When The Problem is Sexual Sin: A Counseling Model

In this article, John Bettler describes a pyramid of desires, where the sexual lust object is only the most obvious, top level of ruling desires. He argues that, at a second level are relational lusts: for safety, risk, distance and intimacy. At a third level are life-meaning lusts: the heart desires regarding what a person thinks is important and what makes life meaningful. Bettler gives a brief case study and illustrates how counseling can address all three levels.