Andy Warhol once said, “Sex is more exciting on the screen and between the pages than between the sheets”. Movies and books glamorize unprotected sex, but the risk and consequences are rarely a part of the storyline. But that is not a surprise as movies and books are often about fantasy, not reality. In fantasyland you can have sex with multiple partners and never get an STD. In reality land, according to the American Sexual Health Association, 1 in 2 sexually active young people will get an STD by 25. In fantasyland you can have sex and don’t have to worry about accidently getting pregnant. In reality land, according to research done by the Guttmacher Institute, almost half of the pregnancies in the US are accidental (unintended).
Did Andy Warhol find out the hard way that, “Sex is more exciting on the screen and between the pages than between the sheets”? I don’t know, but the stats tell you that if you’re seeking fantasyland you’ll more than likely end up in reality land. Will you get an STD or get pregnant? The stats say you have a 50% chance of getting one or the other but there is more to the story than that. Movies and books help shape our culture and young people are particularly impressionable. So they see or read a “great” love scene. It’s perfect. The location is perfect. The people have perfect bodies (ever see a fat guy with his shirt off on the cover of a romance novel?). The lovemaking is perfect. So they imagine this is how it will be for them. Unfortunately they get swept into the moment with someone thinking they’re in fantasyland but they wake up in reality land. It can be a very traumatic, hands over your face wondering what you’ve done, moment. Reality has set in.
So is the fantasy of sex better than the reality? If you’re looking for a world where there are no consequences for your actions then the answer is “Yes”. But we don’t live it that world. We live in a world where the reality of sex can be amazing when we do it God’s way.