I was reading a tweet about teens and porn that was really heart breaking. It was basically talking about how much porn has a grip on this culture. You can read it here at DougFields
In my small group we set aside time every week to talk about what has tempted us this week or which temptation we have fallen into. We call it “Confess Sess“based off of (Gal 6:2) and it’s a time that the guys can express some things that they struggle with in community. I have seen my guys grow stronger individually as well as together as a result of it. Among many here are three benefits to our Confess Sess:
- Openly confessing a struggle one to another – This is a spiritual habit we all must learn not to neglect. Sin grows in isolation and feeds on the person’s silence. The longer you keep it to yourself the more time you give it to grow and infect multiple parts of your life. The sin you struggled with in one area has now spread and you will look up one day and say “how did I get so far off the mark?”. Two things we must know when it comes to life’s struggles.
- We will have struggles. (1Peter 4:12)
- We must confess them.(James 5:16)
- Meeting weekly in community – Students need accountability and support. It’s important that the culture of the community is conducive to them feeling free and safe to share anything. They can be held accountable to the things they shouldn’t be doing but also to things they should be doing.
- Some guidance from their small group leader.
- Make a big deal about them being able to be open and share.
- Ask open-ended questions. Engage the whole group in convo.
- Allow the group to come up with the actions steps in strengthening their lack of self-control. Allow the students to take ownership in the things they need to do. The leader should guide the conversation but not come up with all of the solutions.
- Always use scripture when guiding. I know we are saying exactly what the bible teaches, it’s just good for the students to see and even read it for themselves.
I’ve seen statistics that suggest 1 out of 10 boys between the ages of 12-17 has visited a pornographic website and it’s not to much less for girls. Having conversations about our struggles can be tough. Building it into a part of what you do as a group can be very helpful in getting your group accustom to talking about tough issues. I think we need to be ahead of the game and expose the scheme of the enemy. I hope this is helpful.
