'>
Today I have a guest blogger, my 14-year old son, James. I recently had him read this book, and he graciously agreed to write a review of it.
Recently I read a book titled, “Sex Is Not The Problem (Lust Is)” that my mom gave me for school. (No, I don’t have any issues, but it was for “science”….) It was written by Joshua Harris, who is a senior pastor at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and also the author of the books Stop Dating the Church, I Kissed Dating Goodbye, and Boy Meets Girl. The book is basically about how to overcome lust in your life, wherever lust may be, whether it’s online pornography or certain TV shows.
It also points out, as the book’s title implies, that sex is not bad; on the contrary, God created us to do it. His point is that lust is the problem. He mentions that there is no “secret” to overcoming lust; since it shows up in many different forms, there is no one-size-fits-all. You have to make your own plan to overcome lust, such as avoiding certain TV shows or even cutting off Internet access in your home if you need to.
One big highlight of the book is that it doesn’t make you squirm a bit as you read. One of the points of his book was to tell how to overcome lust without getting into anatomy or anything else gross that would make you feel uncomfortable. So if you’re expecting to harden yourself for the streets of Gross City, you won’t find it here. As I read the book, I found absolutely nothing of the sort. He managed to avoid saying anything disgusting without leaving out the facts or details of what he was trying to say.
Another thing that Harris used was the fact that he could sympathize with people struggling with lust. He admitted to creating “The Contract” with several other guys, which was a set of unbreakable rules they had to follow to guard themselves from lust, and he broke it pretty quickly. He tells of where he tried and failed, like setting up our own human standards and rules like The Contract, which will always fail.
If you’re struggling with impurity or lust, Sex Is Not The Problem (Lust Is) is definitely a good book to read. It teaches you how to overcome your lust step by step without being long and boring (it’s only about 160 small pages) and without getting into uncomfortable areas. Although it’s mostly directed towards teenaged boys, girls can also read it and get things out of it (Harris has several parts in there which help girls as well), and really, it doesn’t matter if you’re a teenager or someone older; you can still use this book to help you in your struggle with lust.
If you're thinking of buying this book, why not purchase it through TGMT? Your doing so will help support the ministry here. Thanks!
Related Articles:
You Shall Not Commit Adultery
I Can Live With That
Are You Stressing About Being A Missionary?
Friday, February 27, 2009
Resource Friday - Sex Is Not The Problem (Lust Is)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Thank you for writing the review, James. I remember the days of school projects like this. :>)
I read the book a while back (when it was still called Not Even A Hint). I like your mention of "The Contract". I've been guilty of that trap many times, regarding lust as well as other sins. Joshua Harris did a excellent job pointing it out, showing that we can't overcome sin on our own and that guilt only makes it worse. I think the main lesson I learned when I read the book was to dump the guilty conscious that pushes me away from God, instead relying on Jesus' sacrifice to allow me to reach God.
I recommend the book to anyone, not just those who know they struggle with lust.
Blessings in Christ,
Marshall Jones Jr.
Post a Comment