Sex, Porn, and Freedom - Who Should Come?

We are less than a week away from our first Sex, Porn, and Freedom Conference. Many have been asking why they should attend. I think that's a question that deserves an answer.

This isn't like most Christian conferences. We aren't going to be asking anyone to confess or open up about their struggles. We're going to reserve those for smaller settings like men's or women's retreats or gatherings. Since this is a conference for both men and women, we are not going to do more than present information and the opportunity for a prayer of salvation. If someone wants private prayer, we will make accommodations in a separate room.

So, who should come? Everyone. It really is that simple.

• If you are an addict, come and discover that you are not alone and there is hope.
• If you love an addict, come and find support and tools to help.
• If you are struggle, find hope and peace.
• If you are in ministry, come and learn the truth about the depth and breadth of the problem and how you can help.
• If you're a parent, find out what your kids are facing today and where it's going.
• If you are curious, come.

This is for everyone. By coming, nothing is being admitted. If you struggle or know you are addicted, no one else will know. You will be surrounded by people who are addicted like you, those who've never used porn in their lives, and everyone in between. There is no shame in attending no matter who you are. No matter what, you can be part of the solution.

The truth is that we can no longer afford to be silent on the problem. For Jesus' Outsider Ministries, this is only a start, the first of many as we travel bringing a message of truth and hope.

Please, join us for this important conference. Pornography is destroying the Body of Christ from within and if we don't face it, the harm it does to our brothers and sisters could be irreparable. For more information, visit the special section of our site.

If you can't attend or still unsure, please contact me. We are willing to come and talk to any group with this same message.

Help Make The Sex, Porn, and Freedom Conference Happen

There is a cancer spreading throughout our culture and the Body of Christ. It’s time to face this evil head on.

Pornography and the culture it creates has penetrated every level of society. It’s everywhere including the church. Some of the numbers:

• 33% of youth pastors admit to pornography addiction or to struggling with pornography
• 40-45% of Christian men admit to being addicted to pornography
• 70% admit to struggling with porn
• 25% of all internet downloads are porn related

This is just a taste. However, if you believe this is just a problem for men, consider the following:

• Fifty Shades of Grey has sold over 125 million copies worldwide with an estimated reach of nearly double that amount with libraries and book sharing. Millions of Christian women have been exposed to the BDSM lifestyle in its pages.
• Surveys range from 25-40% of women admitting a pornographic addiction.

Our culture is becoming increasingly sexualized and it’s influence is felt in the church. That’s why we are putting on the Sex, Porn, and Freedom Conference scheduled for May 14th of this year. We’ll be sharing the full statistics, how porn has influenced our culture, and, most importantly, how to break free from its clutches. We’ll be using personal testimonies, clinical methods, and the power of the Gospel to share freedom from sexual addictions.

Our speakers include Pstr. Mike Kerby, (Director of Jesus’ Outsider Ministries and program host), Kim Kerby (a survivor of the real BDSM lifestyle and Addiction specialist for Jesus’ Outsider Ministries), Kevin Sisco (D.MIN., LCPC, CSAT, CMAT, Antioch Group), and Rich Gerberding (Men of AIM).

In order to make this conference happen and help stem the tide of sexualization in the church, we need your help. We are looking for businesses, congregations and ministries who are willing to stand up to this evil and support our efforts.

Through sponsorships, direct donation, and congregational support, we need to have at least half of the projected cost (approximately $3000 of an expected $6000 cost) covered before we start selling tickets. We need to accomplish this before April 1st to ensure a venue has been booked and printed materials can be ordered. 

Sponsors with at least $75 will be featured on the conference site. Higher levels of sponsorship (at least $150) will be in the participant guide including a full color logo and a QR code to the sponsor’s website or Facebook page.

Please consider how you can help. More information and links to make contributions can be found on a special section of our site dedicated to the conference or you can contact me directly. My contact information is below.

In Christ,

Pstr. Mike Kerby

Director and Program Host

Jesus’ Outsider Ministries

mike@jesusoutsider.com

Office: (309) 670-0302

Moving Forward

As of right now, we are up and running at about 50% capacity. We have the use of an older machine that allows some of the older versions of software to run but videos are still out of the question. Producing new episodes of Jesus' Outsider may be possible but we haven't had time to test it yet. We're putting everything we have into laying the groundwork for the Sex, Porn, and Freedom Conference so we can get that ball rolling.

We have been able to make several key updates to the Jesus' Outsider website reflecting the shift from being a podcast page to a full media, evangelistic, and conference ministry. Preliminary team bios are on the page for the start of our core leadership team with more to be added soon. As soon as time allows, we will also be adding a resource page with an Amazon store and a separate store for apparel. Big things are coming but they take time.

The SP&F conference must go forward. The need is huge. We have dedicated an entire page of the new Jesus' Outsider Ministries site to the conference with more content to come. We've been teasing a little of what we intend but it's time to go farther. Even at our reduced capacity, we know we must do everything we can to make this happen.

That means we need your help. In order to book a venue, musical talent, and cover other starting expenses, we need some resources. There are a number of ways you can get involved in helping us get the initial boost in bringing this much needed conference to Peoria and, as the Lord allows, beyond.

1. Individual Donation: Any amount helps, even as little as $5. There is a special PayPal link on the SP&F page on the Jesus' Outsider site.
2. Business/Ministry Sponsorship: We are looking for ministries and businesses who understand the scourge of sexual sin in our community to sponsor the event. A rate sheet is available for anyone interested.
3. Church Offerings: Allow us to come and share the vision for the conference and overall ministry with your congregation or appropriate committee. We also can bring a straightforward Gospel message for an evangelistic event.
4. Spread The Word: If you are not in a position to make a financial contribution, help us to spread the word about the conference and ministry. Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter. Share as many of our posts as possible with as many people as possible. In many ways, this is at least as important as direct financial assistance.

We need your help to make this happen. Please email Pastor Mike with any additional questions.

Sex, Porn, and Freedom

What's so important that we need to be fully functional again? Sure, the podcast has listeners who will miss it, but there needs to be something more that's worth the work and supporting.

There is. We are planning our first conference and it's going to be a big one. (Go big or go home, right?) A few have already been briefed on what we're planning but, in light of current situations, we going public now. To catch anyone who missed the last few posts, we had been working on planting a church but the Lord hit us on the side of the head and asked us why we were doing that when He had already given us a part to play in His kingdom that we had been neglecting. That word, along with a reignition of passion at a Josh McDowell conference, put us where we are today.

Our first conference is Sex, Porn, and Freedom: Breaking the Bondage of Sexual Sin. I told you it was a big one. In the years of broadcasting Jesus' Outsider, this topic is one we hit often especially since it seems that few are actually addressing it. It's the giant elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about yet it's destroying the Body of Christ and our nation. Oh, and it's not just a men's problem.

We're building a great lineup that will be announced soon. We'll be sharing statistics, tips on web and mobile device safety, and a lot of what you'd expect in something like this. However, we're going a lot further than that. We'll give you the science of porn, how the industry has changed and its impact on the greater culture, how to break the chains, and a dose of prevention.

One piece will be of great interest. My lovely bride will be sharing her testimony publicly for the first time. It's not a pretty story. She lived the BDSM lifestyle that millions of women were introduced to in Fifty Shades of Grey. Despite the growing acceptance of this lifestyle, it has consequences. Come and hear some truth about how people get into it, how BDSM affects those involved, and how hard it is to get out. During the story, we'll use the words and writings of the advocates to demonstrate the reality of what she shares. It will be challenging for her, but you won't want to miss it.

Our purpose in doing this conference is more than just providing information. We are going to demonstrate how widespread the problem really is within the church with both genders. That's just the beginning. Our goal is to break the silence surrounding sexual sin so that the light of the Gospel can shine into the dark corners of all of our hearts. We want to see people set free from these chains. We're doing this for anyone who wants to be free, desires to minister to people trapped in these sins, or just wants the information.

Oh, there's much more. This is just a teaser. We are tentatively planning for May but that will be dependant upon fundraising efforts and how fast the response comes through. As soon as the studio is fully functional, the Jesus' Outsider site and our Facebook Page will have all the details as they develop and when tickets go on sale. We'll be posting here as well as the full speaker lineup is confirmed along with the music (courtesy of Be Loud Promotions). It's going to be a day you'll not soon forget.