Myspace – an active sewer pipe

By: American Decency Staff

"… Many many Christians and Christian organizations even host web pages on MySpace believing they can do so without harm to their Christian walk and witness. It is like thinking you can walk through an active sewer pipe and not come out smelling like sewage. …" May 13, 2008 Personal note: By grace and grace alone I have been saved out of the lies of pornography and the sneaking, self-pleasuring, self-justifying, injuring, manipulation, etc, that goes along with porno. I'm thankful I escaped that trap of Satan long ago. But, it is because I was in it for a short season, I fight it because there are many that I care about and love that are still caught in its grip. I want them set free before it's too late – here and now and eternally. My marriage is built on many things but one of the pillars of our marriage is a mutual trust. Jan doesn't worry about me getting a buzz off from leering at scantily clad or nude women, sneeking around. I'm not clueless, however. Millions struggle with pornography on the Internet and (in other areas too). Pray for ones you know who struggle. Oppose pornography wherever you find it starting right within your own heart and family!!! Below is the beginning of an interview that I did recently with my friend Steve Ensley. Steve is president of AFO (AFO) which was originally founded by the American Family Association in 1998. AFO is a Christian Internet Service Provider (ISP) that offers a filtered full service Internet and also a Filter-Only option. The mission of AFO is to help protect families and marriages by providing safer access to the Internet. AFO does this by providing access to the good material and by filtering out as much harmful and destructive material for it's subscribers as technology and human ability can deliver. Contact Steve for further information at: sensley@afo.net My Question to Steve Ensley: 1 . You have immense knowledge in regard to the Internet. You have been on the forefront of its development now probably going back at least into the late '90s. What has been most surprising and alarming about its unfolding? Steve's answer: Actually I have been involved with the "Internet" since the early 1980's. At that time it was called ARPANET and was developed by Berkley for the Department of Defense. The first Internet users were colleges sending text messages and files to each other. But you are correct that the Internet really took off in the early 90's with the advance of computer graphics and images at the personal level. Because the human mind thinks in images, the impact was dramatic on the general public. Soon everyone began to realize the educational, entertainment and social implications of communication freely and inexpensively via the Internet using visual, audio and textual medias. Without a doubt the scope and volume of the immoral behaviors and activities on the Internet has been the most alarming! While nudity was a rare and not easily available thing when you are I were developing our spiritual maturity, today nudity is a daily occurrence, easily available and more graphic than ever. In the guise of "free speech" pornography has become mainstream and almost socially acceptable. A lady in Florida just recently WON a law suit against a city that arrested her for topless sun bathing on a public beach. What the Internet (and other media) has accomplished is to make an immoral behavior a right! In other words it has made a wrong into a right! What has most surprised me is the level of involvement of Christians in the immoral Internet activities. Thirty years ago most Christians would have been outraged at teen age nudity in a public place. Now MySpace alone has over 183,000,000 links or images containing nudity and yet millions of Christians visit MySpace every day claiming they will not be impacted by such materials. Many many Christians and Christian organizations even host web pages on MySpace believing they can do so without harm to their Christian walk and witness. It is like thinking you can walk through an active sewer pipe and not come out smelling like sewage. The truth is that Christians are involved with immoral behaviors and activities on the Internet at horrendous levels. So instead of fighting these destructive immoral behaviors, we Christians are helping to promote it! =============== Continued tomorrow — To view a video presentation that Steve did with me last summer in regard to the Internet and myspace go to the following link and scroll to the bottom under "From the President" http://www.myafo.net/ =================================== Thank you for helping us stay in the battle for Truth and decency. https://americandecency.org/folder.php?f=donate Bill Johnson, president ———- American Decency Association Bill Johnson, President P.O. Box 202 Fremont, MI 49412 ph:231-924-4050 fax:231-924-1966 www.americandecency.org

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