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I spent the last 33 days of the Year of Mercy rebooting. How did you live up this Extraordinary Jubilee Year? Tell me in the comments below!

A Chance to Start Fresh

Seriously though, I did reboot. I had been feeling a need to start a new prayer routine, be more intentional about making Saturday’s a day for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to start exercising more, and to make a point to connect with more friends throughout the work week.

It kind of sounds like the start to a New Year’s resolution list doesn’t it? Conveniently, the Catholic Church celebrated our New Year this past weekend with the start of Advent. Happy New Year! Maybe my resolutions will give you some ideas for your own resolutions.

But, what led to my desire to reboot? First, I spent the final 33 days of the Extraordinary Year journeying in prayer with 33 Days to Merciful Love, a do-it-yourself retreat in preparation for the Consecration to Divine Mercy. Second, I attended Chris Stefanick’s “Reboot! Live!” Hence, my choice in words, reboot. But, seriously! The mix of 33 Days to Merciful Love, “Reboot!” and the Sacramental life of the Church were just what I needed for a reality check to resist the temptation to just live life by getting by.

We’re Made for a Fruitful Life

Here’s what these days have taught me.

God has made us for a full and fruitful life. In fact, God wants us to be saints! In the book 33 Days to Merciful Love, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux’s prayer stood out to me:

“I believe my God, that you can and will make me a saint, even if I won’t see it, even if I have to struggle with vice and sin, even if I have to wait until the very end. This blind hope in your mercy, O Lord, is my only treasure.”

Rebooting from the Struggle of Pornography

Let’s be specific and focus this on the struggle with pornography. How do we aspire to be saints and, at the same time, struggle with the vice and sin of pornography? How can we trust in Jesus’ mercy in the midst of addiction? Here’s what stood out to me from “Reboot” and applying the realness of the struggle of pornography with each step.

1. Love Yourself

Open yourselves more and more to Jesus’ merciful love. You are unique and unrepeatable. In fact, you are a chosen son or daughter of God. To do this, you must learn to love yourself. Begin by speaking positive words to yourself. Internal dialogue reveals how you think about yourself. Tell yourself that you are worth more than what pornography offers you. God desires authentic and holy love for you. The way you talk and view yourself also impacts the way you act. Further, take care of yourself, especially your basic needs. Get enough sleep, and this may sound funny, but shower and do something you enjoy, something that inspires you at least once a week.

2. Pray

Begin your day with Scripture Reading, you can even read the Mass readings of the day. There are apps for this! Begin a daily habit of prayer, seek, and listen. Also, participate in daily Mass. Don’t be afraid to bring your life with you to Mass, including any sexual sin or struggles you have with pornography and masturbation. That’s what God wants. He wants you and everything that you’re afraid to tell him and give him! He wants it all laid on his altar. There is only joy when you give Jesus your sin!

3. Share the Catholic Faith

The world needs the faith more than ever. Sometimes all you have to do to share the faith is to show a person that you care and love them. As Chris Stefanick said during his talk, “To witness, you don’t have to be perfect, but you have to be authentic.” Be holy while also being yourself! Show your friends that you are more than what the distorted elements of culture offer. Lovingly share with you friends that pornography is wrong, and that you will protect your purity because it matters to you, it matters to a world that is enslaved, and it will matter to your future spouse and children. Share that you desire a pure heart and want the good of others.

4. Surround yourself with Community

We need others. Seriously, we can’t follow Jesus on our own. We need others to hold us up and we need to hold others ups. Spend time with people in your community. We need to be intentional about asking them how they’re doing as a child of God. We need authentic friendship and we also need mentors and accountability partners who can accompany us with overcoming pornography or keeping a life of integrity online and offline through Internet Accountability and Filtering Software.

5. Let go of the past and cut off sin in your life

Don’t let others or yourself hold your past over your head. Make the decision to sacrifice to be the person God is calling you to be, to be the saint he desires you to be. Make the decision to cut off sin from your life. As Chris said during this presentation: “If there’s a website that you keep going back too and it gets you into trouble, there’s something called Covenant Eyes…” Anything that will help you remove this sin from your lives, something that is keeping you from being more completely you, do what it takes to say no and move on to a fuller and more joyful life. Covenant Eyes Internet Accountability and Filtering can help you choose a fresh start.

Take an honest look in the mirror and ask yourself if you’re living the full and fruitful life that God has laid out for you. If not, today is your day! Your reboot plan might look different than mine, but I invite you do something as we celebrate the Advent season and prepare our minds and hearts for the glorious arrival of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.