Teddy James
AFA Journal staff writer
May 2013 – Ever thought of yourself as a prison warden? A person with the ability and authority to arrest, imprison and even execute?
According to 2 Corinthians 10:5, Christians are the prison wardens of their minds. Believers are called to take every thought captive and, upon investigation, demolish those that are not of the mind of Christ.
Giving in
Al Larson, creator of Mind Armor, knows about having thoughts that need to be taken captive and destroyed. Larson said, “When I was growing up, God was not welcomed in my home. I was sexually and physically abused. And at 9 years old, I witnessed my father killed in a bar fight. I started fighting when I was 11 and was in jail at 15.”
At 17, Larson married. Because of his baggage, it wasn’t easy being married to him but remarkably, the marriage has endured. Larson said, “I didn’t become a Christian until I was 30. Before that I had a successful business, but I was doing all the drugs I could get my hands on and I was addicted to pornography. But coming to grips with the truth of Scripture, the reality of hell and the love of God radically changed my life.”
Larson began studying Scripture and how the human brain works. He currently has two master’s degrees, one in theology and another in human design engineering. He also has a doctorate of ministry in clinical pastoral counseling from Liberty University. His studies led him to some very interesting questions and life-altering answers.
Standing up
What is a thought? This is Larson’s basic question for the foundation of his Mind Armor program. He said, “Scripture tells us to take every thought captive, but how can we do that if we don’t understand what a thought truly is?”
In an attempt to explain what a thought is, Larson said, “Think of someone you love. Really, stop reading for a second and truly think about that person, I’ll wait.
“Good. You saw a picture, or maybe something like a video, right? Okay, now recite the Lord’s Prayer in your head. Again, stop reading and really concentrate on reciting that.
“Now, when you recited the Lord’s Prayer, what were you listening with? When you pictured a loved one, what were you seeing with? You were hearing and seeing with your mind. Those things are thoughts. And we can control those things once they enter our minds.”
But how does this help men destroy the pull and control of pornography over their lives? Larson’s directions when counseling men struggling with pornography is, “When a pornographic image gets in your head, turn that image into a picture. Now turn that picture into glass. Imagine a hammer or sledgehammer in your hand. Now use that hammer to break that glass picture into a thousand pieces.
“When a new image pops up, turn it into a picture again. This time make that picture out of paper. Now imagine a blowtorch in your hand and light that image on fire. Watch fire consume it; smell the smoke and watch the heat rise up from it.
“For some men, making an image of glass and breaking it with a hammer is easier, while others like lighting their images on fire. I don’t really care. This is your brain and your freedom, so you do whatever works to get rid of those vile images.”
Larson says to do this again, with whichever method seems easier. But this time, when you break the glass or burn the paper, scream with a manly battle cry, “This is my brain, and these images are not welcome here.” This, Larson says, trains your brain to no longer accept or dwell on images like the ones you are destroying. And if doing this makes you chuckle inside, that’s okay.
Larson said, “No one has ever said it is impossible for transformation to be fun or funny. Change doesn’t have to equal misery. It does include hard work, but you don’t have to be joyless in the middle of it.”
Standing out
While Mind Armor shares a goal with many programs, ministries and organizations that focus on freeing men from the destructive power of lust, there are several things that set it apart.
Larson said, “We have designed Mind Armor to be completely anonymous. We do need debit or credit card information and an email for payment, but we don’t need your name, phone number and address. Anyone could create a false email and we would never know it. People can buy a gift card to purchase the program, and we would never know the difference. We designed it that way purposely. Too many pastors feel they can’t get help because of the shame and the fact they would lose their ministries if people found out they struggle with lust and pornography.”
The program begins with a 60-minute video. Larson encourages viewers not to take notes and breaks during the first viewing of this video. It will be available for 60 days to view as many times as the viewer likes.
A different part of the program is daily emails called Tune-Ups. Larson said, “This is a 30-day program. Each day you will receive a new assignment and encouragement to keep up the good fight.” It is so important to Larson that participants take their time and do the program step by step that he made it nearly impossible to skip a day’s work.
“We took a lot of time and coding to make it so that you will not get Day 2’s email if you didn’t do Day 1’s work,” he said. “So in order to get all the emails, you have to do all the work. But we understand that people aren’t going to be able to do something every day. Life happens, and maybe you don’t even look at a computer for a day or two. That’s why we give 60 days to go through the 30 emails. We did this because our brains need consistency to believe and settle that this is the way things are going to be from now on. It’s like starting a new habit. It takes time and hard work.”
Men across time and space have had to declare war on a world that glorifies sex outside marriage and a culture that minimizes women to little more than objects of sexual desire. Mind Armor is a new weapon in that war. Larson said, “You are a soldier and it is time to train yourself to fight. The battle won’t be won overnight, but through hard work, training and lots of prayer. But God has given you the gift of a brain and the Holy Spirit. By using the training of one and the gifts of the other, you can gain victory battle by battle and eventually win the war.” 
To purchase and complete the Mind Armor anonymously and at your own pace, visit the Mind Armor website
Larson and his team are so focused on helping men that they do not allow themselves or others to advertise on the Mind Armor website. Instead, their other products and ministries, including several books written by Larson and Bible study tools, are available here.
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More resources for resisting porn
Porn Harms – a comprehensive site about the harmful effects of pornography. 202-393-7245
X3watch accountability tool
Restoration Path – a discipleship ministry for men struggling with pornography. 877-320-5217. See AFA Journal, 10/2012
American Family Online – Internet filtering for home computers and mobile devices. 850-362-6180. See AFA Journal, 03/2013
