Sex 101: Over 350 Creative Ways to a Godly, Loving, Pleasurable Marriage

Sex 101: Over 350 Creative Ways to a Godly, Loving, Pleasurable Marriage, is, simply stated, about the enjoyment of the physical union that God created between man and woman, in the exclusive relationship of marriage.

John and Cathy Gries' goal in writing this book is to enhance that enjoyment that husband and wife have in each others' bodies and to make that aspect of their union even better than it has ever been before. Why? Because God created us as sexual beings. Love and sexual union are a God-given privilege for a man and woman to share. No one wants your sexual satisfaction more than God does. He has provided everything necessary for your success and for your holiness. He longs for you to experience life as a sexual being-the way He made you. He put those sexual impulses in your spirit and in your body. He created the hormones. He desires that you experience the greatest joy and optimum pleasure in the use of what He gave you.

Sex 101 can be a boost to that enjoyment. It can help you be good stewards of God's good gift of sex, within the context of marriage.

Believers are often instructed to turn to the Song of Solomon, or Song of Songs as we also know it, when they inquire about the "appropriateness" or "rightness" of sex for enjoyment's sake within marriage.

Sometimes people will assert that sex was designed for the purpose of procreation only-that it serves its purposes when a child is conceived, since the first man and woman were commanded to be fruitful and multiply. Some would contend that instruction in how to make sex more pleasurable is inappropriate, since the sex act is only a vehicle for propagating the species. After the initial act occurs that results in conception, sex has no purpose, they would state. However, as one respected pastor so aptly put it, "If sex weren't also intended for pleasure, why did God make it so much fun?"

In truth, the Song of Solomon picks up where the creation story in Genesis left off. In Genesis, we learn that man and woman were made to have a meaningful relationship with the Creator. However, they were also made to have an enriching relationship with each other. If that were not true, God would have stopped with the creation of Adam. Instead, He created a companion-a helpmate-in Eve. Male and female were to multiply on the earth, so that is why they were given the sexual relationship with one another. God made the physical relationship enjoyable so that the man and woman would want to participate-otherwise, no multiplication could occur. God made man and woman physically attractive to each other-to complement each other in every way, including sexually. This leads us back to the purpose of this book: to help the man and woman who are linked in the exclusive relationship of marriage complement each other in the best sexual way possible.

In essence, Sex 101 demonstrates the same thing as does the biblical Song of Songs: that God's people, in the privacy of their existence together, may participate happily and joyfully and freely in this beautiful dimension of life. (The authors more fully document the biblical basis for Sex 101 in one of this book's concluding chapters.) Clearly the man and woman in the Song of Songs take pleasure in enjoying each other's bodies. In bold language, each describes the physical attractiveness of the mate. Each looks forward to a time in which they will experience physical union; indeed, these Scriptures indicate that this man and woman thrill with the anticipation of being together. They anticipate fleeing to their own little private hideaway so they can commune with one another privately-a feeling that anyone who has experienced the wonder of love can easily recognize.

Theirs is clearly an exclusive love. Song of Solomon depicts the strong desire of one man for one woman in an exclusive union, consistent with the biblical idea of marriage and the home.

John and Cathy Gries are popular husband-and-wife marriage-enrichment speakers whose seminars consistently draw large crowds and rave reviews form those who attend.

Their classes are based not on academic or medical journals nor on secular materials but on the Bible and their own personal experience in celebrating God's beautiful gift of sex.

They write out of a heart for God's Word as well as a commitment to His plan of one man for one woman for a lifetime. Sex, they believe, was created by God for enjoyment and fulfillment and is vital for holding marriages together.

In addition, John is a successful insurance salesperson and Cathy has a part-time career as a model. They have six children--Time, Wendy, brian, Jeff, Heather, and Holly. They live in Colorado.