About this episode

Joel Warneking shares his journey of battling pornography addiction while leading in ministry and how he found healing through God's grace.

“I desperately wanted to be loved... and yet my entire life had feared that if I let people know me, I would be deemed unworthy of love.” Joel Warneking lived a double life. He was preaching, leading worship, traveling with a Christian band, and serving in ministry—all while secretly battling a pornography addiction that began when he was just eight years old. Even after confessing part of his struggle, shame kept him from bringing everything into the light. Eventually, that hidden addiction escalated into behavior that led to his arrest, the loss of his ministry, his career, and nearly everything he had built. But that wasn’t the end of Joel’s story. In one of the darkest moments of his life—sitting alone in a jail cell—Joel encountered the grace of God in a way that forever changed him. Rather than condemnation, he discovered a Father who had been pursuing him all along. That encounter launched a journey of radical vulnerability, deep healing, and true Gospel-centered recovery. Today, Joel serves as president of 423 Communities, helping churches and individuals find freedom from sexual addiction and betrayal trauma. In this episode of…

People in this episode

Host: Jon Seidl

Guest: Joel Warneking

Topics covered

• pornography addiction
• Christian ministry
• shame
• vulnerability
• healing
• Gospel-centered recovery

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: 423 Communities

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