INTERVIEW
How to Ruin Your Life
By Heidi Krumenauer
Guest Writer
CBN.com –
If you meet 36-year-old Jarrod Jones on the street, he will tell you that sexual sin can ruin your life. In fact, it nearly destroyed his. As a young man in his 20’s, Jarrod found sexual immorality consuming his life and becoming the cornerstone of the relationship with the woman he loved. When that relationship ended, Jarrod endured heartache that forced him to face his sexual battle head-on.
Understanding there are so many others like him who face sexual conflicts every day, Jarrod has written a blunt, practical, and biblical guide to help any man who seeks to guard his heart and his life from devastation.
Combining his own experiences with a deep awareness of Proverbs 7, Jarrod’s new book, 13 Ways to Ruin Your Life, available as a free download on October 13, exposes the truth about sexual sin. His book uses real life examples and personal stories to describe the impact of sexual immorality and teaches men how to better equip themselves – and their friends and family – in the battle.
I recently had the pleasure of talking with Jarrod about his new book and the reasons why it’s so important that his deepest insight reach men – and women – of all ages.
You wrote 13 Ways to Ruin Your Life for a reason. What is that reason?
The norm today is that men are struggling with sexual sin. It’s no longer the exception. The testimonies and stories I hear from teenagers to youth pastors and pastors … they are either addicted or struggling or they have family members who are. In my years of being a guy this has been so glaringly in my face and I began to wrestle with it. My pastor mentored me through Proverbs 7. After that I started meditating on it, and I started finding ways for a man, or anyone for that matter, to ruin their life with sexual sin. That’s when I discovered the 13 ways to ruin your life and that’s how they came out.
These were excuses that came out in my own life and other men and women to rationalize sexual sin: flirting with temptation, believing you won’t get caught, making excuses. They are very human of us. We don’t weigh the consequence of how we can devastate our lives and the lives of those who love us. There are amazing repercussions that come out of sexual sin. As I wrestled with those realities, I was convicted in my own spirit of my own life. I sat down and started to write it out. It was a labor of love and a lot of hard work. My hope and heart is that every Christian man would have this book in their hands to keep them from sexual sin.
What about those who don’t claim to be Christians? Can this book help them as well?
Absolutely, yes!
Do you think sexual immorality is more the norm than the exception because of the easy accessibility to sexuality these days?
It would be foolish for me to say no to that. It’s so accessible now. You can get porn on your phone or even in video games like Xbox. Did you know the average age a child encounters porn is at 11 years old? When I was 11, that wasn’t the case. My first encounter was under a bridge, and my friend and I just happened upon a magazine. I still have that image in my head. That’s sad. I was only 13 years old.
What age group does this book target the most?
I tried to push out of my mind who it would benefit the most. I believe in it so much … that it would minister to men of all phases of life though that might be a little unrealistic. I think it speaks more to the language of young men from 16 to 34, but I think that it’s something that would challenge older men and married men as well.
So who shouldn’t read it?
Honestly, this book is not for the faint of heart. It will make you fess up. You can’t run. It will confront you with your issue and call you to take action. I just say flat out in the book that you must repent. I give scriptural reasons, but I also give practical, real life reasons.
What’s different about this book than others on in the bookstores?
I feel like there are a lot of books out there on the subject, but I’ve been waiting to find the one that would punch me in the chest. And my goal is that this book would punch a guy in the chest.
Do the words in this book come solely from your own experiences or others around you?
I wrote this book straight from my heart. I didn’t put statistics in there; I wasn’t led to do that. I wanted it to come straight from Proverbs 7 and my experiences. There were so many things that happened in my past, I really didn’t have to press it into the pages. It was just there.
So, you’ve written a book to help other guys before their problems become too big. Where did you look for help when you were younger?
Wow … I don’t think I did look.
Did you know you could look?
That’s a great question. I don’t think in a way that I cared to look. But if someone would have confronted me or pointed out areas in my life that needed help, I probably would have checked it out just out of curiosity.
Sexual sin was a part of your life. What was your turning point when you realized that you needed to make some changes in your life?
I was a basketball player in college and I lived the lifestyle of partying and girls. That was one of the emptiest times of my life. I was dating this girl, and we were going to be married. Our relationship had become very sexual. I knew it was wrong, but within the two years we were dating, we became sexually active. It’s all our relationship revolved around. It was unhealthy. She broke up with me and moved on, and I was left devastated and broken.
I came to Jesus when I was 25 years old, face down on the carpet of my bedroom in my apartment, crying out to God and repenting of my sin. As the Lord began to work with me and grow me through my pain, I came to the place where I realized that the relationship I was having with Jesus was better than any relationship I could have with a woman. Only He could fulfill me. My identity could only be found in Him alone.
And now you want to save others from what you went through, so much that you’re providing free downloads of this book starting October 13. Why are you giving it away for free?
Because I believe in it with all my DNA. In working with my partners, we wondered if it was crazy, but we believe in the impact that God is going to make with it and to keep the obstacles away from others. We did the book, printed it, and have already given away more than 1,200 copies. We said, ‘Hey, the Internet is where the porn reigns, so why don’t we put this on the Internet where somebody can download this instead?’ We believe the Lord is going to bless this in a way that impacts men’s lives.
To download your copy of 13 Ways to Ruin Your Life, go to www.13waystoruinyourlife.com or www.jarrodjones.com on or after October 13. You may also purchase a paperback at either Web site.
Related Links:
Overcoming Sexual Addiction
Pornography: Ten Steps to Freedom in Christ
Rebuilding a Marriage Broken by Pornography
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