The following article is an excerpt from author Stanley Leffew’s “Sugar for My Coffee” e-newsletters, which I enjoy immensely! If you like this article as much as I did, check out others like it at http://www.advice-for-lifetime-relationships.com/Sugar_For_My_Coffee-backissues.html.
Thanks for letting me share this with my readers, Stanley!

The Next Time You JUMP into Bed with Someone,
Take Along a Parachute!

You ever notice how skydiving seems to come up on people’s list of things they want to do before they die? You saw this in the movie "Bucket List", as the main characters included it in their list of things they just had to do before they "kicked the bucket." Before long in the movie, you see them experiencing the thrill of tandem skydiving.

Those of you who have already embarked on this journey yourself can identify with what I am saying. For those of you who have not, let me tell you a little bit about what tandem skydiving is all about, and along the way share a secret to great relationships.

Some realities of tandem skydiving you may be curious to know:

• You only have to have about 20 minutes of instruction prior to going up
• You experience anticipation from a 15-20 minute flight to reach ideal altitude
• You will be jumping from heights around 13,000 feet
• You will get to enjoy around 3-minutes of free-fall time
• After the parachute opens you get to float around in the air and see visuals you will never see from the ground

Oh, yeah! One more thing about tandem skydiving!

YOU DO NOT HAVE A PARACHUTE!

Yes, you are reading that correctly! The person wearing the parachute is a trained instructor, usually with hundreds of jumps under their belt. They wear the parachute and pull the release at the proper time.

So, how are you kept from getting permanent grass stains on the inside of your spleen?

EMBRACE!

The instructor will attach his/her parachute to the safety harness you're wearing. By doing so, you don’t get to see if the earth's core is habitable for a human body at speeds up to 120 mph.

Now, you may be wondering; what does this have to do with taking along a parachute the next time I jump into bed with someone, and just what is that secret to a great relationship you mentioned?

Let me ask you a question. If you are going tandem skydiving, what is more important for you in the scenario described above, RELEASE or EMBRACE?

For those who said RELEASE, meet your new internal bosom buddy- EARTH!

A successful tandem sky dive is less about release and more about embrace. Without the instructor's embrace through your harness attachment, the release cord only benefits the instructor. Without EMBRACE, you might as well prepare yourself for a very hard fall.

Human sexuality is just like that!

The human body's sex drive is powerful on purpose. It is designed to pull couples together for the establishment of a family and as PART of the foundation of intimacy for that couple in marriage embrace. The sex drive, by design, is really less about RELEASE and more about EMBRACE. Let me state this again in case you missed it!

The sex drive, by design, is really
LESS ABOUT RELEASE and MORE ABOUT EMBRACE!

Culturally, we have elevated RELEASE and put down EMBRACE. Now listen close, because here is that secret to great relationships you've been waiting for.

What we ELEVATE becomes what we CELEBRATE,
and what we PUT DOWN becomes what we KICK AROUND.

It used to be that life was about marriage and family principles. In other words, it was about "EMBRACE"! Familial relationship-building principles for living was the norm, and great value was placed on marriage and family life.

Then came The Beatles, Elvis, Rock-and-Roll and yes, Hugh Hefner and Playboy. Gradually our society began to shift its thinking and embrace a mindset for "RELEASE" over "EMBRACE." The sexual revolution stepped onto the horizon and became the focus, and sadly, to our demise I might add, "EMBRACE" has been placed on the shelf and even mocked and ridiculed.

For over sixty years now we have been a world dominated with a fascination for "RELEASE". Playboy, Penthouse, strip clubs, porn movies, Girls Gone Wild, Spring Break, the music industry lyrics, etc. all display this same "RELEASE" mentality.

What we have lost in the process is EMBRACE. Culture is selling us the sizzle of relationships but stealing from us the soul of relationships. We have lost our value of LEG-A-CY in exchange for how much LEG-I-SEE.

So, the next time you consider jumping into bed with someone for sex, take along a parachute. It's a great way to help you remember that sex is less about RELEASE and more about EMBRACE.

You can ignore my words and go ahead and jump if you want to, but I would strongly advise you to make sure your harness attachment isn't being overlooked. This advice might just save you from one of life's hardest falls.

 Give the Gift of...

B.L.A.S.T. is the new mentorship program that Shannon started this past fall, but with a full class of over 40 students worldwide, we’ve decided to continue offering an online version of the class every 6 months (beginning each March and September). To read more about the program, click here for an informational brochure.

To request a B.L.A.S.T. Gift Certificate for any amount from $50 up to the full 12-month registration fee of $1,500, send an email to blast@shannonethridge.com and include the following:

• Giver’s Name & email address
• Recipient’s Name & email address
• Dollar Amount of Gift
• A Personal Note (up to 200 words) to include on the certificate

You will not be charged for the gift certificate until the person actually applies for the program and is accepted, so you’ve got nothing to lose!

Where did this idea come from? There’s a few in our current B.L.A.S.T. class whose spouse, parent, or friend offered to pay part (or all) of their registration fee, and of course they were deeply touched by the gesture! What a perfect way to say to a loved one, “I believe in you!”

Mark Your Calendars - Shannon Is Coming To...

Overland Park, KS - October 3, 2009
"Taking Your Marriage Over the Top" Conference at Overland Park Church of Christ in Overland Park, KS. For more info contact Tim Hall at tim.hall@opcofc.org.