Prayers (update)

[TheWanderer]

Hey pholks


Please keep me and my family in your prayers.  I can't disclose what's going on right now but hopefully in the future, I'll be able to discuss it.  I'm not around online much anymore for the near future so who knows when I'll get back.  I pray everyone here is doing well.  Thanks.

Grace and Peace,

Aaron

[Vlad!]

Hey man,

I was thinking about you this morning, and I've been hoping and praying that things are well. When you can find the time, be sure to let us know how things are going!

[TheWanderer]

Hello pholks,

Back in February, I did say I would discuss at a later time what has been going on with me.  Earlier this year I made some immensely poor decisions dealing with pornography that got me into heaps of trouble.  Because of the type of pornography it was, I was arrested and charged.  The matter was pushed back for months until the past couple of weeks.  On Wednesday, I plead guilty to 1 felony count of possession and face up to 6 months in county jail.  Along with that, I will be on probation for a period of 10 years and will be registered as a level 1 sex offender (20 year time period) in the state of New York. 

I have apologized to my family and many friends and I apologize to you all even though we never have met.  As acquaintances we have shared many good discussions so I have felt a connection with many of you.  I want to apologize to you all for my mistakes and ask for your forgiveness and support as I go through these times.  I will give you all my email address - apboynton@gmail.com - if you choose to communicate with me, and may give out my personal home address in the future via email.  Vlad, I ask that you remove my profile from this site after a few days.  I don't know when I'll come back to any message board but if I do, it'll be a whole different me.  Please pray for me and my family as we move on to the healing and restoration phase of this process.  God Bless you all and I thank you for everything.

Aaron

[Vlad!]

Thanks for sharing your story, Aaron. In Luke 12, Jesus says that what is done in secret will be brought out into the open. I think it's important to share these stories so that we can all see the truth of that statement. Also, for what it's worth, everybody has the power to delete their own account--go to 'profile' and it's the last item in the sidebar.

Pornography in particular is really a killer of the soul, and it's horribly pervasive. At church one Wednesday, when it was an all-men service, the elders passed out notecards. They said "write on this card--no name, no identifying information--whatever it is that you're dealing with and you don't want anybody to know". About 30% of the responses had to do with pornography. This was a surprise to, I think, everybody, but at the same time it also gave those men the courage to realize that it's not just them trapped in this mess while everyone else is leading Godly lives, and it gave everyone the inspiration to say "we need to deal with this problem". We have since set up accountability groups and sessions and have seen great success in conquering those addictions.

Situations like these--whether those like Aaron described above or those like the men in my church--are opportunities. Opportunities to examine ourselves and really ask the hard questions. "Am I leading a double life?" "What goes on behind my closed doors which will be shouted from the rooftops?" "What is the one thing in my life that I really don't want anyone to ask about?"

I am reminded of Matthew 18, where Jesus says that if your eye causes you to sin, it is better to pluck it out and be saved then have sight but be condemned. I realize this is easy for me to say, but it seems that this also applies to your situation, Aaron--it's better even to go to jail than to be caught in the horrible cycle of pornography addiction. I feel like this is the attitude the Bible really encourages us to have toward sin. It kills the soul, it kills your relationships, and ultimately it leads only to death.

So again, thanks for sharing. I'm sure it was hard--it's kind of funny how the approval or disapproval of people we've never actually met can mean so much to us--but confession not only helps us, it helps those we confess to because it's a reminder to be humble because we are all sinful. I am also reminded of the time when I was studying the Bible in preparation for being baptized and I confessed my own struggles with pornography. I felt horrible; I knew what I had done was wrong; I felt like I had let everyone down; but the men who were guiding my studies were all very compassionate and encouraging. One even told me afterward that he respected me more because he knew how difficult it is to confess these things.

The good news is, the Spirit really does help us achieve repentance. Once I got baptized and became a Christian, I have been very blessed because the Spirit took that struggle from me. I am humbled even by this, because the Bible says that we will not be tested beyond what we can bear...and since I have been freed from that struggle, I have to assume that means God knew that I couldn't bear it on my own. But I certainly couldn't have maintained the sort of spiritual relationship that allowed me to accept the Spirit's help if I didn't have a group of Godly men around me whom I completely trust.

I wish you the best, and I do hope that you'll be able to swing by. Let me know if you have trouble deleting your profile and I'll help you out with that...but at the same time, I think part of our witness is the change that happens in our lives. When we get baptized we don't enter the witness protection program, we use the change in ourselves to show the world that our God is living and active. While our sin is a source of shame and repentance, confessed and conquered sin is a source of great rejoicing. Go with God!

[bloop]

Please stay in touch in some way Aaron. I'll really miss you here if you don't return (but I do understand if you don't, too). I'll be praying for you.

[RedcoatJones]

Vlad said so elequently what I would want to say as well.

I can't imagine the pain and healing you're having to deal with. But know that God is bigger than this. And under God's grace, your mistakes do not define your soul's worth.

We'll miss you while you rebuild your life and work through your temptations. But know a group of pholks who've never met you in person will still be here when (or if) you are able to make it back to our humble board.

[KariStar86]

I'm so sorry, Aaron. Mark and I will be praying for you as God helps you through your internal and external struggles. I regret not keeping in touch with you recently, but I'll send you an e-mail soon so we can start to fix that.

[plvarona]

I pretty much agree with what everyone else has said.  Aaron, we'll miss you here, and I'll be praying for you as you take some time away to do what you need to do.  And if your future plans do not include us, I will understand.