Handling Sexual Temptation
Richard Exley
Given the right circumstances, the best among us is capable of the most unimaginable sins.
— Richard Exley Few things in life are more painful than a moral failure. This truth was driven home to me afresh when a fellow pastor sought my counsel. Hardly had I closed the office door before he fell to his knees sobbing. When he was able to compose himself, he spilled his dark secret. He was not an evil man; he never intended to become involved in sexual sin. It started innocently with morning coffee at a nearby convenience store. One morning while sipping his coffee, he found himself browsing through the pornographic magazines. A few mornings later he purchased one, and days later, another. His story shows an all too familiar progression: from magazines to X-rated videos to porno theaters to securing the services of a prostitute. This degenerating progression didn't happen overnight; it took months. After each step he told himself he would go no farther. As you might imagine, he lived in a self-made hell: moments of lustful pleasure followed by hours of shame, days and weeks of regret. Yet even in his shame, he was drawn irresistibly toward the very thing he hated. His desperate prayers seemed powerless against the demons within. He lived in secrecy and fear: What if someone sees me? What if my wife or someone from the church finds out? Then his worst fears were realized: he contracted a sexually transmitted disease and infected his wife with it. At least it wasn't aids, but now he was forced to burden her with his seedy secret so she could receive treatment. His story is not unique. With increasing frequency, ministers are falling prey to sexual temptation. Of the 300 pastors who responded to a recent Leadership survey, 19 percent ...
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