Sexual Fragmentation: How Culture is Damaging Our Souls and Sex Lives
Published: 5/26/2012 11:22:04 PM
From: TriStateVoice
By Jack Redmond
We are living in the most over-sexualized culture in the history of mankind. People often laugh when I ask why there has to be a stunning half naked model dancing across the TV screen to sell car tires or ice tea? Sex sells they say, so they use it to sell everything including our souls.
God’s Blessing Under Attack
God created sex and our sexuality to be a blessing and a gift. Man uses our sexual drive to manipulate and control us to spend money on their products. The enemy of our soul uses sex to get us off focus of our true purpose, our family commitment, and relationship with God. At times our flesh wants to play along with the game and the unrealistic sexuality that is forced on us many times each day.
Life-Giving or Life Draining?
So what’s the big deal? The big deal is that the gift of sexuality and sex gets watered down, cheapened and what was meant to be fulfilling and life giving becomes a source of emptiness, discouragement and wasted time, energy and money for too many. The beautiful reality that God has for us is traded in for a cheap fantasy that becomes life draining instead of life giving!
Distorted Views and Disappointment
Young men and women grow up with distorted views of relationship, diminished value of self and others, and an unhealthy focus on the sex act while missing the value and importance of relationship, romance and pure friendship. This gets carried into adulthood and marriage. Instead of people entering into marriage whole and pure, they are often broken, confused and dysfunctional.
Guarding Our Heart and Soul
Our soul consists of our mind, emotions and human spirit. These are all deeply affected by sexual thoughts, feelings and actions. When someone engages in sexual acts, attachments and memories are formed including some that last a lifetime. This is never explained to most people so we make mistakes and do things that seem right at the time and pay for it both in the present, and for some, for the rest of their lives.
Sex and Sexuality are God’s Blessing to Us
God created our sexuality to be a blessing but it must be understood and guarded. We often trade one of our most valuable possessions for a few moments of watching something that we shouldn’t, or doing something that just can’t make us happy. We must grow in our understanding of how God wired us, and not get sucked into the over sexualized lie that we have to navigate through in our daily lives. Here is an upcoming conference that will help you grow in your understanding of these things.
Mission 10:20 Conference – Saturday, June 2nd at Christ Church in Montclair, NJ – a 1 hour workshop on this topic will be presented in addition to 5 other speakers with workshops offered for Youth Pastors and Leaders and special Teen Track. Go to www.4thgen.org for discount registration and all the details.
Hope to see you and have the opportunity to dig into this crucial life issue!
Jack Redmond is a minister, youth pastor and author who can be reached at www.4thgen.org.