When all is not what it seems,
when evil masquerades as good,
when it seems the wrong path is calling us,
Jesus, we need your help.
When sexually explicit images appear before us,
when curiosity and desire urge us to linger,
when it seems innocent just to look,
Jesus, we need your help.
When we make sexual comments in a social setting,
when our words make another uncomfortable,
when it seems funny at the time,
Jesus, we need your help.
When affection turns to passion,
when we are not committed in marriage,
when it seems there’s no point in waiting,
Jesus, we need your help.
When sexual desire sparks inside us,
when we know we are committed to someone else,
when it seems harmless just to imagine,
Jesus, we need your help.
When we touch someone who does not want to be touched,
when we trespass where we should not go,
when it seems that no one could prove it happened,
Jesus, we need your help.
When having sex is all about me,
when we give hardly a thought to our partner,
when it seems normal to live this way,
Jesus, we need your help.
When we want to act on our sexual desires,
when that person is a child,
when it seems that they will never remember,
Jesus, we need your help.
When we use our sexuality carelessly,
when we abuse this precious gift,
when we are confused and broken,
Jesus, your help saves us.
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.