Home

Contact Us

Affiliation

Ministries

Staff

Directions & Map

History

Beliefs

Church Covenant

Constitution

This Week

Calendar

Sermon Text

Order of Worship

Wednesday Study

Newsletter

 

  
Sex Within The Frame




 It is Valentines month and the day of love is coming soon. Indulge me some thoughts on the matter of sex.

When I´ve listened in on some of my athlete´s conversations about sex, I am convinced over and over again that they know little more than the cows on my Dad´s farm. They´re quite sure of the physical pleasure they´re anxious to experience and totally unaware of the pain they could bring on themselves. They understand "freedom", but they do not understand, "freedom in a frame."

I give the late Francis Schaeffer credit for the teaching me the concept of freedom within a frame, the idea that freedom can only be found within the framework of truth that is unchangeable. Schaeffer, using the example of a bridge, tells us that we are only as strong as our ability to withstand pressure. If we have a strong frame, we can take the heavy pressures of life. If we have a weak frame, we will crumble even under slight pressure, and there will be casualties.

Handling sex is heavy pressure, for young people and adults. The pressure is there because sex involves the difficult mix of pleasure and responsibility. No other human activity is as loaded with the potential for being both wonderful and horrible. Thank God that He has provided the frame for sexual activity, and within that frame we find the wonderful freedom to enjoy the pleasure of His gift.

The frame is marriage. It is a lifetime pledge of our commitment. Sex needs this protective environment. People scoff, and many consider this a sterile environment in which to enjoy sex. They couldn´t be more wrong. It is only when we feel secure that we can release the emotional energy that satisfying sex requires. Any thoughts of our partner leaving us for greener pastures requires a guardedness that inhibits freedom and creativity. It forces the idea of "performance" upon fragile psyches that cannot deal with such pressure. Sex then becomes legalistic, an effort to live up to the law of being a "good lover," a law that renders many frigid. Under the maxim, "You´re only as good as your last performance," many would rather give up than compete with the unreal expectations of Hollywood/romance novel lovers that exist only in peopleÕs imaginations.

Within the frame, sex has the naked freedom God intended it to have from the beginning of time. "They were naked and not ashamed" describes the world´s first lovers. Only when they moved away from the frame of God´s loving protection, did they scurry for their clothes and hide. Until then, they loved each other without fear of rejection or competition, an unbridled exchange we all long to have--within the frame.

The world´s hottest lovers won´t be found in magazines, books, or on the screen. They will be found in the bedrooms of homes that house the most commited couples, married ones who have found unashamed nakedness in the presence of a spouse who shares and protects the secrets of their love.



About the Author:


 Steve Graner is a Christian educator and familyman employed by the Minot, ND Public School District. A licensed laypastor, he is passionate about Christian writing and Christian drama. Along with family and friends, Steve has performed numerous self-written dramas and musicals for area church audiences.