday party, Sam witnessed a couple making love, which caused a rush of hormones he never knew he had. Like everyone else, he desired to give it a shot. Next day, he lost his virginity. He has been in relationships ever since, with numerous hookups. To help his mother, who was sick, he moved to the city to find work. Sam was under a lot of stress because of the intense strain at work. He spent much of his salary on his mother's prescription drugs and expenses. He developed an alcohol addiction and began binge-watching porn after his mother’s death. He would spend a lot of money on porn sites just to feel the same level of excitement as before. After being sacked from his job, he made a sincere effort to find another stable position. He once became so desperate that he went in search of loose women since he needed them to satisfy him. When he realized he didn't have enough money to pay them, he saw a woman who was walking alone and forcefully tried to lie with her. He was apprehended without provocation and imprisoned.

Moral

Although many things might cause addiction in people, pornography is the worst. There are limits on how much alcohol, tobacco, and sweets you may consume, but there are none for porn. Dopamine, a feel-good hormone, suddenly increases when someone is exposed to porn for the first time. The dopamine levels are not stimulated in the same way when one views the same pornographic material again. As a result, the user ends up spending an extremely lengthy period searching for sexual stuff. They start to feel numb, hopeless, hostile, angry, etc.

According to statistics, the pornographic sector generates $5 billion annually, and according to other estimates, it may even have a greater impact on the American economy than Netflix. Boys today have a 90% risk of getting exposed to pornography before the age of 18, compared to girls' 60% likelihood.

There are 200,000 porn addicts in the United States. Every day, 37 new pornographic videos are produced in the US. At any given time, 28,000 people are pornographically viewing. Over the pandemic, children were forced to move to a virtual environment which had its own pros and cons. Many parents complained that their children were exposed to porn through advertisements, gaming, pop-ups etc

If you are a parent, have a conversation with your child before someone feeds him with lies. Informing kids that there is no stigma associated with sexuality is important. Tell them that we must respect and value one another and that humans are more than sexual objects. You understand your kids the best, so talk to them gently. Teach your sons that their muscles are not only for lifting weights but also for protecting the population who are weaker (women, elderly and children). By demonstrating it, teach children how to be compassionate and helpful. Women can also be the cause of hurt too. In honor of our Master, teach both men and women to be modest. Consider Jesus as an example. Despite being celibate, He had female followers and did not simply shy away. When the culture did not, He treated women as complete human beings and gave them purpose.

Tips to overcome porn- 1) Fear God

Would you see porn in a church? No one does, so why do it at home? God is omnipresent, and He is aware of every thought that enters your mind. Don't wait till you are clean to turn to God; turn to Him now. Come to Him in the most vulnerable state you can muster. Follow Him, not your emotions.

‘Fear God and turn from evil.’ Proverbs 3:7

2) Resist temptation- ‘Resist the devil and He will flee from you.’ James 4:7

Resist the temptation, and pray every time it attacks you. Stay with people who can keep you away from it.

3) Throw away those addictions-‘If your eye is the reason you sin, take it out and throw it away. It is better for you to go into life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.’ Matthew 18:9

Remove those applications and subscriptions, log out of those websites, discard those magazines, and avoid using any devices that can tempt you to sin. Avoid intimate scenes in movies, television shows, and even secular music. You may ward off temptation by consistently studying the Bible and filling your mind with Scripture.

4) Keep yourself busy- Learn something new, shape your abilities, spend time with family, interact with others at church, perform charitable work, etc. Exercise, get enough sleep, listen to Christian sermons and podcasts, audio Bible, among other things.

You'll be astonished at how much the devil wants to keep you imprisoned while God wants to set you free in His love if you trust and submit to Him.

I sincerely hope that this aids someone who is battling a pornographic addiction. It may be supported by culture, but God does not approve of it. Marriages, innocent lives, young girls, and women's self-esteem are all being destroyed by porn. We are more than just our sexuality; we are created in the image of God, who gave us purpose to live a holy life by uniting with someone of the sex opposite. Porn addiction is no longer just a problem for men; it is now a problem for women. Lets stand against the pornographic content!

Do you believe that pornography can lead to rape? What do you think, do you agree with me?

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