Several times over, we’ve discussed on our podcast Sex Chat for Christian Wives the importance of building and maintaining a friendship with your spouse. Since true sexual intimacy requires vulnerability, you want it to be with someone you feel fully connected to and trust.
Since true sexual intimacy requires vulnerability, you want it to be with someone you feel fully connected to and trust. #marriage
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For some marriages that means building the relationship first…but is that always true?
This post presumes two good-willed spouses. If you’re in an abusive or destructive marriage or dealing with the fallout of adultery or pornography use, you have every reason not to engage in sex with your spouse unless and until other issues are worked out. Please get help!
The Chicken or Egg Argument
The common advice is that if you want wonderful intimacy in the marital bedroom, invest in your relationship with your spouse. Building your connection outside the bedroom can lead to better connection inside the bedroom.
That’s true, but in my own marriage, the reverse was also true. That is, our connection in the bedroom helped us weather our relationship difficulties, hang in there, and become more connected outside the bedroom.
I’m not alone. Friend and fellow podcaster Chris Taylor has shared that working on the sexual intimacy in her marriage provided several unexpected benefits, including:
And a reader of my blog shared her own story—how she and her husband tackled the sex area of their marriage first, talking honestly and making that a priority. “The funny thing is, when THAT area of our life returned to what, I believe, God intended it to be, everything else in our marriage came together, as well. We communicate better, we laugh more and we talk more openly.”
Maybe it’s the chicken or egg dilemma: Which came first—the chicken or the egg? Better friendship or better sex? Well, whichever one you start with, you might end up getting the other.
A Different Perspective
Understandably, we don’t feel like having sex with a spouse to whom we don’t feel close. I get that. I’ve been there. However, bear with me a moment while I throw out a different perspective.
Higher drive spouses tend to feel more connected to their mates after lovemaking. It’s easier for them to engage in affection, romance, and more when they feel secure in the sexual intimacy. I’m not saying that should be a demand made by any HD spouse. Of course not!
However, positive benefits of sex can include:
- feeling desired and valuable
- lowered cortisol, the “stress hormone”
- relief of pain
- wash of oxytocin, the “bonding hormone” that makes us feel connected to our mate
- rush of adrenaline
- sense of closeness
- dopamine, the “reward hormone” that gives us a psychological pat on the back
- lowered blood pressure
- state of relaxation
Having all that happening could help your spouse feel more interested and able to work on relationship issues, pursue friendship activities, and connect more profoundly with you.
You might also feel those benefits yourself and find the motivation you need and want to pursue a better relationship. Sex is definitely not just for your spouse! It’s for you too. But if it’s not as strong a desire for you, you may not fully understand how having more and better sex could provide emotional and relationship reassurance to your spouse.
Sex and Friendship Form a Loop
Ideally, investing in the relationship makes you desire sex more, and investing in sex makes you desire relationship more, and then investing in the relationship… And so on and so on.
Now I don’t think having great sex can salvage a sinking marriage. But great sex could encourage you to work on the relationship.
Want a great marriage? Put yourself into ALL of it—both sex and friendship:
- Foster the friendship.
- Learn your spouse’s love language and speak it.
- Deal with tricky issues like finances, in-laws, and child rearing.
- Practice the Fruit of the Spirit with your spouse.
- Pray for your spouse and your relationship.
- Work on having and improving sexual intimacy in your marriage.
Don’t wait for everything in your relationship to be perfect before you commit to having the marital intimacy God intended for you two to enjoy. Start today.
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