Gwyneth Paltrow's New Film -- Thanks For Sharing -- Is Gateway to Open Dialogue about Dealing with Dark Addictions

News provided by

Sep 26, 2013, 01:05 ET

LYNCHBURG, Va., Sept. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

The following is a letter from Joel Hesch, founder of PROVEN Men Ministries, Ltd.:

My name is Joel Hesch. I am the founder of PROVEN Men^TM and a law professor at Liberty University. I'm writing to spotlight a film Thanks For Sharing, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Mark Ruffalo, which opens Friday, September 27.

The movie, which uses comedy to address the very real and pervasive issue of sex addiction, could be a valuable stepping stone toward opening a discussion about sexual addiction. Just like drug or alcohol use, what starts off as a seemingly innocent act can quickly spiral out of control. The statistics tell the story about this pandemic:

Overall, 30% of all data transferred across the Internet is pornographic.ⁱ One porn website alone has 350 million separate people viewing more than 4.4 billion pages of pornography each month.ⁱⁱ That's more than Netflix, Amazon and Twitter combined!ⁱⁱⁱ
Even the workplace is not safe, with 44% of U.S. workers admitting that they viewed pornography while at work.^iv
Nearly three-fourths of Christian men admit to struggling with pornography, and in at least one poll, 50% of Christian men and 20% of women responders said they were addicted to pornography.^v

PROVEN Men Ministries, Ltd., my Virginia-based non-profit, is rallying to provide a solution, equipping churches to help men strive for sexual integrity. With the goal of reaching 1 million Christian men, PROVEN Men has just launched a Biblically based study program that fills a gap in available help to Christian men who want to overcome their pornography or sexual addiction.

Quite frankly, I used to be one of those statistics. After breaking free, the Lord guided me to form PROVEN Men and keeps filling me with passion to help other men achieve sexual integrity.

I invite you to contact me as a resource to discuss this issue and the PROVEN Men program, which can be a readily accessible and very helpful solution for those men looking to address their addiction.

Sincerely,
Joel

ABOUT PROVEN Men^TMThe goal of PROVEN Men Ministries (www.PROVENMen.org) is to equip churches to help men strive for sexual integrity and live victorious lives. With the goal of reaching 1 million Christian men, PROVEN Men is launching a Biblically based study program to help Christian men who want to overcome pornography addiction and maintain a life of sexual integrity. The PROVEN Men resources include a 12-week course of study, two leadership guides, and a book on sexual integrity -- all available on Amazon. PROVENMen.org also has many helpful articles and additional resources.

ABOUT JOEL HESCH
Joel Hesch is the founder of PROVEN Men Ministries, Ltd., a non-profit organization helping men overcome pornography and sexual addictions. A Liberty University law professor, husband of 25 years and church leader, Joel developed the PROVEN Men Path for Purity system based upon his own personal struggles with sexual addiction as well as those of men he's helped counsel. You can read his personal story of victory over a 20-year battle with sexual addiction on his website, www.PROVENMen.org, and in his new book named, A Proven Path to Sexual Integrity: Help with Pornography, Masturbation or Sex Addiction from a Biblical Perspective.

ⁱ http://www.extremetech.com/computing/123929-just-how-big-are-porn-sites.
ⁱⁱ http://www.extremetech.com/computing/123929-just-how-big-are-porn-sites.
ⁱⁱⁱ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/03/internet-porn-stats_n_3187682.html.
^iv Michael Leahy, Porn @ Work: Exposing the Office's #1 Addiction (Chicago: Northfield Publishing, 2009).
^v http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/christianet-poll-finds-that-evangelicals-are-addicted-to-porn-703951.htm.