Spiritual Sex
Can Sex be a Spiritual Experience?
More often than not, spiritual practices are kept separate from our sexual life. Even when sex is acknowledged as a very good gift from God, rarely is it also seen as a spiritual experience. We accept that God approves of sex, but, for most of us, being deeply conscious of God during sex seems rather foreign.
Sex as a Spiritual Practice
Spiritual practice is anything that opens our attention to the presence of God in our lives. Most spiritual practices occur through more traditional types of spiritual practice including praise and worship. This includes Scripture reading, prayer, and devotional studies. But there are less recognized approaches as well. Spiritual practices also include watching the sunset or caring for a sick child. God’s presence can be enjoyed at church and at the grocery store. It is prevalent when we are playing softball or washing the dishes. It’s felt when having an intimate encounter with our spouse (Psalm 139:7-12, God’s presence can be found everywhere). All of these activities are spiritual experiences if in the midst of them we simply open our awareness to God.
Brother Lawrence, a kitchen worker, and doorkeeper at a 17th-century monastery makes the point of practicing the presence of God during the most commonplace tasks of life. His words speak powerfully to the idea of experiencing God during sexual experiences with our spouse. He writes:
When we are faithful to keep ourselves in His holy presence, and set Him always before us, this not only hinders our offending Him and doing anything that may displease Him, at least willfully, but it also begets in us holy freedom, and if I may so speak, familiarity with God, wherewith we ask, and that successfully, the graces we stand in need of. (The Practice of the Presence of God)
How Can You Make Sex a Spiritual Practice?
When we faithfully keep ourselves in God’s presence during sex, we are better able to reflect His divine love. The focus is no longer limited to only meeting our physical and emotional needs, there is more. We now have holy freedom to be true conduits of Love during sex. Sex now becomes a deeper experience; it becomes sacred.
Begin to allow sex to hold a deeper meaning by opening your awareness to the presence of God during sex. At first, this may seem strange, difficult, or even wrong. With practice, and while still basking in the physical and intimate delights with your spouse, you will be able to discover the fuller joy and pleasure that comes from being in the presence of God (Psalm 16:11).
Spiritual sex takes time to practice and learn. Our sexual lives are often the last parts of us to develop spiritually, if ever at all. However, sex therapy can help. With an emphasis on your faith, our sex therapists can help you and your spouse figure out how sex can become a spiritual practice in your marriage.
Begin Sex Therapy in Atlanta, GA, and Beyond
Here at our Atlanta, GA-based therapy practice, we believe that sex is supposed to be a spiritual experience. Our Christian sex therapists believe that God created sex for us to enjoy. With the way the world works right now, that can be easy to forget. We have confidence that sex therapy with you and your partner will help. You deserve to enjoy that spiritual and intimate experience again. Check out these easy steps to begin:
- Schedule your first therapy visit here.
- Begin sessions with a knowledgeable sex therapist.
- Start finding more intimacy and spirituality in your sex life!
Other Services at Building Intimate Marriages
Sex therapy is only one of the specializations that the team at Building Intimate Marriages provides. We believe in the importance of healthy marriages and relationships. To cultivate and prioritize those healthy relationships, we offer premarital counseling, marriage counseling, and sex therapy. Couples that are going through rough patches can benefit from our specialized affair recovery services and discernment counseling. If you’ve decided to end a marriage, we’d love to guide you in helping it be a productive and clean break-up with divorce counseling. Meet with one of our therapists in Atlanta, GA to see if Building Intimate Marriages could be a good fit for you!
