What happens when the guy behind the pulpit is hiding the same sin as the guy in the pew?

In this episode, Richard and Justin sit down with Jonathan Leonardo — pastor, minister, and founder of Love Reality — for one of the most honest conversations we've had on the podcast. Jonathan pulls back the curtain on a decade of double-mindedness: translating Greek in seminary by day, feeding a secret life of lust by night. Traveling to preach the gospel, then using those same trips to gratify the flesh.

But this isn't just a confession episode. It's a breakthrough episode.

Jonathan walks through the shame cycle that keeps so many men trapped — the secrecy, the self-condemnation, the isolation — and explains why more theology, accountability software, and willpower only made it worse. What finally changed wasn't a new strategy. It was a revelation: you were always the son.

If you've been spinning your wheels trying to earn your way out of this thing, this conversation is for you.

In this episode:

• Why seminary didn't fix Jonathan's addiction — it ran alongside it
• The "thin veil" between sexuality and spirituality
• How shame keeps men silent, isolated, and stuck
• The gospel truth that landed like a thousand pounds on Jonathan's chest
• Why identity in Christ is the antidote to the shame loop
• Why freedom is never a solo project

What if the thing you call “failure” is actually the key to your freedom?

In this episode of the Free From Porn podcast, Richard Young and Justin Khoe dismantle one of the most dangerous beliefs Christian men carry: “If I mess up again, it’s over.”

That mindset doesn’t protect you… it traps you.

We unpack why all-or-nothing thinking keeps you stuck in the cycle—and how a simple shift can change everything. Drawing from concepts popularized by Carol Dweck and grounded in the gospel, we show why relapse isn’t a verdict—it’s data.

You’ll learn:
• Why porn isn’t the real problem (and what actually is)
• How shame and fear of failure keep the cycle alive
• The difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset
• Why compassion—not condemnation—is the path to real change
• What Simon Peter’s story reveals about how Jesus Christ responds to your worst moments

This episode will reframe how you see setbacks—and show you how to actually grow through them instead of being defined by them.

If you’ve been stuck in shame, afraid to fail again, or believing you have to get it perfect to be free… this conversation is for you.

Freedom isn’t found in never falling.
It’s found in learning how to rise—with truth.

If you’ve ever asked, “Why is this happening to me?”—this episode will completely reframe how you see your struggle.

In this episode, we break down one of the biggest mindset traps keeping men stuck in cycles of shame, guilt, and pornography—and how to finally step out of it.

What if your struggle isn’t random?
What if it actually makes perfect sense based on everything you’ve walked through?

Instead of condemning yourself, you’ll learn how to:
• Understand why you’re stuck without shame
• Stop fighting urges with willpower
• See your past with compassion instead of frustration
• Use every urge as an opportunity for real transformation

This isn’t about excusing behavior—it’s about finally understanding it so you can change it.

Because when you stop asking “Why is this happening to me?”
and start seeing clearly…

You can actually move forward in freedom.

God isn’t condemning you.
He’s leading you out.

Freedom starts here.