Shh... Don’t talk about it.

The secular world pitches us this concept of both physical and mental health. They claim that healthy individuals engage in enjoyable activities and that participating in something negative will result in diminished health.

Take sex, for example.The Bible may teach abstinence, but the secular society preaches “self-awareness” and pleasure. Because sex is desirable to us by nature, it would make perfect sense that we must actively engage in intercourse. Everybody thinks sexual thoughts; we all crave it. We’re created for sex. Abstinence means denying ourselves something that we need to be healthful, happy individuals--right?

Um... No.

Satisfying a desire for unsubstantiated sex makes no more sense than satisfying a craving for a fat, juicy Big Mac ©. I may love to eat this genetically-altered, cholesterol-filled delicacy, but this action will ultimately result in physical harm. Therefore, I may choose not to eat Big Macs © anymore (See 2 Timothy 2:22.).

Does that mean I don’t believe in eating? No. I simply recognize what actions will increase my personal well-being, and I pursue those things. When something harmful appears, I reject it, despite its supposed beauty.

Sex is a wonderful gift from God--in correct boundaries. However, intercourse outside of marriage complicates an individual’s life in more ways than one. The physical bond between two individuals results in an emotional bond that is not easily broken. Rarely do people that are so open to intercourse remain with their first partner, causing issues down the road. On top of that, unwarranted sex results in STDs, unplanned pregnancies (and, unfortunately, abortions) and a life void of self-control.

Too often, people view Christians as vehemently opposed to sex of any kind. That’s biblically inaccurate. We can celebrate how God has created us, but we must grasp the consequences of abusing this gift. Only then can we live the healthy and wholesome life of walking out God’s will.

Wondering what the Bible says about abstinence? Here are some Scriptures that address the issue:
Ephesians 5:31-32, 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, Hebrews 13:4, 1 Corinthians 6:18, Colossians 3:5, Galatians 5:19-21, 1 Corinthians 7:2

A New Season of Life

Instead of blogging about something elaborate, like I sometimes enjoy, today I want to write from the heart of my current circumstances. As an 18-year-old senior, I face the greatest transitional period yet to occur in my life.

I’m going to college.

And with that realization comes the realization that everything I have ever known will soon change drastically: a new home in a new town, a new school, a new church, a new friend base, and on the list goes.

Sometimes the clouds of transition seem to pool on the horizon, threatening to overwhelm me with their storms of change, but then I remember that I have been dreaming for my future since I could form a thought in my mind. Now the opportunity arises for me to receive the training to fulfill God’s calling on my life as a musician and writer. How could I reject such an offer?

Of course, in order to move on, I must know where God wants me to go, which brings up a beautiful subject because He has taken care of every possible detail. I can see the connections He has made between my future professors and myself, and I see how He has comforted the parts of me in disagreement with His plan with the simple promise that He knows best.

It’s strange, though, because I have spent my entire childhood working tirelessly with my career as a goal, and now my career has peeked out from behind the door. What in the world would it feel like not to dream about life overseas, but to work overseas? Well, just a few short years separate me from finding out.

I cannot help but think that God works this way on purpose. In Matthew 13, Jesus speaks about the parable of the seed. Most people only focus on the harvest produced from the seeds which fell on the good soil, but they seem to forget the blood, sweat and tears that the farmer must have sowed into that crop. God brings us through preparation seasons so that we can bring forth a fully matured harvest. Attempts to force the “hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” before the harvest time prove futile (Matthew 13:23, NKJV).

I am thankful for the years of preparation, but I also rejoice in the excitement of a fully matured harvest! God will work mightily when we allow Him, and I know that strongholds on that university campus will crumble under the all-encompassing power of Christ.

What about all of you? Leave a comment about the stage of life in which you find yourself and how God is working in your life.