Two things...
Joyosity reminded me today of the way that our relationship w/ our spouse is also like our relationship with God. The idols that creep in rarely steal our worship and intimacy with him in a flash - they take small steps. It is little by little that we are led astray - almost without our noticing.
I have also been getting some requests for the 15 steps mentioned in yesterday's sermon so they have been listed below along with one of the quotes illustrating each step.
1. Sharing Common Interests.
"She was the first woman I'd
ever met who liked the outdoors, even hunting and fishing -- I was
fascinated!"
2. Mentally comparing with my mate.
"She was so understanding and
would listen to me and my hurts -- my wife was always so busy and rushed that
we didn't have the time to talk.
3. Meeting emotional needs.
"My wife was busy with the
kids and not at all involved with my work. This girl admired me and treated me
like I was really somebody. It felt so good."
4. Looking forward to being together.
"I used to dread going to
work, but after we started our friendship, I would wake up thinking of how I
would see him later that day... it seemed to make getting up easier."
5. Tinges of dishonesty with my mate.
"Once my wife asked about
her, but I denied everything, after all, we hadn't done anything wrong yet. Now
I see that this was one of those exit points where I could have come clean and
got off the road I was speeding down."
6. Flirting and teasing.
"Then we started teasing each
other, often with double-meaning kind of things. Sometimes we'd tease each
other even when we were together as two couples. It seemed innocent enough at
first, but more and more we knew it really did mean something to us."
7. Talking about personal matters.
"We spent so much time
together at work that I swear she knew more about me than my wife ever did --
or even cared to know."
8. Minor yet arousing touch, squeeze, or hug.
"He would often pat me on the
shoulder -- you know, in appreciation for a good job I'd done. But I knew it
meant more than that."
9. Special notes or gifts.
"He would write these little
encouraging notes and leave them in my desk, pocketbook, or taped to my
computer. They didn't say anything, which could be traced. If anyone found them
they wouldn't suspect anything. But we both knew what was going on, we just
didn't want to stop yet."
10. Inventing excuses to call or meet.
"I would wait until the end
of the workday then I'd call him just before closing time about something I'd
made up as a 'business question' and we'd talk."
11. Arranging secret meetings.
"I started making sure he
knew my travel schedule so we could attend the same conferences. We still
weren't involved physically at that time, but there was such excitement and
romance to it all... even the secrecy seemed to make it more exciting."
12. Deceit and cover ups.
"Once we were meeting
secretly I had to invent all kinds of stories about where I'd been to satisfy
my wife. By now I had built a towering wall of dishonesty between us."
13. Kissing and embracing.
"Once we started meeting
secretly the end came fast. We kissed and hugged like two teenagers going
parking for their first time."
14. Petting and high indiscretion.
"It was like I was a teenager
again -- going too far, then repenting and promising to do better; then just as
quick I was hungrily seeking more sin."
15. Sexual intercourse.
"One night we couldn't seem
to stop ourselves (at least we didn't want to) so I completed my journey of
unfaithfulness to my husband -- I had sex with this man."
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