Masturbation

[Jim123]

Of greatest importance to me is my walk with God and staying pure in thought and deed. I want to be as pure as possible so I can see God.

Why oh why <staff edit>am I so uncomfortable when I dont touch for several days?.. Then when I do touch it is almost impossible to keep my thoughts clean and pure for the entire time. This has just been a never ending catch 22 for me and I am at my wits' end.

Just looking for some honest suggestions from those of you who might be in the same boat here. Thanks so much.

 

[God's Salvation]

Jim, God loves you and wants you to be free from your addiction to masturbation.

To answer your question of why you are so uncomfortable when you don't touch for several days: like a drug addict experiences withdrawl without continued "highs" from the substance, so you will experience anxiety and depression when you go for a period of time without your "high" from masturbation. You will be uncomfortable for a period of time while your body adjusts to not losing that fluid.

Also, you didn't ask, but how can I not tell you in hopes of helping you: masturbation is wrong even if you try to keep your thoughts clean and pure. See, God made it so the male transmits life to the female, and when you touch, that life perishes, dies. I tell you this in response to what you wrote:

Why oh why <staff edit>am I so uncomfortable when I dont touch for several days?.. Then when I do touch it is almost impossible to keep my thoughts clean and pure for the entire time.

There is hope for you, Jim. Seek the Lord with all of your heart, asking Him to help you get your heart right with Him. Don't give up on Him, but seek Him honestly and He will make a way for you. When you are tempted to touch, take authority in the name of Jesus Christ, and quote scripture to the devil. Tell him, "Obey God!"

I had a 26 year addiction to masturbation that nearly destroyed me, and God has helped me to be free. He will do the same for you if you seek Him without ceasing.

Jim, I just prayed for you, and I will pray again before I go to bed.

 

[Jim123]

Thank you very much for this. You are clearly living in the light(all the earmarks are there - lots of prayer, obedience to God's will, helping others..). This is where I want to be as well. I am pming you with the original, unedited, post. I understand why it was edited but important information was left out. Many thanks again man.

 

[God's Salvation]

Jim, you're welcome. I am glad to do my part in helping God help you.

Thank you for your compliments. Just know that I have been where you are and, most likely, in worse places. Know that God can bring you to a better place in your life if you seek Him without ceasing. He will help you, Jim.

I read your private message, and I will answer when I reach 20 posts as required to send private messages. I have almost reached that requirement, so it won't be long, probably a couple of days. I can answer your more specific question and help you further, but God is the one delivering you, so it's very important that you pray and talk to Him.

I prayed for you again today and will pray for you again before I go to bed tonight. God bless you.

 

[John-Phillip]

Jim, God loves you and wants you to be free from your addiction to masturbation.....See, God made it so the male transmits life to the female, and when you touch, that life perishes, dies.

God loves us all but....I have trouble with what else has been written there. My view is that we shouldn't lust and we shouldn't use pornography but to burden single people like that doesn't seem fair to me......I would write more but I am not sure what is allowable on this subject.....Ok well (from me not the Lord, as perhaps we all should say!), enjoy your body and your sexuality. Its a gift from God. Don't use porn and try to avoid lusting and I suggest 'fasting' sometimes to be able to focus on prayer....If you have no sexual release then it will become more and more difficult to avoid sin. Again, my opinion only....(there is not a single line -as far as I know- in the bible that forbids masturbation). I am just really concerned for young people being forced to try to ignore their sexual selves...eventually it spills over into sin (adultery, lust porn use and so on).

 

[God's Salvation]

In answer to John-Phillip's post:

...My view is that we shouldn't lust and we shouldn't use pornography but to burden single people like that doesn't seem fair to me...If you have no sexual release then it will become more and more difficult to avoid sin. Again, my opinion only....(there is not a single line -as far as I know- in the bible that forbids masturbation). I am just really concerned for young people being forced to try to ignore their sexual selves...eventually it spills over into sin (adultery, lust porn use and so on).

Take it from someone who has been enslaved to masturbation: it is no burden to be free from that addiction. Jesus Himself was celibate, and He didn't burn with lust or need "sexual release". By the power of His Holy Spirit, we can be, too.

I don't believe it is worthwhile to argue about whether masturbation is sexual immorality or not. I know there are many, many people, both men and women, who touch and then hate themselves for doing it. I was one of them, and I had no control, always saying never again but it would always happen again. People who touch are enslaved.

Masturbation is sexual immorality, and how many times does Paul mention sexual immorality in the Bible? Masturbation isn't mentioned specifically in the Bible, but if you read closely and reason, you can conclude that God considers it unclean. Read Leviticus 15:16, 17. God says there in the KJV: "And if any man's seed of copulation go out from him, then he shall wash all his flesh in water, and be unclean until the even. And every garment, and every skin, whereon is the seed of copulation, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the even." Now, would God like us to make it a practice of that which makes us unclean?

I am not trying to force anyone to ignore anything; I am trying to save people a lot of anguish that comes from the destructive habit of masturbation.

 

[Angelbug]

I would like to start by saying welcome to CF and this section.

I may be female but I too struggle with masturbation.

You have to really focus on Jesus he is the only one who can set you completely free from this sin. SEX is the biggest sin and is very damaging.

Take this from me I have been in a similar situation and I am coming out of the A scene which has left me destroyed and not trusting men.

But through gods grace I am able to forgive and move on.

 

[God's Salvation]

Angelbug, thanks for your welcome.

Jesus is the only one who can free us from this sin, but for Him to do so requires us to repent. God will not do the repenting for us, but if we ask Him with right motive to help us, He will. Right, we have to really focus on Jesus; when we seek Him we must examine our hearts and make sure we are sincere. God will help all who cry out to Him!

 

[lovelyashley]

Hello. I'm a girl, but had a problem with masturbation and pornography addiction. I found God and so I wanted to stop doing these things...so instead of masturbating at night, I would read my Bible until I got tired and fell asleep. I threw away all my pornography and whatnot. I still have urges and struggle, but it helps me to pray when I get those urges. God will help you through this. Just pray to Him.

 

[citizenthom]

Of greatest importance to me is my walk with God and staying pure in thought and deed. I want to be as pure as possible so I can see God.

If you sit around trying to be "pure," it's going to make you anxious about your failures. Anxiety leads to tension, which leads to a heightened need to release tension, which for guys leads to, well, masturbation. The reason you feel like you're in an endless cycle is, you are in an endless cycle. But the beginning isn't your masturbation: it's your guilt over your inability to be perfect.

So start from this premise: God does not expect you to be 100% perfect. He wants to to try. He also doesn't want your obsession over purity of deed to keep you from purity of purpose. Try devoting some of the excess energy to good deeds, instead of "trying really hard" to abstain from bad ones. Spend more time serving your church and your community. Get plugged in. Give yourself less time to worry about your faults--and, bluntly, less time to touch. Get your energy out in other places.

Good luck. You're in many people's prayers now.

 

[John-Phillip]

In answer to John-Phillip's post:
I don't believe it is worthwhile to argue about whether masturbation is sexual immorality or not. .....Masturbation is sexual immorality,.

You say you don't want to argue about that then go on to do so anyway.

I agree -not much point arguing and everyone has to work it out for themselves. What I feel is wrong is preaching your own specific point of view as if it is from God unquestionably. Adultery is wrong, lusting is wrong, all forms of porn use are wrong. Touching your own body is not (ok for some people it is, for some not but it is not a hard and fast rule that has been laid down. I accept it is for you). But how dare you burden others this way! Exhort younger Christians to follow the Lord and to steer clear of immorality (lusting, and so on). Why tie up a heavy burden and lay that upon them also?

 

[Jim123]

Thanks so much for all the helpful responses so far! I do want to say that I feel it is for God(ONLY) to decide if masturbation is ok or not. Again, for me, the most important thing is being good and pure enough for God to want me living in his Kingdom after this life is over. And I think to myself, if I were God what kind of person would I want living right there in the Kingdom(not to corrupt it for others). Obviously I'm not God, I simply use this line of thought to help guide my thoughts and actions.

I guess what most of you are saying is that it's probably ok to touch once in a while, but just don't allow it to corrupt me or take my focus away from God and helping others?

Many thanks again EVERYONE.

 

[God's Salvation]

I don't want to upset or burden anyone, so I will not post to this section again until I pray this all out.

What do others, besides John-Phillip, think?

 

[gurl_962]

It is like chemical addiction

 

[Jim123]

I think you're fine. I have truly appreciated your prayers and support on here and by pm. I just think that(on any forum) it's usually best to qualify information with like "imo" kind of thing, and not try to speak as an absolute authority. Again I, personally, took no offense whatsoever to anything you said on here. I just take it all as one more person's input - you know, take it or leave it kind of thing. You seem to be very sincere, just maybe watch your wording a little in the future. I mean do what you want but that would be my humble suggestion for you. And thanks again my friend.

 

[Johnnz]

I guess what most of you are saying is that it's probably ok to touch once in a while, but just don't allow it to corrupt me or take my focus away from God and helping others?

Many Christians accept that line of thinking. You are not alone in that.

John
NZ

 

[the.Sheepdog]

Many Christians accept that line of thinking. You are not alone in that.

John
NZ

Riiight. Just like shooting up once in a while is no big thing eh? Read some of the threads here! People have lost jobs, homes, families and almost everything to this addiction!

 

[Johnnz]

That is just a wild accusation. Since the divorce rate, obesity, teenage pregnancies and incidence of STD's either are no better than of in most cases exceed the general population rates we can conclude that evangelical Christianity has a negative effect on marriage, morbidity, and sexual health.

In the past masturbation has been blamed for the following. It's easy to see just how uncomfortable people are on this matter when we see just how ridiculous their reasons were.

1. general debility
2. consumption-like symptoms
3. premature and defective development
4. sudden changes in disposition
5. lassitude (fatigue)
6. sleeplessness
7. failure of mental capacity
8. fickleness
9. untrustworthiness
10. love of solitude
11. bashfulness
12. unnatural boldness
13. mock piety
14. being easily frightened
15. confusion of ideas
16. aversion to girls in boys, but a liking for boys in girls 17. round shoulders
18. weak backs and stiffness of joints
19. paralysis of the lower extremities
20. unnatural gait
21. bad position in bed
22. lack of breast development in females
23. capricious appetite
24. fondness for unnatural, hurtful, or irritating articles 25. disgust at simple foods
26. use of tobacco
27. unnatural paleness
28. acne or pimples
29. biting of fingernails
30. shifty eyes
31. moist, cold hands
32. palpitations of the heart
33. hysteria in females
34. chlorosis, or the green sickness
35. epileptic fits
36. bed-wetting
37. the use of obscene words and phrases

Take your pick.

John
NZ

 

[Jim123]

.

 

[Jim123]

To masturbating?? Are you serious..or am I misunderstanding your post here Sheepdog? Please clarify. Thank you Sir.