5 Mentalities of a Porn "Addict"
Mark Shaw
The War Within
While many of my books and booklets have a focus upon substance abuse issues, a struggle with any “addictive” pleasure of sin is a war within one’s heart desires. Anything pleasurable on this earth can become enslaving, so the applications are manifold.
Two of the books I wrote address the mind of an addict to help us to understand the desires within anyone engaged in the struggle:
Relapse: Biblical Prevention Strategies, which is written in workbook style, directed to the person in the struggle, and
Addiction-Proof Parenting, written to parents, which paints a picture of how the messages we send our children either direct their thinking to be self-centered or Christ-centered.
5 Mentalities of “Addiction”
Because I like to keep things simple, I’ve identified 5 mentalities which often manifest in the hearts of those who battle addiction. I prefer to not use the word “addiction” in the same way the world describes the problem as a “compulsive disease.” So I redefine it to reflect biblical truth as a “habitual, sinful heart” issue. With that in mind, there are certain mindsets that are evident in those who are seeking to please self above anyone else.
In Relapse: Biblical Prevention Strategies, the person in the struggle can address the mentalities which are each described within the context of the workbook in practical detail. A mentality is simply an “outlook” or “way of thinking,” so the book is about changing one’s outlook and perspective from one that is self-centered to become more Christ-centered.
When I counsel, I often see them in a progressive order as outlined below (each of them has an application example of those justifying their sexual sin):
Entitlement Mentality: “It belongs to me. I own it” (opposite of Matthew 22:37-38). Controlling persons who look at porn and people as objects to be used rather than as living souls might fall into this mentality.
Consumer Mentality: “I want to spend all of it on myself” (opposite of Matthew 22:39-40). Takers rather than givers often get involved in sexual sin seeking to please self. God ordained sex in marriage to be a mutual blessing.