DENVER, Colo., January 23, 2017 — Following in the tradition of several other books released by FOCUS staff to educate and inspire readers, FOCUS missionaries Kevin and Lisa Cotter recently released Dating Detox: 40 Days of Perfecting Love in an Imperfect World, available at shopFOCUS.

Many youth and young adults find it difficult to live a chaste life in today’s culture which distorts the true meaning of love. Once they hear the message of chastity, they desire it – but without a concrete plan, they can quickly fall back into old habits.

Dating Detox includes dozens of relatable stories of FOCUS missionaries, students and alumni who have successfully moved from desiring to live a chaste life to succeeding in living a chaste life. It provides a compelling and easy to understand vision of the Church’s teachings on human nature, relationships and the virtue of chastity. Finally, it gives the reader practical tools, habits and strategies needed to live the virtue of chastity with success and freedom.

The book offers a practical “cleanse” for those who want to give their lives to Christ and purify themselves from the poisoned dating culture by living a life of authentic freedom, respect and love.

Kevin Cotter says, “Lisa and I grew tired of hearing from youth and young adults who were held back from a deeper relationship with Christ because of their struggle to lead a chaste life. We wanted to offer them a practical tool that would help them make a lasting change.”

Lisa Cotter adds, “Dating Detox is not a fluffy book; it’s real life and at times it’s quite raw. Rather than preach at the reader, our hope was to walk alongside them as they journey through the detox.”

The book is divided into six weeks; Building a Foundation, The Human Person, Sensual Attraction, Sentimental Attraction, Dating and Moving Forward. Daily readings encourage the reader to fully embrace chastity with purpose and joy. Each day includes a practical application challenge, so the reader can begin to build new habits that will help them gain the freedom to love and be loved.

Dating Detox is available at shopFOCUS. Other books by FOCUS staff include:

·       CEO and Founder Curtis Martin: Author of Made for More. Co-author with wife Michaelann Martin of Family Matters: A Bible Study on Marriage and Family. Co-author of “The Real Story: Understanding the Big Picture of the Bible” with Dr. Edward Sri and “Boys to Men: The Transforming Power of Virtue” with Dr. Tim Gray.

·       Varsity Catholic Director Thomas Wurtz: Compete Inside: 100 Reflections to Help You Become the Complete Athlete.

·       Sr. Director of Curriculum Kevin Cotter: Three books of daily reflections with Pope Francis, including Through the Year with Pope Francis, A Year of Mercy with Pope Francis and Pope Francis and the Joy of Family Life.

About Kevin and Lisa Cotter

Kevin Cotter currently serves FOCUS as the Sr. Director of Curriculum. His job includes the production and oversight of Bible studies and resources for missionaries and student leaders on 125 campuses as well as the FOCUS blog. Kevin holds a bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies and Philosophy from Benedictine College and a master’s degree in Sacred Scripture from the Augustine Institute. With FOCUS, a few of the major projects he has created and developed include FOCUSEquip.org, Pope Alarm, the FOCUS blog, and FOCUS’ Digital Campus. In additional to writing the vast majority of all FOCUS Bible studies and resources, Kevin has authored three books with Our Sunday Visitor, which have a combined sales total of over 100,000 copies. He has been featured on several EWTN shows, on various national syndicated radio programs, and as a speaker at the last six FOCUS conferences.

Lisa Cotter currently engages thousands of youth and young adults each year on the topics of chastity and living life with excellence through her national speaking ministry and blogging for FOCUS. She holds a B.A. in Religious Studies and Youth Ministry from Benedictine College. Over the past six years Lisa’s work has been featured on numerous outlets including, EWTN, Chastity Project, YDisciple, Symbolon, Beloved, The FOCUS Blog, Lighthouse Catholic Media, various Catholic radio shows and Steubenville Youth Conferences. She has been a highly-rated speaker at numerous conferences including SEEK 2015 and SEEK2017, where she addressed over 6,000 women.

The Cotters married in 2005 and live in Denver, Colo., with their three children (ages 10, 8, and 3). 

About FOCUS

The Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) was founded in 1998 and invites college students into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church, inspiring and equipping them for a lifetime of Christ-centered evangelization, discipleship and friendships in which they lead others to do the same. During the 2016 – 2017 academic year, more than 550 missionaries are serving full-time on 125 college campuses, located across 38 U.S. states and in two pilot locations in Austria. More than 20,000 FOCUS alumni have been prepared to evangelize parishes throughout the U.S. Within this number, more than 600 have made decisions to pursue Catholic religious vocations. By 2022, FOCUS expects to launch 75,000 alumni into America’s 17,000+ Catholic parishes. FOCUS missionaries are typically recent college graduates who devote two or more years of their post-collegiate lives to reach out to peers on campus. To learn more, visit us at www.focus.org.

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