Portal Ministries

1. Who we are... Portal Ministries

2. The prevalence of porn... Get a grip on reality...

3. The Reality • Average age of first Internet exposure to pornography is 11 years old • 80% of15-17 year olds will have multiple hard-core exposures to porn • 90% of 8-16 year olds have viewed porn on the internet at some time (most while doing their homework) Top Ten Reviews, Initials. (2009, November 5). Internet pornography statistics 2009. Retrieved from <http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html>

4. The Reality • 53% of Christian men consume pornography • 35% of men have used pornography in the past month • 20% of men have admitted to accessing pornography at work Top Ten Reviews, Initials. (2009, November 5). Internet pornography statistics 2009. Retrieved from <http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html>

5. The Reality • 51% of pastors say porn is a temptation. • 69% of pastors started looking at porn out of curiosity. • 37% of pastors say it's currently a struggle. • 30% of pastors do not talk to anyone about their dirty little secret. • 4 in 10 pastors looked at porn today Top Ten Reviews, Initials. (2009, November 5). Internet pornography statistics 2009. Retrieved from <http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html>

6. Question:Is porn always going to be the dirty little secret we never talk about?

7. Question:From the men that you know, how many would even think about bringing any of these secrets up?...to a pastor?...to a friend?

8. Question:Has the church made itself unapproachable with regard to these dirty little secrets?

9. Question:Do we at some point expect these wounds to heal themselves?

10. Porn and Isolation • Porn creates isolation • It’s in this isolation that we are most often tempted • Self-hate, loneliness and isolation help catalyze our submitting to temptation • Guilt, shame and hatred soon follow after our falling to temptation. • With no escape and no grace, the cycle continues... • Most men live with the lie that no one else knows what they do, how they struggle and how at the end of the day...they hurt

11. Now take a deep breath...

12. The Mission of Portal... Take a step outside the pew...

13. The Mission • From the looks of it pornography is not simply a deep dark corner of our reality, it has become a unique staple of our society • Portal exists because it recognizes that what has been established to address the issues of porn and a broken sexuality are not yet running on all cylinders. • We wish to further this conversation... • Portal rejects the ‘quick fix’ approach to sexual struggle. • It empathizes with a long-term and fully committed mission of imparting grace, reconciliation and recovery to those struggling.

14. The Mission Portal started originally under the name, ‘Pop-Tarts and Porn Talks’ and found it’s core mission in reaching out to men of Concordia’s campus that were struggling with sexual purity. Be it whatever level of porn, masturbation or sexual addiction, Pop-Tarts sought to bring accountability and transparency to it’s members. Our passion and purpose was to start laying a foundation for a dialogue about porn and sexuality with regards to a Christ-centered faith. The original structure of Portal was built on the idea that since porn was already a touchy subject; the presentation of Portal’s message would flow from general to more specific and personal. Thus, monthly large group events were organized to present the issues of sexual addiction in a non-threatening public environment. From there, small groups were organized so as to provide a more personally relevant environment for sharing and growing. At the core of the ministry were accountability partners which provided brutally honest relationships for transparent living.

15. The Mission In the past year, Portal has defined and redefined it’s mission, purpose and vision. Considering the newness of its ministry and the issue that Portal seeks to serve, we understand that in reality we have no idea what we’re doing or how to do it. There’s not much out there in the way of porn ministry. So to put it quite bluntly; we understand that we are going to be walking on eggshells and emotions from here to kingdom come. Therefore as our needs and dynamics continually change, our structure will change also. Regardless what form is eventually adopted, our mission will stay the same...to establish a dialogue that is nonexistent and bring the tools of restoration to hearts that are broken and battered by addiction and despair. Nonetheless, this year, the structure of Portal’s ministry to Concordia has shifted to focus on the small groups that exist on campus. It’s these tight-knit communities of accountability that help to foster the passion and purpose of Portal elsewhere. For this reason, we dropped the monthly meetings and adopted a more ‘made to order’ approach to awareness on campus. Transparency among existing members is the focus, whereas campus awareness is planned and organized as the interest arises from the outside.

16. Portal on Campus • Small Groups are the focal point and driving force of everything that is done through Portal Ministries on campus • In essence, the small group has the ultimate autonomy. Whether it’s a service project or a campus-wide speaking event; it’s the small group that decides how and where they wish to plug-in to the ministry each semester

17. The Mission As the mission of Portal has shifted, it’s focus is no longer directed solely at the students of Concordia, but to neighboring churches and communities, so as to extend the borders and vision of its ministry...Not to make Portal greater, but to continue to strengthen the dialogue and urgency of these issues. Our next step is to open this conversation and movement to other churches and communities that are willing to with us engage in a dialogue and a reconciling movement that is almost nonexistent in the body of Christ.

18. The Mission • So here’s the reality at the end of the day... • Men struggle with porn and sexual brokenness. • It’s the dirty little secret that no one feels safe publicizing. • As a Church body and as a society...neither seem to be jumping up to the reality and jumping in to the issues. • Without action, without patience, without courage and without love...darkness will forevermore remain darkness.

19. Question:Are you game forjumping in?

20. Why Portal is jumping in... Cannonball into grace...

21. What Portal Is: • Portal is primarily a movement that seeks to reconcile and support men amidst a culture drenched in the scars and hurt of a broken sexuality… • We are held together by a common passion to establish a dialogue about pornography, addiction and true and God-given sexuality. And to then wrestle with the concepts of recovery and reconciliation. • We believe there is a beauty in the breakdown, in the struggle. That there is a powerful significance to how and where we struggle. • We hold to the truth that it is in honesty and transparency with one another and with God that we are able to make what was once darkness, no longer darkness.

22. What Portal Is: • We believe that concepts like joy and peace are not always found in the otherwise sterile and spotless aspects of humanity, but perhaps that they can also be found in the broken and battered pieces of human struggle. • We believe in a God who wastes nothing and in His time brings to light and restoration everything that was once dark and destroyed.

23. In the end... We seek to place our trust in a God bigger than porn...