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Steve Webb: Now it truly is its
own pandemic.

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This is the Lifespring family
Audio Bible and coming to you

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from Riverside, California and
podcasting since 2004. I am your

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OG God casters Steve Webb. This
is a daily podcast where we are

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reading through the entire Bible
in a year. Welcome. If this is

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your first time, I'm so glad you
found us. Welcome to the

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Lifespring family. Yeah, that's
right family. There are no

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listeners. Here. We have family,
the Lifespring family. I hope

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you like what you hear today.
And then you'll be back again

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and again and again. If you are
new, let me explain quickly that

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on Thursdays we read from the
section of the Bible called

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poetry on Fridays it's prophecy
Saturdays, the Gospels, Sundays,

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the epistles, Mondays, the law,
Tuesdays history and Wednesdays

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we read from the songs. Since
today is Thursday, we'll read

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Proverbs five through six and
after reading, I'll have some

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comments. I'm calling today's
episode, no longer a slave. The

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show notes page for today's
episode if you'd like to leave a

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comment is Lifespring
media.com/s 12 e 169. So are you

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ready? Let's begin.

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Proverbs chapter five.

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My son, give attention to my
wisdom, incline your ear to my

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understanding that you may
observe discretion and your lips

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may reserve knowledge for the
lips of an adulterous drip

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honey, and smoother than oil is
her speech. But in the end, she

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is bitter as Wormwood, sharp is
a two edged sword. Her feet go

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down to death. Her steps take
hold of she'll, she does not

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Ponder the path of life. Her
ways are unstable, she does not

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know it. Now then, my sons,
listen to Me and do not depart

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from the words of my mouth. Keep
your way far from her. And do

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not go near the door for house
or you will give your vigor to

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others and your years to the
cruel one in strangers will be

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filled with your strength and
your hard earned goods will go

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to the house of an alien and you
grown at your final end when

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your flesh and your body are
consumed. And you say, How have

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I hated instruction and my heart
spurned reproof. I have not

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listened to the voice of my
teachers nor inclined my ear to

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my instructors. I was almost in
utter ruin in the midst of the

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assembly and congregation. Drink
water from your own cistern and

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fresh water from your own well,
should your springs be dispersed

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abroad streams of water in the
streets? Let them be yours alone

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and not for strangers with you.
Let your fountain be blessed and

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rejoice in the life of your
youth. As the loving hind and a

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graceful doe, let her breasts
satisfy you at all times. Be

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exhilarated always with her
love. For Why should you my son

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be exhilarated with an
adulterous and embrace the bosom

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of a foreigner for the ways of a
man or before the eyes of the

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Lord, and He watches all his
paths. His own iniquities will

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capture the wicked and he will
be held with the cords of his

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sin. He will die for lack of
instruction and in the greatness

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of his folly, he will go astray.

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Proverbs chapter six.

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My son if you have become surety
for your neighbor, have given a

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pledge for a stranger. If you
have been snared with the words

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of your mouth, have been caught
with the words of your mouth. Do

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this then my son and deliver
yourself. Since you have come

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into the hands of your neighbor,
go humble yourself and importune

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your neighbor. Give no sleep to
your eyes nor slumber to your

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eyelids. Deliver yourself like a
gazelle from the hunters hand

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and like a bird from the hand of
the Fowler. Go to the anto

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sluggard observe her ways and be
wise, which having no chief

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officer or ruler prepares her
food in the summer and gathers

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her provision in the harvest.
How long will you lie down? Oh

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sluggard when will you arise
from your sleep? A little sleep,

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a little slumber a little
folding of the hands to rest.

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Your poverty will come in like a
vagabond and your need like an

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armed man. A worthless person. A
wicked man is the one who walks

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with a perverse mouth, who winks
with his eyes, who signals with

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his feet, who points with his
fingers, who with perversity in

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his heart continually devises
evil who spreads strife.

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Therefore, his calamity will
come suddenly, instantly he will

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be broken and there will be no
healing. There are six things

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which the Lord hates, yes, seven
which are an abomination to Him.

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haughty eyes, a lying tongue and
hands that shed innocent blood,

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a heart that devises wicked
plans, feet that run rapidly to

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evil, a false witness who utters
lies, and one who spreads strife

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among brothers. My son Observe
the commandment of your father

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and do not forsake the teaching
of your mother. Bind them

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continually on your heart. Tie
them around your neck. When you

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walk about they will guide you.
When you sleep. They will watch

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over you. And when you awake,
they will talk to you. For the

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commandment is a lamp in the
teaching is light and reproof

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for discipline or the way of
life to keep you from the evil

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woman from the smooth tongue of
the adulterous do not desire her

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beauty in your heart nor let her
capture you with her eyelids.

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For on account of a harlot one
is reduced to a loaf of bread

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and and adulterous hunts for the
precious life. Can a man take

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fire in his bosom and his
clothes not be burned? Or can a

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man walk on hot coals and his
feet not be scorched? So is the

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one who goes into his neighbor's
wife. Whoever touches her will

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not go unpunished. Men do not
despise a thief if he steals to

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satisfy himself when he is
hungry. But when he is found he

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must repay seven fold. He must
give all the substance of his

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house. The one who commits
adultery with a woman is lacking

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sense. He who would destroy
himself does it. wounds and

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disgrace he will find and his
reproach will not be blotted out

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for jealousy and rage as a man
and He will not spare in the day

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of vengeance. You will not
accept any ransom nor will he be

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satisfied though you give many
gifts.

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Alright, beloved, just a heads
up if you're listening to this

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with children. Solomon's
teaching today on adultery in

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chapter five is very closely
tied to the concept of

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pornography. And I will be
discussing that topic in this

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episode. So if you don't want
tender ears to hear now would be

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a good time to skip forward a
few minutes. I'll be starting in

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321. All right. Solomon's
teaching on adultery in chapter

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five is especially timely in
today's world of easy to access

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pornography. Remember, Jesus
said that even if you look at a

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woman with lust in your heart,
you have committed adultery with

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her. So if you think that you're
okay in this department just

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because you haven't had an
actual physical adulterous

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affair, think again. And ladies,
by the way, this applies to you

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as well. Let's be honest here,
folks, pornography is everywhere

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today isn't it seems like every
time you turn around your eyes

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are confronted with sexual
images. I'll get to that in just

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a moment. Now concerning
hardcore porn with a COVID

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lockdowns, it's been estimated
that online porn sites are

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seeing double the traffic they
had before the lockdowns before

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COVID porn use was already an
epidemic. But now it truly is

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its own pandemic. You might be
saying, but Steve, I don't look

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at that stuff. I don't look at
hardcore porn. I'm glad to hear

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that. But you don't have to be
looking at hardcore images of

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people doing the deed if the
images you see cause you to lust

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for you. That's porn. Let's be
frank. Men especially are

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aroused through the eyes. But
women can be to advertisers know

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that and they use it don't they?
May I suggest an easy way to

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shortcut their efforts. And this
is something that I've been

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doing for years, I've made a
covenant with myself with my

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wife and with God, that when I'm
confronted with provocative

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advertisements, I won't look at
it. I avert my eyes. Now back to

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the hardcore stuff. The Internet
is a marvelous tool, except when

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it's misused. And unfortunately,
it's all too easy to find

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pornography if you're looking
for it. In sadly, Christians are

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not immune to the lure. A few
years ago, I found a study done

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by proven men ministries in
conjunction with a Barna Group

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that revealed the fact that in
some datasets, Christian men

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view porn more than non
Christian men and Christian

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women are viewing porn to I'll
have a link in the show notes

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page to that study if you'd like
to look at it. The bottom line

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is this study shows that even
Christians can be caught up in

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porn. You might be saying so
what's the big deal? Porn is

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just a victimless vise, isn't
it? Well, is it? One of the

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world's most used porn websites
has been investigated for

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allowing porn on their platform,
when you call them victims. And

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many of the people in the other
videos that don't have children

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are still not willing
participants. They're actually

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victims of modern day slavery.
Yes, slavery, actual slavery.

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The children and the young
people in these videos are

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victims beloved, and the damage
being done to them emotionally

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and spiritually is very real.
And the damage is in many cases

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permanent. Their lives are
destroyed. And for what?

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Make no mistake, pornography is
evil. It's not a victimless

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crime. There are very real
consequences. Beloved, listen to

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solid advice here in Proverbs,
there are consequences to your

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behavior. You might think it's a
harmless diversion, you might

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think that it's secret, but
there are very real victims and

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it won't remain a secret. Porn
has a way of permeating your

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life. And if you don't quit it,
there are victims even closer to

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you than the people in the
videos yourself, your spouse,

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your children, your friends. And
get this scientists have found

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that pornography actually
changes the brain and not in a

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good way. The Guardian reported
that quote, the Cambridge

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University neuro psychiatrist,
Dr. Valerie Boone, has recently

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shown that men who described
themselves as addicted to porn,

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and who lost relationships
because of it, develop changes

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in the same brain area, the
reward center, the changes in

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drug addicts, I'll have a link
to that article in the show

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notes page at Lifespring
media.com/s 12 V. 169. And I'll

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also have a link there to show
you how to block porn on your

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home network or on your
individual devices, computers,

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tablets, phones, whatever. And
this method is free on the show

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notes page. Has porn been? Or is
it a problem for you? Or someone

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you know? Would you like help
with it? Write to me at Steve at

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Lifespring media.com. I'll pray
with you and I'll offer any help

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I can. Folks, this is an
epidemic that is having terrible

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consequences in the church
today. We need to take control

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and you can't take control. If
porn has a grip on you must

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understand that it is not your
master. If you're a believer,

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then you are not a slave to sin.
Romans six three through six

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tells us or have you forgotten
that when we were joined with

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Christ Jesus in baptism, we
joined him in his death for we

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died and were buried with Christ
by baptism. And just as Christ

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was raised from the dead by the
glorious power of the Father.

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Now we also may live new lives.
Since we have been united with

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Him and His death. We will also
be raised to life as he was. We

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know that our old sinful selves
were crucified with Christ so

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that sin might lose its power in
our lives. We are no longer

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slaves to sin. Beloved, you
might feel as if the addiction

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to porn is made you a slave. But
if you have Jesus in your life,

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there is a way out. If you need
help, it is available. Comment

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on the show notes page at
Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 169.

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Tomorrow we'll read Ezekiel
seven through 12.

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On this date in church history,
February 17 1889. Billy Sunday,

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the baseball player turned to
preacher made his first

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appearance as an evangelist in
Chicago. He preached

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fundamentalism, he supported
temperance, and he opposed

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scientific evolution. And more
than 100 million people heard

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him preach in his lifetime.

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Let's pray shall we? Our
gracious heavenly father how

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good it is to be yours. You are
holy and righteous in jest. And

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Lynn wave received Jesus as our
Savior, you are merciful and oh

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how we need your mercy. So
often, Lord, even when we know

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the right thing to do we just do
the opposite. Like the apostle

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Paul, we confess I am the worst
sinner of the mall. And yet

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because of Jesus shed blood, you
forgive us. Oh, Lord, thank you.

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I pray that you would continue
the work you started in each one

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of us. Father, I pray that You
would bless the Lifespring

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family today. For those who are
hurting, I pray that you would

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be their healer, show them your
love. May they lean on you and

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receive comfort from the Holy
Spirit. I pray this in Jesus

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name. Amen. Beloved, send in
your prayer requests and praises

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at prayer dot Lifespring
media.com.

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Comment on the show at
Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 169.

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Email me at Steve at Lifespring
media.com. And please, I need

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00:14:25,020 --> 00:14:29,550
your support at Lifespring
media.com/support Until

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tomorrow, may God bless you
originally. I'm glad you were

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here with me today. It's great
seeing your smiling face. Thank

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you for sharing your time. My
name is Steve Webb. Bye