It's been years since I last did it.

Amen. I couldn't get through any days without God and it will be only through Him that I'll be able to stop altogether

 

I appreciate your post and agree that our loving family and also God loves us a lot.

However, I’ve noticed that when I solely tried to rely on prayer and reading the Bible, that I was always in a very bad mood and irritated.

But when I choose to study rebooting articles and focus mainly on keeping my thoughts clear of sexual/pmo thinking, then I am in a good mood and also do not relapse.

When I focus solely on God, Jesus, going to church, my irritation with life and my desire to have a wife actually increase, which leads me to relapse.

When a person reboots successfully, their inner energy and their physical body and their mind undergo a healing. This healing changes a person’s outlook on life which opens them up to new feelings of hope.

I do consider myself a Christian still, and I go to church every once in a while. But in my experience, I am much happier without constant prayer and Bible reading. I truly am starting to think reading rebooting articles and having a deep focus on studying on how to quit this addiction brings greater success and benefits than relying on prayer/Bible reading. But maybe this new discovery of mine is actually an answered prayer.

Also, having a girlfriend isn’t about recognition. I’m currently happy and content being single right now, but we don’t have to be single our whole lives like Paul was. Also, in my experience trying to pretend I’m happy just “feeling God’s love” all the time led me to feeling very resentful and angry, because I knew deep down I really did want to enjoy life in this physical world we live in, not just feeling fake emotionally happy all the time.

Anyways, I appreciate your post, but I think it is dangerous for many people rebooting on here to switch to just Bible reading and prayer. Even one day of relapse sets a person back many steps, and to binge on PMO can erase all progress and bring the person back to the pit of hell so to speak.

So I really do think beating this addiction should be priority number one, and not to get too distracted by reading about for example Israel’s captivity in Babylon in the book of Daniel.

 

But there does seem to be a few Christian men who are like you and have not done it for years. I think people like you are in a huge minority though. That’s the only reason I wrote my previous response. Probably 99.9% of Christian men fall victim to PMO no matter how much they read the Bible or believe or pray, just my opinion

 

When I was younger I was in a dark place emotionally and it was only God and prayer that got me out, the more I meditated on the Word of God the less darkness (eg depression, fear) I would have because I was filling my spirit with His light, so I wouldn't go as far to say that it is dangerous to tell someone to turn to God.

I'm not trying to dismiss your experience or be offensive in any way but I do find your experience a strange one. Have you considered that maybe a spirit of frustration is attacking you trying to wedge a gap between you and God?

 

Everyday 10 second i pray. He give me a gift, now i am on day 8. ( for last 6 months, day 3 is a dreamland for me.)

 

I found the same thing true for me. Stopping a bad habit and replacing it with good ones takes techniques and a skill set that can be developed just like any other skill set. It’s the same as learning to shoot a bow, build a cabinet, design a plumbing system. There are needed building blocks that must be in place. I had to learn meditation as a healthy coping mechanism to deal with stress. I am still learning ways to stop being lazy and transmute sexual energy. Prayer and Bible reading are spiritually very important but I believe God wants us to seek out knowledge, that’s what Proverbs says. Learning to transmute is a skill built on knowledge which is not going to be found in Scripture. And that’s ok and as it should be

 

For sure, yea the Bible doesn't explain how to build houses and do math problems and stuff like that.

Yea all I know is that when I don't masturbate or look at porn or spend a lot of time fantasizing about sex, that I'm in a good mood, no anxiety, and feeling optimistic that I can have a good day.

Maybe I will slowly start working in some Bible reading into my daily routine. Its just too valuable to have PMO completely out of my life, so I am a little nervous to get off track and distracted right now

 

It seems like religion not Bible reading or prayer makes you relapse 1990. If it really is reading and praying then should be lack of streak - sin is what creates distance between you and God. So filled sould with pmo crap or related demons made it feel worse after reading and praying.
When I was still relapsing then I prayed God wih hate in my voice for God. Of course worldly person can feel better without much God. If you dont serve God then you cant be happy wih God. When you are saved then you like and love everything about God.

 

Sure GF is not needed bu what about wife? When you get old who will take care of you if not your kids? Parents dont last forever ussually and so does friends.

 

That video is very emotional and inspirational, but I don’t think the video is grounded in reality. When the young man repeatedly says “Lazarus come forth”, this brings out strong emotions in the viewers, sort of wakes them up.

But I believe that the guy in that video is just a motivational speaker and that the Spirit of God is not truly in him, no matter how much he screams or cries

 

I think the video is real, filmed in 1995 since guy have so old school shirt from those times and also he seems like from those times. Thats Gospel man - God's love and God's love from people. You can see that Jesus is alive in him and have done tremendos work with His love. Theres a lot of love and care from that guy screaming and sharing his story.

 

I believe the video is real. I don’t think he is an actor.

What is mean is, the way the guy is acting so emotional. I think there is a difference between feeling emotions and the Spirit of God. I think people mix these two things up a lot of the time.

So I think the video shows how weak minded and emotionally fragile a lot of people are. The guy is crying and screaming and the audience is cheering and getting excited because he is showing emotion.

He probably truly does love Jesus, but I just think it is strange when people act so emotionally.

There’s no need for it, we can all just remain stable and calm and talk about things in a real, factual manner.

 

Minority, maybe, but we're the successful ones 99.9% is a huge generalisation, which tends to be too risky to be statistically true. Not every male PMOs. That's a common myth. You most probably have a lesser chance of getting addicted to PMO if you're a dedicated believer.

However, yes, being very dedicated to your faith doesn't necessarily keep you from PMO. That was my case too. Still, believing was an important, sometimes crucial part of my reboot. I don't know if I could do become free without it. Doubtful.

 

Okay, good point. Well what would you advise me to do about Christianity. Here is my situation: I work 5-6 days a week, usually 40 hours. Sometimes I work Sunday morning so can't go to church those days. There is one church that is kind of far from me that has more people my age, and they also have a group that meets Wednesday nights. But there are also some other churches around me, but not as many people my age.

I also like to go to the gym a few times a week and prepare most of my meals at home. So I don't have that much free time really. And a lot of the time I go to church I feel like I wasted my time and then feel like I fell behind on other day to day tasks outside of work. And further, I have went to church a lot before in the past and never ended up getting a girlfriend. At least in my perception, maybe I am wrong, but it seems like getting guys and girls to date each other isn't very high up on the church's priority list.

I just have never really became part of a church before, either because I felt like I didn't have much time or because I GENUINELY did not like being there. Like I felt like it was TRULY a waste of time being there. More specifically I thought the people there were some of the most boring and most horrible people I have ever met in my life.

So what would you advise I do? Keep going to church no matter what even if I don't like being there? Keep listening to sermons being preached when I feel like getting up and leaving?

Its just tough to want to be part of the Christian community when I feel like they really don't care about me and just expect me to be a happy celibate man my whole life. Makes me not want to ever go back

 

Sorry for crashing into the conversation, but I want to give you the best advise I know. I was atheist to the max 6 months ago. I'm talking nihilism, PMO everyday for hours, debated with people online about how evolution is superior to any kind of religion, yeah I was one of those. So hopefully I am a credible source of information about the fact that Jesus Christ changes lives. It took a complete mental breakdown to finally pray after a solid year. And not a doubtful prayer, but a prayer of faith (that's the important part). And I knew that God was looking out for me in that moment.
But anyway, I would say that you should stop worrying about which church to go to. The church is the people who make it up, meaning that it is full of imperfection, so you can't really expect listening to sermons and interpretations about Jesus to answer any of your questions. They're just humans like you and I, flawed, just trying to get along in life. The important thing is that you read the New Testament. I say the New Testament because that's where the words of Jesus Christ are and His apostles when He lived on earth is. I promise that if you follow the words found within it, and pray to God in faith (not doubt), you will learn how to love God, love others, and love yourself too. Christianity is a religion, yes, but it's more than that. It is a relationship with God. That is what is important, not simply showing up to church. Yeah, church can be a good aspect of growing your relationship with God. But you need a relationship with God first. You can't truly love others or yourself until you know how to love God. I would say if you really want some powerful scriptures, start with the gospel of John. I know everyone says that, but it really is amazing stuff.

 

Yea you are for sure a credible source of information. I used to think that I trusted atheists the most because they would at least be honest about talking about reality as it is, and not with "rose colored glasses of love" or something like that.

Okay, well the idea of reading the New Testament, that is an actionable idea, sounds good.

The thing is though, when I was about your age, age 20, I got really into reading the Bible and was super, super, super into it. And nothing great ever happened. Never got a wife, never got a high paying job, basically I feel like it was just a big waste of time.

So that's another reason I'm having a hard time going back. I feel like I was tricked. Got super into the Bible and church and stuff, and it was for nothing. So I am kind of bitter about it haha

 

Its all good since he is speaking to the audience and that multiplies the emotion. Even sharing with single person can bring out a lot of emotion since its the sharing.

 

I must answer from a Roman Catholic perspective, so if you're also one, then our rules shouldn't be a problem. I'm also quite well-read in some branches of theology, so maybe I can say something helpful.

It's not like you have to go frequently to church. You have to go there obligatorily only on Sundays (if you can't, then Saturday's evening masses also count) and certain Holidays. So, you're spending about 1 hour (plus the time to get to the church) for God out of 168 a week. So, 'wasting' so little time for someone who gave you life shouldn't even be an issue.

I understand the feeling of 'wasting' time very well. It really depends on the church you attend. Priests are humans, in the end, and they do their job better or worse. I'm sorry for the analogy, but it's like choosing a car mechanic sometimes. You pick whoever does the job better. If you have a church where you feel better, then attend masses there. Simple. But, you must dedicate yourself to do it.

People at church? You don't go to church for people. I live in a rural society and I hate it for numerous reasons, blind devotion being the main one. However, it really comes with education, not only the religious one. You can meet wonderful people who know that religion and science aren't opposites, like the media and different ideologies tend to say. It's a matter of perspective.

Sermons... well, if they strike your soul, if you feel like they're talking about you, it's not like you're being told that you're a terrible guy or something. They're giving you a direction to change your life, just like we give each other pieces of advice. The sad thing is, that some priests really speak as if they were only accusing us. Sermons, in my view, are for adult what parents teach their children who don't understand what they're doing wrong. If a parent can't explain what was wrong in his/her child's behaviour, then how can that poor kid become better? That's the main problem with sermons, I believe. They tell us what's wrong, forgetting about giving us tips to get better.

One thing I don't get: you don't have to be 'a happy celibate guy' for the rest of your life. The Church doesn't say anything about that. You have the Ten Commandments and Free Will. Mix those two and life gets much easier.

My real advice?
-Attend masses on Sundays and Holidays, so stick to the rules at least in that way. You can choose whichever church you want.
-Read an excerpt from the Bible. Once a day if you can. If not, then pick a day in a week when you can spend 15 min. to do so. Not just read it, think about it.
-Listen to some sermons from priests in your country who are good at it. It might help getting back to a real faith.
-Learn about the mass. It's not boring if you know what you are actually doing. There are videos on that topic probably.
-Finally, step by step try to realise that being a believer doesn't give you restrictions to live a happy life. It actually gives you TIPS to make your life happier. For instance, PMO according to the Church? Obviously bad, you can live without it.

I'm not sure if anything from that was helpful. Should I specify something? You can write (I don't always check the forum every day, but I try to answer when I'm here.)

Cheers!

 

Jcl1990 I agree with Roader to Freedom that you dont go to church for people. Also you dont go for girls or looking to get married. You dont go for pastor, but you go to church for God. If there is Gods presence then thats all that matters.
You didnt get married when going to church? How long you were clean? My guess less than few years. First of all one needs to get rid of the sin, stop being slave of sin, addict and then live without addictions for years. You want to be happy all your life but theres no shortcut for it. You have to take the stairs. Going to church for 1 hour a week and then rrst of the hours living for yourself and your bussiness is like not doing pmo 1 hour a week and then rest of the time doing it. You got my point. Its where your mind is focused. Fight is about our hearts and thoughts. Where your thpughts are is where your heart is. God and devil is fighting for your heart. devil want to distract you from God, but God wants you to spend time with Him and get to know His heart and love.