Where Do We Go From Here?

This movie has something for everyone - family drama, romance, and that holiday sparkle. It's the story of a tight-knit, wacky family, and the oldest son's "uptight" girlfriend. But does this 2005 movie hold up today?  We talk about grief, bad boyfriends and girlfriends, and what makes a good relationship. Get into it! Partner with us for $3/month. You get to hear romcom recaps like this one, and December's is the Netflix movie Love Hard.  Full show notes here Dr. Celeste Holbrook is a sexologist and speaker who helps her clients evolve into the women they were created to be, in and outside of the bedroom. She speaks on a variety of topics from sex drive and sexual shame to painful intercourse, purity culture, and more. Connect with Dr. Celeste on Instagram  

If you thought purity culture was a thing of the past, guess again. Turns out there are new forms in 2021. We're calling it Purity Culture 2.0, and it's found on YouTube and Instagram and in new books. What do these new-but-old messages have in common? How do they exhibit characteristics of purity culture from the past? Listen in to find out more. Take our *new* anonymous survey on premarital sex Full show notes here Partner with us for $3/month (USD) and get episodes of The Jess & Devi Show. This week it's a romcom recap of The Family Stone. Watch this episode on YouTube Instagram    Twitter

No chewed up gum metaphors allowed in this episode about abstinence. You'll hear the thoughts and lived experience of a single woman in her 30s who chooses abstinence now. What makes this abstinence different from the True Love Waits pledges of the teen years? How is it lived out when it comes to app dating in 2021? Kathryn Freeman has all the insights for us in this fantastic episode.  Watch this episode on YouTube Partner with us for $3/month. You get to hear our conversation with DeVon Wade also about abstinence, and why he chooses abstinence now. Full show notes here Kathryn Freeman is a leader, writer, and speaker at the intersection of faith, justice, and culture.Kathryn has a degree in English from Texas A&M University, a law degree from the University of Texas, and a Masters of Divinity from Baylor University’s Truett Seminary.  Kathryn is one half of the podcast, Melanated Faith, a conversation about race, faith, and culture from the perspective of two Black Christian women. She has written for Christianity Today, Christ and Pop Culture, The Baptist Standard, The Houston Chronicle, Think Christian, and Austin Woman Magazine. Connect with Kathryn on Instagram and Twitter.

A portion of our Partner-only conversation with fat activist Amanda Martinez Beck. Beck joins us to talk about fatness and sexuality. We incorrectly referred to Amanda as Amanda Beck Martinez throughout the episode. Her name is Amanda Martinez Beck. Partner with us for $3/month. Original Show Notes here Amanda Martinez Beck is a fat activist and author of More of You: The Fat Girl's Field Guide to the Modern World, coming in May 2022. She is the host of the Fat & Faithful podcast and has a passion for helping others learn about the goodness of their bodies just as they are, today. Connect with Amanda on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. You can find her Etsy shop here and join her Facebook group All Bodies Are Good Bodies. 

The conversation about human sexuality after purity culture is a conversation about bodies. All kinds of bodies. We know what our culture promotes as the "acceptable" body, but what does the church say? Is there a difference? And what does this mean for people who don't fit that mold? Fat activist Amanda Martinez Beck joins us to talk about fatness and sexuality, and we even get into the five myths about fatness and sexuality.  We incorrectly referred to Amanda as Amanda Beck Martinez throughout the episode. Her name is Amanda Martinez Beck. Watch this episode on YouTube Partner with us for $3/month. The Green Room is October 28/29, and we'd love for you to join the zoom call!  The call is October 28 9pm EST/6pm PST and October 29 noon Melbourne time! Full show notes here Amanda Martinez Beck is a fat activist and author of More of You: The Fat Girl's Field Guide to the Modern World, coming in May 2022. She is the host of the Fat & Faithful podcast and has a passion for helping others learn about the goodness of their bodies just as they are, today. Connect with Amanda on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. You can find her Etsy shop here and join her Facebook group All Bodies Are Good Bodies. 

Every month our partners get to hear us debrief purity culture in the news and pop culture that has purity culture resonance. This month we talk about: Lizzo's Ted Talk on the history of twerking criminalization of stealthing in California and the ACT SBC drama over sexual abuse coverups In The Heights, Impeachment, Dear..., and The Baker & The Beauty We get into what these stories mean for us and the world, AND we talk about why these shows are must-watchable. You get a teaser today, and if you like what you hear, it's time to sign up! Partner with us for $3 USD/month to get this full episode plus all the other fabulous episodes with guests, rom com recaps, and a ticket to the Green Room (next week!).

Purity culture told us to wait to have sex because one day (for sure) we would get married and have "really hot sex." Today we invite you to examine another aspect of the premarital sex conversation - celibacy. But let's re-imagine it with Pieter Valk and Dani Treweek, a therapist and a minister who are committed to living without sex as single people.  Full show notes here Watch the episode on YouTube Our partners get to hear exclusive audio from our conversation with Pieter and Dani - join us on the inside to listen.  Pieter Valk is a licensed professional counselor, the director of EQUIP (equipyourcommunity.org), and cofounder of the Nashville Family of Brothers (familyofbrothers.org), an ecumenically Christian brotherhood for men called to vocational singleness. He helps churches love gay people and celibate Christians find family. Follow Pieter @pieterlvalk on all platforms. Rev'd. Dr Danielle Treweek is a Christian pastor, leader and theologian with a ministry focus on biblical singleness, sexuality, worldview formation & other related topics. Dani completed a Doctorate through St Mark's National Theological Centre and Charles Sturt University. Her doctoral thesis is titled, 'The End of Singleness? Towards a Theological Retrieval of Singleness for the Contemporary Church'. She is an ordained Anglican deacon, has served on staff at a number of different churches and is the founding director of the Single Minded ministry. She has an upcoming book on singleness due to be published by IVP in 2022. Connect with Dani here, and find out more about Single Minded here

Our partners got our deep dive of the OG romcom When Harry Met Sally. This movie covers some of the topics nearest and dearest to the hearts of purity culture lovers, namely this big question: Can men and women be friends without sex getting in the way?  Is there a difference between Harry's beliefs and the Billy Graham Rule? We talk about it here, and today you all get a teaser. If you like it, maybe it's time to partner with us.  Join us for $3 (USD)/month and get all the other fabulous episodes of The Jess & Devi Show with guests, romcom recaps, purity culture in the news, and The Green Room. Partner here

Therapist and author Jay Stringer joins us today to help us address a listener question. "What do you think are the best concrete steps that men can take to retrain themselves to develop healthy relationships with women?" The answers are easier AND harder than you might imagine.  Hear what Jay has to say about recognizing our sexual story and its power over in Patreon for $3(USD)/month. Full show notes here Watch the episode on YouTube Instagram Twitter Jay Stringer is a licensed mental health counselor, ordained minister, and internationally requested speaker on the subject of unwanted sexual behavior. Jay holds an MDiv and master in counseling psychology from the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology and received post-graduate training under Dr. Dan Allender while serving as a Senior Fellow at the Allender Center. His award-winning book is Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing. Connect with Jay on Instagram and Twitter.

We are going THERE. This is the start of a two-part series about premarital sex. Today Matthias Roberts joins us to help those of you open to considering what breaking some of your former rules might look like.  (Note: In October you'll hear part two, a discussion about celibacy.) Full show notes here Join The Jess & Devi Show community as a partner, and hear this week's episode: Jess and Devi discussing the four paradoxes of sex outlined in Beyond Shame. You'll also get movie recaps, Devi Reads Jess The News (And Jess Tells Devi What To Watch), and uncut episodes with guests. Join today for $3 USD a month. Matthias Roberts is a psychotherapist, author of Beyond Shame: Creating a Healthy Sex Life on Your Own Terms (Fortress/Broadleaf, 2020), and host of Queerology: A Podcast on Belief and Being. He holds two master’s degrees, one in Theology & Culture and one in Counseling Psychology from The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. Matthias writes and speaks nationwide about the intersections between gender, sexuality, mental health, and theology. Connect with Matthias on Instagram and Twitter.