Prayer leaders David Rowsome and Warwick Marsh, of Australia’s National Day of Prayer and Repentance, report a major breakthrough in the battle against pornography: “We believe this is the result of the prayers of many around the world.”

On June 6, 2014, Google, the top Internet site in the world, announced it is stopping all advertisements for pornography as well as all ads that link to sexually explicit websites. Google also agreed to stop offering sexually explicit apps in their phone app store, Google Play.

The announcement came just two weeks after a delegation of anti-porn activists met with Google executives at their offices in Washington, D.C. The organization called Porn Harms, a part of Morality in Media, organized the meeting that included Family Research Council, Concerned Women for America, Enough Is Enough, and Focus on the Family.

Porn Harms had named Google in its “Dirty Dozen,” a list of companies helpful to the porn industry. Specifically, the group complained to Google about porn on Google Play, on Google-owned YouTube, and in Google ads. Porn Harms leadership found out about Google’s decision via the porn industry news sites complaining about the change.

“We thank God for this amazing news. We believe it is no accident that this was announced while we prayed and fasted during the global D-Day Prayer Storm on Friday, June 6, 2014,” says the report from Rowsome and Marsh. “Our American brothers and sisters in Christ called us to a time of prayer, fasting and repentance to ask God to turn back the tide of evil in the Church and our societies.”

They add, “This global call to fast and pray is built upon other prayer initiatives around the world including our own 2014 Australia National Day of Prayer and Fasting, followed by 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, when we focused on praying for a renewal of sexual purity. So once again, we thank God for this amazing breakthrough which we believe is the greatest single victory in the battle against pornography in the last 40 years.”

Prayer Connect magazine