High Voltage – Today’s Family Devotion

High Voltage

SEXUAL INTIMACY IS A POWERFUL FORCE, ONE THAT SHOULD BE KEPT BETWEEN A HUSBAND AND WIFE.

Bible Reading of the Day: Read Hebrews 13:4.

Verse of the Day: “Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage” (Hebrews 13:4).

Samantha was helping Dad fix the lamp in her bedroom.

“Now,” Dad instructed her, “you always have to be very careful when you’re working with electricity, Sam.” He unscrewed the light assembly from the base of the lamp, then slipped off the cardboard piece that covered the wires and placed his screwdriver in one of the screws that held the wires in place. “Yeeoww!”

Samantha immediately saw sparks. “Daddy, are you all right?” she asked.

Dad shook his hand up and down in the air. “Yeah, Sam, I’m fine.” Dad looked behind Sam’s bedside table, then faced his daughter with a sheepish expression. “I forgot to tell you the most important thing to remember when you’re working with electrical things.” He reached behind the table and pulled the lamp’s plug out of the wall outlet. “Always make sure they’re unplugged first!”

“Are you sure you’re not hurt, Daddy?” Sam asked.

“Yes, I’m fine. But I could have been hurt. That’s why you always need to be careful with electricity.”

“I don’t think I like electricity,” Sam said, only half joking.

“Sure you do,” Dad said. “It’s what powers your lights and your fan and your CD player. But the same force that does all those things can hurt you too.”

Dad concentrated for a few moments on replacing the switch in Samantha’s lamp.

“There,” he said. “All done.” He plugged the lamp in and switched it on. “Works fine.” He motioned for Sam to sit down. “Electricity is a powerful force, Sam, and in that respect, it’s a lot like something else I want to talk to you about.”

Sam looked at him curiously.

“Someday soon,” Dad continued, “you’re going to begin dating, and you’re going to start thinking about getting married, and so on. When you do, I want you to remember that shock I just got. I want you to understand that sexual intimacy is a lot like electricity. It’s a powerful force, Sam, and it can be a wonderful thing if you respect it and use it the way God intended. But it can hurt you too. As long as sex is kept between a husband and wife, it’s a beautiful and awesome thing. But if it’s not between a husband and wife, it’s even more dangerous and harmful than electricity.”

“OK, Dad,” Sam said, with a twinkle in her eye. “I’ll remember that. I don’t want to get burned … like you did!”

TO DISCUSS: What are society’s beliefs about sexual intimacy outside of marriage? How do these beliefs conflict with God’s desires?

TO PRAY: A parent could pray the following: “God, help us to honor marriage and to treat it with the respect and care that it deserves. We acknowledge that sexual intimacy belongs in marriage, not outside of it. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”