Jarrod Jones grew up in a Christian home and was baptized at 9 years-old. At age 14, Jarrod found a pornographic magazine under a bridge and soon found himself in a battle with pornography. His teen years were spent living a life outside of Christ.
“It was all about me, pretty much,” he said. “I was an athlete, and basketball became what I worshipped.”
Jarrod was a self-proclaimed “aisle walker” and can recount the many times he made the journey to the front of the church to give his heart to Jesus. To Jarrod, he didn’t truly want to follow Christ; he wanted to live life on his own terms and reap the benefits of God’s forgiveness. On the outside, Jarrod had it all. He had all of the popularity kids crave in high school. In college, he was a successful basketball player. He attended church and youth ministry groups, but he was hooked on partying and promiscuity.
However, something changed for Jarrod when he received a compliment from CBS reporter Jim Nantz at a college basketball competition in which Jarrod was participating. Nantz handed Jarrod a note that read: “You’re a good role model.” After reading the note, Jarrod’s stomach turned to knots because he knew that compliment was far from the truth. No one knew the real Jarrod. His concerns didn’t end there.
“After college, I met a girl who I planned to marry, and two years into the relationship, she left me for another guy,” he said. “I was broken and tried to handle it like a ‘man’ for about a week. I was self-medicating, numbing and trying to find closure.”
That broken relationship hurled Jarrod into depression until finally, one night, Jarrod cried out to Jesus.
“One night, I came to my apartment and on the floor of my bedroom, I got flat on my face and started crying out to Jesus,” he said. “I met Him right there on the carpet and have never been the same. I came to know Him as my Lord and Savior.”
Jarrod calls that moment the night Jesus “gloriously ruined” him. In those few moments, Jarrod saw his sin for what it was, and he wanted change. Over a period of time, he grew closer to God, and the Lord gave him power to live for Christ. For seven years, Jarrod kept his eyes and his body pure. He was determined to wait for his wife, and in 2003, Jarrod married Christie.
LUST WILL NEVER SATISFY
Jarrod travels and preaches at events around the country. His heart is to leave his audiences with something they can continue their journey with, so he authored 13 Ways To Ruin Your Life: A Practical Guide for Guys.
“13 ways deals with sexual sin,” he said. “Just being on the road and meeting men, young, old, single, college students, pastors, youth pastors, worship leaders – pornography among Christian men was the number one battle. I needed to develop material to leave in their hands.”
The book is based on Proverbs 7, and teaches how to stand against the temptations that permeate our culture, especially pornography and lust. It is written for guys, but women are reading it, too.
“I really deal more with guys and guy issues, but women are buying it and reading it just to get an understanding of how guys battle with their eyes,” he said. “I figure, if girls buy it, they can get a lot out of it.”
Jarrod believes we are in a sex-crazed culture.
“No matter where you turn, we are bombarded by sexual imagery,” he said. “Sex sells. From colognes to cars, billboards, magazines, internet; everything revolves around sex. I want people to understand and be alert to being bombarded with sexual temptation. Lust will never satisfy.”
“Lust will never satisfy” is a mantra Jarrod carries with him.
“I tell young men, no matter how much pornography you look at, no matter how much you fantasize or look at a woman and fantasize, lust will never satisfy,” he said.
Jarrod also talks about the patterns of trying to quench lust.
“It is to know that only Jesus and the Holy Spirit can satisfy us. He promises that He’ll meet our needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus,” he said. “That means all of our needs including sexual needs.”
13 WAYS TO RUIN YOUR LIFE WITH LUST
Using Proverbs 7 as the backbone, Jarrod unpacks 13 key points we can learn from the life of the “fool” who found himself lying in the arms of a prostitute. Jarrod writes from a place of wisdom and experience, confessing his own sins and blunders along the road to living in purity. He gives 13 sure-fire ways to ruin your life in sexual sin:
1. Be Unresolved (Proverbs 7:7
I saw some naive young men, and one in particular who lacked common sense.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
2. Flirt With Temptation (Proverbs 7:8
He was crossing the street near the house of an immoral woman, strolling down the path by her house.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
3. Feel You’re In Control (Proverbs 7:12-25
She is often in the streets and markets, soliciting at every corner. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, "I've just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You're the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with beautiful blankets, with colored sheets of Egyptian linen. I've perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let's drink our fill of love until morning. Let's enjoy each other's caresses, for my husband is not home. He's away on a long trip. He has taken a wallet full of money with him and won't return until later this month.*" So she seduced him with her pretty speech and enticed him with her flattery. He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter.He was like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce its heart.He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life. So listen to me, my sons, and pay attention to my words. Don't let your hearts stray away toward her. Don't wander down her wayward path.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
4. Believe No One Will Know (Proverbs 7:18-20
Come, let's drink our fill of love until morning. Let's enjoy each other's caresses, for my husband is not home. He's away on a long trip. He has taken a wallet full of money with him and won't return until later this month.*"
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
5. Take Just One More Look (Proverbs 7:22-23
He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter.He was like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce its heart.He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
6. Act Without Thinking (Proverbs 7:22
He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter.He was like a stag caught in a trap,
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
7. Think You’re the Exception (Proverbs 7:26-27
For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave.* Her bedroom is the den of death.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
8. Learn By Experience (Proverbs 7:1-2
Follow my advice, my son; always treasure my commands. Obey my commands and live! Guard my instructions as you guard your own eyes.*
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
9. Live in Denial (Proverbs 7:9-26
It was at twilight, in the evening, as deep darkness fell. The woman approached him, seductively dressed and sly of heart. She was the brash, rebellious type, never content to stay at home. She is often in the streets and markets, soliciting at every corner. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, "I've just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You're the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with beautiful blankets, with colored sheets of Egyptian linen. I've perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let's drink our fill of love until morning. Let's enjoy each other's caresses, for my husband is not home. He's away on a long trip. He has taken a wallet full of money with him and won't return until later this month.*" So she seduced him with her pretty speech and enticed him with her flattery. He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter.He was like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce its heart.He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life. So listen to me, my sons, and pay attention to my words. Don't let your hearts stray away toward her. Don't wander down her wayward path. For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
10. Deny the Obvious (Proverbs 7:10-16
The woman approached him, seductively dressed and sly of heart. She was the brash, rebellious type, never content to stay at home. She is often in the streets and markets, soliciting at every corner. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, "I've just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You're the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with beautiful blankets, with colored sheets of Egyptian linen.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
11. Be Gullible (Proverbs 7:13-18
She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, "I've just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You're the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with beautiful blankets, with colored sheets of Egyptian linen. I've perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let's drink our fill of love until morning. Let's enjoy each other's caresses,
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
12. Make Excuses (Proverbs 7:13-15
She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, "I've just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You're the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are!
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
13. Get Hardened to God’s Truth (Proverbs 7:1
Follow my advice, my son; always treasure my commands.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
Jarrod reminds us that the book of Proverbs is words of wisdom written by Solomon to his son, but Solomon himself did not heed his own God-given wisdom. Jarrod warns us about how easily we can become hardened to God’s words and not obey them. He emphasizes reading, studying, meditating on, and memorizing the Word of God with diligence.
