Porn Epidemic

Kirk says he's been addicted to pornography since he was 8 years old. "Growing up, everybody's got a friend that's got that big brother that has the stash [of pornographic magazines or videotapes] under the bed," he says. "From my first look, I was hooked."

Kirk believes that the pornography affected him differently from most boys because it filled a void left by a broken home. "I was adopted when I was 4," he says. "The woman who adopted me, she was 64 years old. My mama didn't want me; my daddy wasn't there. So there were a lot of insecurities and low self-esteem. For me, [the porn] was like company."

When he was 15, Kirks says he began getting serious about his faith and went to his pastor to talk about his struggle with pornography. "He sat back in his chair, and he took a puff out of his cigar," Kirk remembers. "He said, 'Oh, you're young—you'll grow out of it.' He had no idea that he spoke death into my life. That shut me down because [I thought], 'Well, someday I'll grow out.' [Instead], I grew in—and I grew in deep."