A Last-Minute Letter to My Never Trump Republican Friend

November 6, 2024

If We Lose Tomorrow, We Shouldn’t Lose Hope

The Current Democratic Party Coalition

The Choice for the American People: Love or Hate

by Kevin Barrett, The Unz Review: Al-Jazeera investigates genocidal sick puppies Note: I was just de-banked by Stripe—all Substack income removed. Please donate HERE. In this week’s False Flag Weekly News, Cat McGuire and I discuss the election and other pressing concerns—including my loss of over three-quarters of my income a few days ago when Stripe de-banked […]

In years past, conversations about pornography were often considered a male preserve. If a book was written, a talk given, or a Bible study application offered, it usually had men in view. There was a consensus that women wouldn’t be drawn to online porn—maybe to a few romantic novels but nothing more explicit than that. Recent years, however, have brought a greater understanding that both men and women struggle in this area. Resources, support groups, and conferences for women now exist. Many churches are wrestling with the implications of estimates that one in six Christian women is watching pornography at least once a month. But while we’re beginning to grasp the reality of pornography use, many of us still struggle to understand why it’s popular among women. What drives so many women who love Jesus to engage in pornography? Three Reasons Women Turn to Pornography We often assume that women watching pornography is the sin of lust manifesting itself, and sometimes it is. But with Psalm 139 echoing in our ears, we’re wise to ask God to search us—to go beyond the obvious and apparent—and show us where the human heart is going astray. As I’ve spoken to women about their pornography use over the past 10 years as a friend, small group leader, and biblical counselor, lust hasn’t been the dominant theme. A more complex picture has come into view. 1. Comfort The biggest driver of pornography use among the women I’ve met with is anxiety. Life feels overwhelming at times; pornography brings some relief. Most of the strategies we use in times of stress take a while to bring us a sense of peace. As we turn to the Lord in prayer, he gradually changes us. As we exercise or rest, such practices begin to bring respite but have greater effect over time. The biggest driver of pornography use among the women I’ve met with is anxiety. But pornography has an intensity and immediacy to it, and in times of extreme pressure, it seems to bring relief quicker than other options. That relief comes at a devastating cost, but in the middle of pain, it appeals to many women. 2. Curiosity Maybe unsurprisingly, another big driver among the women I’ve walked alongside (particularly younger women) is a desire to know what sex is like. We live in a culture where we have a search engine with us at all times, and if we want to know something, we go online. Want a recipe? Search. Want an idea for an evening out? Search. Want to find a good sermon or podcast? Search. So when the normal and natural desire to understand more about God’s good gift of sex crosses a woman’s mind, the first instinct is often to search. It’s not wise, but for some, it feels less embarrassing than speaking to another human being. 3. Control The driver we probably miss most often in the church is that of managing pain. From sexual abuse in childhood and sexual assault as an adult to the horrors of domestic abuse, sex can be used as a weapon, and many women worldwide have endured such pain. For some, the idea of sex with a man may fill them with terror. For others, their experiences may have left them wrestling with anger. When sexual encounters in the past have been a deeply out-of-control experience, they can in some small ways be brought under control by going online and exercising choice over what to watch and what to feel. It’s a hollow control—there’s no true healing or hope in pornography—but for a few fleeting moments, hurting women taste a sense that sexual activity isn’t something done to them but something they can choose, and that has a draw. Different Support for Different Women Why is it important to consider these potential drivers and the many other underlying factors that may lead women to pornography? Not simply to pursue introspection but because, if we’re to help women lift their eyes to Christ’s glory, we need to acknowledge the human heart’s complexities. Everyone using pornography may benefit from strategies like accountability software, grace-filled relationships, prayer, liturgies for repentance, reminders of God’s call to a countercultural life, and a community that models purity and wholeheartedness toward Christ. But we need various approaches for walking alongside women with different stories and experiences. The woman who uses pornography for stress relief may need support to persevere through her anxiety—pointing her to God’s character and promises to help her know God as her rock and refuge, to come to trust her good shepherd more. She may also find help in God-given relaxation techniques that have an effect over time. If we’re to help women lift their eyes to Christ’s glory, we need to acknowledge the human heart’s complexities. The woman who uses pornography for curiosity may be helped by a series of calm and appropriate conversations about sex and continued encouragement about the joy of waiting in trust. The woman who uses pornography to engender a sense of control after abuse may be helped by support to seek justice, space to express her pain in a safe environment, and opportunities to process her experiences through skilled conversation with others. As we all understand our precious sisters rightly, as we apply God’s Word to heart struggles (not just outward behavior), as we walk alongside them in true wisdom, lives begin to change. Hope begins to build. Women come to see afresh the wonder of Jesus and, by his power, grow in holiness day by day.

If you’ve clicked on any news app or dropped by any backyard barbecue recently, you’ve likely heard conversations about how our nation is declining. One political party is ruining everything or one leader is maniacally wicked and must be stopped. The evil of those on the other side is so clear to us. What’s not as evident are our own biases and the excuses we make for our sinful speech or bitter hearts. If we’re to accept the doomsaying we hear everywhere, we’d be inclined to live in fear, run for the hills, or conclude that everyone has only bad intentions. But the Bible presents a more nuanced picture. While every candidate, presidential or otherwise, is flawed and sinful, we can be confident that God will bring good out of this election. His common grace will ensure it. Scripture’s Realistic Outlook Christians who embrace the Reformed doctrine of total depravity don’t believe that every person is as bad as he could possibly be or that any has reached his full potential of evil. But we believe that, as a result of our first parents’ sin, all people’s thoughts and actions contain traces of sinful self-interest. Even our best efforts are stained by selfish motives. This is why the prophet Jeremiah said, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure” (Jer. 17:9, NIV). While every candidate, presidential or otherwise, is flawed and sinful, we can be confident that God will bring good out of this election. As a pastor, this conviction informs my preaching. I prepare each sermon with the recognition that every person in the congregation, including the preacher, has sinned against God countless times throughout the week and is in desperate need of the forgiveness Jesus offers. I’m convinced that apart from the Spirit’s regenerating work, no one will choose God or savingly trust in Christ. This belief also guides my prayer life and outlook on humanity this election day. I’m not surprised when I witness or hear about displays of anger, unfaithfulness, or corruption. On election day, my low view of human nature tempers my expectations of how much a political candidate will accomplish, and it downgrades my shock when things don’t go well. God’s Restraining Grace But if people are bent on evil, if apart from the Spirit they’re God’s defiant enemies, why shouldn’t we expect only bad policies and evil power plays from the candidates on both sides of the aisle? Why not simply brace for the worst? The answer is God’s common grace. God restrains evil, enables good, accentuates and advances beauty, and even brings restoration in our world. Herman Bavinck contends, [God] fills the hearts of men with nourishment and joy and does not leave himself without a witness among them. He pours out upon them numberless gifts and benefits. Families, races, and peoples he binds together with natural love and affection. . . . Wealth and well-being he grants them that the arts and sciences can prosper. And by his revelation in nature and history he ties their hearts and consciences to the invisible, supra-sensible world and awakens in them a sense of worship and virtue. Everything good we see humanity create or do, and every way we see evil restrained—all this is evidence of God’s common grace. Though the universe has been subjected to the curse of Adam’s sin, it “nevertheless remains the work of the Father” and under Christ’s lordship. As Bavinck says, “Common grace maintains the goodness of creation in spite of humanity’s radical depravity.” People who haven’t trusted in Jesus sometimes commit wonderful acts. They make sacrifices and serve their fellow man. Those deeds are never fully perfect or without self-interest, nor could they ever be enough to earn God’s forgiveness. But they’re still benevolent, helpful, and to be commended. Even as we pray for God to pour out his saving grace on unbelievers and bring about the obedience of faith in their lives, we can also give thanks for how he “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matt. 5:45). Reason for Hope How will this election day end? Only the Lord knows. But we can be certain that God will shower down his grace regardless of who holds our country’s highest office. This isn’t a promise our lives will be comfortable. Or that the next four years will go smoothly. The election’s outcome may directly lead to grievous evil, and we should mourn and lament even as we recommit to fighting against sin and injustice. How will this election day end? Only the Lord knows. But we can be certain that God will shower down his grace regardless of who holds our country’s highest office. But if the Lord tarries, the sun will still rise on November 6. By God’s grace, we’ll still have plenty to laugh about, look forward to, and enjoy together. Even if suffering comes, God will surprise all people with kindnesses we don’t deserve. And in his sovereignty, God will use the victorious candidate to accomplish his divine purposes. No matter what happens tomorrow, focus on the good you see around you. And praise God for it. And before you blast the other side on social media, or condemn the motives of other voters, examine your heart and recognize that the good in you is also a gift of God’s grace.

What should churches do when they gather on Sunday? The answer isn’t as obvious as it may seem. In this episode, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan share how they prepare for Sunday worship in light of their pastoral role. And they discuss the “counterintuitively freeing” effect of rightly understanding the regulative principle of worship. Recommended resources: Greg Beale, We Become What We Worship: A Biblical Theology of Idolatry