I used to feel lonely and empty. I would watch pornography and masturbate, and would even look for prostitutes.
I was also not doing great academically and gave up thinking I could make it in life. I tried reading motivational and spiritual books, but their effects would only last for a while.

Pastor Prince, when I first saw you preach on television, I found the grace message hard to grasp because I grew up under works of the law. But when I really started listening to you, I realized you made a lot of sense, and I would even set the alarm at one in the morning to catch your program.
Gradually, I started to see the light and fell in love with God and my Lord Jesus again. I listened to your messages and they were like treasures that I did not want to let go.

Every time I was aware of committing a sin, I would declare myself righteousness in Christ. Soon, I started experiencing breakthroughs in my life—completing my diploma after fourteen years, receiving promotions at work, and even getting married last year. I also realized that I do not masturbate, crave pornography, or want to look for prostitutes anymore. I no longer see any benefits in them. In fact, I realized that they only made me feel empty and lonely inside.

I have also learned that the enemy uses condemnation as his greatest weapon. And the answer to that is God’s love, which can be experienced when we know how much He has forgiven and taken away all our sins.

Today, I am a better employee, husband, brother, and man because of Jesus. My message to people whom I meet today is about the love of God demonstrated through Jesus at the cross. I have received and experienced the love of God—not through materials things. His love and peace truly surpass my understanding. When I meditate on His amazing love for me, I would sometimes laugh with joy!

Thank you for teaching me the true meaning of the gospel. I have received deliverance and I now understand what “the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32) means.

I thank God for you and your ministry. God bless you.

B Mogapi | South Africa

5solas:

Nice one! Rather than encouraging us to indulge in sin, the message of grace ( gospel) frees us to serve God in gratitude and without fear!

promise10:

EXACTLY!

Jesus didn't take the punishment of our sins(past, present and future) at the cross on OUR BEHALF so that we can go on and sin more, but to free us by his love and make us serve God in gratitude of his FREE GRACE, without guilt, penalty, condemnation and fear of eternal damnation, even when we are not 100% perfect in good works.

By the grace of God we were saved, not of ourselves, IT IS THE FREE GIFT OF GOD.

5solas:

Nice one! Rather than encouraging us to indulge in sin, the message of grace ( gospel) frees us to serve God in gratitude and without fear!

cloudgoddess:
Porn & masturbation stimulate our reward centers, because it's a natural part of our physiology & neural circuitry to be attracted to sexual stimuli.

Like anything pleasureful (including food, games, even using the Internet) there is a potential for an addictive habit to form. It's your brain becoming fixated on achieving the reward again & again. The dopamine rush. Chasing rewards used to be (and still is, to an extent) beneficial for our survival, but in the case of addictions, our natural reward centers are hijacked and overstimulated.

Habits/addictions can be difficult to get rid of because of how strongly they can become conditioned in the brain. But an increased awareness of ones inner state, & the ability to observe urges to carry out the behavior without acting on them, are skills one can learn to successfully decondition any unwanted habit (there are many great books on this topic).

I feel like tagging such behaviors as "sin" and insisting that they require "deliverance" only compounds the problem and makes it appear more mysterious and scary than it needs to be. Not to mention it adds an unnecessarily heavy burden of shame. No one needs Jesus or God or any religious rituals to get past these sorts of mental hang ups. All we need is to be educated on how our brains work, and learn how to mold & rewire them in more beneficial ways.

promise10:

EXACTLY!

Jesus didn't take the punishment of our sins(past, present and future) at the cross on OUR BEHALF so that we can go on and sin more, but to free us by his love and make us serve God in gratitude of his FREE GRACE, without guilt, penalty, condemnation and fear of eternal damnation, even when we are not 100% perfect in good works.

By the grace of God we were saved, not of ourselves, IT IS THE FREE GIFT OF GOD.