The Church of St. Maximilian Kolbe is a place where men, women, and children can confess their attachment to pornography and their need for help, without fear of being judged, despised, or ostracized. It is a place that recognizes mercy and grace. It is a place where parishioners can come to get support and help in attaining healing for habitual sexual sins. The Battle Plan for Freedom can help fight against any addiction.

Battle PlaN FOR FREEDOM

1. Pray! Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2) Every day, meditate on Jesus for 30 min and pray a rosary. We become who we ponder.

2. Confess! If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Confession heals AND strengthens you. Go early and often.

3. Make a Firm Purpose of Amendment! Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Mark 14:38) Watch out for your triggers- times, places, and instruments of weakness and temptation- and avoid them like the plague. In the Act of Contrition, we pledge to “avoid the near occasion of sin.” Know when you are getting near that occasion, and make concrete and practical resolutions to circumvent them. If you aren’t willing to make a real change in your life circumstances, it is questionable as to whether you actually have contrition (i.e., sorrow) for your sin.

4. Know and Choose the Truth. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13) Don’t be ruled by your emotions and sinful desires. Stop. Breathe. Face the temptation. Replace it with the truth that this is a grave offense against God, it won’t make you feel better, and it hurts you and your family. Think of the worst-case scenario. Think of the person you want to become. Then choose.

5. Flee Temptation! Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. (2 Timothy 2:22) When the house is on fire, RUN! Literally go to a different location; find people to be with. Come to the Adoration Chapel.

6. Don’t Do it Alone! As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. (Proverbs 27:17) Find an accountability partner. Share your struggles. Check in regularly. Call in the times of weakness and temptation.

7. Fast! And he said to them: This kind [of evil spirit] can go out by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. (Mark 9:29) Fasting teaches you how to suffer and to say “No!” to pleasures of the flesh. Try saying no to all food one day each week, and from a particular item every day. Try a technology fast one day a week, too.

8. Resist! In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. (Hebrews 12:4) Stand strong! Freedom is possible. How badly do you want it?

9. Protect Your Devices! Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool that repeats his folly. (Proverbs 26:11) Password protect your phone, put safety software on your computer, DO something! Prayer is not enough. You can’t just be holier than this sin, you need to be smarter than it.

10. Move or Lose Your Devices! If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away… And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. (Matthew 5:29-30) To avoid serious sin, you need to be seriously proactive. If protecting your device does not work, move it somewhere else, or trade it for a flip-phone.

11. Read Scripture! For the lips of a [seductress] drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Keep your way far from her. (Proverbs 5:4,8); compared to: The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword. (Hebrews 4:12) Take up your weapon daily. Memorize some helpful passages. In the moment of temptation, get on your knees, and start reading out loud!

12. Seek Humility. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) Admit your need for God. You cannot beat this. Only God can accomplish this.

13. Get Help. Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. (Ecclesiastes 4:9) This is not a purely spiritual problem. There are biological, neurological and psychological powers at work. There is no shame in going to counseling, therapy, or recovery groups.

14. Maintain Hope. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. (Exodus 23:30) Healing takes time. Victory is a slow process. Freedom must be exercised in small doses.

15. Educate Yourself. Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance. (Proverbs 1:5) Read books and articles and blogs. Learn everything you can about the diabolical ploys of the industry, the harmful effects on your brain, and the addictive nature of this sin. All this, along with the latest recovery research and strategies are instrumental to your deliverance.