I\u2019ll never forget the conversation I had with another student in Algebra II my sophomore year of high school. I don\u2019t know what brought up the subject, but it was awkward to be discussing such a thing while working out problems on chunky graphing calculators. But my friend was grilling me on being a virgin. I assured her I would be a virgin until I married.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if you don\u2019t get married until you\u2019re much older?\u201d she asked in shock, though she knew my adherence to God\u2019s Word is what compelled such a decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven if I don\u2019t get married until I\u2019m 40, I won\u2019t have sex until then,\u201d I answered.<\/p>\n
Now here I am, almost 32, unmarried \u2014 and a virgin. What brings all this to mind is the interrogation I recently received while having x-rays to treat a ruptured lung.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you on birth control?\u201d the technician asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know you\u2019re not pregnant?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbstinence.\u201d<\/p>\n
The word hung in the dark room for a moment until she muffled, \u201cOK,\u201d and went on with her job.<\/p>\n
Then when I went in for a follow-up x-ray, I was asked again, \u201cI know you stated you weren\u2019t pregnant last week. Is there any chance you are now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I practice abstinence.\u201d<\/p>\n
This time, the nurse answered, \u201cAbsence makes the heart grow fonder.\u201d<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t bother correcting her by saying I was a virgin, not just abstaining for a time.<\/p>\n
The world has placed pleasure before commitment.<\/p>\n
My sister\u2019s friend lost her virginity on prom night and said it was not worth it, that it hurt and she did not feel loved.<\/p>\n
My senior year of high school was 12 years ago, and the wait has been a trial for me. I often wonder if I\u2019ll ever experience the pleasures of the marital bed. But I never question if the wait will be worth the patience.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m no longer a na\u00efve 19-year-old eager to spring into a relationship just to be romanced. I know the realities of married life by years of study and observance. Sex is not a gift to give to just anyone, but a sacred testament of the commitment of a man with a woman in the bonds of marriage.<\/p>\n
Fornication is everywhere. Are we aware of how ugly it is to God? Are we numb to the sexual innuendo we see everywhere? Our society is sex-crazed, but what is the fruit of it? If free-for-all sex was as good as they claim it to be, why are so many people fighting depression? If unmarried people\u2019s sex lives are so good, why the pornography<\/a>? I believe the fruit of not esteeming sex is dissatisfaction. Partaking in it just for the mere pleasure of it empties it of its God-given purpose<\/a> and gratification.<\/p>\n So the wait goes on, for me at least. I\u2019m over feeling weird about it. I\u2019m thankful that God has helped me in the times of temptation, in the times of extreme want, in the fight against lust.<\/p>\n The young woman who used to help me graph solutions to linear equalities in Algebra got pregnant out of wedlock. I\u2019m not sure if she ever got married, but I do know that her life is complicated now.<\/p>\n Now that I am only eight years away from 40, I\u2019m still resolved to keep sex within the bounds of marriage. I grew up singing on the playground: \u201cFirst comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in the baby carriage!\u201d With God\u2019s blessing, that\u2019s the way I want it.<\/p>\n So to all the x-ray technicians out there: There is no possibility of a baby in my womb unless my status goes from single to married \u2014 just the way God intended.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Leslie Ann is a Boundless reader who prays daily for godly wisdom and loves to share what she learns.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sex is not a gift to give to just anyone, but a sacred testament of the commitment of a man with a woman in the bonds of marriage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":86,"featured_media":44288,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[8,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13201","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-being-single","category-sexuality"],"yoast_head":"\n