17 Things From 17 Years: Post 10

#9: Giving my body to my husband means more than I will ever understand.

Intimacy in marriage is sacred; it is not something to go around blabbing about lightly, I understand that. On the other hand, it is also a vital part of marriage; a special element created by God to provide endless layers of beauty and amazement. I can't help but think that makes it an important thing to talk about!

The question is, how to talk about it and what to say and leave unsaid? Because I don't know the answers to those questions, I will keep this very brief and simple.

As a rule, men are born with a substantially higher sex drive than women. This is a well known, well documented fact. Sadly, modern American society has begun characterizing a man's need for sex as a bad thing. Men in America today are portrayed as lust filled sex addicts who are out of control. The truth is, men were created with a desire for sex in the same way that women were created with a desire for love. To a man, his wife's love is spelled S E X.

As I have slowly begun to grasp this concept, I've also come to recognize another fact. To my husband, intimacy is so much more than the act itself. God created men with an inborn desire to conquer, protect, provide, achieve. When I give my body to my husband and allow him to love me physically, to take possesion of my entire being and to become one with me, it does something for him deep inside. My willingness to give myself to him empowers him to love me in fierce, undying, beautiful ways.

Every time that I lay down my stress, my moods, my weariness, my frustration, my tense listening for children, my selfishness... The gift that I give to my husband and my marriage is of far greater value than I can begin to measure. For it is in giving, that we receive.