A Look at 'Setting Captives Free' by Shane Pilo
October 1, 2009
Like many men, especially those in the body of Christ I found myself in the midst of a struggle, not just for purity, but for life – spiritual life, not death. I was tired of striving for behavioral changes and failing.
Let’s face it, sometimes we need help and a little kick in the rear. Ideally, we would run to scripture and draw directly on the awesome power of God’s word. However, on occasion it takes another human who has gone ahead of us to help us along the way.
It was this desire to break free and live again that led me to Setting Captives Free – a free online scriptural, mentor-led system where there are courses helping people breaking free of the bonds of sin. Of particular interest to me was their Way of Purity course. At first glance it seems very cliché and packaged, but believe me, it is very personal and deep, if you give it a real chance.
Now, I want to take a second and clarify that I don’t believe there is ever a “magic bullet” or special words or methods to break free of captivity. Only God can truly help you break those bonds. Setting Captives Free provides a format for pointing you to the cross where you can truly begin to understand your need for a savior – but it’s not a guilt trip. In my view it humbly and lovingly points you to the cross, to a deeper understanding of how failure in this area of your life affects you and those around you, and without this understanding, true heart change is not possible. Period.
Here’s how it works:
1. You sign up and do a lesson daily
2. Shortly after signing up, you are assigned a mentor who contacts you via email
(This person has usually been through the study themselves, and can often relate directly to the struggles/issues you face)
3. This person is then copied in on all of your answers for each daily less
4. As you proceed through the lessons you are given testimonies by other members, as well as plenty of scripture, and thought-provoking questions
For myself, having a person who could relate to my struggles encouraging me, and praying for me was an immense relief – an unfortunate commentary on the state of the church in general and how it treats issues of purity in men’s lives.
Brother, if you struggle with this area of life, I urge you to check out this program and be diligent and honest with yourself. The rewards you can reap are beyond what you can imagine.
In addition to the Way of Purity, SCF has courses for those who struggle with alcoholism, drugs, self-inflicted pain and depression, and eating issues.
Shane Pilo (AKA – Spilo) is husband to an awesome woman, father of 4, he grew up in the Seattle area, a typical suburban kid. After high school migrated to Oregon to get an education and came away with both a wife and an education. Still living in Oregon he enjoys fishing, learning to hunt, woodworking, biking, camping, cooking, making music, and hanging out with his family. By day a software developer, by night a renaissance man of too many interests.
“God is teaching me SO much, “Shane says, “about His love, humility, my own need for a Savior, and how to be a better husband and father. I love watching my children become true children of God, and the incredible opportunities to grow and stretch in this crucible known as a family.”
You can reach him at www.bluechimp.net
TheBrightKnight72
Oct 1, 11:58 AM
This was and still is a very beneficial program that I am very thankful to have been through!
Bruce
Oct 1, 12:12 PM
YES! Thanks to God leading me to Setting Captives Free I have been free, truly free, for 128 days. I am 45 years old hand have been in this bondage since I was 12. If you have an issue with pornography / masturbation (and MOST of us do), please, sign up today.
Nora Marroquin
Aug 2, 05:25 PM
I have problems with overeating. I would like to try this program.
Dan
Sep 12, 01:51 PM
I too was in bondage to pornography/masterbation despite a life of ministry, bible college and seminar and would not break free. It took me 2 times through the course to find freedom. The first time I did not find freedom because I would not submit to accountability, and I left open footholds for Satan. God broke me and let me back to the program where I found lasting freedom in Christ, and plan to join the mentoring program to help other men find freedom. Join today!
Anonymous
Oct 4, 10:54 AM
Thank you for this board.
When encountering Spiritually abusive mind control cults we are to
Discern
Warn
Avoid
Setting Captives Free is a mind control Cult.
It uses the right language to ensnare the Christian looking for help.
When questions are answered SCF keeps copies of the answers to exert future control.
Consider also the following statement “ money is the root of all Evil”
We are to be pointed to Christ, not books that make money for Mike Cleveland
Quite simply, a wolf in sheeps clothing.
Mike, intellectuallizes allot, where is the heart? The feelings?
C
Nov 2, 05:03 PM
I wonder if the above poster has ever gone through a Setting Captives Free Course. It is Scripturally based and has nothing to do with mind control”. It also provides the website course for free, not for profit. Just for the record, the Bible says, “the LOVE of money is the root of all evil.” Be careful not to misquote God’s Words. Besides, I have not seen any sales pitch in any material for anything.
Charles
Apr 7, 08:29 AM
The Anonymous post above asks us to “discern” and “warn”, so I’d like to help everyone who reads this post do just that. SCF is a non-profit organization which is not in love with money. To discern this, I recommend that anyone interested visit their web site and see how many “profit centers” they have. Typical websites get profit from tons of links including automatic Google ads. You won’t find this at SCF. Typical websites have multiple paths to their paid products or paid subscriptions. At SCF you are not asked to pay for any access to any part of the site and they have very few items for sale.
As for the accusation of cultic mind-control, the anonymous post claims that SCF keeps your answers to control you at a later time. This is not only untrue, its a scandalous lie. Mentors at SCF are all volunteers and are instructed to let people who refuse to change their lives go to their sinful ways. If a student turns back to their habitual sin, mentors will remind them of their own answers to questions from the past. This hardly qualifies as mind control.
Finally, Mike Cleveland is being accused of intellectualizing. This is a silly accusation and there really is no response to this. I encourage any father who needs to flee habitual sin to join SCF and stick to the courses they offer for 60 days. The Lord requires us to put to death our sinful habits, or He will not bless our families.