FUELING
SEX ADDICTION

Topics: Addiction; Intimacy; Loneliness; Lust; Needs; Perversion; Self-control; Self-denial; Self-image; Sex; Sexual Immorality

References: Romans 13:13–14; 1 Corinthians 6:12–20; 1 Thessalonians 4:3–8

Sex is one of God’s good gifts for a man and a woman to enjoy within the bounds of marriage. We have a tendency, however, to satisfy our deep longings for intimacy in unhealthy or even addictive ways, which usually results in brokenness and pain.

In February 2006 on her TV show, Oprah Winfrey interviewed people with sex addictions, such as Amy, who said:

It’s not about sex with me. It’s about the intimacy, or being close to someone, or feeling needed. Even though I’m totally out of control, I still feel that I am in control for that moment. I’m trying to think [of the] men that I’ve slept with, and I honestly can’t remember—just 70 to 75, probably somewhere around there.

I’m tired of being alone. I don’t want to be this way. I want to feel good enough within myself to not feel like I need to do this. I want to change. I want things to be better.

—“Oprah’s Sex Talk,” drudgereport.com (February 25, 2006)