Given the right circumstances, the best among us is capable of the most unimaginable sins.
— Richard Exley

Few things in life are more painful than a moral failure. This truth was driven home to me afresh when a fellow pastor sought my counsel. Hardly had I closed the office door before he fell to his knees sobbing. When he was able to compose himself, he spilled his dark secret.

He was not an evil man; he never intended to become involved in sexual sin. It started innocently with morning coffee at a nearby convenience store. One morning while sipping his coffee, he found himself browsing through the pornographic magazines. A few mornings later he purchased one, and days later, another.

His story shows an all too familiar progression: from magazines to X-rated videos to porno theaters to securing the services of a prostitute. This degenerating progression didn't happen overnight; it took months. After each step he told himself he would go no farther.

As you might imagine, he lived in a self-made ...