I'm sure most of you know the old saying, "First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in the baby carriage". For me, this has always been a picture of how love, marriage, and sex are suppose to play out. However, the more I get immersed in the media and the messages of this modern time, it seems like this saying is no longer the standard.

I love watching rom-com movies, however, they always seem to include the idea that you meet someone, have sex with them, and then possibly pursue a relationship with them, or some version therein. As you can image, this idea sparked thought on my part. This message is something that is being broadcast across America, but is it correct? Or is the traditional view correct?

Which is better for us emotionally, socially, and physically? Is this new perspective correctly defining love, and placing the correct value on sex and marriage?

Considering these questions, I first thought about the definition of love. It occurred to me that in this day and age, love has become synonymous with lust. The movies and TV shows that I've watched are continuously showing relationships as shallow and casual, but love is deep and requires work.

I realized that our society has made it acceptable to have sex with someone without loving them because love and lust are seen as interchangeable. In my personal opinion, I found this to be dangerous emotionally, as love is a very serious emotion and when it is replaced by another feeling it can lead to confusion and pain.

I then started to think about the value that is being placed on sex in this new modern perspective. It occurred to me that sex is no longer viewed as something special to be shared between only two people once they are married. Media has shown it as a means to pleasure and not something to be enjoyed only within the bonds of marriage.

This casual view of sex can also be harmful physically, as the more casual sex you have the more likely you are to get a disease or ailment. When looking at it like this, it seems that the value traditionalists place on sex is more reasonable and safer because sex is treated like something sacred.

Following this, I thought about the value of marriage that is shown today. Most rom-coms that I've watched have marriage in them, but it is more of an after thought, kind of like its just something people do once they've reached a certain point in their lives. They've already done everything that should be done after marriage before marriage, so now marriage is just a legality.

Not only is it a legality, it is often seen as a burden instead of a great bond between a man and a woman. It is my opinion that taking away the value of marriage has damaged our society by causing confusion about why it even takes place and disrupting the family dynamic.

One thing that I've noticed that the modern view of love, marriage, and sex doesn't include is how God fits in. As a Christian, God plays a large role in these areas. When I consider whether the modern standard or the traditional standard is best, I have to not only consider the emotional, social, and physical benefits and aspects, I have to also consider whether my actions are glorifying and honoring God. The modern perspective does not appear to be honoring God, but the traditional seems to be in-line with His plan for love, marriage, and sex.

In conclusion, watching movies and shows that show the modern view of love, marriage, and sex without God has lead me to the belief that the modern view is mistaken. It is my opinion that the traditional view still holds true in this day and age, but is often ignored or forsaken for convenience. I believe that we need to reestablish this view because this traditional view honors myself, my family, my future spouse, my future children, and my God.