Marriage: Sex Within Its Context! 1 Corinthians 7:1-5 “We should not be ashamed to talk about what God was not ashamed to create.” Howard Hendricks “Now, getting down to the questions you asked in your letter to me. First, Is it a good thing to have sexual relations? Certainly—but only within a certain context. It’s good for a man to have a wife, and for a woman to have a husband. Sexual drives are strong, but marriage is strong enough to contain them and provide for a balanced and fulfilling sexual life in a world of sexual disorder. The marriage bed must be a place of mutuality—the husband seeking to satisfy his wife, the wife seeking to satisfy her husband. Marriage is not a place to “stand up for your rights.” Marriage is a decision to serve the other, whether in bed or out. Abstaining from sex is permissible for a period of time if you both agree to it, and if it’s for the purposes of prayer and fasting—but only for such times. Then come back together again. Satan has an ingenious way of tempting us when we least expect it. I’m not, understand, commanding these periods of abstinence—only providing my best counsel if you should choose them” (The Message, 1 Cor. 7:1-5). “Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well.” Proverbs 5:15 “No hold back from each odda. Can fo short time, but ony if da husban an da wife tell each odda dey goin hold back fo make time fo pray. An den dey come back togedda, so Satan no can presha you guys fo fool aroun behind da odda one back” HPB (AKA Pigeon Version), 1 Corinthians 7:5 Seven Sex Busters 1. Cramming Your Lifestyle with Busyness 2. Guilt from Past Sexual Experiences or Sexual Abuse 3. Not Taking Care of Yourself Physically 4. Stress from Life’s Trials 5. Poor Communication Styles 6. Finding Escapes Through the Fairy Tale World of Pornography, Soap Operas, and Romance Novels. 7. Failure to Meet Each Other’s Core Needs or Love Languages.