Liz tells her story of struggling to relate to other women, often finding that sexual attractions complicated them. God helped her to see herself as He saw her, and also healed the relationships that had been damaged.

John shares his story of the guilt he faced with his same-sex attractions. Through finding acceptance at TFT, he found much greater freedom as no-one was telling him that his sexuality needed to change any more. Whilst continuing to battle temptation, like any Christian, John found a much greater contentment.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As a young child, I sang this well-known scripture verse along with a cassette tape of Bible songs. My mom interrupted me, saying, “You shouldn’t sing that! It’s too negative.” That moment encapsulates how my family, and even my church, felt about sin. It was something we didn’t talk about, or even think about, and certainly not something we ever did.

“What is the purpose of our sexuality?” That is the question that this short book wrestles with. Ed Shaw takes us deeper than the “human flourishing” arguments that only focus on our happiness in this life – he also helps us to mature beyond the simple youth-group questions (e.g. “Whom can I have sex with?”) to the deeper and ultimately more helpful question of “What is sexuality for?”

To tell you my story, I should really go back to the 1970s. I grew up in rural East Anglia. My family were Quakers and so, from my birth, they took me along to the local Friends Meeting House. The one thing I most remember was being interminably bored!

Both books are readable, very theologically based, full of practical help and of use both to the individual and the pastor. So, choose where you want to start - either with a focus on dealing with temptation, or a focus on becoming self-controlled. And then come back later for the other one!