Eric's thoughts

I know that this may sound weird, but I've been thinking a lot about sex lately. You might be thinking, "Well, that's not a shocker, you're only human, don't 99.9% of all guys think about sex often?" Or you might be thinking, "Oh my, you're a pastor, a man of the cloth...is that word even in your vocabulary?" And I guess the answer is yes to both, I am human and the word is in my vocabulary...but I have been preparing for the upcoming series of talks on the subject of sex that we are bringing the high school students starting Sunday, March 5th.

No doubt you thought something along those lines when I brought up the S word, but here's my question, why do we have those reactions? Why does a pastor saying that word sound so weird? Could it be because many churches have been silent or going about the idea in a well meaning, but wrong, fashion? Or why do we pretend like it isn't a big deal? Could it be our culture has made the topic no big deal?

Again, I believe, the answer is yes to both. Sometimes all we say as a church is, "Don't do it." A great thing, but then we are being bombarded with images and sexual language in our culture because we can't take a 10 minute drive, go for a walk through any campus, or locker room, go on-line, turn the TV, or radio on for more than 30 seconds without catching at least a hint of sex.

Maybe it's time we raise the bar. Maybe it's time to talk about the things that lead to the illicit sexual behaviors instead of just saying, "Don't do it!" Because the reality is you don't have to be having sex to be caught in its prison. It's no wonder many females feel as if they have to flirt or show off their bodies to get the emotional connection they desire. It's no wonder so many males are caught in shackles of pornography or secret sexual fantasies. But we are only human.

Jesus didn't take that excuse when he raised the bar and said, "But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:28)

Maybe it's time we talk about the heart of the issue, the L word...LUST. Then again, maybe I shouldn't use that word, I am a pastor.