Sex Series - Week One Update
Walking Wisely Weekend 7th Grade is behind us and it is a tradition in TRANSIT to move directly into the SEX SERIES. I wanted to give our families an update on what was discussed in group today. First and foremost…your son’s are amazing. We had a great conversation this morning and our church does an amazing job at setting up that conversation. Today’s large group (worship and message) anchored itself in 1 Corinthians 6:18-20.
“Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
This verse can hit you pretty hard. Joseph (on stage – see video here) did a great job of framing up a discussion without “bible beating” the guys. We wrapped up large group with a question.
HOW IS SEX PORTRAYED IN TV AND IN MOVIES?
Society Ingrains in Us That Sex is Casual
That question alone took most of our time in group. Think about it. TV and movies…heck put music in there with those two – they minimize sex. They dummy it down. It is hard to be online, watching TV or listening to a song and not run into something sexual in nature. We are bombarded with it to the point where we hardly even notice it. That realization this morning with the guys scared me. It hurt my heart for your son’s…for your families…for my family. Our society diminishes sex down to nothing, normal…casual. So, we do what we do best in group…we broke it down.
Breaking it down
Our conversation took a lot of twists and turns but essentially, we walked away from group this morning knowing that sex IS a big deal. We, as men, need to have a crystal-clear picture of what we want for our “future self” and protect ourselves from sexual immorality. That includes the shows we watch, the music we listen to and the friends we keep.
We spent a lot of time on the topic of "what our eyes and ears absorb" and how it affects our hearts. How it can desensitize us to how sacred sex really is. The guys all agreed...listen to any song (outside of the Christian genre) and it probably has a reference to a woman’s body, her jeans, what that person wants to do sexually to another person…blah, blah, blah...yuck. Face it, our guys are bombarded with sex every day. It is overwhelming - especially when you start to think about putting a plan in place to protect yourself.
Today we simply put in front of them that what we see and hear can protect you or it make you adjust their target (their picture) for their future self. We want that on their radar. When they choose a show to watch – call it out loud – is this good or bad? When they listen to a song – same thing – is this good or bad? We did not try to guilt them into turning anything off or changing their behavior. We simply want it on their radar for now. We want them to know that they have a decision to make (it all goes back to Aiming Small and Missing Small).
Bottom Line
God designed sex as a gift to us and it is best experienced in the confines of marriage. Sex is good but it can be dangerous. We need to stand up for our future self and make decisions that protect our purity even though the world does not seem to agree.
In the weeks to come, John and I are going to be introducing the concept of guardrails. We have touched on guardrails in small group in the past but we are really going to try to solidify in their minds, during the SEX SERIES, that guardrails can keep you from making unwise decisions. In fact, they can keep you from ever putting yourself in a position to HAVE TO make an unwise decision. As always, John and I welcome your input, questions and observations. Please feel free to reach out if you need anything. Have a great Sunday.
