Mason Beasler
AFA Journal staff writer
October 2021 – The earthquake had a magnitude of 9.1, one of the highest ratings ever
registered.
It struck 31 miles beneath the ocean floor off the coast of Indonesia. On the morning of December 26, 2004, a collision of the earth’s plates caused the ocean floor to thrust upward, launching massive volumes of water toward the Indonesian shore.
The effects of the quake were delayed, but the tsunami it caused would take approximately 230,000 lives.
This, wrote Ted Shimer, is an unfortunately accurate picture of the pornography epidemic in this country.
“Much like this tsunami,” said Shimer, “the destructive nature and enormous scale of pornography addiction are hidden from the masses. … And much like the tsunami that crushed so many communities in southeast Asia, the wave of porn addiction is gaining size and speed at an alarming rate.”
The waves
This analogy might appear exaggerated until one considers the statistics, which Shimer provides in his new book, The Freedom Fight: The New Drug and the Truths That Set Us Free.
In 2019 alone, the leading pornography site created 170 years of new content, garnering 42 billion site visits, with 115 million daily visits. In 16 states, pornography has been declared a public
health crisis.
Children are becoming targets, too.
“During the [COVID-19] pandemic,” wrote Shimer, “Amaze, a well-funded organization with a team of staff and volunteers, launched their online sex education program for all the children learning at home. It teaches children that porn is normal ‘even a few times a day.’ Their goal? To reach five million children by 2022.”
The decimating effects of this wave have been felt throughout culture.
Citing current research, Shimer reports that “[t]hose who watched more porn placed a decreased value on the institution of marriage, the desire for children, and the need for faithfulness in a relationship. … Researchers predict a third of Americans now in their twenties will never wed. This is more than triple the historic norm.”
The shifts
If the pornography onslaught can be described as a tsunami rushing the shores after an earthquake, then the shifts in tectonic plates that cause the earthquake must also be identified.
Each of these cultural shifts paved the way for pornography. The first shift occurred around 1993: the internet. Pornography made critical inroads through the World Wide Web, which turned into a super-highway with the advent of high-speed internet in the early 2000s.
“With the internet,” Shimer explained, “pornography became anonymous, affordable, and accessible from the comfort and in the secrecy of home.”
However, the culture experienced a second shift in 2011: the smartphone.
“Before 2011,” Shimer wrote, “less than half of teenagers had access to smartphones. Today, 95% of teenagers in the U.S. either own or have access to a smartphone. … Ninety percent of teenage porn use occurs on their smartphones.”
The explosion of the smartphone has predictably led to an explosion of pornography. As with any addiction or drug, the easier to obtain the substance, the more rampant the use becomes.
“How hard would it be to break a cocaine habit if you always had it in your pocket?” Shimer asked.
The hope
“This book is for anyone who wants to know the pathway to freedom for themselves or so they can be equipped to help others,” Shimer said.
The Freedom Fight features the testimonies of many people who have struggled with pornography – from ministers to members, men to women, young to old – but who have found freedom in
Jesus Christ.
Shimer adamantly holds to God’s Word, which offers hope and a future to all who struggle with pornography.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (2 Corinthians
10:5, NIV).
The Freedom Fight offers a biblically-based, no-cost recovery program. It is available at thefreedomfight.org. 
