QUESTION
How do you manage your sex drive or your desire to have sex without masturbating? Masturbation has been presented to me as my only option and I’m wondering, is there any other way? How can I manage my desires in a healthy way?
TEAM’S ANSWER
First, we’d like to say bravo for asking such a bold question. There are many people walking around with this same mindset, and you are not alone. The fact you are even inquiring shows you desire to do things right so our hat is off to you!
I want to bring some freedom and let you know that managing your sex drive is absolutely possible and masturbating is not your only option. In fact it’s probably one of the worst “options” out there. We know that fear isn’t a healthy motivator, so we won’t focus long on this point. But it is worth mentioning the “cons” to masturbation, particularly if you’ve only heard masturbation promoted as the only (normal and healthy) option for controlling your sex drive.
Let me start here: I have not met anyone who feels victorious after they have masturbated. Many say they feel ashamed, empty, and lonely when it’s all over. Some may say, “It’s not a big deal,” but habitually masturbating certainly hasn’t led them into greater freedom. (And isn’t that what we’re all looking for — freedom, joy, hope, and, well, abundant life?) Many find that the more they do it, the more heightened their sex drive becomes. This makes sense because
When you feed your appetite, it grows.
If you’re trying to calm your sex drive down by masturbating, you’re really not helping yourself. Here’s the deal — a couple things happen when you are aroused and/or climax: your body gets flooded with hormones that cause an intense rush of pleasure (endorphins) as well as bond us to the activity, material, faces, fantasies, etc., that we expose ourselves to while masturbating (oxytocin, vasopressin). The combination of these hormones cause us to feel attached to the experience and drive us to repeat the activity—over and over and over—again. That’s the last thing you want if you’re trying to calm down and manage your sex drive.
Interestingly, we seem to think that the best way to feel fulfilled sexually is to get as much as we can without going “all the way”. Unfortunately, this leaves us feeling frustrated and empty. Why? Because God created us in such a way that our bodies are programmed to “finish what we start” sexually. Part of this is a relational finish, where we are able to experience oneness with our spouse. Without the relationship that remains after the orgasm fades, we feel like we’re missing something. It didn’t satisfy the way we thought it would, and we’re left with the same desires we started with. Why doesn’t masturbation satisfy these “sexual” desires?
Oftentimes, it’s because our sexual desires have less to do with sex and more to do with our physical, emotional, spiritual or relational health.
Let’s get back to the point at hand: If managing your sex drive feels like an never ending battle, there’s probably something out of balance in your life. It could be spiritual, emotional, physical, or relational. How can you correct this?
1. Learn and practice self-awareness.
Self-awareness is knowing yourself: what you like, what you don’t like, how you feel, what you’re good at, what you’re not good at, and how you affect those around you. Why is this important? Because many of us act out sexually and we don’t know why.
We, as humans, hate pain. We’ll do anything to avoid it. When we have (basically) any uncomfortable feeling, we begin to seek out comfort. This is in our design—we were made with the capacity to solve our problems, to seek our answers and find what we need. This comfort may come in the form of healthy relationships, it may come as addictions to food, drugs, T.V., sex, masturbation, etc. Is there anything wrong with seeking comfort? Absolutely not. But we must find permanent solutions to our repetitive problems, be it a lack of intimacy, too much stress, or our inability to process pain.
2. Practice putting words to your feelings and experiences.
Am I hurting? Angry? Lonely? Tired? Disappointed? Insecure? Vulnerable? Hungry? When we are able to name our feeling, we are more able to name our need. And when we can name our need, we can fill it in an appropriate way.
When we are unable to put words to our feelings and experiences, we are unable to meet the need that lies beneath the feeling.
3. Learn and practice self-control.
I probably don’t need to tell you this, but if you are a believer and have chosen to live a life set apart and unto the Lord, then scripture is pretty clear that God wants you to be able to manage YOU and not be mastered by anything. This includes any and all addictions – masturbation, food, shopping, caffeine, gambling — you get the picture. You can read more about this in I Thessalonians 4:3-7.
Consider this: momentary pain is worth long-term gain.
Our culture today is ALL about instant gratification. Delaying gratification (disciplining ourselves) is not a popular idea. We all want to be thin, but don’t want to exercise. We all want to have money, but don’t learn to save. We want to have amazing relationships, but don’t practice the self-control it takes to love, honor, and cherish our loved ones. Simply put, we have to learn to say NO to ourselves sometimes if we are going to reap the benefits of a healthy life later on.
Will it be hard? Probably, at least at the start. Remember, if this has been your pattern, you need to break it by abstaining. This means telling yourself no when you want to masturbate, especially if you are used to telling yourself yes, and your body gets what it wants. But, if you persevere, eventually, it will lose much of its powerful pull. The more you tell yourself no, the easier it will become and the cycle will be broken.
4. Be aware of your needs.
There are basic relational needs all of us have such as connection, intimacy, being known, etc., and oftentimes masturbation can act as a comfort or quick fix to us when any one, some, or all of these needs go unmet.
Masturbation is often an intimacy issue. It is crucial, for women, to feel known and to feel valued; without these, many women use masturbation as a way to feel loved, wanted, sexy, and seen, if only for a moment. Men may often feel the desire to masturbate when they have felt powerless, or disrespected. But it all comes down to the quality of their relationships and how they feel about themselves in them. Assess your relationships and make sure you have people in your life that know you and feel known by you. Relationships should give us life and bring us strength.
Thriving in relationship will keep you alive as a man and a woman and promote health and happiness. Having enough healthy emotional connection with those around you will help bring your sex drive under submission. If you get what you truly need, you won’t need to use masturbation to get a “quick fix” instead.
5. Be aware of what is stimulating your senses.
Let’s break this down: Being aware of what triggers your sex drive or stimulates you is important. What are you watching (movies, TV shows, commercials, Facebook/IM, blogs, etc.)? What are you listening to (music, radio, talk shows, podcasts, etc.)? What types of people do you surround yourself with and what things do you discuss? Are these people life giving? Are they cheering you on and encouraging you to go after your goals and dreams? Do you talk about edifying things or things that take you down a dark road? With sexual perversity all around us it can be quite easy to be sexually stimulated, so just be aware of what you are feeding your body, soul, and spirit.
6. Invite God in.
You may have already done this, but invite God fully into your process. Try not to get into the habit of just hoping He’ll answer your unspoken questions or requests. Ask Him. Cry. Get angry if you need to. God is not afraid of your emotions, your disappointments, your fears or your shortcomings. Let Him into it all.
When we give God access to the center of our behavior, He is ready and available to provide lasting change. Then discover how you can partner with Him to stay free. This might involve having a written plan for how to manage the feelings that precede your desire to masturbate. The Holy Spirit is able to guide you into truth and can bring you the strength, partnered with the tools, to navigate your God-given sex drive. God will never give you something you’re not able to manage.
7. Invite others in and say no to shame.
We are huge advocates of doing life in community. So we encourage you to ask for help and process what you are going through with older, wiser, loving leaders, pastors, parents, etc. They have walked this road before and remember, there is no shame or embarrassment in inviting others in and asking for help. In doing so, you may accidentally find the intimacy, connection, and comfort that you need in order manage your sex drive well.
8. Change brings cha
nge. Also, never underestimate the art of distraction.
If you’re breaking out of a pattern of giving in to your sex drive, you’ve got to start doing something differently. For example, instead of staying in bed, get up, read a book, or play a game. Stop watching your “normal shows” or going to your normal after-hours spot if it sets you up for failure. This is part of practicing self-control and self-awareness. In a moment of weakness, you need to retrain your brain and body; don’t give in. Get up. Find another activity. Distract yourself. Stop isolating yourself. Spend more time with others. Make a change, and your change will come.
In conclusion, masturbation is not your only option.
Your sex drive doesn’t have to feel out of control. You can manage it by growing as a whole person, learning to get your needs met, and staying in relationship. You’ve just got to get a hold of the vision for why you would pass up on instant gratification, and push through pain: what do you, personally, have to gain? This is a question that you need to answer, genuinely, in your own heart.
Powerful people can tell themselves what to do. If you worked through all this stuff and you are whole, body, soul, and spirit, it may simply boil down to the fact that you want to have sex. You may have to practice saying no to yourself, at least for a time. There is nothing unhealthy about abstaining from sex or masturbation, and in fact, it may grow in you all of the character qualities that will lead you to healthy, fulfilling relationships, including marriage and a great sex life.
Think of it like this: you can’t have every sweet thing that you see or you’ll be at risk for becoming diabetic. You can’t have sex every time you are turned on. You’re learning how to manage your sex drive now so later you’ll know how to point that desire toward one person – your spouse – and he or she will be ever so grateful you took care of this now, and not five (or fifty) years into your marriage.
Get More Resources on this topic
Thank you for this article. This distraction has cost me my well paid job, career, financial stability, and will power, and drove me into depression, despair and loneliness. This article has helped me to better understand what is going wrong in my life, and has given me the insight to fix it. Now it’s time for me to turn it around.For the benefit of the readers, I can confirm from my experience that this has little to do with high libido, and everything to do with other things happening in your life. This article is spot on !
I respect your honesty and well done for making a change.
Great I liked it too
Great and well explained
Yes yes and yes. True words to a better me. And it’s hard what was said is so me. I need and want that change in me. God bless you … my morals are off im stuck in my 20’s but i need to set my morals and values today .
Thank you for this article, i pray you continue to edify lives greatly
I wanted to thank you for this information. God Bless you all:)
Very well explained. Seriously it will help in changing my lifestyle.Thanks for writing this article.👍
I liked the statement that ‘you can’t have every sweet thing that you see or you’ll be at risk for becoming diabetic’. I have managed to keep my sex drive under wraps for years now but suddenly i am loosing myself. The article has opened my eyes to the things i lack which is pushing me in this direction…thank you for such great piece.
I thank you for this article, I have not had my sex drive yet but I am trying to prepare for it and this has armed me well. God bless.
I am a man who really wants to do God’s will. I love Him, and don’t want sin and wrong doing in my life. Thank you for the inspiration to do God’s Blessed will!!
The article is inspiring and helpful and thoughtful.My only question is this: how do men manage not masteurbating as if they do not release semen their body stops making billions of them per day and testosterone falls to a lower level.
Sure, getting in a relationship would be good but repressing sexual needs of the body can’t be healthy.
Like we said in the article, if you feed your appetite, it grows. Find healthy ways to get your needs met, stop feeding it, and it won’t feel as strong. We know it can sound impossible because of the way sex is portrayed in culture, but there are men who manage their sex drives without masturbating. Here’s more information on getting your needs met in a healthy way: https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/
You completely dodged his question about the physical health risks.
I also say most urges to do….yaknow, are most definitely physical, hormone driven. I’ve never done it to comfort myself or anything like that. I can go days without it but that just makes the urge worse, to point where I can’t even think of anything else and I am looking at just about any halfway decent woman I see – the opposite of what you’re saying.
If all these things have worked for you, that is great, but I don’t think your ideas fit every situation, certainly not mine. I can, and do, force myself to abstain, but it does not get easier, I do question why God curses me with this in the first place, I’ve begged over and over for him to “tone it down”, no luck.
I get it, but sometimes things get more difficult to control before they get easier, it’s an addiction, and not caused by god. It’s from the devil, and the natural man. We can only over come with persistence and hard work, it’s not easy but it’s really truly honestly worth it.
A man does not stop producing semen nor does his testosterone start falling that happens naturally at about 30. Excess semen is expelled during urination. Hope this clears up the issue. Oh a side note. All men “fill up” in 72 hours after last ejection. That’s why the urge is so strong at that time.
This is what nocturnal emissions are for.
Have been struggling for 3 year and I am only 40
Well explained. Many thanks for writing such a beautiful blog.
Very informative and educational
Thanks for this article…..Its really productive, help and change something that need to be changed
Thank you so much for this article.It has helped me gain control over what my body desires and subjecting my mind to the right thoughts.
Thanks alot
Thanks a lot .Hope it works
excellent article, it gives entire explanation about maturation and their adverse effects by using scientific methods… I hope this article will help many….
Thank you very much…I appreciate..
Amazing article
Nicely explained article, I fully agree with you.Hope people will learn self control over sexual desire after reading this?
this is great material. God bless you more and more and increase you.
Nice and brief spot on article. I knew some of the things, however whenever I am alone, I get distracted. Need to follow all steps to bounce back in life.
Thank You for the article.
I have been struggling with this for a long time but its mainly because I suffer from bipolar disorder. I am a christian and never masturbate and its quite a challenge. but I have learnt some useful tools here., especially the part about knowing yourself. thank you so much
Very good write up! Am really struggling with this act. Trusting God I’ll get out of it soon!
This isnt just sientific explained but also spritual too. Very beautifully explained.Hope this will change lot of unblanced to manage them selves to make oneself live peace and happy the way its designed.
Thank you so much for the article. It helps me a lot to face my life day by day. May the spirit of God bless you always day by day. I’m very much enlightened with the teachings being stipulated in the article. And may the present, new and next generation will be enlightened too.
Thanks for making this blog! Thank you for helping me go through it
Thanks for this blog. It helps me 🙂 God Bless
good
Thank you, i was married for 19 years, my husband died and I am 42 yrs old and had no idea I would struggle with these temptations. Thank you for the insight.
I understand. Like yourself I was married for 21 years and found myself suddenly single. This was never something that I would have considered or thought about as a teen or before being married. I wish there was more information available dealing with it after being sexually active for years within marriage. I do believe in maintaining purity in dating relationships. I know for many of my older adult single friends sexuality, and especially purity, is a huge issue. I would love to know of a good book or resource for older adults on the subject.
I appreciate the type of answer you have given for this question.It really put some sense into me.I am surrounded with sexual puns all over me always. being an introvert I use Social Media for interaction and Social media consists really sexually distracting material which just increases the sexual drive in me. After reading this article i have actually understood my flaw and now i will work in the direction of fixing my self.Thank you for the article.
Thank you very much for your explanation
Thanks so much for this article, it makes a lot of sense, I bit you many of the guys have this problem and need to think deep how to control this as it could hurt us on the long term
am truly and genuinely grateful for this article am sure it will help many for a better tomorrow
In this wald of low moral am glad to have sound positive information like this please keep it up and may the Almighty God bless your good works.
Thanks….i will keep to this advice……
God bless you .it’s really fantastic words .helped me alot
It’s Early morning around 3am and God has truly brought this article to my attention. And several times I’ve had to stop and think about several points and actually broke down in tears as if in ways prayer is being answered before me now. I know I’m not alone and my prayer goes out to all who are also dealing with this issue as the same as I. Thank you Moral Revolution for this article and Thank my Lord God for bringing me this article,Best Wishes to all for the Lord is our Guiding Light.
I have identified that relationships and friendships are weak in my life. but (safe people) older, wiser, loving leaders, pastors, parents. I have not been able to find. Where can I find good community. I don’t have the luxury of living in Redding Ca. but live in a small town in the middle of no where.
Hey Jonathan,We understand that it’s not always easy to find quality relationships and friendships. We would recommend getting plugged into a church community where you can find godly leaders, pastors, and spiritual parents. Even if you have to drive a little bit, it’s worth it to have good people in your life. Ask the Lord to bring people into your life as well, and for ideas for where to find community. The important thing to realize is you always have options, even if they’re not easy, you’re not stuck anywhere. Hope this helps!
Hi I hope you can update this article to include wives who seldom see their husbands. Thanks.
Good one bruh?
thank you so much. God bless
I have struggled with my sexual desires since I was a little girl, and only gotten worse as I grew up. I let my temptations get the best of me. At times I would not think about it and it went away but I am currently fighting this battle as an adult but one important thing was letting God in, letting him take control of the situation. FYI a big distraction was working out, running, dancing, keeping myself active and just trying to keep myself busy with anything! It’s a hard thing but I pray that I become an overcomer once again.
i’ve also been through this since i was little. i thought there was something incredibly wrong with me and there really is. i feel so bad for myself and thought that i was the only one like this. thank you for stepping up. God has helped a lot to have a way past this. the company of good people and other worthwhile activities aids too. the urge comes back every now and then but i hope i’m strong enough now to battle it through.
p.s a couple of big thumbs up to the article.
I, too, have struggled with this problem off and on since childhood. I have never attempted masturbation until my 30’s, but I find the process unfulfilling, yet I still struggle with the desire to keep doing it. Thank you both for being willing to share your experiences. I am sad that others have suggested this affliction. Thank you for your advice on how to cope and distract myself.Thank you for this insightful and well explained article. May our Father God bless you all.
I am struggling about this too,and i feel bad and ashamed about it. There are times that i wanna give in to that thing but I don’t want to dishonor God. I want a healthy mind to please God but it was just so hard. Thank you for this article.God bless us
Great article. This really helped me a lot. For a month now I’ve been thinking how would I be able to control my urges. I feel like I’ve been addicted to it and I don’t like the way it made me feel. I want to control myself so that my boyfriend will not think that’s all I want from him. Thank you for sharing this information. I will really really give my best to follow this. God bless you!
i understand this thank you very much but how do i convince my boyfriend to wait till we’re married ihe’s asking me to figure out how he’ll control his urges when it comes since i don’t want to involve in any sexual act at all.
Hi Jennifer,It’s actually your boyfriend’s responsibility to control his urges. It’s not your responsibility. You can explain to him why this is important to you and why you think the healthiest option is to wait to have sex until marriage. If he’s still putting pressure on you to do things that violate your values, it might be time to consider ending the relationship and moving on. It might be a tough choice, but in the long run, you don’t want to be with someone who would ask you to compromise your values.
thanks moral revolution…this helped me
yes your write up gave me the ability to get my mind under control and have a rightful thoughts
Thank you for this, I feel much more focused and positive about life. As a teen this is very helpful.
What do you do when your wife won’t sleep with you in the past year and a half bit you’re still sleeping next to her? I don’t believe masturbation is an answer for anything really and He said He would meet our needs but mine clearly aren’t being met and the enemy will never stop attacking. Maybe masturbation isn’t so bad.
In this case masturbation would be a temporary fix for a deeper issue. It might help meet your needs momentarily, but it won’t fix your marriage, and more than likely it would make things worse. It would be a good idea to think about marriage counseling or seek advice from someone who can help you figure out what’s hurting your physical intimacy in marriage.
Thank you for such an informative blog.I can testify that all the pointers given here work. I struggled with masturbation after moving to a small town where I felt unwelcome and lonely.I hated the way I felt after each incident but what prompted me to kick the habit was finding out it’s a sin against your own body. Sexual satisfaction should be with your matrimonal partner.
Knowing I was trying to feed a relational need with physical attempts was the first point in winning the battle. Secondly whenever the erotic thoughts came in I would distract myself with an activity.
It’s been about a year that I kicked the habit and I thank God for that.
You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, praying for everyone struggling with this.
You have absolutely saved me from myself. I recently met a man online that has morals!! Thank you Lord. All my adult life, I give in. I, at 60, finally get it. He is younger and wants to wait. He doesn’t talk inappropriately. Bonus!! For me, this is a first and we have a sincere connection. Unbelievable!! But I’ve always been the promiscuous type. I Googled desire because that’s what I felt and came across your blogs!!! Thank you so very much for saving me from myself and bad habits. This man that I’m speaking to is the best thing that’s ever happened to me and your blog has shed much light on what I want for my future. I can’t thank you enough. You are a blessing? !!
Thanks and thank u very much.Its really very helpful and informative.I really felt everything what u have mentioned here.It shows ur research on this topic……Surely amazing description……
It’s like this. Waiting on God for a women to marry. Don’t want to engage in masterbation or sex before marriage. It could maybe a year or three until I get married. There are articles galore on non Christians going a year 100 days etc of not masterbating but they have sex. Not much on the Christian front though about abstaining for long period of time from sex and masterbation. There is a lot of how to articles written by married people. I want to hear from someone that has gone 2 years 3 years no masterbation or sex. Anyone here gone that long? Still looking for someone probably haven’t looked hard enough. Either way hope all succeed.
There are many single people who aren’t masturbating or having sex and haven’t for even longer periods than three years. Over half of our team is single and fully walking out purity, so we understand it can be a tough road at times, especially when these have been habits in someone’s life, but it is most definitely possible and there are many people walking it out.
I have, I’v never had sex either before in my life. Believe me your not alone
Yes got one here. Waiting for a year or two before can get married too… i feel bad about it.and ashamed to the Lord coz i have sinned a million times thinking about s3x.
Thanks a lot. A knowledge packed write-up.
Thank u so much ,I was struggling a lot about this issue .I’m a single woman ,sometimes I feel like doing it .And masturbation was the best remedy ,after reading this article I’m free .God created me he will help me to overcome.
Wow this is the best article I’ve ever read about the issue! I felt so alone for so long…I thought there was something wrong with me. I feel like I can overcome this now & thank you much for talking about this issue!!!
Thank You this Has Absolutely helped me.
God Bless This Ministry
Thank you so much for this article, I’m going to take this to heart and do my very best to control my sex addiction.
Its a great & fulfilling article,and I know a lot people who need a good guide on this matter,and this might prove to be one for them
A very well thought out article. Many a times we go wrong for lack of proper guidance. I can relate with most of what you have said. May God give me, and in deed the rest of us, the will and power to say no. I see freedom approaching. God bless you.
God bless you. Excellent article!
I find this article very helpful… Thanks a lot for shedding light to a major issue in our lives… However there’s something really weird I noticed about my body… Whenever the urge comes, I engage in activities in attempt to get my mind off it (Dancing, sometimes long hours in the shower) but afterwards i still feel really uncomfortable & insomnia takes charge of the night (restlessness)… Could it be as a result of something deeper than just a sexual desire or an unusual body reaction to it?
Thanks for your vulnerability with this question, Jasmine. There are a couple options for things you could do. One would be to look for patterns. Is there something that triggers you before you have this urge? There may be certain movies or music or things like that you might just have to stay away from in order to help you out. It might not be media, it could also be certain feelings like anxiety or insecurity. Knowing yourself is super important for figuring out how to steward your sex drive. Another option is to get your hormones checked by a doctor to see if there’s possibly a hormone imbalance. If there are leaders or people in your life you would trust to talk about this and give you some input, we always recommend you speak to those people and ask for the wise input of people who know you as well. Hope this helps!
I’ve been looking for something, anything, Christ centered related to the topic of sex drive. I am so thankful that I found this. So much I have read out there is a terrible perversion of something beautiful that God has gifted us. As a woman I felt so alone in my struggles. Reading this really helped me change my perception and identify some deeper issues going on. Thank you for this.
MR please you didn’t respond to this question, I’m in same situation please what do we do about this?
Thank you im crying so much reading this. Its hard ive been 7 days without and im doing this because i want to take a stand in my relationship with god. Its hard and painful im scared and ive been doing some of the things in here suggested. But its so hard. Thank you for this encouragement. I needed it desperately ive read all types of things but it encourages it once in while instead of seeing the moral aspect of the picture making me think its ok the lies of the enemy. But no i shall not be enslaved! Thank you so much
Indeed this is a very good article. Well I would like to ask you help. I am a widow and I was married for 43 years. I lost my husband almost a year ago a great man of God and we pastored many churches.
I love the Lord and I am a responsible christian I would like to know wat can I do to lessen my sex desire. God has kept me from this desire until now but lately although I have prayed about it the desire
keeps coming. I know that to have sex without being married is a sin and I do not want that. I do real-
ly keep away from films and pictures that are immoral. I am praying so that God will give me a christian husband but it is taking long, not on God’s time but my time. I am also feeling lonely because
at the time the Church I am attendind to has only three persons but today the Pastor gave a good new he wants to open a door to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am in this situation because
this referred Pastor is the Father of my Son in Law. He is a responsible christian as well as his wife.
When my Husband passed away my eldest Daughter helped me and suggested that I could come and live near her In Laws so she helped me to find a house near the place where they live.
Well I told you all about my problem and I would like to be helped.
Hey there,So sorry to hear about the loss of your husband. There’s no easy answer to this, but maybe a few things that can help. Here’s a great blog post on self-awareness (even if there’s no porn cycle): http://moralrevolution.com/how-self-awareness-can-interrupt-the-porn-cycle/. We also have an online digital course on sexuality and being healthy body, soul, and spirit: http://courses.moralrevolution.com/courses/lets-talk-about-it-sexuality. Hope this helps and we pray that God gives you strength and blesses you for honoring His design for sexuality!
THANK YOU so much MR for this! God is mindful of me. I keenly feel my God’s love and awareness of me through your article. So, keep helping and healing people.
(P.S. Can you tell me which church community are you? I may like to visit one day. Thanks again.)
Thanks Wendy! We are part of Bethel Church in Redding, California.
Please explain what can help with accidental arousal.
Get up and take a walk, get some exercise, get away from the environment that caused it. Go talk to someone about something completely unrelated. Also, don’t feel bad about it, it happens sometimes, and it may have nothing to do with what caused it. Don’t beat yourself up over it. Hope this helps!
Ok so I’m with my Girlfriend Every Saturday and we start kissing a lot and it turn’s me on and makes me want to have impure sex I know God is the answer but is there something else to make not crave it because me and her haven’t but I masturbate all the time after wards what do I do please help
Hey Steven,This may not be the easiest answer to hear, but if kissing a lot turns you on, then it might be a good idea to not kiss as much or at all. Your body was created to follow through, so once you start kissing a lot, it’s natural for your body to go all the way. This is a great thing in marriage, but before you’re in the safety of a committed marriage, it’s something you’re responsible for managing so you respect yourself and the person you’re with. Be kind to yourself and set boundaries that are going to help you not compromise your standards or hers.
i like it….helpful….thank you
Hi, the article was very helpful.. I was into this for more than a month.. I was tired of all this stuff because definitely it’s not a permanent fix.. But know I believe I’ll get over it.. Thank you very much..
Being a virtuous man today is hard, but being a single, virtuous man in the Military, is a nightmare. Young soldiers in particular have heckled and mocked me for abstaining from porn, drugs, illicit sex and jerking off. Worst of all is when they misquote scripture to try and justify the latter. It’s comforting to know that I can still find good support on the Web when I need it. Thank you.
Thank you Moral Revolution! I’m a guy I know exactly how other men feel because I’ve struggled with masturbation myself. We’re not in this alone we’re in this together and thanks so much for sharing it.
Such a good article.May god bless the human who wrote this.Keep it up man.
I love this and its all true :))) Marriage is a sacred sacrament that people should know especially the young ones :))) and God made sex for creating life of two people bind by God :)) thanks for sharing it God bless
Really blessed even to know both men and women struggle with this moral issue.Therefore knowing way to self control in God and practice it even when it appear hard to attain freedom from it I will finally triumph over it in Jesus name.
So helpful MR, I’m a single young person and have been asking a lot of questions dealing with these issues with no answers but today you’ve shed light in my life. God bless you all
This article made me realize about a lot of things in my life right now. I almost forgot about things i shouldn’t. Thank you for posting this. It makes me happy knowing that i’m not alone and that someone understands me. Plus i realized that i must talk to God more often. Thank you so much. God bles this ministry.
Hi… it has been really a struggle for me and destroyed my relationship with others. Thank you for this insight. I believe i will win this battle with the help of God. Thank you MR
You are awesome. Before reading your article, i was depressed and i couldn’t find an answer that will satisfy me. You just helped my growth level 100%. Thank you so much. I am now a regular visitor of your forum.
Thank you, Sir! For this article. My prayer is that the Lord helps us all in this struggle because it’s easier said than done. However, it is definitely possible.
God bless you in Jesus name for this text or message
How do you control when a male Guy wants to have sex or masturbate because the urges always there
It’s really a good article… everyone should read this at least once… whether he/she is going through such kind of situation or not. We should talk about this with our close one that how to overcome it without feeling embarrass. There is nothing to ashamed about…… All the Best.
Thanks so much sir..More grace and knowleged
thanks for the post….. its really encouraging
Bless you! What an awesome read.. i found this passage by googling, ‘What can satisfy sex cravings’, thinking I’d find a list of things to eat or whatever instead of falling to masturbation. But I found that when you learn and realize and stay conscious and self aware and let God in and change routines that lead to the act, you will find change. I’m so thankful I read this. Thank you. Bless you truly xx
Same here. I google how to overcome sex drive and thank’s God i find this.
GOD BLESS US
I am in my late thirties, married with three kids and this struggle has almost caused me a divorce and to lose my kids. It started when I was subjected to magazines as a kid, every since then I have been addicted to it. There is nothing wrong with my marriage but I’m still addicted. I have went to see a Christian counselor for a week as well. The them that keeps going around is to distract yourself and pray. It does make you feel bad when you are finished and I think the addiction comes from the good feeling of when you are actually doing it. The temporary good feeling replaces the bad feeling you have and its a vicious cycle. It’s nice to hear I’m not the only person struggling with this though and that there are women who struggle as well. That makes me feel not quite as bad. God bless and good luck to all and thanks for the article!
I’ve been masturbating for almost 5 years but I cant help it stop. I’ve done everything…everything bur the urge always prevails. Pls help
Hey there, if you feel like you’ve tried everything and nothing has worked, then another option would be to seek some outside help such as a faith-based counselor or someone similar. We’ve noticed that a lot of times with sexual issues, they have less to do with sex and more to do with root issues in your heart and mind. Hope that helps!
very nice
I despair of meeting someone who finds me attractive enough, in any way, to marry. Even if, by some direct miracle, someone wants to be in a relationship with me, it would likely come when I’m ~30, so all the abstinence stuff strikes me as 20 years, if not a lifetime, of effectivly going hungry for a chance at ( not a guarantee ) of fulfillment. Normally I’d just read your article and move on, but it was very well-put, and you’ve provided several good clarifications in other comments. In case you can’t tell, I’m terrified of being single and alone my whole life, so do you have any advice for a man tired of waiting for relief that might not ever arrive?
Hey Marc,If you want to be married, God knows that. You can trust that He knows the desires of your heart and wants to meet you there and bring you someone amazing for you. Also, you attract the kind of love you have for yourself, so if you want to attract someone who loves you well and respects you, this starts with loving and respecting yourself. We have a video that talks more about this if you want to check it out. It’s under our free digital course, and it’s called “Who do you want to attract?” You can sign up for free here: http://courses.moralrevolution.com/courses/character.
Waiting is the most challenging thing both girls and boys specially us as a christian, we want to have answer right away on what we want like a spouse. I hope the Lord will bless you and give you the wife that you deserve. In God’s time. Let’s continue trusting him.
-sherly grace
wow nice piecethe best so far
I feel so disgusted with myself after giving in to temptation. Even though one moment I swear I will stop it, the need to remove anxiety is so great and I cave in because it’s such a quick,easy fix. Even as I write this my mind is wondering to instant sexual satisfaction. I wish this wasn’t such a “hidden” difficulty for so many folks. It’s just an embarrassing subject that people don’t want to talk about. This is an excellent article and I wish more people would have honest and open discussion like this.
Thank you for this article. I am a Christ follower who wants to be celibate for Jesus but I struggle greatly with this. I am able to get a few weeks under my belt and then it comes back and I fall again. Now my issue is not so much with the sin of pornography and masturbation, because I know that Jesus forgives me the second I ask for forgiveness. My issue is with the toxic guilt that plagues me through the whole next day! I have such a tough time forgiving myself than I start to get frustrated with God, which I feel even worse about.
This morning was one of those days. I did the thing I did not want to do last night and I woke up to the sting of guilt that manifested into anger. I got really mad with God! I yelled, I asked for help, I begged for the Spirit to help me but there was NO HELP! I got angry with the Lord and it took this article to remember Jesus is OK with that! So first thanks for that. It allowed me to go back to God and apologize for my rebelliousness.
Next is the fact that this is rarely based on the desire to have sex. I can go through the day with minimal lust. I see someone attractive and I will look away. I try to never covet and for the most part I can get through the day without lusting. I am not at risk until I become tired and my medication kicks in. At that point I become very week. Now, with this article, I can put a name to the emotion that is causing me to fall and that is being tired. So I have no identified the emotion. The next piece that really helped me was the distraction. When I become tired and my meds kick in I am going to change the way I order this. Instead of taking the meds and sitting on the couch as they kick in I am going to get into bed, take my meds and put on a distracting show. (something wholesome). The distraction is a brilliant technique.
Last, I would love to offer prayers for all of us who are suffering with sexual sin! It is a VERY HEAVY CROSS TO CARRY! Be gentle with yourself and accept God’s forgiveness. I try to remember that God forgives and forgets, I need to follow the same example.
God Bless You All!
Michael
I clearly understand your point and how you feel about the frustrations and all. Thank’s God i saw this article in google. It’s really a great help God bless us.
Hi Michael,You stated that your issue is not so much with the sin of pornography and masturbation, because you know that Jesus forgives you the second you ask for forgiveness. This make me assume that you habitually look at porn which leads to masturbation. If that is so, then your struggle with masturbation will be prolonged, and so I would advise abstaining from such stimulants. Secondly, Yes the Lord forgives, and yet Paul asked this pertinent question in Romans 6
v1 What shall we say [to all this]? Should we continue in sin and practice sin as a habit so that [God’s gift of] [a]grace may increase and overflow? The answer is NO!
Moreover,
if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries (Hebrews 10:26-27).
It seems to me that you would have preferred that after you get a relapse of porn-masturbation-prayer for forgiveness cycle, you would not feel any guilt. But, you feel this guilt because the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously (James 4:5). The guilt is an indication of your struggle with sin, the fact that you know that right now you are powerless against such sin and that the next time you feel the urge, you will submit to it. This also partly explains your anger. Do not expect God to take away your sexual appetites, but expect that daily prayer for the help of the Holy Spirit, consistent meditation on the Gospel as against feeding your thoughts with porn, and actively trying to abstain from the things that stimulate your sexual drive will help you develop self-control regarding sins of sexual nature.
I hope this helps. May the Lord be with you.
I think this was helpful, but I would have thought that God’s involvement would have been the first point mentioned rather than like the 7th because realistically we can not do any of the listed steps without Him, seeing as we are going against sin and temptation, and humans do nit have the strength to do so on our own.
Thank you for this wonderful Article…. Is my time to turn Around …
I am struggling so much with the same issue there are times that i can’t control myself in watching porn videos, I am very ashamed to the Lord because I know that He can see everything in me. I don’t to give myself to anyone until I get married and put myself into shamed. LORD PLEASE help us overcome this. Thank’s to this article. GOD BLESS US.
I found this article when I Googled something like “techniques for calming libido.” I was expecting to find articles that spoke about cold showers, physical exercise, or thinking about something very un-sexy. I am so thankful to have found an article that treated this question as a serious issue and spoke of it from not just a physical perspective, but also the spiritual and emotional perspective. I have struggled with this since my early teens, and it has only been in the last few years (I’m now in my late 30s) that anyone has brought the emotional and spiritual aspects into the equation for me.
Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for this article, and for having the courage to say, in today’s world, that it is healthy and productive to resist sexual urges and to avoid masturbation. God bless!
I really thank you guys for this and i hope it will change my life and thoughts towords it may God bless you
I really appreciate the write up you did. It is certainly a difficult conversation to have with anyone including yourself. People don’t realize how things like this affect everything around them. I could say a lot but mainly just want to let you know that you have helped my family and me. Thank you!
Thank you.
That’s a great article!Particularly liked, when you feed your appetite, it grows. This witty statement explains the phenomenon in a nutshell.
Keep writing and inspiring. You are changing Lives everyday. 🙂
This is very useful. Thank you so much
Thank you so much for this article. I’ve been struggling with masturbation since I was a child. This has opened my eyes a lot. I pray for grace to say no. God bless you for this.
This is beautiful, I’ve been struggling with masturbation for 5 years now. I’ve read a lot of articles but this is the only one that mentions talking to God about it. I’m a Christian and I love to know that someone believes that this problem is as much physical as is spiritual. Thank you very much, I’ll work on myself, and I promises to preserve my sexual desires
Great read! I have a question: If I refuse to turn from my sexual sin then am I really a Christian with a heart for Jesus? My problem is that I love God and want to honor him but I also love sex with my girlfriend. We both are Christians and have debated the Bible’s interpretation of premarital sex. I have studied the Bible a lot in the last year so there is not much to debate in my opinion. She doesn’t read much and wants to continue being sexually active. Once you’ve been sexually active for nearly ten years it is extremely challenging to stop though! (WE haven’t dated for ten years.. just a short time actually. Getting married is an easy answer but I don’t want to rush that… wish I felt the same way about sex) I feel the need to make a change so that my sex life honors God but it requires so much self control (a fruit of the spirit that I haven’t quite mastered.) I ask God for help but I feel like the Holy Spirit says he has given me the strength, I just need to make the decision. (Maybe that’s the devil tricking me… I’m still trying to grow in the area of hearing the Holy Spirit.) Letting go of sex is so tough though! God created sex to be great and it is… can I just keep living in this one sin? What are the consequences if I do? I feel bad though because Jesus didn’t say, “Take up 90% of your cross and follow me.” He didn’t say, “Lose almost all of your life for me and you will find it.” He gave all for me and He deserves my all in return. I just can’t imagine sex within marriage to be better than sex outside of marriage. I guess if a person waited for years it would be incredible. In a weird way I look forward to dying so I can literally just sit down with God and ask him all these questions straight up. Maybe the fact I’m living in sin inhibits me from hearing Him very well now…
Any advice is appreciated.
Hi Trey,The Bible gives us guidelines about sex in 1 Corinthians 7:1-3: “Now for the matters you wrote about: ‘It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.’ But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her.” Since you aren’t married, the Bible actually says you shouldn’t be having sex. We have another blog about the side effects of sex before marriage. You can check it out here: http://moralrevolution.com/the-invisible-effects-of-sex-before-marriage/. We understand it’s not an easy thing to stay away from, especially once you’ve already started, but we also believe living outside of God’s guidelines is never going to be the highest level of living. He promises you abundant life, but you can’t get to abundance if you don’t follow the roadmap He gave us to get there. God did create sex to be good, but He also created it to stay within a certain context. Hope that makes sense, and we will be praying for you to find the grace and strength to walk out purity in your relationship.
Hi Trey,
Your first question: ‘If I refuse to turn from my sexual sin then am I really a Christian with a heart for Jesus?’ draws me to James 2:14-26, which literally says that faith without works is dead. You cannot refuse to turn away from your sexual sins and still claim to love God. Image a friend who claims to love you but always hurts you in the most grievous ways. What you are probably feeling now is not love for God, but the desire to walk with /love God. Your situation is best described in Romans 7:14-25 which reveals the fleshly nature battling with the Spiritual nature, such that one’s desire to obey God (which is actually a true reflection of loving God), is overcome by the person’s own lust and carnal desires. The missing component in this case is the Holy Spirit who indeed fills an individual, and synchronises with a man’s soul, thus forming a bond with that person in purpose and will. He also gives us the strength to bring act on your desire to stop your sexual sins (2 Thessalonians 1:11).
I was sexually active before my teens through my early thirties and yet when the Holy Spirit touched me, he gave me a renewal of mind. He asked me this: Will your quality of life diminish if you postponed sex until marriage? I would encourage you to continue praying and actively seeking the strength of the Holy Spirit. Do Not Give up! and Don’t Lose Hope! Also take active steps to dissociate yourself from people, lifestyles, materials (audio and visual) that stimulate your sexual drive. For me, it became easier overtime to pull away from my sexual desires through consistent meditation on the Gospel about self-control and the results of sexual sins (both physical and spiritual). I genuinely desired to please God and I became aware that disobeying God in any form is not permissible and does not show reverence to the Most High. Remember if you truly love God, then you will obey His commandments and the Holy Spirit (with the Father) will come and make a dwelling inside you (John 14: 23).
John 14
v15 “If you love Me, keep[d] My commandments. v16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— v17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
I pray the Holy Spirit gives you the insight into overcoming any form of sexual sin and strengthens you to pursue His every holy and righteous ways. Amen!
Your second question:
can I just keep living in this one sin? What are the consequences if I do?
A direct answer is provided in Hebrews 10
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,”[e] says the Lord.[f] And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”[g] 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
You seem to stress ‘living in one sin’ as though ‘one sin’ done willfully and repeatedly without any intention of willfully repenting is permitted by God. God does not want any dilution of righteous living, because sin is likened to darkness and in God, there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1
v5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.
I hope this helped.
Thank u, !
I have been married for 32 years and my husband has not had sex with me for about 7 years…he is not interested….am I to live a celibate life for the duration of our marriage…he will not go to counseling. What am I to do?
Hey Susan,This is a very difficult situation and hard to speak into when we don’t know you or your husband personally. I would seek wise counsel outside of this website from people who know you and love you and whom you know you can trust.
Hi. I sincerely don’t know how to say this.I am married and GOD knows I love my wife but I still looking how to stop my desire for her. After reading this article I think is more for those you try to manage their sex drive by masturbation; I don’t masturbate and I have to confess that it is not the envy that is lacking but I know that is not the solution. So how can I stop my sex drive toward my wife? if not because I am a believer I would had sex with somelese long time ago. Is there any way to stop or considerably reduce my sex drive toward her knowing that we sleep on the same bed almost every night? thanks in advance
Hey Gustave,It sounds like there may be something deeper going on. There may be other needs inside of you that need to be met that you are trying to get met by sex. It’s too much pressure to put on one person to meet all of your needs. It might be helpful to talk to a doctor or counselor or church leader you trust who can ask you questions and find out if there may be something else going on. Hope this helps!
Wow! And I thought I was getting a lot out of going to therapy!!This was truly enlightening. Before, I felt hopeless, and didn’t want to talk to the people I normally talk to because some are judgmental, some are too accepting of anything, and some will not stop talking about how everything applies to religion. I was looking for a new perspective, and I got it. I’ll definitely give you guys a shout out on my blog.
Side note: it’s hard to keep this under control because it’s not like alcohol or gambling..sex is part of being human, so the desire to do it is very natural. With God’s help, I’ll concur this thing! haha
Thank you again!
I dont know whether its gonna help me or not but believe me It has impressed me a lot. Please pray for me that i become a better person. Amen
Thank you so much for writing this post!!! 🙏🏼❤️My high sexdrive is a real problem for me. I’m trying so hard to pursue my life goals and being proactive and business minded creating my business but my high sexdrive stops me from even getting out of bed in the morning. It’s taken me a year and 1/2 to create a morning routine and now I’m struggling with implementing it. First thing on my mourning routine is waking up, done, second thing is smiling, done, third thing is thinking of things I’m grateful for, done, fourth thing is writing those things down which means reaching out to grab my pencil and index card instead of reaching down and touching myself. This is the point where I struggle and I stay in bed and am not productive at all. Once I do get up, because of an urgent visit to the bathroom, I get ready I do my meditation and yoga and then shower and breakfast. Then I put on my business audios that I bought to learn and become successful but this is where my second temptation comes because the man speaking on these audios is a man that really turns me on so I end up getting wet and wanting to feel myself. I really try to resist but it’s very hard. I’m going to try everything you’ve mentioned above, I hope it will help me. Male friends don’t make it easier for me either because some will video call me or text me telling their deepest desires and if I’m weak I’ll give in and get turned on. I really hope that this will help me. Thank you so much!
”Do not give up, Get up” the most helpfull thing that was said, My body is not in controll of me I am in controll of my body. I am not a man of god but this has helped me alot.
Great article and quite helpful. I am on a move to start speaking to the teens and youth on this topic. Kindly share other links and written resources which will be of help to me them as well as to me.I also want to make another crucial move of educating widows and widower on how to live Godly, healthy sex life afterwards..kindly assist on this too.
Hey Kyness,You can check out our recommended resource page: https://moralrevolution.com/recommended-resources/. We get a lot of our content from these sites and books. Hope this helps!
This article was not helpful. The only “deficiency” in my life is that I do not have a fulfilling romantic relationship atm. I cannot have one right now for timing and business reasons. I have always had a relatively healthy sex drive. I’m a new adult now who has to control and be responsible for my actions. I just wanted to know any psychological tips that could help me shove away the temptation to take advantage of a willing friend or indulge in a random fling. My sex drive is not present because of some need to feel loved; I am loved. It just exists because I am a red blooded, healthy human. This article gave me no tips and assumed that there is something wrong with people who have a high libido.2/10, not very helpful
Hey Robin,I’m sorry that you didn’t find the article helpful. We would agree that having a sex drive doesn’t mean that you don’t feel loved or that there’s anything wrong with you. Having sex drive is a very normal thing. We do, however, believe that it can be managed in such a way that you follow God’s design for sex in the Bible, which is to save it for marriage. We believe this is how you protect yourself, your relationships, and your future marriage if you want to get married, as well as go after the abundant life Jesus talks about in John 10:10.
So I have read the article and many of the replies. I am left confused and frustrated. The point of the article is masturbation is bad and you should just stop wanting to have sex. In my opinion, that is really a simplistic way of approaching the problem. I don’t see any reference to the differences in the biological makeup of men and women. Lets be honest, men want sex more than women. This was how God designed us. I would like an answer to this question. If God made men and women to join together in a monogamous relationship, where they are to support each other and act as a helpmate, why would He design them which such a dramatic difference in their desires? It almost seems like men are supposed to be in a continual state of discomfort as they are not having their needs met. Maybe what you were trying to say here is that when you “Walk in Purity” God will take away the desire. If that is the case then the entire structure of sex is simply a test to show that you can sacrifice. But maybe the argument is fundamentally flawed. Perhaps, and this is just my opinion, masturbation was designed to bridge the gap between male and female libido.
Hi there,We don’t believe God takes away the desire for sex when you walk in purity. God gives you a sex drive outside of marriage, so you know how to manage it inside of marriage and you can honor your spouse, who will have their own needs. Sex is meant to be a gift. It’s meant to be a way that you can serve your spouse, grow in intimacy with them, and focus on their needs, not just your own. While it is often the case that men have higher sex drives than women, it is not always the case. There are women who have very high sex drives as well. The problem with masturbation is that as long as you’re “feeding” the desire, it will be there and it will probably continue to grow. Abstaining from masturbation or sexual activities, and addressing your soul needs such as intimacy, comfort, and connection with other humans, should cause your sex drive to decrease and make it more manageable. We have other blogs on this topic if you wish to read them: https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/ and https://moralrevolution.com/masturbation-faqs/
Hello there! I do not agree about the whole thing about the “preparation” for the marriage, after all sex existed before marriage. About the gap between men and women libido, sure, there might be, but let’s not forget about the main reason behind our sex drive: reproduction. Also, sex was, is and will be a way in which individuals are capable to coexist having the role of decreasing the tension within a group. We don’t use it in that way, but according to the theory in which the world was not created 7000 years ago, we used to do that. This kind of behavior can still be observed in nature at certain species. Also also I find it strange that there are only positive responses from your users. I couldn’t see any complains only thanks. Are you selecting the replies that are in concordance with your beliefs? Don’t get me wrong, I can see what you are trying to do here, but I find it unusual the lack of personal opinion.
Hi there,We do sort through our comments mostly because we get a lot of spam and inappropriate content. We do try to approve comments that disagree with us or share different opinions, but if they are disrespectful, then they will probably not be approved. Our organization is also based on the Biblical view of sexuality, which holds to the idea that sex was created for marriage to deepen the bond between a husband and wife, for their mutual enjoyment, and for the procreation of children.
Hi Confused,
Yes, this is such a difficult issue! I understand where you’re coming from, and know someone who has battled with a more complicated addiction problem for over 40 years.
However, I don’t think the article is proposing that m is "bad" as such, which we do see in so many moralist/legalistic churches, more that there is a better way to meet our needs.
Hope this helps – there are no easy answers, that’s for sure!
Excellent. It’s just as its happening
This is pure evangelism and a life transforming message. Thank you
This is a great article, presenting a practical way to overcome sexual urges and the urge to masturbate. I personally like the part ‘invite God in’. The Apostle Paul often prayed for the churches (Ephesians 3:14-19; 2 Thessalonians 1:11). In his prayers he referred to the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to do what is good (2 Thes. 1:11), because knowing the Gospel and mustering the ability to practice it are separate things (Romans 7:14-25). It is only by the infilling of the Holy Spirit that one can have that renewal of mindset, which leads away from such urges to masturbate. For anyone struggling with masturbation and overwhelming sex drive, but willing and desiring to change or stop such behaviours, pray specifically for the Holy Spirit to energise you to bring to fruition your desire to do ‘good’ and pursue God’s purpose for sex (which isn’t masturbation). Bearing in mind that our present sufferings (including the pain of not masturbating) is nothing compared to the Glory which God will show us (Romans 8:18), let’s set our minds on things above (Colossians 3:2), let’s pray for strength to control all the members of our bodies (1 Corinthians 9:27) so we only offer our bodies wholly to God’s purpose (Romans 6: 13).
i can’t control my sexual desires. i don’t know what to do. In my fantasy i feel like becoming rapist and pervert. i don’t want this to become real in real life. it’s increasing day-by-day due to this i can’t focus on studies. please reply me…
Hey Nikhil,This sounds a lot like the enemy trying to torment you. After you’ve accepted Jesus as Lord of your life, you have authority over the enemy and you can fight him off with the truth of God’s word. You declare over yourself what God says about you. Once you repent and give your life to Jesus, what He says about you is the only thing that matters. The Bible says that once you’re saved, you are the righteousness of God through Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). Romans 6:7 says you are no longer a slave to sin: “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin- because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.” It also tells us self-control is one of the fruits of having the Holy Spirit in us (Galatians 5:22). You are not powerless to your sexual desires, you can control them. If you need to get some outside help, like a counselor or church leader you trust to walk you through this, then that might be a good idea too.
nice article, i really learn a lot while going through dis short but charming article
I didn’t read the 147 comments and the additional replies, so sorry if you already answered this:
Since these sexual feelings came from God, I believe them to be good feelings; but back in Bible times men and woman got married early and the struggle was different. In addition to this, more of the population, if not all of the population were married off when of age or shortly after that… So my question stems from this: We are living in times where men and woman are still single in there late 20’s, 30’s, and even 40’s, higher ages are usually because of divorce or breaking up from common-law. How do we hang on so long and ignore what God rightful gave us… not when the time is right… but from puberty… the struggle is real. As I get older I find it harder to fight. Also, because I feed my desires with materbation for years, and struggled to stop for years and failed at almost every attempt… I have maybe a 5 to 10% success rate in me saying no to myself. Help me please… and others like me? I have asked so many who are older and wiser and where I have been, but they too look at the times and are baffled because the times we live in do not help us fight this at all.
Seriously… actually reply, please.
Hey Fiona,Paul also talks about singleness in the Bible (1 Corinthians 7), so even though getting married really young and being able to have sex was an option for a lot of them, he also puts the option on the table to remain single, which would mean not having sex. That’s not to say we have to remain single forever like he was talking about, but it is possible to be single a little longer and still be able to get your needs met in a healthy way. We’ve had people on our team walking out purity at all different ages from 21 to 38, so we understand it’s not the easiest. We do believe, however, that if God is asking us to live a certain way, it’s because it’s the best and healthiest way. Here are a few more blog posts on the topic you can check out: https://moralrevolution.com/the-economics-of-sex/ https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/ Hope this helps!
Thanx a lot. I have got addicted to masturburation from the age of 16. Now it really led me into mess. Day by day my happy life turned unto sad mess. Every time i thought of quiting it, but i cant leave this addiction. It drove me mad everytime i tried to give up. I was a intelligent boy, my cgpa are good before 16, but it ate my iq. Few days some practices like yoga meditation i have included in my schedule, it working. But today i felt like masturburating but this article increased the self awareness among me, to say no to it. Thnx i can keep the promise to myself i have done.
With an excellent attitude like that I think you should begin to master this nasty addiction.
Well done Arya – if you read this, you could give an update on how you are doing a year later!
I really needed this. I used masturbation to fill a deeper void in my life. Connecting with people will definitely help. Thank you and God bless!
God doesn’t exist.
We’re sorry you feel that way, Lee. We believe He does exist and that He loves you.
Thanks so much. it’s the most helpful. It’s true that the reason for masturbation isn’t because of sexual urges. I thought of it only when I have issues with my husband.
Thanx you very much. But I want to share my problem with you. Sexual thoughts are great and serious problem for me. Sir sexual thoughts not only desturbe me mentely but they reduce my efficiency in any work of daily life. I want to tell you that I am a university student and how I can reduce my sexual thoughts about my(female) callsefellows during class hourse as well as in the bed. Please suggest a solution as soon as you can.
Here are a few blogs that might be helpful: https://moralrevolution.com/dreams-fantasy-faq/ https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/
HeyI luckily found this page and I’m really glad that I did
Actually I’m really “suffering” from this and I really wanna control it. I gave it up for 10 month and I don’t know what happened it slipped out of my hands.
Every time I feel God hates me because of this and really wanna stop this so this feeling would go away…
Thanks alot for this write up, it has given me a brand new way of thinking and battling my weakness. But One thing still stands out…I dont know who to tell, i cant tell my parents or my pastor. there’s only on person i can trust and thats my sis, but she’s far away. Apart from my parents and pastor, please who else can i tell? Thanks once again for this priceless write-up, God bless.
Hi Leslie,Thanks for being bold enough to reach out with this comment. It’s scary the first time you tell anyone about a struggle you haven’t told anyone about, but the point of telling someone is to bring freedom from shame. Shame talks to you about the things you haven’t brought out into the light yet, but there’s freedom that comes once you aren’t the only one who knows about them. If you don’t feel comfortable with your parents or pastor being the first person you tell, then ask the Lord if there is someone else at church or in your life you could tell. It could be a friend or other church leader, but the point is to have someone that shares a godly perspective on things and will help you get more freedom and not stay stuck in a cycle. Hope this helps!
Really like and appreciate this article, but one point I disagree with: God *does* give us things we can’t handle, and they remind us that we need Him. We aren’t to fight sexual temptation (tempting situations) for example, but to flee from them (as you say, know and deal healthily with triggers and don’t under-estimate distraction). Because they’re too big for us to handle. But they’re not too big for Him. So we run to Him. That saying has brought me so much grief over the years. Seriously, just review Job or re-read (I believe it was) Paul’s letters; if we didn’t face things we couldn’t handle, what would we need God for besides fire insurance?
Whoever wrote this article, may the heavens bless you!
I’ve had this problem (masturbation) for a while now, but I don’t quite seem to know what to do in order to avert it, well, until now. This article has clearly explained everything, and now, I think am ready to say ‘no to myself’.
Thanks alot.
This was right on the money.great article.thanks may God Jesus Christ continue to be Glorified and Magnified.Amen.
I want to thank God for this information it has really boasted me & to continue having the right stand with my God.
This was really very helpful.. let’s see. What happens
Thank you. You gave me a lot to think about in my life.
Thank you!This has been life changing. I know this information is going to help keep my path straight!
Keep sharing the truth!
Hello and God bless. I am a believer and love and follow the Lord with all my heart. But I’m struggling with this. I recently divorced. But I still think about my ex-husband and the times we had our intimacy. I think this is fornication since we are not married anymore, I’m not sure… The problem with women is that our bodies were designed to reproduce and there is a week in the month when our sexual libido bumps high in order to make reproduction happen. Even if women cannot have children, it still happens. In other words, our bodies are asking for this even out of our will. I have tried hard in prayer, meditation, distractions, etc… but haven’t been successful. I don’t want to offend my Lord, He knows it. But after it happens, I feel miserable and unworthy.
Hi Che,So sorry to hear about your divorce and that you have been struggling with this topic. Intimacy is a need all of us have, and it’s a difficult transition to go back into abstaining from sex after having sex with your spouse for a long period of time. We understand that our bodies go through cycles and this can definitely make things more difficult. We also believe freedom is possible, and God has given you what you need to follow the convictions of your heart, even though it might be really difficult at times. Another thing to note is that shame is not from God. God’s love for you is steady and unconditional, and not based on how well you obey Him. If you slip up, run to Him, ask Him for forgiveness, and for the grace to try again with a fresh start. Since we don’t know you personally, it might be a good idea to also bring in some leaders or people you trust to help you walk through this. Here are a few more blogs on this topic that might be helpful: https://moralrevolution.com/sex-after-divorce/
https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/, and https://moralrevolution.com/masturbation-faqs/. Hope this helps!
WOW,so christian article.
shoud say at the beginning, Christian article about sexual drive.
what about us who dont believe?
thanks…
you just got praises because dislikers dont even take time to answer this,,,
To me their is nothing really helpfull in this article! It seems to be written bu HOLIER THEN THOU PEOPLE! Do You not realize sex is way more then a climax??? Its about feeling wanted- needed- touching , carrassing- kissing etc! I know my sex drive is way to high as about once a month i really feel the need to hug and hold my wife- being intimate and sometimes it would be nice to have intercourse! But apparently im way over sexed and normal people would only do this once to max twice a year! I guess im the Chief of All Sinners wishing i could be sexual at least 4 times a year! But with Your kind of support i guess im on My way to hell for being so over sexed!!! Sorry but i really dont feel i need counselling for wanting intimacy 4 times a year!!
Thank you for this article, it will go a long way in helping me overcome some challenges I have been dealing with in my life,
I think this was very relevant, simple and easy to understand! Thank you!
So what if I never get married? I just don’t understand why God allows us to have the urge when we’re not married.
We understand it’s a difficult thing to have a sex drive before you’re married. We believe the reason God gives us a sex drive outside of marriage is because we are going to have to know how to manage it inside of marriage. When you get married, your spouse will not be able to have sex with you every single time you want to. You are marrying a person with their own schedule and needs. We also believe that if you want to get married and you have a sex drive, then you are not called to singleness. God put those desires in your heart not to torment you, but to fulfill them in the right timing. In the meantime, it’s okay to go to him with your pain and your questions. He loves you, and He is a good Father.
This is very helpful. Thank you!
Thank you for writing this article. I’ve had this problem for 5 years now—awhile. And Every time i tried to end it nothing changed. I kept hating myself for doing it. I never really understood this. “Your sex drive doesn’t have to feel out of control. You can manage it by growing as a whole person, learning to get your needs met, and staying in relationship.” That is the answer right there.I can control it but i have to realize that the real reason is i was using it as a way to distract myself from life’s obstacles. I now know what I need to address to stop this behavior.
Thanks
A.F.H
This is really very nice,but what divorcee,widowed,single(could not get soul mate) can do? Is there any solution for them?how can they overcome their sexual desire if they do not meet a partner? Please put light on it.many are suffering with this.
Here are a few blogs that might be helpful: 1. https://moralrevolution.com/t-rex-in-the-room/ 2. https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/ 3. https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-2/
Very well written & expressed! Great insight!
I have read so many article like this but it not helping I have being masturbating for a long time I need help seriously cause I really don’t feel good when in doing it I prayed yet I might stop it for like two to three weeks but I will till come back to it am afraid of myself now i don’t really know what to about I need help please.
Hey Emmett,Is there someone who is a safe place that you respect and can talk to about this? Someone who doesn’t struggle in this area and can help walk you through getting free? Community gives us strength to overcome things like this and holds us accountable to who we’re called to be. It sounds like you have already done a lot of reading on this topic, but here are a few more articles in case you’re interested: https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-1/ https://moralrevolution.com/getting-our-needs-met-part-2/
This article is everything, a perfect example of “correct in love” not any form of condemnation.
Ye haa ah what a great idea and explanation is excellent Loved it.
well eluciated.!
This article could have been written by the early church fathers who thought sex was dirty and sinful. The Christian church has been hobbled by this thought pattern since then. Not real helpful!
Very nice article
I am very disappointed with the people working on the replies. I left a comment in March 25. Nothing inappropriate about it. It still shows, “waiting on moderation”. I’ve been waiting patiently for an answer to help me, but never got a reply. I guess my questions were to tough to answer.
Hi Che,So sorry for the long delay in replying to your comment. We have a small staff and receive multiple comments and messages a day and try to be intentional about answering them, especially when they deal with sensitive topics, which most of them do. Thank you for your patience, and we will work on getting a response to you as soon as we can.
Thank you for sharing these insights about how we could manage our sex drive.
Honestly “Williams” is absolutely right. You are genuinely trying to help people without just trying to make people feel guilty. You tell us that these things take us on a dark road but you actually tell people what they can do and what steps you can take to fix the prob¡em with God. You really seem to care for others.
I find if I abstain from fruit or refined carbs, my sex drive is much lower. When i am at peace, also the same. When I fast, it is nonexistent.
I hope judeochristians would see where their man made doctrine and institutions are falling short. Christ believed religion was a way of life and a truth that includes finances, relationships, and health.
I found this to be a very helpful and informative post.
I enjoyed your transparent logic and wisdom.
Thanks
A very helpful article especially to those people in dire need of help and yearn to explore healthy lifestyles
Thank you so much for this. I’m a widow of two years and this is most helpful. I’m in my 50s, just saying that so others know that this can affect anyone!
Thank you so much for this article. I’m suffering to this kind of conditions too and I fell very depressed every time I do that. You really helped me a lot.
More power!
This is a very helpful article. Thank you very much.
Thanks! Felt good sensuality and energy but asked for a alternative to sattisfaction and here is described nicely that what feeling it is (maybe lack of intimacy)
Hi, thank you for this article. I have been struggling with this since puberty, now I am in my 40’s and married (my wife suffers from bipolar and depression, the “cocktail” of meds she is on completely takes away her sex drive, and I knew this going in) back to topic, I have been to confession many times for this and my priest has made quite a few of the same points you have.
After having been in bondage for most of my life, giving in to sexual desires, I get a boost of hope having read the article. Thank you and may God bless this ministry.
Since I stopped all sexual stimulation almost three years ago; I find myself feeling the sexual desire of people I come in contact with (if a girl is turned on by me or around me I can feel it). I can control myself, but it can be very difficult; that’s where fleeing (1 Corinthians 6:18) comes to mind. I’m so glad I stopped all that it was very difficult; it took me longer to stay away from porn. I have gone back and forth enough to know that if I just give in one time I will be back to where I started. I love having more control over the urges of my body, and I’m stronger mentally and physically than when I started.
Thank you so much for this article I’ve been talking with my therapist about this… It’s hard being a single mom…
thanks alot
Really helpful Thank you!
Thanks for the godly reminder!
Thank you. Finally, a positive and God-honoring blog on the topic.
This works! I’m a 40 yr old male. Here’s what I did to stop lusting. I’m not perfect but it’s maybe 70% better.
This was a great article, this really opened my eyes.
Notice how NONE of the advice is (barely any of it is practical) to actually GET married.
It talks about marriage as a vague thing in the distant future because single people are rarely allowed to believe that marriage actually FIXES MUCH of the problem which is that singleness means there is NO sexual outlet and with marriage there is as LEAST A sexual outlet.
But we’re not allowed to say that, even though the Bible TELLS us to get married if we want to, that it’s better than burning with passion – notice how it says PASSION and not LUST.
We are always pressured to believe that our God given desires are lustful when they are IN FACT normal sexual desire that GOD gives us and ALLOWS us to fulfil IN marriage.
If only CHRISTIANS would let each other get married instead of acting like lust is the only problem.
Married people are told to have sex if they have desire, they aren’t told they have a lust problem.
What is the difference – do only married people have desire. Are only married people allowed to be married and the rest of of aren’t deserving of what God said that we CAN have.
WOW, i thank so much for penning this, Indeed it’s so comforting and eye opener for me… i acquired true motivation from this… You’re Awesome ❤️
Reading this in 2022. I see lots of comments talking about "this is a christian article" and "this doesn’t help nonbelievers". Well im a muslim and i find this article very helpful. Reading about how we use masturbation to fill in shortcomings in other areas of our lives really changes my perspective. Thank you Moral Revolution. May God bless and reward you.
So, author: you’ve been doing this how long and seen what results?